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Thoughts and things I care to shareDefining Your Role
I want you to succeed.
Whatever it is you’re passionate about and want to do – I want you to succeed.
For many of us it’s our career. You know that 9 to 5, Monday through Friday effort that allows us to support our families and obtain our dreams. Yeah, that one.
There is something that I wanted to share on that front, and hopefully it’ll help a bit. I want you to define your role. Define your role in your department, and in the organization as a whole. It could be in the company you work at today or the one you want to work for tomorrow. You need to take an active part in defining what you offer, and what what you bring to the mix.
Don’t allow yourself to be typecast or pigeonholed. Letting other people define the boundaries of where you’re supposed to participate or allowed to participate is unacceptable. You alone have that right.
You have the ability set boundaries and goals. You have control of the decisions that move you forward or backward. By defining your role, you establish your voice. By being vocal and establishing a presence, you have the means to share your perspectives and expertise in any situation your role lands you in.
Its not easy and it can be a little scary when first starting out, but the rewards are unending. Its also up to you to fulfil the role you define, but that sholdn’t be difficult because the definition of success and failure is also within your control as well.
Take that step to define your role in life, in work, and in the success that you want. Without figuring out what you want from your efforts, and what you want for your family, it’ll take a lot longer to get to your definition of success.
I want you to succeed.
Photo Credit: yeah buddy!
Gen Y – The Return of Values?
I sometimes refer to myself as a closet sociologist, mostly because I find myself looking at some of the outcomes of social media. Sure, I’ve always got “SocMed” on the brain! The past many years, I’ve been observing a few side affects of the evolution of the social web. One of them appears to be the reemergence of family values.
What kind of took me by surprise, though it shouldn’t have, was that this rediscovery of family and simpler things is mostly from Gen Y. Interestingly, the technologies that fueled web 2.0 and the social web have allowed us to finally start using computers for solving real societal needs – like those of connecting with family, friends and peers. Allowing us to share what we’re doing and how we’re feeling and what we think. Back in the “old days” that required a phone call or a visit. Think about the power of 140 characters in Twitter and how it can replace a 20 min. long distance phone call from one of those stationary wired telephones we used to have.
The ability of the social web to not only answer that question, but many, many others is mind-blowing to say the least. That’s the tip of the iceberg too as we continue to have many brilliant combinations of ideas (mashups!) come to the market to offer solutions we only dreamed of years ago – or maybe saw it on The Jetsons.
What I really find facinating though is the return to the simpler pleasures of family and friends by the latest generation. As they’ve emerged from college and started taking on the daunting role of becoming the largest portion of the workforce in the U.S. today, they’ve been able to show a lot of class in the process. Sure there are the gamer/slackers among them (and Gen X too!), and some fascinating entrepreneurs as well. Every generation has them.
However, its these savvy, digital natives that focus on family, integrity and professionalism that impress me the most. We’ve been told for decades how the Boomers had changed the world, and ushered in a new age of enlightenment. How the generation before them – the Greatest Generation, as it were, tackled so many difficult issues and problems. I suggest that the world that Gen Y is entering adulthood is no less troubled and stressed – in many ways we never thought possible even 20 years ago.
The interesting thing is how this youngest generation, has the potential to change the world in ways the Boomers never could, and doing it from a position of integrity, focusing on family, and being transparent. Its who they are – as natural to them as the iPhone in their hand.
Photo Credit: Maureen Shaughnessy
2009 – The Long Road
Its been a long time since I really posted a personal post on what really is a personal blog. I’ve been wondering why that’s the case, and I’m sure you have too. Honesty I don’t know that is, but I do want to figure it out.
2009 has been a wild ride for me, with many highs and luckily only a few lows. The rapid and exciting growth of SMBMSP here in Minneapolis & St. Paul has been rewarding, yet stressful. The work at Land O’Lakes as their Social Media Strategist is similar but for vastly different reasons. The amount of work involved in each is daunting and keeps me engaged. For that I’m grateful.
On the personal side of things, life has again been good though recently my wife has started having some heart palpitations that have me worried. It’s worse for me because I just don’t know all the medical things that go on or what they mean. Yeah, I’m a pretty typical male when it comes to medical things – just don’t pay attention as well as I should. We’re still finding out more about this and it’ll be a learning experience as we adapt to new lifestyle needs.
I’ve been quiet around here for awhile, and I don’t have a reason or message as to why. This year has been a challenge and I neglected making the time to share information and ideas. The past week, I’ve started posting on my Happiness series again. Mostly because of recent events, but partly because I liked them so much. They have little to do with social media in business, which is where my specialty in social media is going, but proved to be an important part of my inspiration in 2008, so they’ll be making a comeback.
Overall, I’m looking forward to the next couple months. More writing is on my todo list, but more important is taking things to the next level. I guess that’s what I’m here to invite you to do as well. Its time to make the next step on all levels. Enough of working within the confines of the current norms. Are you ready to step up the pace? Ready for the challenge? I hope you join me on the journey as we plan for and enter 2010. I hope to share a few new and exciting things in the coming weeks as we close out this year, and begin to cap off the decade next year. Until tomorrow my friends.
SMBMSP Podcast – November 2009
Well its high time that I start posting the SMBMSP podcasts, as we continue to crank them out every month. A visit to good friend and fellow SMB organizer Mykl Roventine’s blog got me thinking I should start. So below are the show notes and podcast.
I’d like to mention that we’re holding a contest for a podcast theme song, and we discuss the details in this show. Along with Mykl Roventine is our producer, Brad Bellaver of Bellamedia and special guest Amy Bryant who wrote a fantastic Thanksgiving post on her blog last week.
We talk a bit about giving thanks and what we’re thankful Social Media has brought into our lives and experiences, so I hope you give it a listen. As always, feedback is very welcome.
You can find the podcast home page and information and feed links here.
SMBMSP November 2009 Podcast
Show Date: November 12th, 2009
Produced by BellaMedia – http://www.bellamediaonline.com/
Hosts: Brad Bellaver, Rick Mahn and Mykl Roventine
Special Guest: Amy Bryant
Links mentioned during the podcast:
Thankful post by Amy Bryant – http://iplaybig.wordpress.com/2009/11/12/can-you-find-yourself-on-the-list/
SMBMSP#21 info – http://smbmsp.ning.com/events/smbmsp-21
Our Podcast Theme Song Contest: http://smbmsp.ning.com/profiles/blogs/announcing-the-smbmsp-podcast
SMBMSP Ning network – http://smbmsp.org
How are we doing? Please send feedback to smbmsp@gmail.com
Getting The Message Across
Sometimes I get tired of telling the same story, but very often, that’s exactly what it takes to induce change. That change is the very root of social media and its associated tools, networks, and concepts. Since everyone learns at a different pace, and in different ways, it becomes necessary to relate the concepts of something new, multiple times.
Take the many layers of an organization for example. You have the executive level, the management level, and the worker level. There are several variations on these, some unique to different industries and professions, but bare with me for a moment.
Each of these levels requires the same information to be related in different, unique ways. Sometimes it could be adding or removing detail, in other cases it might be exchanging case studies to make the point more relevant to the person listening or reading. In any case, being able to read your audience and recognizing how the recipient needs to digest the information is part of the puzzle of a good communications professional.
This is but one of many skills the social media professional needs to have in their toolkit, and goes back to being a multi-disciplinarian, what our grandparents used to call “a jack of all tradesâ€.
Photo Credit: Mykl Roventine
Building Internal Community
Doesn’t it seem like we talk a lot about social media as a tool for sales or marketing? It certainly is a great channel for that in the right context, and the right usage. I’m curious how many folks who talk about building a community for their customers have thought about building community for their employees. Take that external viewpoint and turn around… apply it internally… what do you think could happen?
The idea is nothing new, and actually pre-dates "social media" by a long time. We’ve all been part of special groups within other organizations. I’m sure the companies you’ve worked for have had groups that range from bowling leagues to cross-functional project groups, to cost-reduction purchase management councils. Groups take many different forms, but these examples don’t really represent "community" as we use the term for social media.
I was reminded during the "Behind The Firewall" chat on Twitter last night (#btf every Thursday at 8pm CT) that IBM had done a lot of this work in the late 90s using Lotus Notes. That was probably one of the first packaged tools available that allowed for both free form and structured interactions.
Businesses have been looking for ways to build more productive teams. Social Media, er… I mean collaboration, (no they’re not the same, but many folks confuse the issue – we’ll roll with it for now), is one of those methodologies that can accomplish multiple tasks. If you remove the technology portion for a minute, and the marketing perspective, you can start to focus on solving business issues. This is where social media can prove it’s adaptability to an organization.
Building community inside most large organizations is difficult, but no more so than building community in a public forum. You have several different interest groups, and numerous points of view in every organization, these aspects and others make up the great diversity that companies can draw on to power their internal communities. Building collaborative environments that allow for socialization of profiles and interaction enables employees to find like-minded folks elsewhere in the company. These folks are having conversations about work, life, projects, challenges, problems and much more. These conversations already take place at the "water cooler", in the cube farms, on the loading docks, in the lunch room and anywhere else employees feel comfortable talking.
That’s the key to it too, comfort level. Providing an environment that people can speak their mind can be a larger productivity boost than a time waster. Create that space using social media tools & ideas, and let folks have a venue for conversations about work, conversations about non-work life, and a anonymous sounding boards that let folks give feedback and even vent frustrations a little bit.
Collaboration is a key piece of the puzzle to be sure, but make sure to include the social part too. "Social" is not a four letter word, and is not exclusive to non work life. We all socialize professionally at work, collaborating on increasing sales, and satisfying customers in one way or another. If everyone is "on the same team", how effective is that team without getting to know each other better? Let those relationships grow organically within the employee population rather than trying to mandate it. You’ll be pleasantly surprised.
Photo credit: torugatoru
Little Details – Signatures
Sometimes it’s the simple things that we overlook the most. For Personal Branding, this is occasionally the email signature. If you look over the most frequent and pervasive communications tools we have, email is still a top contender for the vast majority of folks.
With that in mind, anyone who has built a specific brand for themselves or for companies that are very brand aware, a custom email signature should be a “no brainerâ€. I’m surprised at how often folks tend to forget about this most basic of branding options. An email signature doesn’t have to be overly complex, or designed by a professional designer, though these are sometimes options.
On the simple side, just having a standard email signature in plain text can do wonders. It can have the basic contact information, including social network URLs if that’s desired. This works equally well for corporations as it does for individuals. For a large organization, it can allow for different telephone, cell, and fax numbers, but keeps a consistent layout and message to the recipients.
For more advanced or adventurous users, the ability to utilize HTML formatting and images makes for very impressive and robust brand statements. Going this route also allows for a picture for individual email accounts as well.
I’ve also found that having more than one custom signature is a plus. The number of sigs I use changes during the course of a year, but there are basically two that I use. One for personal emails and one for business emails. The personal one is quite simple, as I’m corresponding with people that already know me well and don’t need a constant reminder that I’m so-and-so.
The business signature is more professional and has contact information for practically any way a person can find to interact with me. Variations on the business sig for me range from the company I work for, a sig for “Social Media Breakfast†related emails, and a personal business sig. This allows me great flexibility to communicate specifically what I’m representing in that email.
Whatever route you choose to go, don’t hesitate to create your own customized email signature. Use your favorite search engine using “custom email signature†and you’ll have a number of options to help you through. So don’t leave this “low hanging fruit†on the tree – go get your sig together today.
Photo credit: darque9
Is Plain Text The Best?
Some say that plain text is best. Who am I to complain? When something as simple as 140 characters is enough on Twitter to convey a message, or 160 characters for a mobile text message? We can communicate a lot with very little – and a very simple medium: plain text.
So why are there so many contrasting opinions about using rich text in communications? Especially email?
Email has become one of those communications tools that seem to raise the ire of the “plain text is best†crowd. Some folks just don’t appreciate the HTML emails or fancy formatting others put into their signatures. I’ve seen some folks get downright angry towards these emails, and you can always tell who these folks are as their replies always come back in plain text.
While I won’t pretend to understand the controversy, I do think the plain text crowd is more “no nonsense†and just likes to get about their business. Whereas the rich text crowd probably tends to be heavier on the creative side, and likes to communicate with a bit of aesthetic value.
As we move further into the future, of course, rich text becomes easier to integrate into more communications mediums. The utility of plain text will remain though, as the lowest common denominator for any publishing platform as their job is to simply distribute information – and all that really needs is text.
Good Enough IV
It struck me today while using my netbook that economy computers have reached that baseline of being good enough at more than the minimum set of tasks. With their very portable size and impressively growing battery life these minimally powered laptops can meet the needs of many folks.
The interesting thing to me is how we continuously discover how we really only need the basics. In the age when we’ve pushed computing hardware to levels that we never imagined, the utility of a basic computing platform is quite impressive. Because we’ve pushed the upper end so aggressively, the side affect is the low end has benefited in reductions in power requirements and size.
Making these low end systems so useful is the way they’ve been packaged into great “mini†laptops. Whether they’re a 9â€, 10†or even the larger 12†models that stretch the definition of “netbookâ€, the ultra portability of a 2 to 3 lbs. laptop is a game changer. It’s just another case of less being more.
Of course, they can’t do everything. In fact, they really are only good for the basics as I mentioned. Anything more than web browsing, email, reading, and some light office apps like spreadsheets, word processing, and presentations. If you need much more than that, you’ll quickly find the limits of these systems.
However, therein lies the catch, the majority of the work done is in this basic range of computing tasks. Writing ideas out, answering email, reading news and information, keeping in touch… the bulk of what we do can be done with a netbook. Especially if you’re a web worker since most everything one does is web-based anyway.
While I’m not suggesting that netbooks will be the main computer for the majority of folks, I know some will be tempted to try.
Good enough. This is where good design and reasonable feature sets reign. The benefit of a simple, cohesive design with a feature set that meets the expectations of the user can be quite successful.
Where Do Social Media Pros Come From
So where do social media professionals come from? Where does any real professional that really knows there stuff come from? Is there some school that generates these professional people that have experience in so many things, been challenged in multiple ways allowing them to really get the big picture and think about things that most won’t consider? What creates a professional in any industry? How does this come about?
Well to be sure, folks who you find in social media are coming from all sorts of backgrounds. While “traditionally†you’ll find folks from marketing as the most prevalent practitioners. However, I’ve found that folks from any profession are surfacing as real social media professionals. Many never thought about a career transition from what they were doing into marketing, PR, or communications. Many never thought of themselves as writers, broadcasters, teachers, or leaders.
This is what happens in the early phases of any new field. Where did the early “computer geeks†that built out the early I.T. departments made up of micro-computers? They came from accounting, shipping, or it may have even been the boss’s secretary.
The reality is that as many disciplines developed, they were started by folks who really were professionals in another field, but had an interest or passion in something new. Perhaps it was the “new†factor, to be challenged in a new and unexpected direction, learning things that they never thought they’d need to know. To be out on the leading edge and be looked up to because of solving a problem, that could be it too. Sometimes it’s the least expected things that attract people to a job.
Another interesting thing about social media pros is that they have an extensive background. That is, they have multiple skills, developed over time from this job or that opportunity that they’ve followed up on. Whether these skills were intentionally pursued, or unintentionally picked up in some maintenance job, all these skills are what you’re going to look for in a social media professional.
These folks will come with communications skills, writing skills, technical skills, project management skills, and more. They work well under stress, they understand the concerns of the c-suite and legal, yet are able to demonstrate the opportunities for an organization as well as the challenges. They can walk from a technical project status meeting in IT to a creative marketing meeting, and be able to understand and participate with both on equal footing.
Finding these people is a challenge in itself, and you may have to look long and hard to find the right mix of skills for your business. The important part is to not be afraid to look inside, as many hidden gems are laying, waiting to be discovered in your backyard. For social media practitioners are in all corners of every business. Sometimes it’s just being able to recognize raw talent, providing time and experimentation, and letting them lead the way.
Photo Credit: photoholic1
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😢
“We are not enemies but friends.”
Live your life.
Completely.
Without fear.
Live it with Love, compassion, empathy, tolerance and joy.
Treat every person with the kindness, respect and dignity they deserve by the very virtue of being a human being.
Out riding this rainy, wet spring. Got 1,000 miles on the clock with more to come this season. #IMRG #IndianMotorcycle
Watching early seasons of #GoldRush. Fun seeing @GoldrushRick in season 3! Hope his new season is off to a good start!
Oh yes I did! https://www.instagram.com/p/BsRDO9ogSO0/?utm_source=ig_twitter_share&igshid=1kha5yzhjq3ot
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