Tip: Try the socialmeter tool to determine what kind of love you're getting from social media hot spots.
They didn't tell me I'm a Social Media rock star - or much I didn't suspect already. But it did give me some indication about where I'm doing well - and not so well.
Not a bad investment of sixty seconds or so.
Leaking links today about - what else - connecting. And the information in Answers for Freelancers isn't just for freelancers.
Good solid networking information is included in every tasty morsel, and though all content is appropriate for freelancers, some of it works for a much wider audience.
"Networking isn’t about selling, its about connecting."
You'll find a whole cast of characters in this funny helpful podcast and blog. Sadly absent this year are the Guerrilla Marketing marketer Bobo the Guerrilla. But the merriment lives on.
I'm leaking links to all kinds of helpful stuff
In the "Well Worth a Visit" category of the Link Leak Virus series today I bring you: Basic Instructions.
One of the funniest and most true to life comic strips I've seen in a long time, I can't even look at "How to listen to other people's problems" - my favorite laugh out loud selection - anymore or tears start running down my face.
I even laugh at the line at the bottom of the page . . .
"Basic Instructions" is a comic strip. Any advice contained herein is intended as humor, and should not be followed as actual instructions or advice.
Obviously you just have to see for yourself, You could have missed the link I suppose, so here it is again. Get your Basic Instructions here.
Is it Thursday already? Have I leaked enough link love yet?
How about these three - all worth a read
Liz Strauss counts 10 Reasons Readers Don't Leave Comments
Angelo Racoma gives another perspective about Bloggers Unionizing
and Carolyn Manning educates with Thoughts on Mental Health, Addiction, You, And Me.
A little link love never hurts especially when on a search for more blogging material, blogging lessons, ideas to throw around or just good will. So here are my links to love today:
Twitter is like a big extended family. Although it ostensibly asks the simple question "What are you doing?" the quick 140 character entries, taken over time, build something more like a character sketch.
It lets me meet great geeky guys from Seattle and suburban soccer moms from Skaneateles. One of my favorite tweeters is a hockey mom from Massachusetts.
Well that's almost right. She's a mom, And an avid ice hockey player. So avid that she drove 7 hours with two children under two to play in a charity ice hockey tournament this weekend.
She does an imitation of a Robert Palmer girl but she's got too much personality to blend in.
Not satisfied to just house and feed two daughters under two she also wrangles two huge Leonberger dogs.
Without giving away all her secrets, what you might not find out about twitterer Pistachio is that in addition to dealing with children, dogs, husband and hockey pucks, she is a stroke survivor. Oh - and before that she studied writing with Carl Sagan.
More important that all that? When Pistachio tweets I smile. My hat's off to her every day of the week.
PS Pistachio consulting blog is a must read.
I love participating in Blogtipping and missed doing it last month. So this time I'm back with three goodies for you,
And I'm not giving any tips mainly because these offerings are so helpful without my pipsqueak remarks .
Just enjoy these great people and what they do.
Tippee #1:
Loudmouth Man, who I found through my social connector Chris Brogan presents a really insightful video take on Social Networking titled 5 Rules for Social Networks Optimization.
The presentation on Kyte is also accompanied by a chat panel so you can give your feedback.
Tippee #2:
In the Do It Myself Blog Glenda Watson Hyatt shares her experiences living with cerebral palsy to motivate and inspire others to think about how they perceive their own situation and their own world around them.
And she does all this by typing with only her left thumb.
Glenda Watson Hyatt was has a disability but is not her disability. She doesn't want special consideration, she just wants to be like anyone else.
And she wants others with handicapping conditions to know that they are just like anyone else too. That's why she entered the contest at blog for a year. She explains
"Since I was young, I have dreamt of having a regular column (then a newspaper column, now a blogging job) in which I share my experiences as a person living with a disability to show that I am more than my cerebral palsy; to show that I am capable of having a career, running a business, being married and owning a home, that I am interested in politics, global warming, and, heaven forbid, even sex, and that I have “normal” every day problems too.
"My reason for wanting to write this kind of column/blog is to alleviate people’s fears of those with disabilities in a non-confrontational and humorous way. Being paid to blog about this would be a dream come true and would fulfill what I believe is my life’s purpose"
I'd like to help Glenda achieve her dream. You can vote once a day until the contest ends at the end of the year. It's one time that "Vote early and vote often" is actually the thing I'd ask you to do.
Today every time we turn around we need to upload a photo. Facebook, twitter, ning; you name it. It's intimidating unless you've got the portfolio of a model.
Thanks to a tip from Becky McCray at one of Liz Strauss' Open Mic nights I came on a great website that offers 5 Steps To Being More Photogenic.
"Truth is, some people have a triggered response when they are in front of a camera. They do certain things that make them look better. You can also develop a triggered response that makes YOU look better."
The suggestions all sound easy to put into practice. I'm willing to give it a shot. And happy to pass on the link love to a helpful resource.
This post has nothing to do with me except for the fact that I'm a human being, And a mother. And a woman. And I want you to know about this.
Reprint from Toddler Planet, with permission of the author
Inflammatory breast cancerMonday July 23rd 2007, 3:11 pm"We hear a lot about breast cancer these days. One in eight women will be diagnosed with breast cancer in their lifetimes, and there are millions living with it in the U.S. today alone. But did you know that there is more than one type of breast cancer?
I didn’t. I thought that breast cancer was all the same. I figured that if I did my monthly breast self-exams, and found no lump, I’d be fine.
Oops. It turns out that you don’t have to have a lump to have breast cancer. Six weeks ago, I went to my OB/GYN because my breast felt funny. It was red, hot, inflamed, and the skin looked…funny. But there was no lump, so I wasn’t worried. I should have been.
Continue reading "You Don't Have to Have a Lump to Have Breast Cancer" »
Too many interesting things to link to yesterday, so today I'm offering up
Do your fellow bloggers a favor today and leak a couple of links to their blogs. Pass it on . . .
In the spirit of the link leak virus, I'm passing on links to some informative, interesting videos, blogs & what they've talked about recently
Do your friends a favor today and leak a couple of links to their blogs.
Pass it on . . .It's contageous
The first of the month rolls around and Blogtipping is again upon us.
Blogs tipped this month are
Blogtippee #1 Niche Marketing Andy Beard - by none other than Andy Beard
Tip: What more can I ask? OK, if I have to tip, I'm not so crazy about the text all being squashed up at the left side of the screen without an indent or left side white space of some kind. It's the design thing in me showing it's ugly head.
Blogtippee #2: Four Eyed technologist by Ryan Bretag who is also Second Lifer Existential Paine
Tip: The list of recent posts hiding away at the bottom of the layout may get missed entirely. I'd love to see them listed right up there with "categories"
Blogtippee #3: Mind Hacks from this group of six guys who know their stuff
Tip: I know trackbacks are a real bone of contention (and source of spam) these days. I'd still like to see them enabled.
When you visit these blogs don't forget to say I sent you. Then get out and tip some blogs yourself. Or just give your suggestions in comments on this blog. It's time to share the love, people!
Blogtipping, which happens accross the blogosphere on the first day of every month was started by Easton Ellsworth as a way to highlight blogs that you admire.
Tomorrow's the day, so to do your own BlogTipping you simply:
Why not get out of your comfortable neighborhood and go tip some blogs. The rewards are great for all concerned as your blog and those you tip join others at the BlogTipping keyword search at Technorati.
Find my tippees here along with others who've caught the Link leak virus.
There's lots of buzz for a simple website in connection with the release of Miranda July's new book: No one belongs here more than you (found thanks to Easton Elsworth of Blogtipping fame on twitter list.)
Yes I promptly put it on my Recommended list just on the basis of the author's inventiveness alone.
After seeing this ingenious piece of marketing I can't wait to see the book in person.
Who's praising the innovation & creativity shown? I found some other neat blogs just by following the chatter:
- Justinsomnia -> main page @ http://justinsomnia.org,
- the Know HR Blog, and
- the Marketing technology Blog are just a few among those who deserve a visit.
If you enjoyed this post sign up to get updates from feedblitz email when there's something new - Or get updates on your yahoo homepage or elsewhere here
The first of the month rolls around and Blogtipping is again upon us.
Blogs tipped this month start with
Blogtippee #1: Art of the Firebird by Julia Benson-Slaughter (feed)
Tip: I'd love to be able to send her trackbacks in order to have better connectivity. Oh - and it would be great to see a real "about the blogger" page for people who don't know her but would like to.
Blogtippee #2 Classical Bookworm by Sylvia (feed)
Tip: How about enabling trackbacks? It'd be icing on the cake.
Blogtippee #3: Ninth Day Design by ??? (feed)
Tip: I'd like to learn about the blogger, so having more information on the "About" page would be really super.
Why not get out of your comfortable neighborhood and go tip some blogs. The rewards are great for all concerned.
If you enjoyed this post sign up to get updates from feedblitz email when there's something new - Or get updates on your yahoo homepage or elsewhere here
Megan, blogging at Flaming Renaissance is promoting the Friday Felicitations Movement, saying
"Why is it we are so ready to remember those negative things we hear about ourselves and so quick to dismiss the compliments and offers of a step up in this world? . . .
. . . It’s time to help each other throw out all that negative thinking and acknowledge those things we have to celebrate. Friday is now the day to blog your compliments, your accomplishments, something nice someone said to you, or maybe even something you are stiving to make better."
Selfless promotion of someone else always struck me as reflecting just as much on the blogger as on the writer they're praising. So my Friday Felicitations go out to Flaming Renaissance for coming up with this way to shine a positive light on things in general.
This idea reminds me of Blogtipping, Easton Elsworth's brainchild from KnowMoreMedia.
On Blogtipping day - the first of every month - participants pick three blogs they want to "tip", then write three complements about the blog and add a tip - something they'd like the blogger to add or something helpful to the blogger.
Why not jump in and do your own blogtipping" To get you started, I've got some suggested jumping off points to take these ideas further or learn more:
My own Blogtipping entries and other promotions for other folks in the blogosphere can always be found by clicking on the Blogtipping / Indie Virus category link in the side bar of this blog.
If you enjoyed this post sign up to get updates from feedblitz email when there's something new - Or get updates on your yahoo homepage or elsewhere here
Today's Thursday Thirteen is a list of wonderfully readable blogs
1 - Appropriately enougn, in the first one Copyblogger - writes about List Posts
2 - Simplenomics is asking for questions about legal issues.
3 - It's Not About Your Stuff is about stuff and the management thereof
Blogtipping is contagious and spreading fast.
My first tippee for August comes from web design agency director Michael Rolph who packs double - maybe triple - power in Leverage Blog.
1.) The atmosphere is welcoming and commenting and TrackBack are functional. I like TrackBack enabled blogs because then I can let them know I'm talking about something they've written.
2.) "Simplicity" and ease of use are the words of the day at Leverage
3.) Michael conveys a practical, positive and clearly stated philosophy, i.e.:
"I believe the strength of America as a global business leader in lies in our ability to innovate."
I met Basil's sisters through his blog and it made me wish I had about six sisters. Brothers, on the other hand, I'm not so sure I'd wish for, considering what Basil's sisters have to contend with. He writes about them - and other things - referring to them as:
"the Little Sister, who's 6'0", the Mean Sister, who's 5'6" and the big Sister, who's 5'4""
What does this have to do with what I do? Or what does it have to do with blogging? I feel as if I "know" Basil better because I read these family snippets in the pages of his blog. And a feeling of familiarity between reader and logger is one way to encourage interest in the writer's blog.
Continue reading "The Secret of Building Interested Readers" »
It's blog-tipping eve and I can't wait for that to tell you about the insightful Linda at Auterrific. She writes a heck of a blog and lots of what she says gets me thinking.
"I’m going to stop having pre-conceived notions about my life, thinking that everything is no big deal…because things are turning out to be pretty big deals."
Sometimes we know it's a pretty big deal but won't admit it to anyone - including ourselves. Someone else can have these issues to deal with and we'll be glad to help them, be supportive of them, etc. We, on the other hand, are just ducky. No problems. All is well.
Continue reading "The No Big Deal of Pre-conceived Notions" »
To be listed below: choose a post from your blog that you think deserves to be highlighted. Then edit it to add a link to this post. Finally send a TrackBack to this post and wait for the magic to happen.
technorati tags: open+trackback trackback links The+Truth+Laid+Bear
This one is simple. If you're looking for pieces of fine writing, this is the place to find it:
Unburned Pieces of The Mind.
Zembla blogs shares stuff I need to know about grammar including the mighty semicolon. So be there; be square; or be improperly punctuated, people.
What do you want to bet I didn't construct that properly?
Jackie Huba at the Church of the Customer Blog says Evangelists work for free.
Evangelists spread referrals, recommendations and word of mouth freely because they believe in an idea, product, service or brand.
* Affilate program: Amazon Associates. Get paid for referrals.
* Evangelist program: Maker's Mark Ambassadors. Spread buzz freely.
If we are excited about something we'll talk about it without wanting anything in return - in contrast with affiliate programs where we're promoting something with the hope of profit at least on some level.
But how do things like blogtipping and the Indie Virus fit in here?
It's about conversations.
"If I had 10 seconds to tell the whole world why blogs matter to businesses, I would just say this:
Millions of people use blogs every day to read and share information and opinions. Why wouldn't a business want to follow and participate in that giant sea of conversations?
Thomas Silkjær at The Undersigned shares that along with several reasons why blogs can be important Aha! Conversations.
You probably have noticed that I include with my posts a number of links out to other blogs. It makes sense to me to share the information and I believe that when push comes to shove it's going to benefit all of us to link our readers to more resources than we can provide ourselves.
And that's even before John Scott offered $10,000 for to people who do just that!
John's an evangelist on linking - and understanding the importance of anchor text and inbound links . Apparently we're on the same page. In his post titled: Clean up on aisle three he says:
"The blogosphere grew on the basis of linkage. The tradition in blogging is to link to each other, to engage others in conversation. Nowadays we seem to be avoiding links like the plague, especially links to newcomers.
". . . . I propose a change in blogging. I challenge every blogger to post links to new blogs, unknown blogs and blogs not in the Technorati’s Top 100. And I’ll pay out a total of $10,000 to those who participate.
No kidding . . .
