What is the one thing that we can do that doesn't cost us anything, but may get us plenty of visibility, support, opportunities and even money? It's something we don’t do enough of, and that is to "share our stories".

I wondered about this and asked myself why is it that we don't do this simple thing, especially when there are huge benefits to derive from it. I once asked an active member of our community why he doesn't share more widely his amazing work on the environment, and his response was not that different from others I've heard. One reason is that our culture "teaches" us not to blow our horns too loudly. Other reasons are that we don’t want too many people to know about what we're doing for fear of competition, for fear "they" might steal our ideas, for fear of reprisal, and sometimes it's the lack of access to cost-effective e-marketing tools, or simply not having a staff member whose job it is to write press releases, to send out regular communication and the like.

Help is here! The 11thdepartment.com was created to make it easier for Haitians and Friends of Haiti to share their stories, to leverage technology and the online community to broadcast their messages, projects, events, and more. We have created Members' Blogs, Forums, News, Surveys, Petitions, Donations, Stores, Classifieds, Testimonials, Forms, and others—all to make life easier for us to connect and communicate better. It all begins with sharing your story. The more you share, the more you gather support, partners, money, and interests for what you do.

Here are 15 ideas of things to share on the 11thdepartment.com:
1. Your activities in the Diaspora and in Haiti: Do you have a project? A new business you’re launching? Going on a mission? Let the community know.
2. Your needs if you are a non-profit organization, or a business looking for partners.
3. Events happening in your local community. Post your events on the 11thdepartment.com early enough so people can have time to decide and participate.
4. Your Press Releases—it’s easy to post yourself once you register on the site.
5. Participate in problem-solving in a Group that is in your sector of interest or expertise.
6. Create a Page for your business or non-profit and provide updates there.
7. Write a relevant Article on Haiti or the Diaspora and submit it for inclusion in the Articles section.
8. Tell us about an exemplary leader in your community deserving inclusion in the Who’s Who section.
9. Upload a Haiti-related Document to share with the world: it can be a brochure, catalog, letter, or short story.
10. Write a Testimonial about why you joined the 11thdepartment.com.
11. Invite your professional friends to join you on the 11thdepartment.com so you can work together with other like-minded professionals.
12. Upload your Resume so you can find the career or job you’ve been looking for.
13. Share Photos and Videos.
14. Share your Haiti traveling experiences.
15. Use our Forum to discuss the Haiti-DR issue.

The Forum section was specifically created for us to discuss current issues, such as the Haiti-DR catastrophe. Voice your opinion, as well as your recommended solutions. While it’s totally fine to gripe, it’s more effective and productive if we can collectively come up with strategic ways to solve problems.

Let the community know about what you are working on. Share your story. Together we are stronger.

Let’s Do It Together^TM!