Liz Strauss at Successful Blog

Thinking, writing, business ideas … You’re only a stranger once.

SOB Business Cafe 04-24-09

Filed Under Great Finds, Successful Blog | Leave a Comment

SB Cafe

Welcome to the SOB Cafe

We offer the best in thinking — articles, books, podcasts, and videos about business online written by the Successful and Outstanding Bloggers of Successful Blog. Click on the titles to enjoy each selection.

The Specials this Week are

Ewa in the Garden … just look!!

33 Amazing Pictures Hand Picked - Vine Wisteria or Wisteria Tree?

iJump brings it together.
What are the new rules of marketing and PR? What does lead generation look like in a social media world?

David Meerman Scott and Chris Brogan in New Zealand, day one

Location Independent gives outstanding advice.
Obviously, not all jobs are conducive to the location independent lifestyle but more often than you’d think, on-site positions exist, simply because no one has ever considered that there might be an alternative.

Practical Advice For Negotiating A Location Independent “Job” With Your Current Employer

Catskill Cottage Seed
I’ve taken the test on three different occasions, as a teen, in my twenties and in my thirties. The results changed somewhat, though not a great deal, each time.

The challenge of personality type tests

Pluperfecter always makes me think.
Take “social media”, a good thing, and add “marketing” to the end of it, the goal and aim of it: “social media marketing.” Sounds ugly, crass, and bothersome, does it not? I think so.

social media marketing is (mostly) evil

Related ala carte selections include

The Art of Non-Conformity has 25,000 downloads on this. Do you have yours yet? What are you waiting for?

279 DAYS TO OVERNIGHT SUCCESS

Oh and..
Only 7 days left to …

Register for SOBCon09!

Sit back. Enjoy your read. Nachos and drinks will be right over. Stay as long as you like. No tips required. Comments appreciated.

–ME “Liz” Strauss

Buy the Insider’s Guide to Online Conversation.

SOB Business Cafe 04-17-09

Filed Under Great Finds, Successful Blog | 2 Comments

SB Cafe

Welcome to the SOB Cafe

We offer the best in thinking — articles, books, podcasts, and videos about business online written by the Successful and Outstanding Bloggers of Successful Blog. Click on the titles to enjoy each selection.

The Specials this Week are

Left the Box says …
People like to be in the loop, being the first to know something means you’re important. You know something other people don’t know. Unlike an expensive car, you can’t show off information, without giving it away - which is exactly what people do.

Share This or Else! - What Makes People Share Content?

Rock Your Day sets us straight …
“I’m so busy with my job, I can’t start working out now. You know how it is.”
“I’m so strapped for cash I can’t start saving money. Isn’t everyone?”
“I hate my job, but in this economy … what are you going to do?”

Why You’re Not Doing The Things You Said You Wanted To, Part 4

Presentation Zen explains …
Shai’s delivery was not slick or polished, nor were his visuals, but he was himself, relaxed, and totally engaging. It was an excellent talk given in the “Naked,” natural style. His pacing was good: not too slow, not too fast. He was a worthy messenger of an important topic, perhaps the most important topic of our day. If his goal was to get us talking, it worked.

Shai Agassi: The most important talk at TED 09

Marketing Pilgrim reveals …
Mike Morgan, the creator of the gripe site www.GoldmanSachs666.com (clever Number of the Beast usage there, Mike) did what many bloggers often talk about but rarely do; he went on the legal offensive.

When Bloggers Attack!

Technosailor tilts the lens …
Here’s the question of the day. If your name is mentioned in some kind of conversation, whether on the internet or offline, how do people identify you? Are you the founder of a company that does something? Are you a blogger? Photographer?

When they hear your name, do they associate you with a movement? Are you an expert in something? Does your reputation put you in a position of leadership or authority?

But Once You’re Gone, You Don’t Come Back

Related ala carte selections include

mariareyesmcdavis recommends
Ran across a great post of Insights on and from Twitter (directly from users) about what it’s all about and what’s really up with this phenom called Twitter.

Twitter Insights from the Community

Oh and..
Invest in your future.

Register for SOBCon09!

Sit back. Enjoy your read. Nachos and drinks will be right over. Stay as long as you like. No tips required. Comments appreciated.

–ME “Liz” Strauss

Buy the Insider’s Guide to Online Conversation.

SOB Business Cafe 04-10-09

Filed Under Great Finds | 3 Comments

SB Cafe

Welcome to the SOB Cafe

We offer the best in thinking — articles, books, podcasts, and videos about business online written by the Successful and Outstanding Bloggers of Successful Blog. Click on the titles to enjoy each selection.

The Specials this Week are

Outspoken media asks …
As companies dive deeper into social media, as Community Manager job descriptions are being created and employees are becoming “spokespeople” for the company they work for, we’re being forced to ask a hard, somewhat controversial question: Who owns an employee’s social media connections?

Breaking Up Is Hard To Do, In Life & Social Media

1 to 1 media wonders …
There’s no denying it’s tough out there for America’s workforce. Every week more layoff numbers are announced. It seems like everyone is in jeopardy, no matter what field your in or how well you do your job. In the corporate world, marketing departments are one of the high-profile areas that unfortunately seem to get unwanted attention during cost-cutting times.

What Can Marketers Do to Keep Their Jobs?

Hound Dog Blog recalls …
It has been said that Frank L Baum named the title ‘OZ’ by glancing at his files and seeing the folder: O - Z … crazy… to me where such a place comes from . .

Ruby Slippers are The Meaning of Life

Junta 42 measures …
Right now, maybe more than ever, your content marketing efforts deserve a little measurement. Amidst budget cuts and strapped resources, elements of a marketing communication plan that lack at least some metrics linking back to effectiveness tend to be early casualties. “Nice to have” is often “first to go.”

Keeping Score - Measuring the Effectiveness of Content

Related ala carte selections include

InnerNoodle unravels …
This is part 7 of a 9 part series. If you missed the first six posts, please take the complimentary ride on the Inner Noodle Warp.

Inner Noodle’s Guide to Dream Analysis- Step 7

Oh and..
Invest in your future.

Register for SOBCon09!

Make something happen!

Sit back. Enjoy your read. Nachos and drinks will be right over. Stay as long as you like. No tips required. Comments appreciated.

–ME “Liz” Strauss

Buy the Insider’s Guide to Online Conversation.

Are You Big Enough to Help Someone Become Greater Than Yourself

Filed Under Great Finds, Motivation/Inspiration, Successful Blog | 3 Comments

The theme of SOBCon09 is the ROI of Relationships. To underscore the importance of relationships in business and to have a chance to make and celebrate a few while we’re doing that, I’ve opened up this series by successful and outstanding bloggers like you.

The ROI of Relationships — Steve Farber and Patrick Lencioni on “Greater Than Yourself”

The first thing I noticed when I met Steve Farber were these linebacker shoulders that appeared as if they could support the world. Then he said, “Hello, let’s get breakfast,” and the smile in his eyes and voice made me think of Butch and Sundance saying in the old movie, “Who is this guy?”

Steve Farber had been someone I’d wanted to meet since the second I’d read both of books, The Radical Leap: A Personal Lesson in Extreme Leadership
and The Radical Edge: Stoke Your Business, Amp Your Life, and Change the World
back to back.

The charcters in his business fables, one particular named Agnes, had become people, friends to me. Agnes had sent me on a quest to identify that single value that wrapped up all my values into one. She called it “finding your frequency.”

Now Steve has a new book called Greater Than Yourself: The Ultimate Lesson of True Leadership. I’ve read that too and it’s set me on another quest how to change the world one person at a time through generosity of spirit and true leadership.

In this new fable Steve investigates the story of a note he found inside the case of a guitar he bought, He meets people who believe that raising others up above themselves is the greatest form leadership. It sounds simple: expand yourself, give yourself, replicate yourself. But the commitment to choose another person well, to offer over all you know and give access to is a huge and wonderful form of extreme leadership.

In the video below, Steve talks to Patrick Lencioni and Matthew Kelly — their story is told in the introduction to the book. You’ll find more about them and others on the Greater Than Yourself site.

Greater Than Yourself officially launches April 6th. It’s not only the fable, but also case stories and tools for starting your Greater Than Yourself project. Check it out.

Steve will be stopping in at SOBCon this year. I can’t wait to see him. I’ve already started working on my Greater Than Yourself Project. You can learn how to start yours by reading this book.

Register for SOBCon09 NOW!!

Experience the ROI of Relationships

SOB Business Cafe 04-03-09

Filed Under Great Finds, Successful Blog | 3 Comments

SB Cafe

Welcome to the SOB Cafe

We offer the best in thinking — articles, books, podcasts, and videos about business online written by the Successful and Outstanding Bloggers of Successful Blog. Click on the titles to enjoy each selection.

The Specials this Week are

Modite via Livingston Buzz
An observer that sits in a wagon pulled around by “the influencers.” What chance do you have if you’re not even thinking on your own two feet?

Stop writing about social media to be a successful blogger

Middle Zone Musings
OK; I know you’ve faced adversity at least once or twice. Sometimes the source is the circumstances you happen to find yourself in. Other times, it knocks on your door in the form of, well, a person. Or three.

Facing Adversity

Confident Writing
So, your keyword phrases and search terms are working, and readers are starting to arrive at your site. If you want to provide information, get someone to click on a link, or generate a quick sale… perhaps that’s enough. But what if you’re hoping they’ll stick around?

Writing With Rapport on the Web: Spider Plant Babies and Sticky Writing

Logic + Emotion
This morning a couple of things came together for me. The first, was that I unfollowed a company/individual on Twitter because the volume they were producing felt automated and not human even if there were college interns manually updating it (or maybe just a script). It just didn’t feel right. The second was reviewing a deck where it talked about the need for “being human” on the social web. But it didn’t get into how exactly, and that’s where my gears started turning.

How To Be More Human

weblogtools
Like most of you, I have experimented with many WordPress plugins. I have seen a lot of great plugins and also a lot of bad plugins. I am a bit of a WordPress plugin developer myself, and I admit that I borrow many ideas from other good WordPress plugins. From that experience I have consolidated these good ideas into a checklist that you can follow when reviewing or coding a new WordPress plugin.

Top 10 Characteristics of a Great WordPress Plugin

Related ala carte selections include

ImJustCreative shares the glory …

The Periodic Table of Typefaces

Oh and..
Invest in your future.

Register for SOBCon09!

Sit back. Enjoy your read. Nachos and drinks will be right over. Stay as long as you like. No tips required. Comments appreciated.

–ME “Liz” Strauss

Buy the Insider’s Guide to Online Conversation.
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