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Archive - January, 2010

A “Mine” Attitude Will Keep You Underground

By Mike Sansone on January 29, 2010 in Brain Stew with 0 Comments

"Mine"

That attitude has sunk many business ideas in recent years. Maybe it worked in times past — but then again, maybe it didn't. These days, a "mine" attitude will slow you down and keep you underground.

A collaborative spirit, sharing ideas and building on the collective smarts make us all better. One might say "iron sharpens iron" or "together we're smarter" – and every one can find profit in some way by doing so.

Look, once you put your ideas out there on a blog post or Twitter, it's time-stamped (yours). But it's also shared with a ton of folks who believe – live and work by – a Creative Commons mentality (ours). What would Michael Jordan have won if he didn't learn to share the ball?

I'm not suggesting you give away the farm, and all your recipe secrets, but you'll get more if you give more.

As we move forward, I sense a larger danger in a "mine" attitude – alienation. Rather than looking brilliant, you may come across as selfish.

IDLFO Project: Sharing What You Read with Widgets

By Mike Sansone on January 22, 2010 in Books, RSS Feeds with 0 Comments

Have you ever noticed how the attention of new visitors to your home or office is drawn to your bookshelf display? The titles and subjects provide a quick conversation piece, but also shows commonality — possibly even discovery.

Likewise, sharing what you read online can be a great sticking point in building community with new visitors to your blog. It also keeps your reading organize (knowing folks are looking in).

Two widgets I've put into play on my new I Dunno, Let's Find Out site are a Slideshare favorites and a Google Reader Shared Items list. I will probably do likewise soon with my Flickr favorites and a VodPod widget

Scott McLeod recently offered up what he shares on Google Reader, broken down by category, and boy did I had a field day subscribing to many sites I hadn't known about.

So, here are four reasons to use these widgets (or even your own FriendFeed widget to show all you read-write-publish):

Build community through commonality
Be a resource to your visitors by sharing
Keep Found things Found
It's easy to do

So, what's in your bookshelf?

Other IDLFO Project Posts:
- Listen and Learn
- What's My New Site About?

Photo on Flicker by myself

Answers from Archives I Email the Most

By Mike Sansone on January 20, 2010 in Blog Coach with 0 Comments

How often do we get an email or phone call with the words "I have a quick question…" in the message? Thought so.

I've often said that blogging can synchronize our communication time. One of the ways is to use past posts to answer such questions. Here are the answers from the archives I email most often:

What's one thing I can do to improve my blog? Give Them Eye Rests
Why should I link out? Blog Posting Mantra #4 – One Link Out
How do I find blogs to link to? Discovery Along the Blogging Path
How do I put YouTube video (or Slideshare) in my post: How to Embed a Video
How long should my posts be? Less is More in Writing Blog Posts
What if no one reads my new blog? Can You See the Destination?
How much time should I spend on blogging? Social Media Success Plan: 6 Hours Weekly for 6 Weeks

If you don't have an archive of answers built up for you to send out, start answering the questions you get with a blog post — and then you'll have those archives. Next time you read or hear, "I have a quick question," you'll be ready with a quick answer.

Stamped Out? Enough of That!

By Mike Sansone on January 17, 2010 in Books, Education with 0 Comments

I’m loving Seth Godin‘s new book, Linchpin — and you will too. Though I’ve just started reading it, the pages are turning fast. Others are already talking about it all-a-Twitter.

In one part of the book, Seth talks about how our society, today’s business and educational status quo, is used to stamping out voices rather than letting the creative idea-flow flow.

Don’t let that happen to your organization. Together We’re Smarter.

In this fantastic time of voices shared, ideas built, and contagious creativity opening new possibilities – don’t stifle those around you. Rather, build them up and encourage their voices. Even if they are wrong at the start, their sharing will make their voices stronger – better – more profitable for all.

Some say that Seth’s books are all alike, just the title and keywords change. Not so with Linchpin. Get it as soon as it comes out — employ the ideas with and for those around you.

And put the ideas to work in your own life.

For me? Back to the book(s)

How Many Clicks and Scrolls is Too Many for You?

By Mike Sansone on January 15, 2010 in Blog Coach with 0 Comments

Think about when you read stuff on your computer. Especially the Internet. What's too long?

Copywriters (especially the great ones) will tell you clicks and scrolls will follow great content. Maybe. Or not. Want to write with the reader in mind? I'll give you a hint here: The three-letter answer starts with a "Y":-)

If you want go gauge how long is too long, think of yourself. What's too long for you as a reader? One click through? Less? How about scrolls. Three?

It's amazing how many readers we'd attract if we'd just learn to stop typing for a bit.

- Leave Some (S)talk for the Others
- Short Shots
- Think About it: Less is More in a Blog Post

IDLFO Project: Listen and Learn

By Mike Sansone on January 14, 2010 in Blog Coach, Conversations with 0 Comments

One of the reasons I launched my new learning blog site, I Dunno Lets Find Out, in a public way and so early in the buildout stage was so we can watch and learn (together) about the cultivating of that conversation … over here on this site.

Posts spotlighting the building of I Dunno Lets Find Out will start of with IDLFOProject (on Twitter, the hashtag #IDLFO).

Today's goals for the new site and its author is simple: Listen and Learn. It will allow us to get a pulse of the conversation and the community and then engage later. Listen, Learn, Respond.

Two things on the todday's to-do list:

Subscribe to the RSS feeds (and thereby creating an initial blogroll) of sites whose content is in a similar pattern of conversation.
Subscribe to the RSS feeds of search queries that would make for great conversation or content starters.

Knowing that at this stage, our blog, in a normal case, is still in a private state (two weeks of practice, remember?), our first step of public engagement is with our eyes and ears.

So today, find like-minded blogs and subscribe search results of key phrases.

What’s My New Site About? I Dunno, Let’s Find Out

By Mike Sansone on January 14, 2010 in Blog Coach, Conversations with 0 Comments

When I woke up yesterday, I didn’t have the domain name, the categories, the RSS feed, or the blogware. It was simply an idea – a blog about 21st century learning (not just the school kind – the lifelong kind).

For months I’ve been saying in various places: I Dunno. Let’s Find Out. Why Not?

So yesterday, I launched from scratch, a site by the same name: IDunnoLetsFindOut.com

Here’s a video explaining, in part, how the two sites will work together:

I wanted to accomplish three things with the new site prior to launch:

Pick the categories
Get the RSS Feed up
Write the first post
Tweet about it (Renda beat me to the punch!)

Here’s the thing: I started with nothing but the idea and plan. As with most business owners, my day was filled with (mostly) pleasant surprises, meetings, phone calls, admin duties and a few fantastic twists and turns. An hour in the early morning and maybe 90 minutes this evening – and I had what would suffice for soft launch.

And we’re going to chronicle the improvements on this blog as we go.

Don’t give me excuses you don’t have time. I didn’t have either. Will it work? Can it be sustained? Will anyone care?

I Dunno. Let’s Find Out. And hey….why not?

Revisiting Talent is Never Enough – Not Even for Your Blog

By Mike Sansone on January 11, 2010 in Blog Coach with 0 Comments

Reposted from August 2008

One book I always keep handy for personal and professional inspiration is John C. Maxwell's Talent is Never Enough.

As I was flipping through the pages the other day, I realized how the Table of Contents could be used for many areas of life. So, I've SCAMPER'd it to fit blogging, substituting the word Blogging in place of Talent:

Belief Lifts Your ~~Talent~~ Blog: Believe what you have to say is important. Believe that your imprint on a conversation already making the rounds adds to the mix. Believe in yourself.
Passion Energizes Your Blog: Let the passion in your heart be apparent in your blog voice. If your friends are tired of you talking about it, maybe you should blog about it.
Initiative Activates Your Blog: Just do it. Try something new. Take something old and make it your own. Great idea? Just do it.
Focus Directs Your Blog: A purpose-driven blog is one that is focused on the text, task, and talk. If you lose focus, check out Lisa Haneberg's lens to regain clarity
Preparation Positions Your Blog: With so many social media & networking widgets available, don't forget to adorn your blog with widgets that serve your purpose. (My recommendations are on my blog — take a look-see)
Practice Sharpens Your Blog:The more you blog (both reading and writing), the stronger your blogging muscles get. Sharpen those muscles with good blogging practice.
Perseverance Sustains Your Blog: Lack of comments, lack of visitors, writer's block, disagreements, software issues. Even Twitter goes down once in awhile. Stick it out. Remember, even a diamond is just a piece of coal that stuck to the job.
Courage Tests Your Blog: Are you a Thrill Seeker or Fear Avoider? Love growth. Embrace change (or else it will tackle you), because it's going to happen anyway.
Teachability Expands Your Blog: I say over and again (until I learn a new saying), Begin with a Learner's mindset. If you're not learning something from everyone and everything, you're one stuck schmuck.
Character Protects Your Blog: Even super heroes are human, but a strong character will see you through every blog storm.
Relationships Influence Your Blog: Often, Your Visitors Hold the Answers to what should happen next on your blog. And listening is a big part of conversational media.
Responsibility Strengthens Your Blog: You're probably going to make mistakes on your blog (if you don't, you're probably stuck in the mediocre zone). Own up, improve, and learn from them.
Teamwork Multiplies Your Blog: It is said that actor and audience both must take an active role for a play to work. Blog writer and reader play similar roles. Team is the theme. Eventually, roles may converge in larger projects, such as the Age of Conversation.

I'll add one for good fortune:
14. Vulnerability Humanizes Your Blog: The conversphere is a forgiving community. We've all been there. And the sooner you trust the community, the sooner the community will trust you.

What other additions might there be?

Related Posts about Talent is Never Enough

- The Practice of Leadership
- One Particular Harbour
- The Fitness Zone

Smudging Your Nose Doesn’t Always Right Your Face

By Mike Sansone on January 11, 2010 in Blog Coach with 0 Comments

Possibly inspired by my recent meatloaf post, a friend shared with me a story about her art classes.

When she was doing a lot of pencil drawing, she had pretty near THE perfect nose on the face of her drawing. Pretty near. She'd tweak it just to fix a nostril, or get the shade just right. As she got closer, she got further away. As she explains it, the more apply eraser to paper, the more smudge you end up having.

Too much touch? Just spill.

Photo on Flickr by shawncampbell