Seth Godin, in a nice suit (Take note, social media scruffies – classy is still a workable brand) with some much-needed thoughts on project management. [video]

So what can you do today, right now, to begin implementing what Elder Seth talked about?

1. Outline your ideas – Put that Moleskin to use for a simple “What does this idea provide to others?/What does it provide to me?” outline.
2. Get a friend to help you thresh your ideas - (A real friend, not a Twitter follower or Facebook mutual) Type the outlines from your Moleskin (I like to use the back of junk mail envelopes) into a Google doc and share, share, share. Godin uses the term “Thrashing” but I like threshing better because it refers to the process of revealing value through effort instead of catatonic project management.
3. Ship something - Pick an idea you have the resources to develop and make it happen. It doesn’t have to be complex. In fact, it’s best to start with something simple like a well-researched article for your blog. Set out to ship something you know you can ship and build up some confidence before you go after the bigger projects.

What are you going to do?

Photo: Jim Frazier

How To: Ship On Budget and On Time Every Time

“Twitter is what you make of it.”

I hear the phrase daily from new users. Of course, those masticating on their new-found Twitter treat are right. I hate to say it, but they are. Speaking of hating newfinders, why do we so often resent people who discover something long after we’ve swum in its delights? Shouldn’t we gladly welcome them?

As we welcome all the new users and celebrate their enthusiasm, I’d like to ask you something:

What are you making of Twitter?

I get a kick out of asking questions on Twitter. (Facebookers and Myspacers, you’re lovely people but most of you have 12-36hr response times. Sorry, but I’m dealing with a TV-dinner-shaped attention span here.)

Sunday evening I thought it’d be a wondrous time to ask the brilliant minds on Twitter a thoughtful question: (I thought it was, at least.)

Imagine what your answer would be to my question. Do you have a 140-character response fixed in your mind? Excellent!

Rick Wolff took the time to craft the following:

I’m pretty certain you didn’t see that one coming. I know I didn’t.

That’s the beauty of Twitter. If you’ve not used the service before, imagine what it’d be like if every text message you sent was copied to every one of your phone contacts. You are also copied on every text they send. That’s Twitter. It’s mayhem. Like most mayhem involving people, the results are unreliable and the rubbish smells enough to make the beauty hard to swallow at times.

That is, until a complete stranger tells you that your brain is a fish tank.

If my brain is a fish tank and my ideas are fish that swim around in it, I have a lot of questions to answer.

• Am I careful to change the water regularly so my ideas stay healthy and clearly defined?
• Do I keep many tiny fish or do just a few big fish that eat everything in their path?
• Should I give my fish away, keep them for myself, or sell them to the highest bidder?

When somebody tells you your brain is a fish tank, questions like that just come up naturally.

Have you tried asking thoughtful questions on Twitter or other social media platforms? You probably won’t receive thousands of retweets, likes, thumbs-up, etc. But the responses you do get will often be thoughtful, insightful, and sometimes downright awesome. Give it a try!

Is there something you’ve been thinking about that you’d like my take on? Drop me a question in a comment. I look forward to our conversation!

Click to feed the Twitter fish!

photo: alan stoddard

There’s so much talk about “how to dominate your niche and turn yourself into an expert” but very little about mentorship. I think that’s a mistake.

“Given Expert Advice, Brain Shuts Down” ~Wired.com

What do you think? Is there a time and place for blindly taking advice?

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Two other things: (I know this is a lot, sorry)

1. Would you prefer I keep my old comments system vs. Disqus?
2. Would you like more video posts or shall I stick with writing?

Thanks!  -Seth

(A&P Story) Early this morning, the FDA announced the immediate closure of Instamere, LTD, a provider of bottled water and soft drink concentrate for 3 of the most popular brands in US and Canadian beverage markets. The details of the recall have yet to be released.

“The urine was discovered as part of a routine test“ Said Charles Goshe, an inspector of 26 years with the Food Safety & Inspection Service branch of the USDA. 

After further investigation and questioning, Instamere admitted to the use of denatured animal and human urine in all of their 37 beverage products. 

Denatured urine. You’re probably thinking, “Isn’t that just water?” 

It is, but that wouldn’t make for a very sensational headline, would it? 

Unfortunately, overly-sensationalist headlines packed with mis-truths are not just the stuff of bloggers making a point. This past week, two major headlines caught a lot of attention by spinning the truth to make a sale:

The first cashed in on a tragic accident: 

“Mike Tyson’s Daughter Dies Following Hanging Incident“ 

A four year-old girl choked on a wire that was hanging from a treadmill. She didn’t attempt to harm herself or experience harm at the hand of another. It was an accident caused by a hanging wire, not a hanging child. I tend to lose faith in news sources that sensationalize tragedies, especially deeply personal ones. (thanks to @Ed for the tip)

The second headline makes a little lie to play an “association game” with the reader:

“Germany May Ban Red Bull Cola After Traces of Cocaine Found“ 

There’s some coca leaf used in the cola…but no cocaine. You have to go through quite a process to make cocaine from coca leaves. This Lonely Planet video shows all the steps involved.

There’s a “naughty” association with cocaine that makes the headline sensational. Telling readers that a beverage has “coca leaf” in it just doesn’t raise as many eyebrows. 

You can bury, spin, or even avoid the truth to catch a few extra readers in the short term. But you’ll eventually lose the ones who can really make your story popular, your reputation sound, and your business grow.

You can spin lies to get attention or create content that shares the truth in compelling ways. 

The choice is yours. 

I’m off to rehydrate with some denatured urine. Doesn’t that just sound sensational?  =)

What about you? Do you resent sensationalist headlines or just accept them as a necessary editorial evil? I’d like to know your thoughts!

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photo: wd

Do you avoid opinion posts on your blog because you fear negative comments, hateful remarks, or lost readers? Here are 7 simple steps to help you share your opinions in a way that encourages thoughtful discussion and boosts readership:

1. Plan Your Approach

If you want your opinion to be taken seriously, say it in a way that does not require the rest of the world to be wrong. Take some time to outline your opinion and clearly define what you’d like your post to accomplish. If your topic is extremely controversial, write a series of posts based on the topic’s underlying arguments. For example, avoid a single post on gay marriage and instead write a series about the evolution of human rights, marriage, and civil liberties over time.

2. Warm Things Up

A great title that boldly alludes to the point of your post will make easy work of drawing in readers. If you write a post on gay marriage, “Proposition Nine: Putting Things Where They Don’t Belong” will warm things up nicely without revealing your position. A smart and interesting title lets readers know you really put some thought into the topic. If you can, optimize your title for sharing on Twitter by keeping it short (less than 90 characters).

3. Insert Carefully

Resist the temptation to make snarky remarks and ironic asides in your opinion posts. (Quickie Rule: If you put it in parentheses and laughed, it’s probably not something you want to include in your post.) Many readers avoid commenting on snarky posts because they’re worried about being attacked by the author. Approach your topic with thoughtful grace and your readers will gladly comment in the understanding that you’ll respond to their thoughts with similar care.

4. Move With Rhythm

Use the same writing voice and format you use with other posts on your blog. This lets your regular readers know you haven’t gone crazy while giving new readers a taste of what to expect from you in the future. Your readers have come to expect consistent quality from you. Give it to them.

5. Avoid Names

When writing an opinion post, you’ll invariably think of people you disagree with. No matter how caught up you get in the heady passion of your post, do not use names. Don’t mention, link, or even allude to them. Why? Using names in an opinion post makes you look like just another flame-baiter. A great opinion post doesn’t need flames to start a conversation. Don’t name names. Don’t link to the blogs by those names. Try not to even use the word “name” in your post. (okay, that might be a bit extreme.)

6. Finish At The Right Moment

Timing has a lot to do with the success of opinion posts. Before you post an opinion, ask yourself,

1. Are people currently discussing this topic? - A well-written post stating your opinion on Hittite marriage practices might be interesting to read but it won’t attract a lot of readers. Why? Because most of us haven’t thought about the Hittites recently! In fact, this might be the first time I’ve ever thought about them.
2. Is my post the right size? - In terms of opinion posts, short and thick (thoughtful, dense) is best. As soon as you’ve reached the final point on your outline, wrap things up promptly. (Quickie Rule: If it takes more than three minutes to read your post, many readers will move on instead of leaving a comment)

7. Enjoy Some “Pillow Talk”

At the end of your post, invite readers to respond by leaving a comment or sharing the post with some friends.When they respond, take note and act! Reply to comments, acknowledge as many social media remarks as possible and generally show gratefulness for any attention given to your post.Your readers will remember the positive interaction and be more likely to respond to your next post. (Quickie Rule: If you don’t have a comments policy on your blog, include a note at the end of your post stating what sort of behavior you’ll tolerate in the comments)

Sharing your opinion on a controversial topic presents a great opportunity for readers to learn more about you and where you stand on important issues. If you take the time to write a thoughtful post, most readers will appreciate it. The ones who don’t are usually just stopping by on their way to the next troll party.

Do you have any suggestions or tricks for handling controversy? I’m interested to know what you think. Thanks!

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photo: jj, pr

Scroll down to the video if you just can’t wait to see me sputtering cold water out of my flooded nasal cavity and mouth.

When it comes to discussions of interrogation and the nature of torture, “waterboarding” is the media darling of the hour. 

The CIA describes waterboarding as follows: 

“In this technique, the detainee is lying on a gurney that is inclined at an angle of 10 to 15 degrees to the horizontal, with the detainee on his back and his head toward the lower end of the gurney. A cloth is placed over the detainee’s face and cold water is poured on the cloth from a height of approximately 6 to 8 inches. The wet cloth creates a barrier through which it is difficult – or in some cases not possible – to breathe.” -Stephen G Bradbury

The goal of waterboarding is to inspire terror in victims by forcing them to experience every part of drowning except the actual filling of the lungs with water. When the subject is terrified and has endured so much pain that only relief from the water matters, the questioning begins. 

I was intrigued by the idea of waterboarding when I first heard about it because it doesn’t make sense as an effective way to get reliable information out of somebody. 

Read the rest of this entry »

Recently, a video clip was released from Salma Hayek’s “good will” trip to Sierra Leone in which she was filmed nursing a malnourished child. Salma has a baby of her own and was immediately interested in giving what she had immediately available to the child in need.

When you reach out to meet the needs of a person near you, do you worry about how society might judge your action?

This video has stirred up a bit of an outrage, but not for the reasons I expected. I rarely see The Young Turks give any sort of groundbreaking commentary on society but they do a great job at portraying two of the most popular reactions to the original video. (The video doesn’t *show anything* so unless you hate The Young Turks with a passion, check it out)

Cenk has the common male reaction of  ”Ooooh, boobs. That baby is so lucky!” while not referring to the nutritive value of the exchange. If you listened well during the clip, you could also hear his comments and murmurs whenever Salma’s breasts were at all visible. 

What’s the answer to Cenk’s apparent issue? Boobs were not made for guys. Whether your believe in Creationism, Evolution, or the Obama Created Everything theory, there is no evidence that breasts are meant to serve a function after offspring are weaned. 

Anna hedges a bit more in her response but she makes it quite clear that, were she in the same situation as Salma, Anna would not be nursing any child other than her own. She did not offer any concern over the possible danger the child would be in if Salma had a communicable disease. Her only other remark is that Salma is sharing her “best assets” with the people of Sierra Leone by exposing herself.  

Have we as a society really become so caught up in viewing every aspect of existence in a sexual light that we are no longer able to see the beauty of one person reaching out to another and meeting a dramatic need?

Salma also shares a story about her grandmother taking similar action many years earlier upon meeting a starving woman with a hungry baby on the street. The grandmother, a young woman with a nursing baby at the time, took the child and nursed it until it stopped crying and fell asleep. 

Salma did the same thing when she had the chance and I believe she’s got the right idea when it comes to being available and sharing willingly. 

Do you?

photo credit: poisonli