A 5-Star Accredited Chamber of Commerce
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UPCOMING EVENT
2020 Annual Meeting tickets are selling out - get yours today!
THIS FRIDAY, January 24, 5:30pm
Hilton University of Florida Conference Center
1714 SW 34th St, Gainesville
The Greater Gainesville Chamber of Commerce is excited to be hosting our 96th Annual Meeting on January 24.
This year, we'll have live entertainment from our master of ceremonies and award-winning recording artist
Billy
Buchanan! Be sure to come ready to dance. Cocktail
Join us as we celebrate the progress and prosperity from our members and our community in 2019 while sharing our vision for 2020.
We will honor our outgoing Chair, Bryan Harrington and officially pass the gavel to new board Chair, Nancy Eckert of LifeSouth Community Blood Center. Community leaders will be honored with the prestigious annual awards including the Chairman’s Award, Gainesville Citizen of the Year, Rotary Business in Ethics Award and Diplomat of the Year.
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UPCOMING EVENT
TODAY: Best Restoration Ribbon Cutting
Tuesday, January 21, 4 - 6:30pm
The Best Restoration
7230 W University Avenue
Gainesville
Join us to celebrate The Best Restoration's new location with a Ribbon Cutting Ceremony.
The Best Restoration was started in 2006 with one man and a truck and has since grown to over 30 employees and 24 trucks. They provide water damage clean-up, mold remediation and restoration services in addition to carpet cleaning, tile and grout cleaning, air ducts cleaning and upholstery cleaning.
Over their 14 years as a local business, The Best Restoration has worked with numerous non-profits including the United Way, GRACE Marketplace, Catholic Charities, the Boys & Girls Club, the Ronald McDonald House, the Salvation Army, St. Francis House, Peaceful Paths, Family Promise, and Tyler's Hope.
Enjoy drinks, hors d'oeuvres, speeches, and giveaways for the event.
The Ribbon Cutting will commence at 5:00 PM.
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EVENT RECAP
Foresight Construction opens new offices
Thursday, January 16, Foresight Construction Group hosted a ribbon cutting ceremony celebrating their new workspace at 3917 NW 97 Blvd. The new location embodies a continued commitment to success and investment in the Greater Gainesville region as the company serves the state of Florida.
The freshly-renovated offices feature innovative new workplace technologies and building materials, as well as a gym and bar area for employees.
Foresight Construction Group is a locally headquartered firm with three Florida offices: Gainesville, Tampa and Jacksonville. Committed to simplifying the building experience, President/CEO Juan Segarra founded the firm in 2008 offering construction services for education clients, soon adding construction management and design-build services for government, military, healthcare, institutional and commercial clients. The heart of Foresight is to be here long term — to create opportunities, help people grow, provide excellent service and make a positive impact on the lives of the people they serve. Their clients include NASA, Department of Defense, several major state universities, Mayo Clinic, Moffitt Cancer Center, local public and private school systems, the Tampa International Airport and UFHealth.
Foresight CGI has been recognized as one of the 2019 Best Small Companies to Work for in Florida (Florida Trend), the 2019 Supplier of the Year (University of South Florida), and the 2017 Small Business of the Year (The Greater Gainesville Chamber of Commerce).
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UPCOMING COMMUNITY EVENTS
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SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITY
2020 Sponsorships & Advertising Options Available! Announce Your Support for the Gainesville Business Community
Sponsorship and partnership opportunities with the Greater Gainesville Chamber are some of the best ways for your business to gain exposure in the Gainesville region. By aligning your business with a 5-star chamber of commerce with sponsorship or advertising, you help immediately grow your company’s prestige, reputation, exposure and bottom line.
The Chamber is proud to present the 2020 Circle of Champions, where business leaders receive premier marketing and advertising support to help grow their market share and support key initiatives at the Chamber. Through the Circle of Champions, businesses gain exceptional exposure throughout the year with a variety of benefits and price points to fit any budget.
Fantastic 2020 marketing and exposure opportunities, contact Steve Cannon, VP Member Development, at
[email protected]
or call 352.334-7127.
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UPCOMING EVENT
National Veterans Entrepreneurship Program
Application deadline: February 15, 2020
The National Veterans Entrepreneurship Program (VEP) provides a rigorous entrepreneurial learning and development opportunity for veterans with service-connected disabilities and those who have uniquely distinguished themselves in the military. VEP is designed for veterans interested in starting a new venture as a means to financial independence and for veterans who have an existing business for which they would like to increase profits.
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REMINDER
Hot Jobs through CareerSource NCFL
Each week, CareerSource North Central Florida staff members identify current
Hot Jobs that employers are eager to fill.
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To apply for jobs listed:
- log on to www.employflorida.com
- Click on “Job Search” under “Quick Menu” on the left side of the page
- Select “Job Number Search” from the menu across the top of the page
- Enter the job number from the list above in the “job number” box
- Click on “search”
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UPCOMING EVENT
Florida Museum to open new pollinator exhibit January 25
Saturday, January 25, 7 – 11pm
Florida Museum of Natural History
3215 Hull Road, Gainesville
The Florida Museum of Natural History invites visitors to “Get their game on” in the new “Amazing Pollinators” special exhibition opening Jan. 25, 2020. Guests can become their favorite pollinators and embark on up to 48 short missions throughout a colorful maze in this immersive exhibit that highlights pollinators’ benefits to earth’s ecosystems. A station outside the maze includes educational parlor games with a twist such as mason bee mancala and invasive species shuffleboard. Admission is $8 for adults, $7 for Florida residents and $5.50 for ages 3-17. Museum members and UF students with a valid Gator 1 card receive free admission. For more information, visit
www.floridamuseum.ufl.edu/event/amazing-pollinators
or call 352-846-2000.
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MEMBER ANNOUNCEMENT
Unbeatable Mind Program at Coach K's Sports Performance
Coach K's Sports Performance
519 NW 10th Street, Gainesville
Herb Kieklak (Coach K of Coach K's Sports and Performance) is now a certified coach in the Unbeatable Mind Program. This new method will further expand the reach in Coach K's Sports Performance.
The Unbeatable Mind Program is not just a mental strength exercise, but rather one that allows you to have better control over your mindset. This can be of use not only for you, but others who can learn from you. This approach is not just for athletes or people in stressful situations - it can be used to strengthen your mind and progress in everyday activities in the workplace and at home.
Take control of your mindset in 2020 - reach out or book an appointment today.
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MEMBER CONTRIBUTION
Amazing Lessons from an Antarctic Explorer
Speak Like a Pro
Saturday, February 7, 1 - 5pm
GTEC
2153 Hawthorne Road, Gainesville
Sitting outside in an unimaginably warm and beautiful January, completely devoid of snow, ice or windchill, I started thinking about Ernest Shackleton and the miracle he pulled off in frigid weather, in a wild and inhospitable environment. Could any of us do today what he did years ago and live to brag about it?
Few of us have to endure and overcome the constantly changing circumstances that explorer Ernest Shackleton did, and very few of us could have handled what started as a mission of exploration and became a mission of survival. Hailed as an exampleof what leadership is all about, I became interested in Shackleton’s almost mystical ability to survive, inspire and motivate others, and have listed here a few of the strategies he used to keep his men alive and focused.
Shackleton set sail on his ship the
Endurance
in August 1914 with the possibility of making history; he and his team of 28 men would be the first to walk across the continent, starting from the coast of the Weddell Sea, traversing the South Pole and ending up at the Ross Sea. He almost made it, but in January 1915 disaster struck; he and his crew got stranded in pack ice and trapped. His ship couldn’t move.
Not only were they stuck on the ship in cramped quarters until the summer thaw, but the ice weakened the ship, which began to leak. They had to abandon ship and camp on an ice floe.
Survival was built first on attitude, and everything else followed, once his men were in the right frame of mind. “Ship and stores have gone,” he said, “so now we’ll go home.”
Strategies Shackleton used to inspire his men:
· He convinced himself first that they really would survive. If we aren’t totally committed to the effort, then we need to stop and regroup; our commitment is the key to success. “A man must shape himself to a new mark directly the old one goes to ground,” Shackleton wrote. “I pray God, I can manage to get the whole party to civilization.”
· He changed the goals and rallied everyone around the new goals: He gave them a future-oriented focus and kept their attention on what was possible and doable despite the obstacles.
· He had an ability to respond to constantly changing circumstances. When his expedition encountered serious trouble, he had to continually reinvent strategies and keep his men believing in survival.
· He paid attention to the men’s emotional intelligence, insisting they socialize with each other after dinner. He required that each man maintain his ordinary duties as closely as possible and kept assigning new tasks, all in order to keep the men mentally active. Inevitably there were skirmishes and depression, and he quickly assessed how to handle each situation so negativity couldn’t spread.
Many years later men tried to replicate his journey and came up short. What he did was nearly impossible. He pulled it off not because he was an incredible athlete or sailor, but because he knew the power of building rapport and camaraderie among his men despite the circumstances. We do the same things today when we help people survive disappointment and challenges by refocusing attention and inspiring them to see a different and attainable vision. What worked for Shackleton is just as effective in 2020.
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