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Thoughts and things I care to shareWhen the “A-List” stops being “The A-List”
So I was sitting at my local coffee shop this morning reading feeds, Twittering and writing. Not an unusual morning, but like other times a person gets inspired, it came from a comment from someone. This time from Jeremiah Owyang via Twitter. While talking about a the new Egos site created by Guy Kawasaki he Tweeted:
My recommendations to you: somewhere in the middle, develop your own feedreader of high value blogs and alerts everyone is unique
What occurred to me is that I didn’t think much about the a-list much any longer. While the semi-annual meme of beating on the a-list being a favorite sport for many bloggers, something any committed blogger will realize after awhile is that they develop their own a-list. This is simply the list of bloggers that they read and are influenced by.
It becomes less about the celebrity status of the blogger and more about the value of their content. I think it was Chris Brogan who started calling his personal list of favorites “Rockstars“, and it’s an apt title for a list of people who continually influence you on a daily basis. Hey I know good ‘ol Diamond Dave did that back in the ’80s for a heck of a lot of people. 😉
I’m sure a number of people are sitting back saying that I’ve missed the point of “The A-List”. They’d point out that this group of high-profile bloggers control the topics on Techmeme, Tailrank, et al. I don’t see that – I see a *lot* of great bloggers moving that conversation all over the place. At any rate, that’s not the point of this post. I’m really just talking about building your own list of blogs and bloggers that influence you.
Here are some opinions I’ve developed (though some are obvious 😉 )
- There is no one definition of the A-List – everyone’s a list is different
- “The A-List” everyone talks about are just bloggers – albeit with industry insight
- The more time you spend reading in the blogosphere, the more important the content and less the celebrity status of the blogger
- Your A-List will include high-profile bloggers, because of the value they bring to you, just like the lower-profile bloggers you read
I guess I just want to people to keep exploring and finding that content that has value to you. Don’t worry about if they are part of “The A-List”, there really are some great bloggers among them and many of their observations are relevant to the conversation that we’re looking for.
So, the A-List stops being “The A-List” when the reader realizes that each blogger brings value to the conversation and you start looking beyond who they are and more at what they say. What’s your take on this?
Photo credit: jzawodin
Blogging and the IT Professional
Why is it that the very people who make all that wonderful technology work for your company don’t blog that much? That’s a question I’ve been curious about for the last few years. Yeah there are many technology bloggers, but I’m talking about people who staff the information technology departments around the world. Where are you guys? I find a few here and there, but there aren’t many.
I’ve suggested, recommended, given ideas and supported many of my fellow IT friends to help them find the value that blogging can bring. I’m continually confused at the explanations, or reasoning that people find not to. Answers like, “I can’t talk about work”, or “it’s not secure” and the one that still amazes me for many IT pros, “the Internet isn’t safe”.
Yeah, all those answers (and more) are true, but it shouldn’t keep you from engaging and bringing your expertise to the party. I’ve several friends who could bring a great deal to the blogosphere, some are true gurus on many aspects related to enterprise information technology implementation. The biggest limiting factor for most people really comes down to time.
Time is every bloggers most challenging aspect, but it’s no different than any other endeavor. How to balance, career, home life, and a blog is what we all battle every day as bloggers. However, there is so much reward that the challenge and the cost in time is worth the effort. Many of the IT people I know, are so busy with their current projects, that they can’t even get away from their desks at lunch time. What the heck is that about? Even during the most interesting and challenging projects, you need to allow yourself to think about other things.
If there is one thing I would pass on to fellow IT workers about blogging is that it allows a person to disengage a little bit. Writing about things that are interesting to you lets you exercise a bit of your mind that yearns for attention. It allows you to think in new directions, learning more about your interests as well as yourself.
Back to those excuses… yes they’re true to a certain degree, but their mainly just excuses. Kind of like finding reasons you didn’t do your homework back in high school. Come on, you can find more than the work aspect of IT to talk about – you do in person, why not on a blog? Not secure – talk about security if it’s a passion, make it interesting to the average person so they learn more about it. Don’t think the Internet is a safe place to bare your soul? Use a pseudonym – writers have done it for centuries and blogging is nothing different.
For some reason, IT is not where many bloggers are coming from lately, and I really would like to see that change. Maybe it’s just the circles I run in, or the market here in Minneapolis, MN that is a bit more conservative when it comes to voicing opinions. How about your IT friends? I’m looking for more IT bloggers! 🙂
Photo credit: Grant Mitchell
links for 2008-02-07
- I’m trying this out since I use a lot of Google services. Any feedback on your experiences?
links for 2008-02-05
- On to another level of functionality and server upgrades. Dust off those 2003 plans and revise as needed. 😉
- Supports Windows Server 2008, Windows Vista SP1, Server 2003, and XP.
- There are many inside Yahoo who truly believe that the Microsoft deal is exactly what Yahoo needs to regroup, regain, and move on.
- No matter how much you love/hate Microsoft (or Apple, Google, Oracle, Sun, etc…) it’s just business. Our favorite tools, apps, ‘puters, phones, services – you name it. It’s somebody’s bread & butter to buy or sell. Whether we like it or not.
Obvio
- Well DUH! Oh, that wasn’t obvious to everyone else..!?
- I’ve wondered this from time to time myself. Wouldn’t an “inexpensive” MacBook appeal to a broad slice of the market – of course it would.
Social Media Breakfast – Twin Cities
I’d like to announce the inaugural Social Media Breakfast for Minneapolis & St. Paul!
Originally founded by Bryan Person the Social Media Breakfast is a way for social media experts and newbies alike to come together to eat, meet, share, and learn. Whether your a marketer, blogger, podcaster, IT geek, vlogger, entrepreneur, PR pro, or online social networker – everyone is welcome to attend!
It’s a way for us to connect offline and get to know each other in a real-world casual setting over breakfast and coffee in downtown Minneapolis. When I first read about the “SMB”, as it’s becoming known, I quickly wondered how we could make this happen here in Minneapolis. So after thinking too much on the “should I or shouldn’t I” aspect, I’ve got one set up – we’ll see how it goes! 🙂
Below is a tentative list of topics, just so we’ve got a bit of an agenda to work with – don’t hesitate to suggest new ideas!
- New to social media?
- Twitter, the virtual village.
- Tools – what is most useful/rewarding to you?
- Directions in social media, connecting people.
- Your ideas here!
- Next SMB! What can we do better?
With that said, we don’t have to adhere to anything specific. It’s a dynamic world and our conversations should be as well. Since this is the first (of many I hope) SMB, I’m learning a few things here. I initially am figuring for about a dozen or so people, but we can grow that a bit if interest grows.
Here are the details for our first Social Media Breakfast in the Twin Cities:
- Date: Wednesday, February 13th, 2007
- Time: 8:00am to 10:00am
- Place: Keys Cafe Minneapolis – Located in the Foshay Tower
- Address: 114 South 9th Street, Minneapolis, MN 55402 (Directions/Map)
- Cost: Buy your own breakfast, and enjoy free WiFi! 😉
- RSVP at our Upcoming page: Social Media Breakfast – Twin Cities!
We’ll see you there!
links for 2008-02-04
- Gosh, it couldn’t happen to a better crime indicate. Wonder how the RIAA’s strong-arm tactics will come into play on this one.
links for 2008-02-01
- Could it be… I’ll be watching closely for this.
- Timothy Lee demonstrates some common sense in his post at TechDirt the other day. If only more people realize how true these comments are, we could recoup millions of wasted tax dollars and retreat a bit from the socialization of America.
- Ronald Lewis is a social media professional who continually impresses me with fresh ideas and seemingly endless enthusiasm. This is one of his great ideas and should inspire anyone thinking along the same lines.
- You probably didn’t hear it here first. It would be an interesting match.
Personal Branding Magazine – Issue 3
Good day everyone! I’d like to point everyone to the third issue of Personal Branding Magazine. This third issue is packed with great information on personal branding from all aspects.
With great interviews with Om Malik, Matt Mullenweg, Gina Bianchini, Mark Frauenfelder, Gina Trapani, and David Weekly – publisher Dan Schawbel connects you to the web’s leading brand influencer’s.
Among other articles, there are articles on Recruiting, Online Branding, Social Media Resume, Visionary Thinking, The Relationship Economy, Brand Credibility, SEO, Network Influence Branding for Entrepreneurs, and much more. Below is the promo video for Issue 3 of Personal Branding Magazine.
Twitter: Down at 10:15 PM CDT
Yep, again.
Not sure what’s going on this time either. I’ve tried the web, Twhirl, and via IM (Google Talk). Nothing is connecting, though oddly, IM is showing that Twitter is “online”.
Moving on… reading feeds instead. Will try to get more writing out of the way tonight.
Your first tweet – here’s a tip on how to find it.
I have to immediately thank Dave Delaney (Twitter: @davedelaney) for this tip. Revealed in his 5,000 tweets and counting post earlier today, he suggests the following to find your first tweet:
- Browse to your Twitter profile page
- Click on the “Archive” tab
- Scroll to the bottom
- Click on the “Older” button
- Notice that the URL is now something like http://twitter.com/rickmahn?page=2? Change the “page=2” to “page=200”
- See anything? Start decreasing that number until you find your first post.
- Or, if you’ve been especially productive, you may need to try higher page numbers! 😉
Mine just happens to be on March 4th, 2007 at 1:13pm (found here) where I tweeted the very informative “Reading RSS feeds” to the world.
So, thank you Dave for that tip, and congratulations on crossing 5,000 tweets. I had been curious about that first tweet lately because I know I was starting to get close to a full year on Twitter. Just over a month to go!
@MAC_Arms Pay taxes when you make your money, pay taxes when you spend your money, pay taxes when you successfully invest your money, pay taxes when you save enough taxed money to afford a house, pay taxes to live in your house, pay taxes when you sell the house that you paid taxes on to
Yup, taxes are criminal and we need serious reforms. I've always said that if you want to see a tax revolt, make withholdings illegal and have Americans write a tax check every payday. They'll revolt for sure. You don't miss what you never had.
I think it’s safe to say that @GovEvers should stop blocking audits in Wisconsin and open the books…
“Only AMERICAN citizens should vote.”
Sen. @berniemoreno says voter ID and proof of citizenship are simply common sense.
“We’re talking about a very low threshold — identify who you are and prove you’re a U.S. citizen when you register to vote. I think we’re getting closer to
Wrong. Democrats are solely responsible for hours-long airport lines.
They voted to defund TSA three times and won’t even entertain a conversation about reopening it. Why?
They’re using it as leverage to stop enforcing immigration laws.