Look, if you had,
one shot,
or one opportunity
To seize everything you ever wanted,
one moment
Would you capture it?
Or just let it slip, yo
- From Lose Yourself
If time and money were no object . . .
If enemies (within or without) couldn’t slow you down . . .
If you could change your world, no matter the size of your “W”
What would you be doing?
Go and do that.
Da da dum, da dum, da da da da
“The hospital room may be spotless and sterile, but birth itself will always take place amid chaos, pain, and blood.”
- Steven Pressfield in Do the Work
Conception can be a beautiful thing. Its newness. Untested. Plenty of promise, potential, and possibilities. Can you feel the breath of a sigh as we look upon it?
I wonder if the sigh is an “ooh-aah” or a sigh of relief. Maybe it’s a sigh to help brace for what’s to come.
The reality: Conception is Messy
Whether giving birth to a baby or launching a product, writing a book or getting a retail store ready for opening day – conception can be messy. And even after conception, we’re going to have baby messes.
When I moved this site from Typepad to WordPress (this is the first post originating on WP), it had been over a year of waiting for the the right time. When the trigger was being pulled – I was sweating. I had stayed up the night before – all night – making sure everything was perfect (ish). And guess what – even with imperfection all around – there was celebration yesterday when the switch happened. Elation, even.
Maybe you have an idea. For a company. For a book. A blog. Maybe it’s someone you want to meet. Something you want to tell someone. A new mission. A ministry. Whatever it is, put it in motion.
So remember this reality: Conception is Messy.
Now, go do something.
"It's a poor sort of memory that only works backwards" ~ Lewis Carroll
The best performers – be they athletes or actors, singers or speakers – visualize their successes before they happen. They "see" the actions and reactions in their mind's eye. Thus, when it's time to shine, they've already "seen" how things unfold (or can unfold) and they work from that.
In The Last Samurai, one scene shows the main character practice this "seeing" – first visually and then actually.
Produce your content with focus. See the message. Produce the message.
Whistle Stops are conversations, eye-openers, or tools representing the brain train discovered while traveling along the Conversphere. From business to education, life hacks to giving back, these are the posts and links that have in some way grabbed my attention this week!
Elsewhere:
Here at ConverStations (in case you missed it):
Putting a few pieces together on some of these “half-baked, half-blogs” . . .
Tethered to Always On
I left my iPhone in the car. At first, I thought “big deal” — at first. But then, I saw a great photo/story opp I wanted to share on Instagram . . . and reached for a device that wasn’t there. No problem. I noticed clouds overhead and wanted to see the radar . . . and remembered my phone, in my car.
I wondered how come my best friend hadn’t texted me yet, if I had checked in at my choice of workstation for the day, if the Pirates won. I wanted to listen to the book I had on Audible, check my balance in my bank, cross reference a Bible verse . . . but all that was in the car.
So many things one can do on a mobile device, from social to local, everything is becoming . . .
So-Lo-Mo, Joe
If you haven’t heard of the newest acronymn, you will – because it’s sticking around. Just like blogs were a handful of years ago, the Social/Local/Mobile (SoLoMo) push is gaining speed in usage, infosumption, and content production. By business and individuals.
And mobile apps are becoming so easy to create, every freelancer should have their own app. Of course, the more in-depth of an app you want, the more it will cost. And there is profit to be made on an app, especially if you . . .
Build Your Mobile Apps with In-App Purchase
I’m hooked on the Smule Magic Piano. It’s the closest thing to a game I have on my device. So relaxing. A free app, that gives away free songs daily. Yet it also has it’s best songs available for sale. Immediately. With a single click. This could get has become addicting.
I notice some of the most popular apps available are free on the download, then upgrades and additions are premium and available for purchase (freemium). These apps get the users in the habit of using – so much so that they become . . .
Tethered to Always On – I’m gonna go get my phone from the car.
Friday afternoons are often a bit more relaxed, but relaxed doesn’t mean lazy. The Strong-End Summits (videos that will keep brains and hearts afire) are a way to end our week strong and come back refreshed.
Maya Beiser’s presentation at TED2011
The 2Cellos (Sulic & Hauser) SCAMPER an anthem
One Cello – Four Players: Simultaneously
Those weren’t Mission:Impossible, but this one is:
I hear this question a lot. Usually about two weeks after someone starts a blog or twitter account.
"Am I Adding to the Conversation?"
It's a good question — and at the same time, a not-so-great question.
Really? What on earth do any of us think we can add to the conversation that will be mountain moving? After all, there's nothing new under the sun, hmm?
In some sense, no – none of us are able to add to the global conversation, per se. And what a freeing thought that should be to us.
And oh, the pressures of being eloquent, prize-winning prose-ologists . . . well, I get mental meditating on such massive machinations.
So now that we understand our words will hardly motivate nations or create cultural shifts or gaps in the ozone – now we can be free to just spill and see what transpires.
Write fast, publish bits and pieces, and by articulating what you're thinking — you'll get better.
All that said — yes. You are adding a great deal to the conversation. Because you're participating in it. If it's important to you, it will be important to someone else too. And there's always room for one more good one.
There's always room for one more good one.
Photo on Flickr by ohhector
Too many small businesses in rural areas are stuck in the yellow pages ages. As I drive through the rural towns of the Midwest and talk to mom ‘n pops around the country, they are at a loss.
Many small rural businesses think they have to compete with the big box stores (they don’t) and they have already developed a loser’s limp.
But there are some interesting statistics they may not know. Here’s what they should know:
30% of small businesses do not have their own website.
20% of all searches are for local businesses
40% of all mobile searches are local
Here’s what we might not know: We might NOT know if your business exists.
Are you findable on the web?
To get started – a single page (or “Shingle Page” as I call ‘em) can help get a footing to findability.
While cooking up some scrambled eggs, I looked in the fridge to see what I could add to the mix. Ham? Not today. Rice? Uh — no. Bell Pepper? Yes, that sounds good.
While folding the eggs (want fluffly? fold, then scramble), I wondered how scrambled eggs was like content marketing with social media.
"Are scrambled eggs like blogging?"
Maybe yes, maybe no. Ah, but the questioning itself . . .
The interesting habit many pick up after a few months of blogging is this type of questioning conversation in their mind.
"Is _____ like _____ ?"
Thinking in these metaphors, similes, and analogies helps keep our storytelling and storylistening fresh.
The world becomes a library as we walk the stacks of our life.
"The important thing is not to stop questioning. Curiosity has its own reason for existing. One cannot help but be in awe when he contemplates the mysteries of eternity, of life, of the marvelous structure of reality." – Albert Einstein
A few years ago, The Age of Conversation
My piece pointed towards how writing for the conversational reader was changing. While much of this style of writing includes what I call Eye Rests, my thinking is we need to write conversationally, not compostionally, dig?
The writing is easier. The reading is easier. And by the similarity, you will be more easily recognized in both your talking and your writing. Here's the piece that appeared in AOC I a few years ago:
Do You Talk Write?
Don't be nervous. It's okay. You don't even have to imagine your audience in underwear. It's not so bad, ya'know. Just put both hands on the keyboard and start talking…with your fingers. Write like you talk and more people will hear what you're writing.
If you're hung up on the advice of your English teacher, get over it. Either he didn't explain right…or he was wrong. Top Journalism professors have been singing the "write like you talk" mantra for decades. A few reasons why:
- People are more likely to remember what you've written.
- Because they remember it, they are more likely to share your thoughts with others.
- We live in the McNews generation. We scan. Lectures don't sustain our attention – neither do long sentences.
Writing like you talk can also be a freeing feeling to those who think they are poor writers. Of course, writing is a muscle that improves with consistent use. Here are a few exercises to build up those muscles.
Get to the Point: You can always elaborate as you get into the story, but unless you want to lose readers…get to the point likkety-split.
Pause on Purpose: How do you punctuate a pause when you're talking? With a sigh? Maybe a single word. Hmmm…how can we put this in written form? Oh…we just did, yes?
Read Out Loud: We've all seen this exercise, but do we practice it? If you do, one of two things will happen. Either you'll write like you talk – or talk like you write. For the love of Shakespeare, let's hope it's the former.
Keep 'em Moving: Your words. Your readers eyes. Like they're standing in line at Starbucks waiting for morning coffee. Keep them moving forward or lose 'em.
Listen, when your readers tell you they can hear your voice in the words – you've hit the target.
Still nervous? Don't be. Remember, you can always imagine your audience wearing a clown nose or something.
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