Apr 16, 2010 | blog
I’ve been a bit lax the last several weeks in participating in Follow Friday on Twitter. I always liked the concept and tried to do a couple good ones every Friday. Over the past year or so (I think it’s closer to two) I found that I kept sharing the same folks. While these tweeps are excellent to follow – great conversation, smart, helpful – I just felt I was repeating myself over & over again.
So last week Chris Brogan blogged about a different tactic to Follow Friday. Such an obvious one that a person hates to admit they never thought of it (I hadn’t), though I’m sure he’s not the first to think of it. Knowing Chris, he won’t mind if all of us borrow this one though.
Rather than try and cram as many twitter handles into that 140 characters, I’ll call out a handful of folks right here and tell you a little bit of why you should follow them. Here goes.
@MNHeadHunter – There was little doubt who was going to be my first #FF shout out. Friend, mentor, biz advisor, collaborator, critic, and cheerleader – Paul DeBettignies is a Minneapolis based independent IT Recruiter who’s helped more people than I can count in job search, career help, and more. He’s also the biggest U of M sports fan in existence.
@PhilGerb – If you don’t know Phil Gerbyshak, now is your chance to meet & follow him. Author of 10 Ways to Make It Great, Phil is a Milwaukee social media strategist, relationship geek, and lover of interesting things. His enthusiasm and fountain of ideas can help kick-start your business or blog, for either professional or personal interests. Ask him about Milwaukee!
@BryanPerson – Founder of Social Media Breakfast itself, Bryan Person is the guy I emailed back in 2007 about starting an SMB here in Minneapolis. Loved his advice of “why not you”. Originally from Boston, and now in Austin, Bryan is currently the “LiveWorld social media guy”.
@lulugrimm – Looking for smart, witty, and a great example of how digital public relations professionals are using social media? Follow Lisa Grimm to find out how someone at the nexus of GenX/GenY embodies the best of characteristics of both. It also turns out that she’s a great speaker and moderator of panels.
@donmball – Cofounder of CoCoMSP and Unsummit, Don Ball is a great resource in the St. Paul & Minneapolis are for freelance, independent contractors/consultants and startups in general. Supportive, idea rich and willing to share his enthusiasm for you to succeed is how I describe Don.
Okay, that’s a good start for today. I’ll work at doing a better job (read: more) next week, but it’s hard to pic a handful of really good, valuable people out of so many I know and write a short blurb about them. Or it could be that it’s late on Friday and I’m looking for a way to get this posted while it still is Friday.
😉
In any case, check out these great folks and let me know some of your suggestions below. I’m sure there’s many I haven’t met yet that I’d really like to talk with. Now go have a great weekend!
Apr 10, 2010 | blog
Last Friday I had a great opportunity to sit down with Phil Gerbyshak and talk about all sorts of things. Mainly social media and current themes or ideas that are going on, but also about what he’s doing in Milwaukee.
You see, Phil figured out awhile ago what a lot of this means, and has been moving ever closer to going freelance and helping companies do what he does best: Make It Great. It’s more than a catch phrase, it’s really about perspective and choices we make.
A couple years back, Phil wrote the book Make It Great. From that inspiration and work, he’s developed a philosophy around doing things right, listening, and helping others do the same. That’s what he’s out to do in about a month.
About two months ago (or so), Phil decided to break away from corporate America and do what he’s best at – sharing his knowledge on social media with organizations who want to do things the right way, by listening to employees and customers, and letting them help guide the way an organization should work.
Here’s an interview I did with Phil on the topic of going independent and about his Make It Great philosophy. (Don’t worry, my camera work should get better in the future – I hope 😉
Here’s some links to Phil Gerbyshak & his work.
So, thank you Phil for the chance to have time to talk the invitation to visit you in Milwaukee soon, and the insight into how to make what I do even better. I truly appreciate it.
Apr 7, 2010 | blog
Here’s another learning from my recent travels across the country. It has to do with community, and regional participation.
I happen to live near and work in the Minneapolis/St. Paul, Minnesota area, and we have a very good, active social media community. Because of this, its been easy for me to focus locally and (kind of) forget how many other large and small urban centers also have great communities. That’s been the biggest learning as I’ve meet folks from all corners of the U.S. and around the world.
We all have vibrant social media communities, but they’re all different. Some areas seem to be better at marketing, some better at technology or funding. Regardless of the size of the city, the interest and enthusiasm always seems to be bigger than you’d think… and that’s the really fun part.
So my question to you this afternoon is what you’ve been doing to support that community and help it flourish. The benefits of understanding what social media can do for individuals, businesses and your physical communities is growing at an impressive rate. Its more than simply mainstream usage, it’s about people (society) adapting to new ideas and tools that support those ideas. It’s cultural change which can be challenging for some organizations and individuals, and this is where you can help your community.
Getting involved in your local community is the best way to make things happen. Find out what the need is and work on filling it. It may be getting people together at meetups, answering questions, or maybe training. In any case, participating with your local community is as important as keeping up with the new ideas and tools that come out every day.
Picture courtesy Sri Dhanush
Dec 4, 2009 | happiness
Wondering why change is such a traumatic force for so many people.
Oct 10, 2009 | blog
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
