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I’m Lucky; I’ll Reach Out, and Celebrate

June 15, 2007 by Liz

I've been thinking . . .

about helping each other.

I’ve noticed something about the people who know me as a blogger and those who have known me longer, but don’t know the blogosphere.

Over the past few months, many blogger friends — friends I have known less than two years — have asked for help and offered help. In fact, I told someone yesterday that it’s hard to talk to a blogger without hearing, “How can I help you? or Thank you for reaching out.” In the past few days, blogger friends and I have found work for each other, worked together on projects, and when someone was in trouble people immediately rallied around to help.

Helping is a bloggerly thing. So is blogger synchronicity.

Friends I know from the 3-D world — friends that I’ve known longer, much longer — are having the same kinds of problems. Yet, they don’t call me or each other. I hear about their troubles when I call to see how they are. They struggle alone or with one friend who helps them. It’s not that they think I won’t help. They don’t think about me at all. They think they must walk alone through paved streets.

Asking for help seems to be not a worldly thing. Neither does letting many people too close seem to be.

I wonder at how small a big city seems when the world is our community.

I can reach out to people across the country. People of so many skills and gifts have taught me incredible things. I have learned to believe in the power of people and dreams.

I introduced a friend from the world of brick and mortar to a friend in the world of blogging today. She said she believed that when the learner is ready, the teacher appears.

Another blogger friend brought a nonblogger in trouble to me for help.

This weekend I’ll celebrate blogger generosity by looking for ways to give help away.

How could anyone how has received so much, do any less?

Liz's Signature

_________

Filed Under: Motivation, Successful Blog Tagged With: bc, giving-to-each-other, Ive-been-thinking

Mystery Man: What’s He Going to Do?

June 14, 2007 by Liz

WHO?

Who is this man from Iowa and why is he smiling?

Who is this man? Why is his picture here?

He doesn’t write or send flowers.
He didn’t come to SOBCon.
Yet, this man and I have a plan for Successful Blog.
You’ll get a kick out of it.
–ME “Liz” Strauss
Kick in the Pants

Update: I’ve added in the links to Mitch’s blogs.

Filed Under: Motivation, Successful Blog Tagged With: bc, Mystery-man

Business Rule 13: Structure Damage

June 14, 2007 by Liz

Times Are A’Changing

Business Rules Logo

It seems a good time to write about change.

Everything in life changes. If we’re not changing, we’re dead.
But then, we knew that. Knowing how we respond to the changes that can happen is key to being a leader, more importantly to knowing who we are. . . . .

I was going on a business trip.

When I travel I have all things in order days ahead. Otherwise, a little nagging voice reminds me that I’m likely to forget something that will cause me to miss my plane or get to the airport without my bags. This advance routine allows time to add in things that I forget on the first try.

I had everything arranged for a meeting. It was still two days before my flight. I got a note saying a good friend had decided to attend the same meeting. The staff assistant had changed my seat assignment so that my friend and I could sit together.

I froze. It didn’t feel good. I didn’t understand why I felt upset. I wanted to sit with my friend. The new seats were better.

Why was I ticked that no one asked? My answer was so obvious. She had done me a personal favor. I should be grateful. What was going on?

I took a walk around the building to find out. Halfway around I got the answer — structure damage. The new seat assignment had changed the picture in my head. It shook the foundation I had so carefully laid.

Everyone suffers from structure damage now and then.

I’m a fairly laid-back person, but I’ve got two places where I’m not -– when I’m getting ready to travel and when I’m conceptualizing a project. I try, but I don’t always see that I’m in high-structure mode when I am. At least, I can realize what rattled me when I give the wrong response so that I can explain and apologize. Luckily as I get older, I need less structure, because I’ve done a lot of things before.

Some people need more structure than others. What sorts of things mess with your structure? Do you know?

–ME “Liz” Strauss
Check out the Work with Liz!! page in the sidebar.

Related
Business Rule 12: The Brother Story and the Facts about Grandma
Business Rule 11: Apples and Oranges
Business Rule 10: Is Their Urgency Real?
Business Rule 9: What’s the Value of Money?

Filed Under: Business Book, Successful Blog Tagged With: bc, Business-Rules, Rules-They-Dont-Teach-in-Business-School, sense-of-urgencybusiness-rules, vocabulary

Change the World: Get Some Perspective

June 14, 2007 by Liz

Selective Memory

changetheworld8

As we get to be adults, we have conversations about growing up. Often those conversations center around our parents and what they did wrong. . . . I often recall a college friend saying, “When does it stop being our parents fault?”

I don’t know whether my childhood was happy, I only remember specific memories — even those seem to be a story told from my own point of view . . . as I found out about this one.

I told my older, older brother about my son’s attitude as teenager. I said, “I never had the nerve to talk to my mother that way.”

My older, older bother laughed. He said, “Ah, your selective memory! When your niece was your son’s age, I heard her talk back to her mother . . . how often I thought ‘Oh that’s familiar.’ It was a replay of my little sister talking to my mother. Why do you think I say my daughter is so like her aunt?”

Now I look back and think,”Yeah, I was a brat just like every other 17-year-old kid. It’s the nature of 17-year-olds. Young lions do it to their parents too. It’s part of growing up and leaving home.”

Part of becoming who we are is getting events into perspective. I’ve always been a little slow at catching on, but when I did that day, I saw my son and myself in a new way.

The rest of that year was lighter for one 17-year-old and his mother.

We can change the world — just like that.
–ME “Liz” Strauss

Filed Under: Liz, Motivation, Successful Blog Tagged With: bc, Change-the-World, perspective

Gosh, Aren’t We Supposed to Be . . .

June 13, 2007 by Liz

Some Days

Cell phones and computers aren’t as fun as . . .

crayons.

crayons

If we’re working
for a living, aren’t we
supposed to be

living?

Life is supposed to be

fun and inspiring.

I’m not confused about this one.
Sometimes we’re supposed to be

playing.

I’m sure about that.
–ME “Liz” Strauss
Check out the Work with Liz!! page in the sidebar.

Filed Under: Motivation, Successful Blog Tagged With: bc, being-alive, Ive-been-thinking, playing

In Case You Missed It: Writing 06-13-07

June 13, 2007 by Liz

Take a Peek

bloggy tags small

Vovo over at Business Traffic Ideas threw this idea to me. He caught it from Patrick Schaber at The Lonely Marketer who spotted the idea originated by Matt McGee over at Small Business SEM.

The thought is that so new subscribers in recent months might like to know about posts from times gone by. So with that in mind here are a few worth a peek — all about writing.

  1. Are You a Writer? 7 Traits that Writers Have in Common
  2. 10 Reasons to Write and Publish Every Day
  3. Love at First Write: 5 +1 Steps to Your Authentic Writing Voice
  4. The Problem with Writing . . . 25 Things to Know BEFORE You Write for a Living
  5. The 9 Rights of Every Writer — Peer Pressure Is for Jr. High School
  6. Content or Copy: Ignore the Difference at Your Own Risk
  7. 10 Reasons Readers Don’t Leave Comments
  8. Writing–Ugh! 10 Reasons to Get Jazzed about Writing
  9. Why Dave Barry and Liz Don’t Get Writer’s Block
  10. Turning Reluctant Readers into Loyal Fans
  11. Bookcraft 2.0: 12 Cold Truths about Publishing and The 2 Proofs Every Publisher Wants
  12. 9 + 1 Things Every Reader Wants from a Writer

This one is on writing. Another will follow soon.

Hope you find it helpful.

Let me know if you think a favorite is missing from the list. Thanks!

–ME “Liz” Strauss
Check out the Work with Liz!! page in the sidebar.

Filed Under: Successful Blog, Writing Tagged With: bc, in-case-you-missed-it, Writing

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