ConverStations

Celebrating Blogging with BlogDay 2008

Today marks the 4th annual BlogDay, a chance to share and celebrate new or unknown blogs with your community. Similar to BlogTipping (do we still do that?), BlogDay extends the conversation and magnifies the voice of others.

So here's 5 blogs I'd like to celebrate with you:

• Merge Today by Cory Garrison - one of the most contagious, infectous, generous people I've ever met (ok...I absolutely love this guy!).  He's a true relationship builder offline. And now, he's finally got a blog of his own. Can't wait for him to start video blogging.
• After the Launch by Shama Hayder - if you're on Twitter or FriendFeed (and why not?), you probably know Shama. She's a forward thinking cheerleader and SCAMPERs with the best of 'em.
• Andy Drish by Andy Drish - If he goes public, I'd buy stock in him right now! He listens, learns, and then implements and shares.
• IQ Matrix Blog by Adam Sicinski - Sometimes he makes my brain hurt -- but struggle sits at the doorstep of breakthrough, right? And Adam warns of a potent mix of content to help boost our brainpower.
• The Donor Power Blog by Jeff Brooks - So many non-profs can benefit from Social Media. Some are blogging but still aren't reaching the community they need to reach, offline or online. Jeff's blog is a must read for these folks.

Happy BlogDay2008

That's My Take. What's Yours? Comment Here.

March Reflections and Gratitude

Reflections on March this and past:

Top Posts: March 2008

- Twitter + Yahoo! Pipes = Signal
- What Time do You (RSS) Feed Your Audience?
- Why I Use Twitter - Increase Infosumption Without a Headache
- Do You Talk Write?
* Special Thanks to those who sent well-wishes during my Long Walk on a Short Pier

Top Posts: March 2007

- Are Your Links Getting Clicked?
- Twitter as a Business App? Create a Plugin Panel
- Hey Blog Coach: What About SEO?
- Brand You with a Blog

Top Posts: March 2006

- Search Once and Subscribe
- A Blog Posting Mantra
- Blogging Has Two Roles
- The Fear of Business Blogging

Commenters: Angela Maiers (3), Search Engine Optimization Journal (3), Brick Marketing (2), Joanna Young (2), Ted Demopoulos (2), Chris Brown (2), Sherry Borzo (2), Valeria Maltoni (2), Chris Punke (2), Orgawell (2), Land Projects UK (2), Gavin Heaton, Drew McLellan, Ryan Karpeles, Dan Schawbel, Michael Martine, Larry Hendrick, Jay Ehret, JD Lasica, Robyn McMaster, Ellen Weber, Ike Pigott,  Debra Helwig, Tom Green, Teresa, Andrew Clark, Ken Burbary, Sue Waters, Delaney Kirk, Cherice Montgomery, Steve Roesler, Heather D, Phil Gerbyshak, Whitney Hess, Scott Phillips, Mack Collier, Mike Wagner, Douglas Karr, Janet Green, Webster Jorgensen, Barbara Ling, Geoff Livingston, Allan Jenkins, Toby Bloomberg, Terry Starbucker,  Elizabeth Helfant, Debra Murphy, Lisa Neal, C.B. Whittemore, Becky Carroll, Joe Tech, Mark True, Anil Wadguhle, Tony Hirst, Mike Templeton, Patricia Donaghy, Andraz, Blog Marketing Journal, Pay Per Click Journal, Sembach, Jim Lyons, Joyce Paisley, Martin, Tom, Alexina, Pat, Lisa.

 

That's My Take. What's Yours? Comment Here.

February Reflections and Gratitude

Reflections on February this and past:

Top Posts: February 2008
- Feed Reading Strategy: Skim, Scan & Save
- Typepad Blogs: Create a Table of Contents Page
- Don't Blow Your Wad in One Post

Top Posts: February 2007
- Porch Your Elevator Pitch
- "But it's Just a Blog"
- Surf Smarter With These Buttons
- A Blogger, a Baker, and a Relationship Maker

Top Posts: February 2006
- Purpose Driven Blogging
- I Hear a Train a Comin'
- Forget the Technology, Remember the People

And a big thanks for those linking here and commenting on posts this past month:

Linksters: CK's Blog, Sticky Figure, Blogger Social, JournaMarketing, Media Bullseye, B2B Tomnorrow, Angela Maiers, Greg Verdino, Drew's Marketing Minute, The Viral Garden, Servant of Chaos, Moda di Magno, LavaRow, Kara Soluri, BuzzTracker, Express Marketing Memo, Marketing Lens, BrainBasedBusiness, Snap Creative Works, Branding and Marketing, Ask Dr. Kirk, Le Journal du Blog, DSMBuzz, TzuVelli, Web Metrics Guru, Pro Bloggers Matrix, JoeTech, PR Meets Marketing, Mediator Tech, Diva Marketing Blog, Rita Perea, IowaBiz, BNG Iowa, Big Dream Gathering, Mighty Blogger, Music Matters,  
 

Commenters: Joanna Young (4), Dan Schawbel (4), C.B. Whittemore (2), Cam Beck (2),  Toby Bloomberg (2), Ginger Johnson (2), Laura Spencer (2), Webster Jorgensen (2), Blog Marketing Journal (2), Sueblimely, Drew McLellan, Jeremiah Owyang, David Armano, Scott Ginsberg, Geoff Livingston, David Zinger, Chris Brogan, Shama, Hyder, Andy Sernovitz, CK, Steve Roesler, Gavin Heaton, Thomas Clifford, Ann Handley, Bill Geist, Daniel Honigman, Ryan Healy, Robyn McMaster, Janet Green, Matthew Griffin, Valeria Maltoni,Becky Carroll, Shari Voight, Doug Mitchell, Delaney Kirk, Martin Welch, Terry Starbucker, Scott Phillips, Brick Marketing, Social Marketing Journal, Sampath, DaltonsBriefs, Troy Worman, Sherry Borzo, Mike Templeton, LinkerJPatrick, Margeurite Manteau-Rao, Land Projects UK, Jay, Julie, Jason, Jessica,
 

That's My Take. What's Yours? Comment Here.

Spring Training: All-Stars in the Conversphere

With blizzard warnings and white-out conditions in Iowa, and ballplayers reporting to Spring Training this week, I thought it might be fun to name a team of all-stars of the conversphere (h/t to Tony Clark for coining that term). This is my A-team (must reads)

Catcher: Robin McMaster & Ellen Weber  - A lefty-right platoon here.  Not bats or throws left righty.  But lefty-righty brains.  These two are always talking about brain-based stuff.

1st Base: Steve Rubel - A master at handling all the incoming news, hacks and tidbits.

2nd Base: Drew McLellan - Versatile. A team-builder and player, always giving his all. A co-creator of both Age of Conversation and Blogger Social.

Shortstop: Scott Ginsberg - Another core up-the-middle blogger, especially now with the NametagTV

3rd Base: Jeremiah Owyang - Handles the hot corner (and topics) with aplomb. Often on the move, connects as well offline as he does online.

Right Field: Leo Babauta - The rookie on my team (list). Informative and balanced reading.

Center Field: David Armano - The anchor on my list.  Used to be my MVT (Most Valuable Twitterer), but has been replaced there by @jowyang

Left Field: Paul Williams - Dig the design and content. When I need an idea, I steal / modify / adapt / whuddevah from this site.

Pitcher: Joanna Young - Delivers from many different sites, including Joyful Jubilant Learning, The Calm Space and BusinessBlogAngel. Also all over the commentesphere.

Bullpen: MarketingProfs Daily Fix. A team of versatile and savvy and witty marketing bloggers. Every bullpen needs this kind of depth in their pen.

Bench: Copyblogger - This used to be a Brian Clark only project, but now a cadre of copywriters and wordsmiths contribute

Manager: The Slackers

Mascot: The Purple Cow man himself.

Money Man: Fred Wilson - Golden touch and a great ear for music.

Traveling Secretary: Bill Geist - If there is ever a CVB for the blogosphere - this guy should run it.

As a fan of the Pittsburgh Pirates (yes, they still play ball), maybe I can convince ownership to put these folks on the field.

Photo on Flickr by ian_ransley

That's My Take. What's Yours? Comment Here.

Alltop Covers the Egosphere

Alltop is a new project from Guy Kawasaki and the Truemors team.

I especially enjoy the the Egos section because it has many of the blogs I read (Armano, Maltoni, Owyang, Godin and others) with their most recent headlines.

Here's what I don't like so much:

• I can't move things around to suit my wants. I don't need to read Rosie, but I would like to put Andy Sernovitz higher up.
• There is not an Education section, though I guess it could end up in Science
• The branding bar knee-high on the screen?  What's that....like a tripwire or something? It's more hurdle then helpful.
• I will become totally addicted to the Sports section. 

All-in-all, this has potential. I'd be willing to create some sort of profile and give personal info to be able to do mash some of these into my own Alltop page, but I guess that's what PageFlakes is for, hmm?

That's My Take. What's Yours? Comment Here.

January Reflections and Gratitude

Reflections on January this and past:

Top Posts, January 2008:
One Post - One Point: A Worksheet
The Four Resources Model in Social Media
Hey Blog Writer, One Post - One Point

Top Posts, January 2007:
5 Reasons Your Company Should NOT Have a Blog
Thin Slicing: Blink from a Blog Coach
Engage with Your Marketplace

 

And a big thanks for those linking here and commenting on posts:

Linksters in January: BrainBasedBiz, Virtual Hosting, Marketing Profs Daily Fix, FocalPoint Multimedia, The Viral Garden, Wishful Thinking, Snap Creative Works, Express Marketing Memo, Sticky Figure, Moments of Clarity, Purple Wren, Daniel B. Honigman, The Opinionated Marketers, The Engaging Brand, The Marketer, Angela Maiers, Comedy Plus, IowaBiz, BlawgIT, Binary Blonde, Techbays, Nathan Snell, The Marketing Spot, Business and Blogging, Customers Rock!, Flooring the Consumer, Media Hunter, Confident Writing, Personal Branding Blog, Cheap Thrills, Business Blog Angel, The Marketing Blog, Bridges Financial, Web Jungle, eContent, Mary Schmidt, Living Light Bulbs, QAQNA, BeatCanvas, Speaking of Experts, DMWeblife, Moment on Money, Terry Starbucker, Leadership and Other Ramblings, J. Erik Potter, ProcessGeek, diunSA, Carpe Factum, Jann Freed, Blog del Directorio Dofollow

Commenters in January:  Dan Schawbel (4), Cam Beck (4), Joanna Young (3), RobDogg (2), Connie Reece (2), Anna Farmery (2), Nathan T. Wright, Doug Mitchell, Webster, Eamon, SEOLine, Executive Coaching Sessions, Becky Carroll, C.B. Whittemore, Toby Bloomberg, Rowdy Racing, Director Tom, David Zinger, Char P., Mary Schmidt, Jamey Shiels, Ian McKenzie, BlogAngelTeam, Sandy, Laura, Robin Matuk, GutMoney, Martin Welch, Jen, Zane Safrit, Larry Lehmer, Valeria Maltoni, Ginger Johnson, Teresa, Timothy Johnson, Jeremiah Owyang, Phil Gerbyshak, Jackie Huba, Spinning Silk, Glenn Ross, Mark Anastasi, Tom Swartwood, Rajesh Setty, Angela Maiers, Rush Nigut, Kevin Eikenberry, Mitch Matthews, Amy, Andrey Po, Delaney Kirk, Sherry Borzo, David Anderson, Natalie, John Windschittl, S.P. Sir,

Thank you!

 

That's My Take. What's Yours? Comment Here.

January Blogtipping - Let's Make Music

Along with Running, one of my other new habits will be learning to play the piano this year. I've purchased the keyboard (a steal of a deal) and look forward to its arrival. Until then, I thought I'd brush up on some musical blogs...and I found some worth tipping:

• Music Matters: Natalie!  I'm so gonna love this site. Tons of great resources and depth. Suggestion(s): A bio? 
• Para las seis cuerdas: Guitarist Montserrat Ardèvo offers thoughts, video and audio lessons. Also can be found at MontsGuitarSessions. Suggestion(s): Put that great smile found on the about page front and center.
• Pianologist: A team effort with a learners mindset, I am really going to get into this one.  Great design, lots of updates, resourceful. Suggestion(s): Audio available?

I'm going to live in 2008 by dancing like no one is watching (though I've always done this), love like I'll never be hurt (this too), sing like no one is listening (yep - this three) and play music like I'm deaf -- until I get it down.

Let's make some music!

That's My Take. What's Yours? Comment Here.

I Love My Blog

I really dig when my students say, "I Love My Blog!" Thankfully, it happens more often than not. It means when they find a Baby Blog mess, they won't be throwing the baby out into the blog waters. Those who don't "love" their blog (or at least the effort), probably aren't going to last long at the blogging wheel.

I really love MY blog. Today, its role as a personal assistant and thought librarian was evident. For some reason, I lost all the links in my Firefox Bookmarks toolbar. Not a problem, since I posted about those earlier this year, I just went and grabbed the post Surf Smarter with These Buttons. I use these buttons multiple times throughout a day, so I'm glad for the quick fix (I Love You, Blog!)

Sure, sometimes my blog and I get argumentative with each other. And there are times when we've had to do some makeshift blogging. But the inclusion of my calendar last year has saved me countless hours and emails. A few folks have told me they've checked my RSS feed on their mobile just before calling me (nice!).

Now, back to work on that Glossary and Table of Contents I promised my blog for Christmas.

So, we've seen "Why I Blog" posts -- but lemme ask ya this -- Why Do You Love Your Blog? And while I love comments...your response should go on your site. Give it the love it deserves.

That's My Take. What's Yours? Comment Here.

Do You Know an Outstanding New Blogger?

I love what Troy Worman is doing with his Outstanding New Blogger awards. What a way to catapult a new blogger into Orbit Now ('scuse the pun, Troy).

Especially great was how one of my favorite students (Angela), one of my favorite hugs (Wendy) and one of my favorite readers (Joanna) were each recognized. I also had the chance to peruse through the topography of Ron Bland's The Road Map

We can learn much from those new to the blogosphere.  They have

• the curiosity of a new journey,
• the exhilaration of someone far and unknown commenting
• the rush from finding that someone links to a post
• the realization that - yes - their voice is as important as the next person.

Based on Troy's qualification as being less than a year old, I'll ask that he consider these folks;

• Litemind - Exploring Ways to Use Our Minds Efficiently
• ThoughtSparks - Igniting Ideas for the Common Good
• ZoomStart - Create some ZoomStart

Because of my bias, I'll refrain from nominating my own students Moment on Money and Runners Lounge (but you can nominate them for me:-))

That's My Take. What's Yours? Comment Here.

Lost in the Archives

I have a collection of blog posts in the Itinerary section, and a smaller collection for Newcomers to Blogging. Here are a few posts that may have gotten lost in the archives - worth dusting off for a read:

• Blog Whisper: Fascinating Rhythm (Jun 06)
• Companies Don't Blog - People Do (May 06)
• The 6 Ps of BizBlog Practice (Apr 06)
• What's on Your 'To Cause' List? (Apr 06)
• Forget the Technology, Remember the People (Feb '06)

What's in Your Blog Archives?

That's My Take. What's Yours? Comment Here.