A young couple in the throws of love are lying on a leafy forest floor, gazing upward. “I love the way you laugh,” says the man. “It’s getting harder to laugh nowadays,” says the woman.

Thus begins a very short video on a new angle of birth control that you might not have considered. See our new video, “I’m tired of the Pill.”

Ever feel discouraged at what seems like dismal results of your hard work?

Some 13,000 people at a regional convention in Chicago this past weekend of the financial services company Primerica were treated to a big dose of encouragement.

It seemed more like a rock concert, with music, lights and rousing talks as dozens of some of Primerica’s most successful salespersons trotted up to receive awards.

Primerica, which one consumer advocacy website judges as a “solid, reliable company that stands behind their agents and its products,” is run by people who sell life insurance, mutual funds and other products over kitchen tables and in living rooms.

I was invited to attend the convention by my brother, who has been involved in the company for several months.  There were two main themes behind these short talks by members — work hard, and don’t get discouraged when you don’t see results.

It’s advice that could be taken by any salesperson or non-profit worker who is often discouraged by a lack of results.

“Recruit, recruit, recruit,” said an old pro from Tennessee, who was introduced as having about half the room as recruits in the group’s hierarchical structure. “Here’s my second secret,” he said. “Open your mouth.”

“Every day is a gift of God,” he said several times. The testimonies were sprinkled with references to God that seemed sincere — a refreshing surprise about a topic that isn’t touched on enough in corporate America.

So, persevere with unrelenting dedication - good advice for anyone who wants to do well what they are called to do.

All eyes were on Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor this week during her confirmation hearings, and she showed just how pervasive are online videos. She criticized the way people interpreted her public comment, seen on YouTube, to law students that the court is where “policy is made.”

The tape tells the truth. The exposure of such slips now are no longer dependent on the mainstream media - they can be put up by just about anyone, and then easily viewed by all. Indeed, her 35-second gaff was viewed a quarter of a million times, and this was only one of many copies of the clip showed on YouTube.

The Government Accounting Office is using YouTube to communicate with Congress and the people. Businesses are using online video sharing sites such as YouTube, and even companies such as Xerox are not too stuffy to make a humorous video to get its message across - and the video got 100,000 views in two months. Video cameras are now advertised with the feature, “uploads to YouTube.”

A new two-minute video produced by our company, TreeFrogClick, for the Peoria Franciscan Sisters attracted 300 views in its first four days. It could be that the video went “viral.” No, that’s not a disease, but it means that people told others about it and linked to it in their messages to friends.

We are planning to roll out another similar video in the next few days, and we have more in the works. Give your company or non-profit a visual presence with an online video.

Can it be? The FDA and 27 states have ordered a major pharmaceutical company to take back claims about their birth control pill, making Natural Family Planning seem all the more attractive. Read our story at Couple to Couple League of Chicago.

Yaz pill not what they say.

Think you might be pregnant? The very thought makes one’s heart beat. Read our ten-point checklist of signs that you might be pregnant at The Couple to Couple League of Chicago.

“I first realized my call to God’s service when I was only twelve,” writes Dario, now 16. Dario says he realized he had “a talent for understanding God’s works, a passion for Philosophy and Theology, and a love for the service of God.”

This candid account comes from a young man whose maturity seems well beyond his years. This and similar stories can be found on a new website started in February that comes out of the United Kingdom. The website doesn’t state which country it originates from, but it seems to serve those around the world.

The website, called simply, A Vocation to Be A Priest, says that it is “designed and run by teens who are seriously considering becoming Catholic priests.”

Decked out in greens, reds and browns, the new website of the Visitation Sisters draws the attention of all. We enjoyed making this site and invite you to take a look at it. The Visitation Sisters teach in their own girls’ schools throughout the country.

Sister Anne, of the Georgetown (Washington, DC) Visitation, with whom I have been working on the project, was happy with the outcome. She said, “This is very good — simple, clean, smart-looking and the message is CLEAR.  Good work!”

Thanks, Sister.

Check the site out at Second Federation Visitation.

When I worked as public information director for a Natural Family Planning (NFP) organization, I used to get snickers when I told others what I did. And I don’t mean candy.
Now, a survey shows that when couples understand how their sexual life is a communication of love, they take a real interest in NFP. See my article on the NFP Chicago website.

The colorful bride’s maids dresses sparkled in the afternoon sun, but the small dress shop was empty of customers.

“I don’t want a website,” the shop owner, a man in his 30’s, said flatly.

I said, “A website will bring in more customers — and young customers who are getting married are using the internet. Older people my age still rely on the Yellow Pages sometimes, but young people are looking on the net to find local businesses.”

The bright dresses, typical of the festive choice of the shop’s hispanic customers would look good displayed on a three-page website, I thought.

I’ve been making calls on Berwyn, IL businesses to tell them about my web design and promotion services, and am finding out a lot. Many shops up and down the main shopping street often have no customers when I walk in on a sunny afternoon, a symptom of poor economic times and, I think, just the difficulty of doing business.

Small Businesses Get Left Behind

I think these shop owners are just ignorant of the changing nature of advertising. But if they don’t act soon, they will be left behind. They should take note of the rising use of the internet.  For example, the number of Americans with fast internet access increased 15 percent over the last year, according to the Pew Research Center’s Internet and American Life Project. Sixty-three percent of adults now have access to broadband internet, even though the average cost of fast internet rose $5 per month in that time. That’s news, especially when we all trying to tighten our belts in these times.

“For many Americans, a home broadband connection is a conduit for connecting to community and economic opportunity,” said John Horrigan, of the Pew Internet project, as reported in the Chicago Tribune last week. “That puts broadband in the ‘must keep’ category for most users.”

Businesses and non-profits, take note: the internet is where your customers are. If you aren’t there, they will go to your competitors.

When Pam Williams, of southeast Michigan, received a blessing from Fr. John A. Hardon, S.J., she was moved to tears. Her experiences of meeting this saintly Jesuit priest before and after her conversion to Catholicism is one of the stories found on a new website that collects personal testimonies regarding the Servant of God, who died in 2000.

The purpose of the website, sponsored by the Institute on Religious Life, is to provide a public forum for individuals and families to share and submit stories of Fr. Hardon, whose cause for canonization has been formally initiated. The website, created by our own company, TreeFrogClick web services, features an on-line form through which stories can be submitted. Stories will be forwarded to the postulator of the cause, as well as made available to biographers and anyone interested in documenting his remarkable life.

Visit the website at www.hardonstories.com. The Institute on Religious Life (IRL) promotes and supports the growth, development, and renewal of the consecrated life — particularly vowed religious life — as a gift to the Church and an evangelical witness to the world. For more information, call Michael Wick, IRL Executive Director, at 847-573-8975.