Here’s my approach to blogging and social media in a nutshell…

“You’ve got to accentuate the positive
Eliminate the negative
Latch on to the affirmative
Don’t mess with Mister In-Between

You’ve got to spread joy up to the maximum
Bring gloom down to the minimum
Have faith or pandemonium
Liable to walk upon the scene”

Whether you’re a solopreneur or the ‘Director, Corporate Marketing and Brand Communications Worldwide’ for a large farm implement manufacturer you can use good, fast and cheap social media tools to implement the ‘Perry Como’ approach to publicizing your business. Did you find some great news about your company on the web? “Accentuate the positive” by posting it to your corporate blog. Is someone harassing you online? “Eliminate the negative” by posting positive content and feeding your fans. Get the picture? Old Perry had it right, even if social media didn’t exist in 1958 when he recorded that song…

So, you latch on to the Perry Como method when you think about promoting your own personal brand…

PS Originally posted 02/24/2010, updated 9/21/2012; still true over two years later…

Why should companies blog? (e1evation.com)

September 21, 2012 0

3 Mandates To Leadership And Becoming You

The Finerminds team shares this:

Who do you think you are? This is a question many people spend years, and in some instances, a lifetime trying to a establish (and accept).

Perhaps this is why this video has gone viral, because when looking for outside wisdom and answers to this very personal journey, not many people are better equipped to point you in the right direction than the legendary Anthony Robbins.

This 8-minute video, filmed at his cornerstone event, Unleash The Power Within You, explains the three important mandates of becoming a great leader (whether you’re a leader as a parent, an entrepreneur or of your body) – and just why the pursuit of happiness is not about changing yourself, it’s about being yourself.” via Anthony Robbins: 3 Mandates To Leadership And Becoming You (video) | FinerMinds.

September 19, 2012 0

Life Is Messy

“Control, or lack thereof, is one of the greatest sources of suffering.”

Maggie Lyon writes:

For someone like me, whom I affectionately call a control freak in recovery, with a chaotic walking-on-eggshells childhood, it is obvious why I became (in my teens) so obsessed with having maniacal control over all aspects of my environment. At age sixteen, the most obvious place to start was with my body.

If you haven’t read or heard by now, I became a major anorexic at this time. This brutally domineering mindset lasted on and off in bouts well into my twenties. I’d be lying to say its creepy little ways didn’t present in more feeble moments (and when I got severely ill) in my early thirties.

Anorexia is, of course, all about control, and it has, in various moments, thoroughly taken over my life by leeching out into arenas far beyond what went into my mouth. There have literally been times when I couldn’t stomach any kind of mess. If something didn’t fit into my intense vision of perfection, it got tossed, and fast.” Get the rest here: Life Is Messy « Positively Positive.

Me?

September 16, 2012 0

Heidi Cohen writes:

“Social media isn’t the holy grail,” according to Social Media Examiner’s Mike Stelzner, author of Launch: How to Quickly Propel Your Business Beyond the Competition, speaking at Content Marketing World 2012. At first blush this may sound ludicrous coming from the founder of one of the largest social media blogs but the reality is that social media isn’t a business goal!

Rather, social media is a conduit for delivering content to and engaging with your prospects, customers, fans and the public, and to answer their questions. To this end, Mike Stelzner recommended becoming a publisher in order to build your own audience cost effectively by creating valuable content for your target audience. This requires knowing who you want to reach and asking them what they want to know. Once you have answers to these two questions, it’s a matter of giving your audience relevant content that’s educational and easy-to-digest.

Otherwise, “social media is just talk without listening” in the words of Content Rules co-author, C.C. Chapman. Without taking the time to hear what your prospects and customers want to know, you’ll never create what Social Media Explorer’s Jason Falls, co-author of No Bullshit Social Media, refers to as “holy smokes content.” This information drives social media because it gets you in front of your prospects and customers by providing solutions to their problems. Therefore, optimize your content for people by using the words your audience uses to get found because your ultimate goal is to sell your prospects and customers your products and services, not just build a social media following as an end in itself.” Get the rest here: Why Social Media Isn’t The Holy Grail (& Neither is Content Marketing) | Heidi Cohen.

Who are the Top 15 Thought Leaders in Social Media Today? (windmillnetworking.com)
25 New Social Media Conversion Resources You Shouldn’t Miss (unbounce.com)
Zemanta at Content Marketing World: Oh Hi, Ohio! (zemanta.com)
4 Common Mistakes Companies Make When Mixing Social and Marketing (windmillnetworking.com)
8 social media do’s and don’ts to remember for your next social campaign (memeburn.com)
How Social Media Is Changing the English Language (and Why It Matters to Marketers) (marketingprofs.com)
It’s Alive! How The Social Media Monster Disrupts Employee Productivity [INFOGRAPHIC] (mediabistro.com)
Why You Shouldn’t Go Wild With Social Media Sharing Buttons On Your Site (socialtimes.com)
Intranet Governance in the Social Media Age (business2community.com)
How to Spot a Social Media “Expert” Who’s Full of It | Social Media … (socialmediatoday.com)

September 14, 2012 0

Get the rest here: Content Curation a Marketing Must – Content Curation Marketing.

September 13, 2012 0

Do the Work: An Important Message for Labor Day

Katharine Brooks writes:

As a career counselor/coach I listen to your ideas and dreams about the future. You have a project you long to do. It’s a screenplay, a book, or a song you want to write. You have an idea for a new invention or a new business you want to start. It’s that new job, diet or marathon training you keep thinking about. It’s that class you’d like to take or the commitment to something or someone important you’d like to make.Doing any of these activities will likely enrich and enhance your life. And that’s probably why you’re not doing them.

You’ll tell me about self-doubt, procrastination, fear, perfectionism, a lack of support from family or friends, and even how rational thinking stops you from going forward. But Steven Pressfield, in his marvelous book/manifesto Do The Work: Overcome Resistance and Get Out of Your Own Way, will drive a stake through all of that and tell you it’s simply Resistance. With a capital “R.” Get the rest here: Do the Work: An Important Message for Labor Day | Psychology Today.

Note: You can borrow this book free from your Kindle or purchase it for the low cost of $4.99 for Kindle software. Why not get it and read it today? It’s a quick but inspiring read…

September 3, 2012 0

Big Red

Photographer Bill Pevlor writes:

“This fireworks burst turned the water red. This was part of the 26th annual Shanty Days celebration in Algoma, Wisconsin – on the western shore of Lake Michigan.

The fireworks are launched from the pier and people line the shore to watch the fun. As you can see, I was positioned on the beach, at the waters edge. If you’re familiar with the area, you might recognize the Algoma lighthouse – it’s that little red dot on the far right of the photo, just above the water.” via Big Red | Pops Digital.

August 29, 2012 0

Lots of good stuff on content marketing and ‘thought leadership’ marketing…

http://storify.com/e1evation/the-best-of-e1evation-for-this-weekend-8-12-2012

August 12, 2012 0

72 Fascinating Social Media Marketing Facts and Statistics for 2012

Jeffbullas’s Blog

Get the scoop here: 72 Fascinating Social Media Marketing Facts and Statistics for 2012.

August 6, 2012 2

Letting Go

Melody Beattie writes:

Stop trying so hard to control things. It is not our job to control people, outcomes, circumstances, and life. Maybe in the past we couldn’t trust and let things happen. But we can now. The way life is unfolding is good. Let it unfold.

Stop trying so hard to do better, be better, and be more. Who we are and the way we do things is good enough for today.

Who we were and the way we did things yesterday was good enough for that day.

Ease up on ourselves. Let go. Stop trying so hard.

Today, I will let go. I will stop trying to control everything. I will stop trying to make myself be and do better, and I will let myself be.” via Just For Today Meditations » Blog.

When Things Don’t Work (toddlohenry.com)
Surviving Slumps (toddlohenry.com)
Withholding (toddlohenry.com)
Take a time-out (toddlohenry.com)
Letting the Cycles Flow (toddlohenry.com)
Living Our Lives (toddlohenry.com)
Sadness (toddlohenry.com)
Loving Ourselves Unconditionally (toddlohenry.com)
Figuring out God’s will (toddlohenry.com)
Letting Go of Self Doubt (toddlohenry.com)

July 27, 2012 3

Everything has beauty, but not everyone sees it

Everything has beauty, but not everyone sees it. – Confucius

via Everything has beauty, but not everyone sees it. – Confucius.

July 27, 2012 0

3 Steps to Fuel Your Creativity and Purpose with Exercise

Stepcase Lifehack

Get the scoop here: 3 Steps to Fuel Your Creativity and Purpose with Exercise.

July 25, 2012 0

…that works hard for you! From time to time, the clouds part and I realize that someone else may benefit from an approach that I’m taking. I put together some thoughts on tools and tactics in the screencast above. Here’s the Pearltree:

http://cdn.pearltrees.com/s/embed/getApp

Social curation is much more than just a market(gigaom.com)
The Unanticipated Benefit of Content Curation(bethkanter.org)
Zemanta as part of Lifestreaming workflow(zemanta.com)
Effective Content Curation for Higher Ed(socialmediatoday.com)
“Content curation is the natural evolution of our globally-networked consciousness. This sounds like…”(stoweboyd.com)

July 19, 2012 0

Healthy Boundaries: A Good Practice

Kristin Barton Cuthriell writes:

“Boundaries are those invisible lines that separate you from other people. When children grow up in families that practice healthy boundaries, these boundaries are typically passed down through generations. The same is true when individuals are raised in dysfunctional families that have no sense of healthy boundaries. These poor boundaries, too, are often passed down the generational line.

Poor boundaries are usually too rigid or too loose. Like a concrete wall, rigid boundaries keep people out. When a person is closed off with rigid boundaries, they do not allow themselves to become vulnerable, which makes true intimacy impossible.

People with loose boundaries have little fence or no fence at all. The separation between self and others is blurred. Individuals with loose boundaries do not have a clear sense of self. These people trust easily, disclose too much, have a difficult time setting limits, and often become enmeshed with others.

Healthy relationships require healthy boundaries. If you are aware that your personal boundaries are either too loose or too rigid, you can learn healthy boundaries.

The first step to change is recognizing that change is needed. What you do not acknowledge, you do not change.

What is a healthy boundary? Take a look.” Get more here: Healthy Boundaries: A Good Practice – Let Life in Practices.

Boundaries (teristeel.com)
A Better Way (toddlohenry.com)
How To Teach Children The Benefits Of Developing Healthy Relationships (howtolearn.com)
Personal Space and Boundaries in Relationships (bipolarlearningcurve.com)
Emotional Maturity, Boundaries and Why Most of the People You Know Aren’t Actually Adults (goodmenproject.com)
How to Draw the Line When You Have No Idea Where to Put It (toddlohenry.com)
Why Saying No in Your Relationship Is a Good Thing (psychcentral.com)
“Yes” Doesn’t Count if you can’t say “No” – Why Clear Boundaries are Important in Intimate Relationships (psychologytoday.com)
The Benefits of Establishing Boundaries (rhachellenicol.com)
How to Build Beautiful Boundaries (powerofslow.wordpress.com)

July 16, 2012 3

The Grass Is Greener Somewhere Else . . . NOT!

Tony Meindl shares some great insight here:

The grass is greener syndrome.

If you suffer from it, it’s yet another way of postponing your life. Putting the things you desire on the back burner. When we covet another person’s journey, we think if only we had what they had, our life would be more fun. Or more exciting. Or more magical.

Your life already is magical.

We’re just not awake to it, so it feels as if we’re moving around in a monochromatic haze while everyone else seems to be living in Technicolor.

That’s the illusion.

The truth is that your grass is very green. It’s lush and tropical and exotic and fertile and full of possibilities. But it requires you to fully embrace it. All of it. Even the stuff you don’t like, because actually, that’s the stuff that becomes the catalyst for change.

That stuff is your grass’s fertilizer. It’s the essential stuff needed for your growth and expansion. And it holds the potential to unlock the doors you’ve shut to the things you’re seeking: your joy, your passion, your peace of mind, your self-acceptance.

We can never get to where we’d like to be except by starting in the place we’re currently residing – emotionally, psychologically, spiritually. There’s no escaping you.

Wherever you are, there you are.

We can move to another city, or get another girlfriend or change jobs, but the common denominator in all these experiences is you.

So if you don’t like where you are, then change who you are. But don’t think that being somewhere else, or having a different lover or having a career like someone else is the answer.

The transformation occurs from the inside out. Not the outside in.

Start with your stuff. And watch how green your grass will grow.

Source: The Grass Is Greener Somewhere Else . . . NOT!

I’ve always heard that the grass is greener where you water it! Take care of your own lawn today…

July 16, 2012 1

When Things Don’t Work

Melody Beattie writes:

Frequently, when faced with a problem, we may attempt to solve it in a particular way. When that way doesn’t work, we may continue trying to solve the problem in that same way.

We may get frustrated, try harder, get more frustrated, and then exert more energy and influence into forcing the same solution that we have already tried and that didn’t work.

That approach makes us crazy. It tends to get us stuck and trapped. It is the stuff that unmanageability is made of.

We can get caught in this same difficult pattern in relationships, in tasks, in any area of our life. We initiate something, it doesn’t work, doesn’t flow, we feel badly, then try the same approach harder, even though it’s not working and flowing.

Sometimes, it’s appropriate not to give up and to try harder. Sometimes, it’s more appropriate to let go, detach, and stop trying so hard.

If it doesn’t work, if it doesn’t flow, maybe life is trying to tell us something. Life is a gentle teacher. She doesn’t always send neon road signs to guide us. Sometimes, the signs are more subtle. Something not working may be a sign!

Let go. If we have become frustrated by repeated efforts that aren’t producing desired results, we may be trying to force ourselves down the wrong path. Sometimes, a different solution is appropriate. Sometimes, a different path opens up. Often, the answer will emerge more clearly in the quietness of letting go than it will in the urgency, frustration, and desperation of pushing harder.

Learn to recognize when something isn’t working or isn’t flowing. Step back and wait for clear guidance.

Today, I will not make myself crazy by repeatedly trying solutions that have proven themselves unsuccessful. If something isn’t working, I will step back and wait for guidance.” via Just For Today Meditations » Daily Recovery Readings – June 28, 2012.

July 6, 2012 0

Fireworks Displays Gone Horribly Stupidly Wrong

Get more here: Fireworks Displays Gone Horribly Stupidly Wrong | Happy Place.

July 4, 2012 0

Musings during a power outage

Jon Swanson writes:

I walk into the bathroom and turn on the electric switch. Nothing happens. For three days nothing has happened. I know the power is out. I still reach for the switch. Habits are strong.

The computer is off. I walk past my office and look at the screen. It’s still off. I still look.

I think often about wanting time to read and to write. With no access to Internet and no power for television, this would be a perfect opportunity. But I can’t sit still. I can’t let what might happen tomorrow simply happen tomorrow.

It is remarkably easy to blame the rough-running of the neighbor’s generator for the rough-running of my thoughts. And then to generate a low-voltage current of blame that wears down my motor.

It is hot, I suppose, but exercise will make me perspire anyway. And might help alleviate the uncertainty about when the power might come on. Instead, I wait for what might happen. I wait for a day, then another.

It seems that my agenda is more driven by the tools that are working than I thought. I could be working and resting, following the daylight, enjoying the restoration than can come from disconnection. Instead, I am feeling disconnected.

I am grateful for what I am learning about ingratitude during this time. We have water. We have hot water. We have a grill. We can even use the stove (if I light it manually). We have a frenchpress for coffee. Our house wasn’t hit by any trees.

I read from Acts on Sunday morning. I realized that the early church never cancelled services because the electricity was out. It was the right choice for our church on Sunday, but I’m thinking a lot about how much I depend on the wrong energy sources.” via Musings during a power outage. | 300 words a day.

Hmmm. We live in a rural area so when our power goes out, we lose our water too making it even harder to be grateful. Still I love Jon’s perspective…

July 3, 2012 0

Don’t Should on Yourself

Is expectation keeping you from living your most authentic life?

Our upbringing, the media, our friends, and our selves are all constantly pressuring us for more, better, or different.

“By now, I should ________.”

Many of my patients finish that sentence with:

be married

have more money

have children

be happy

have better work

be having fun

be on vacation

be retired

own a home

have no debt

feel better

It’s one thing to recognize something as uncomfortable or as going against your desires. It’s an entirely different thing to witness this “bad” thing and then, on top of it, judge yourself for the existence of this “imperfection.” Now, this one weight upon your mind has become two. And this can snowball if you consciously know that you’re judging yourself, and then—you guessed it—you start to judge yourself for judging yourself. Since we’re all striving to feel comfortable in life, why create all this undue pressure?” Get more here: Don’t Should on Yourself « Positively Positive.