Liz Strauss at Successful Blog

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

Why Stuck?

Filed Under Basics, Guest Writer, Motivation/Inspiration, Successful Blog | 6 Comments

Todays guest post is from Kneale Mann.

Kneale Mann is a writer, a coach and a strategist. With 26 years experience, he consultants on communications, marketing and social media strategy in the private, hi-tech and public sectors. He is also an associate with CEPSM and a member of the TEDxOttawa organization team.

We All Have Choices

Recently, a friend sent me a copy of Rick Butts’ book “7 Choices”. In it, Rick talks about the time we work on us verses the time we work on what we do or getting customers or what we can offer. In the age of social networking, we can all create profiles and exchange ideas and share. But how much time do we spent on better understanding ourselves?

In 1943, Abraham Maslow outlined our need to belong in his paper Hierarchy of Needs. No matter your age or situation, you want your life to have purpose and passion. That is the core of why we may get stuck – we aren’t following either. We haven’t deciphered who we are and what drives our passion. All too often we seek external confirmation.

Internet Friends

If you are immersed in social media and haven’t taken a moment to think of all the wonderful people you would not have met otherwise you are missing the essential part of the process. In my case, I met Liz Strauss and Kathryn Jennex and over the course of two years we all got to know each other. A few tweets turned in to some emails and phone calls then in to actual work. I look forward to new projects with them in 2010. My friend Lisa Hickey calls it accelerated serendipity.

I was at an event last week and realized that the twenty or so people I was sitting with had all met online. We shared similar sensibilities, we found trust with each other and we want each other to be happy and do well.

So why do we get stuck? Is it because no one will help us realize our passion and purpose? Or is it that we haven’t discovered it inside us in order to tell people what we want?

Three years ago, a friend gave me a copy of The Secret and I have told this story numerous times but I watched the first half of the film with my closed mind and arms folded and the second half taking notes. But notes aren’t enough. We need action and focus. We are human. We get stuck. We fall into the same traps of listening to the opinions of naysayers. We fail to listen to that pang in deep in our gut.

I was speaking with a client the other day about Ellen DeGeneres. She endured three years of unanswered phone calls. No one wanted to hire her and she was running out of money. She was stuck. She then got the idea of doing her own talk show. The studios weren’t falling over themselves to help her realize her dream. But she made it happen and built it into one of the most popular shows on television. It took work and persistence. She did it because she found out who she was and got unstuck.

Why do you get stuck? Why are you not following your dreams and passions and purpose? Or maybe you are?

Does this mean we shouldn’t discover people we trust to help us navigate this journey? Ask the most successful people on the planet if they get stuck and you will get a resounding – YES! None of us is immune. But if someone asks you to help them get unstuck, forget their resume or the past and listen to what they need. If you do, magic will happen for both of you.

Social Networking and a Small Town Business - Why Bother?

Filed Under Guest Writer, Successful Blog | 24 Comments

I asked my friend — heck, she’s like family — Becky McCray, if she was interested in writing a guest post on Successful-Blog. My motives were clear and simple. I think she’s brilliant at everything small business. She wondered what topic might interest. I tossed her an idea and at the same time, our mutual friend Chris Brogan tossed her a similar idea. Being the brilliant thinker she is, Becky devised an artful plan that involves three connected blog posts — one here, one on Chris’ Blog and one on her own.

That’s a plan I can support fully! So without taking further time, I present the first of the Becky McCray master Trilogy.

Social Networking and a Small Town Business - Why Bother? by Guest Writer Becky McCray

Small town business is an interesting challenge. You either target people in your local area and hope that’s enough, or you reach outside for customers and work to get enough attention.

If you’re targeting outside your local area, there is no question. Social networking is a top way to reach beyond your geographic boundaries. If you’re looking for local people as customers, you might be tempted to think that social networking is not going to work for you. WRONG! More of your potential customers are online than you realize. More importantly, marketing is only one reason for using social networking tools. I can think of four other big reasons to invest the time and effort.

To expand your horizons/perspective
The world is an unbelievable place, and technology finally makes it possible to connect with the people in it from almost anywhere. People have different perspectives, based on their life in a big city, in another country, or just in a different industry. If you don’t participate in the online world, you’re not going to get to meet these people who could help you cross-pollinate some new thinking.

To connect with vendors and other partners
Buy local campaigns notwithstanding, social networking means expanding your choice of service providers and partners far beyond your local people. Professionals and service providers of all kinds, and from all over, are active in social networks. If you stay out of social networks, you’ll never build those relationships, so you’ll have to rely only on the local accountant, web designer, and printer for all your needs, even if they aren’t all that great.

To learn
Face it; you don’t know everything. But you can find people who know about what you are needing to learn right now. When you are building friendships on Twitter, you probably don’t ever think about the fact that @susanreynolds is a jewelry artist, or that @mikeg1 knows about home schooling. But if you aren’t reaching out, you’ll never have the chance to ask, “Who here can help me with writing a magazine query letter?” (That would be @sheilas!)

To feel connected
My favorite reason for social networking from my small town: feeling connected. Being online can’t replicate the feeling of an in-person conference like SXSW or SOBCon, but it helps. Bunches. It’s like the best of a water cooler at a company of terrific people you picked to interact with, to bounce ideas off of, or just to catch up with. If you are staying out of social networking, you are missing the number one reason to do anything: the people.

What are your reasons?
These four reasons are just a beginning point. What other reasons do you have for investing your time in social media? This question is open to everyone, whether you are from a small town or a big city. But if you are from a small town, shout about it in your comment!

Sounds great, but how do I do it?
Need some starter moves to help you get online and building relationships? I’ll be presenting some Social Media Starter Moves for Small Town Small Businesses at ChrisBrogan.com tomorrow.

Becky McCray writes about small town small businesses at Small Biz Survival.

Thanks, Becky!
You really are a master.

–ME “Liz” Strauss

Is Content Really that Important?

Filed Under Guest Writer | 12 Comments

Recently I met Julie Roads and enjoyed an email exchange with her. She’s generous, thoughtful and does her homework. Her words ring with her voice. So I’m happy to present this article she wrote. I predict she’s going to be everywhere in no time at all.

Is Content Really that Important?
by Julie Roads

When I tell people that I’m a copywriter, this response smacks me in the face quite often: “Oh! I need a copyright for a blahblahblah that I created.” Yeah, I’m actually not that kind of copywriter. And while many wonderful people understand what I do, this ‘un-awareness’ of my profession’s existence often spills over and into general attitudes about the importance of good content.

Now, if you tell someone you are a web designer - their eyes light up as if they’ve just met a celebrity, or at least the coolest kid on the block. Designers elicit responses such as, “Wow, do you do flash? What are some of the sites you’ve done? I need a website!”

So, here’s a question: Can search engines read beautiful design? Of course, an easily navigable site makes all the difference, but color, logo, flash? Not so much.

People do judge books by their covers and websites by their design. And, good designers should forever be held onto. The look of your site sends an immediate message to your visitor about your personality, your tone, your business.

That said, it’s the content that pulls the visitor to the site with keywords and tags. And, it’s the value-laden, information-packed, expertly crafted content that keeps the visitor reading and turns them into a fan, a commenter, a client, a customer, a bullhorn for your business.

You tell me:

If content brought you to a site - and you found the information you wanted, would you stay even if the site was ugly?

If a stunning site caught your eye - but there was no content value, would you stay just because it was pretty?

Julie Roads can be found at Writing Roads and Blogging Roads.

Thanks, Julie!

–ME “Liz” Strauss
Work with Liz!!

What I Learned from Freelancing – Part 3 – Good Habits Rock

Filed Under Guest Writer, Successful Blog, Writing | 6 Comments

More from Deb Ng, who showed us yesterday how to be firm but not tough.

What I Learned from Freelancing – Part 3 – Good Habits Rock by Deb Ng

When I left my job to write on a freelance basis, I thought I had it all figured out – work in my pajamas, choose my own schedule, and basically do what I want. Then I learned without rules comes anarchy and anarchy for a freelancer isn’t necessarily a good thing.

Though it felt good to be lazy, I soon realized I wasn’t being very productive. Instead I picked up a few good habits. I:

When I first started, I had the whole freelancing thing pegged wrong. There’s a lot of freedom to it, but successful freelancers need to have discipline as well. When I started cultivating good habits, my career took off. Coincidence? I’ll let you decide.

What other good habits do you think freelancers need to succeed? Does working in the jimmies give one the right mindset to face the business day?

Deb Ng blogs about the best ways to find, and keep, freelance writing jobs. Why not stop by and say hello?

Thanks, Deb!
This was wonderful!

–ME “Liz” Strauss
Work with Liz!!

What Freelancing Taught Me – Part 2 Be Firm but Not Tough

Filed Under Guest Writer, Successful Blog, Writing | 10 Comments

More from Deb Ng, who told us yesterday how to gain confidence in any freelance job.

What Freelancing Taught Me – Part 2 Be Firm but Not Tough by Deb Ng

Did you ever see a person on television or even real life who was considered “tough” in business? She could pick up the phone and get what she wants, or have employees running at her beck and call, practically sniveling at her feet. I used to work for a woman like that. I admired her so much until I realized she wasn’t tough, she was mean. People responded to her because she wasn’t a nice person and they didn’t want to be on the receiving end of her wrath.

As a freelancer I learned to get my way too, but not so my clients and colleagues are afraid of temper tantrums or hissy fits. I learned to be firm. I think a freelancer has to be firm enough to make sure she’s paid on time but not so tough her first paycheck is her last. A freelancer has to know the customer is (almost) always right, but not at the expense of her dignity. I’m thinking it’s best to know how to catch flies with honey, because the other alternatives stink.

Freelancers should be firm when:

And even though we’re being firm and making sure we get a fair deal, we have to be nice. Because nice works better than mean. Nice ensures return clients and future clients. Be nice because people response better to nice. Be firm because you don’t want to be a pushover. Be yourself because there’s no one better.

Are you firm or are you tough? What do you think is the difference in how people react?

Deb Ng blogs about the best ways to find, and keep, freelance writing jobs. Why not stop by and say hello?

Thanks, Deb!
Everyone, tune in tomorrow for Part 3 – Good Habits Rock

–ME “Liz” Strauss
Work with Liz!!

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