Liz, Author at Successful Blog Page

Karen Shanley Is a B.A.D. Blogger!

April 5, 2007 by Liz

Blogger A Day Call: Hello is Karen there?

Go to her blog and you’ll find the words One Writer Mom, One Tween Kid, One Brilliant Australian Shepherd, One Comical Border Collie Mix, and One Big Fluffy Maine Coon Cat. The words are not very large, but they’re in all caps.

Karen Shanley named every one of them in the email she sent saying that she wanted to be a B.A.D. blogger. This is a woman who considers her animals to be a cast of characters in her life. Who wouldn’t enjoy a conversation with someone who has a joie de vivre like that?

Gosh we had a fine conversation of the kind that two abstract thinkers with too much say can do. We talked about writing and blog writing and why we do it. We talked about our dads and unconditional love and how we wished everyone could experience it at least once in their life.

When we talked about being moms. I think I told her the story of how, at 17, my son thought it tragic that people over 30 just don’t care about anything. That seems to be when Karen said that “Getting older is humbling in a good way.” I still like the sound of that.

Karen and I had a full-out writing discussion. We talked about how writing makes a person a better thinker — deeper, quicker. “When you go about it with integrity and vision, you’re sure to grow,” is how Karen said it.

Karen writes about the two-legged and four-legged creatures she loves. and “Good people take the time to read and make thoughtful comments.” she says.

It’s easy to see why. She serves them stories abour the characters in her life. They make you want to tell her stories abiout the characters in yours or get her talking more about the characters in hers.

Karen Shanley makes conversation easy.

I smile to think back on it.

B.A.D. Blogger Quote

My writing is about finding the words someone else would hear, but not shying away from difficult conversation. —Karen Shanley

Stop by Karen Shanley’s Blog and say hi!

Thanks, Karen you B.A.D. Blogger!

–ME “Liz” Strauss
Want to be a B.A.D. Blogger see the. . . a B.A.D. Blogger? page in the sidebar.

WOMMA: What Gets People To Talk About You?

April 5, 2007 by Liz

What People Talk About

Andy Sernovitz knows what people talk about. He knows how to get people like me talking the way I’m talking to you about him right now. In fact, he wrote the book Word of Mouth Marketing: How Smart Companies Get People Talking.

If you want to get people tarking, Andy says in his book. You need to know what people talk about. People talk about three kinds of things.

We talk about other people and their stuff. If you are interesting, we talk about you or the stuff you are selling. We talk about how the service you offer is grander or more remarkable than we expected or how you have done something that captured out imagination. We want a reason to talk about you. Good conversation makes our life more interesting too.

We talk because it makes us feel smart, important, and helpful. We remember how you treat us and pass that along to our friends. Treat us exceptionally nice, and we become die-hard fans. Give us a product or service that amazes us, and we’ll become the experts on where to find you — making sure everyone knows you are the best in your field. Everyone likes to feel that they have the key to something special. We like to help our friends by showing them how to find a great deal. Keep your attention fresh and exciting, and you will keep us interested and talking about you.

We want to feel part of a bigger group. When we share how we feel about a product or a service we have enjoyed, we feel connected to the experience and connected to the people we tell about it. The more times we tell the story, the more we identify with it as a part of us and our life. Offer something people want to be a part of and they’ll tell others about it.

Talking to each other is what we do — on the phone, at our desks, in the comment box, in the grocery, over the kitchen table. We fill up our life with stories about our experiences. Talking is how we share the experiences that we find interesting and defining.

People like to talk to people. What can you do to get people talking about what you do? What stories come to your mind when you read this? Are they all BIG and heroic or are some stories of regular size?

Thanks Andy. I can’t wait to hear you speak at SOBCon.

–ME “Liz” Strauss
Hurry! The special rate rooms in the SOBCon Block at the OHare SOBCon 07 will be released back to the hotel on April 13th.

Great Writers Read Great Writers

April 5, 2007 by Liz

Once Upon a Time

If I asked you to name a great writer, who might it be? And if I asked you to name more than one, would all of them, any of them, have gone to a university?

Abraham Lincoln, a self-educated man, wrote the Gettysburg Address.

Ayn Rand left the USSR in 1926 — her formal education was over. She came to the U.S., took odd jobs in Hollywood to support herself. Ayn Rand wrote The Fountain Head and Atlas Shrugged.

Truman Capote ended his formal education at age 17. He wrote In Cold Blood and Breakfast at Tiffany’s.

All of these great writers learned to write by reading.

That’s how writers learned through history. Writers learned to write before there were oficial writing teachers. What did they get?

They got the music and the structure of the language.
They got a sense of story.
They learned to put words together to make meaning.

Oh sure, they got much more. Every word they read taught them something about their writing.

Do you read like a writer? What would a writer of your sort be reading? How might a writer read in a different manner? Is reading blogs enough?

–ME “Liz” Strauss
If you think Liz can help with a problem you’re having with your writing, check out the Work with Liz!! page in the sidebar.

We Talked About. . . Food, Food, Food

April 4, 2007 by Liz

Food Crazy

Hi Everyone! Every week Sandy and I try to think how to sum all that we talked about but you know it’s impossible to capture the joy, humor, and comaradarie of 4 hours in one simple blog post. And as much as I like taking a clever comment and sharing it here, it sure takes time and once in a while it embarrasses folks.

So we’re going to stop trying to do the impossible, trying to retell a fabulous memory, and instead let you enjoy the comments as they were said whole.

It was a busy night. We were talking about how to foods and food memories. Oh my! What a relationship we have with food!

Wow!

You can read all about it in the comments sectiona>

Here are some cool links we shared.

Thanks to everyone for the cool links and for being part of the conversation.

See you next Tuesday? I sure hope so.
–ME “Liz” Strauss

What is Tuesday Open Comment Night?

WANT TO GUEST HOST AN OPEN COMMENT NIGHT WITH ME? PICK A THEME AND TELL ME ABOUT IT. C’MON IT’LL BE FUN!

Dave Olson’s Post Is Going to SOBCon

April 4, 2007 by Liz

Dave’s a Relationship Blogger

I read this post last night just before midnight. Only one thought crossed my mind. Call a guy an SOB and he’ll show you just how much he knows about Successful and Outstanding Blogging.

Dave Olson gets what it means to be a relationship blogger. This post has to be a classic definition for anyone who wants to know what the term means. Click the title and have a read.

Break all the social taboos for better relationships

So, if you won’t mind, Dave, I’d like to bring your post to SOBCon.

Boy, if I had the juice I’d bring you, Dave, right along with your post. You belong in that audience. You’re a genuine relationship blogger. Bet you can apply that to design, branding, and marketing your blog.

–ME “Liz” Strauss
SOBCon -07 The hotel is filling up! Register Now!

A Sense of Urgency

April 4, 2007 by Liz

I’ve been thinking . . .

about my sense of urgency.

When I was a publisher, I placed a high value on my sense of urgency. Everyone in my book of “those who are good at this” had a sense of urgency about the work we did. We tried to trim any schedule while still delivering top-notch quality.

Urgency is a highly personal relationship between a person and the work. It is a decision on how quickly something needs to be done in order to be done well.

Urgency means meeting the schedule with outstanding work.
Urgency means coming in early so that the next guy has more time to do what he needs to do.
Urgency means focusing on the task at hand, focusing to do it well on the first and only try.

When you work on unrealistic schedules that drive revenues that support your paycheck, urgency is value that is worth cultivating.

I taught my team in publishing that urgency is a merit skill.

Then I came online. I found it unfortunate and frustrating that folks didn’t seem to have a sense of urgency. I heard my urgent voice saying why don’t folks care that things slip and take longer than they need to?

Then I looked again at my sense of urgency. I started to realize that I had learned to be urgent about everything. Everything must get done. There were musts and shoulds, where I needed none. When I unpacked the word urgency I found the words responsibility, control, and oh no! . . . oh yes! stress.

Over time, I’ve adjusted my steps to walk when I don’t need to run.

I’m urgent only when time makes a real difference to the outcome.

I wish I had been a blogger before I was a publisher. Having known this would have made me a better manager.

Sometimes I truly do need a sense of urgency Sometimes I truly am better off without one.