Blogging Allows Folks with Autism Equal Access

April 19, 2006 by Liz

You might not have considered it, but some of the folks who read your blog are probably autistic. Blogs make information accessible to people with autism in ways the auditory information is not.

Being a teacher and a peculiar person myself, I’ve more than a passing interest in how blogging has found a place in the lives of autistic people. Estee Klar-Wolfond is a blogger and the parent of a child with autism. I’ve been following Estee’s blog for a while now. She explains the blogging connection in this quote from her latest post.

Thankfully, the blog is an equalizer of humans . . . It is a universe, a Ã¢â¬ÅsphereÃ¢â¬? without rules, without barriers Ã¢â¬â faceless, sometimes nameless. It transcends some physical and attitudinal barriers and in this realm, one cannot judge another based on appearance or so-called levels of Ã¢â¬Åfunctioning.Ã¢â¬?

Great Find: The Blog and Human Equality by Estee Klar-Wolfond
Type of Article: an editorial discussing the current views on autism and the impact blogging has had on the community of persons with autism
Permalink: http://joyofautism.blogspot.com/2006/04/blog-and-human-
Target Audience: Anyone who wants to know more about how blogging can change the lives of a population
Content: This is a serious read by a sincere author who knows the subject intimately and has done the research. I include it here because I know autistic people are among our readers and because knowing how others process what we write is valuable information. To access the article, click on the quote below by an autistic blogger taken from Estee’s article.

Ã¢â¬ÅZilariÃ¢â¬? of Part Processing makes a number of comments on her processing time with colleagues at work:

Ã¢â¬ÅThis is the main reason I prefer reading to listening. I like huge blocks of text I can sift through and find the relevance in. I like how text stays firm within time and does not melt away like sound. I like how reading does not demand every 30 seconds that one speaks to the text aloud and says, “Yes, I’m getting it, carry on!Ã¢â¬Â¦”

Thanks Estee for sharing what you know with Successful Blog readers.

–ME “Liz” Strauss

There’s No Putting ME in a Box

April 18, 2006 by Liz

A Heartwarming Story

One more story–this one will explain the last. You may already know it. It’s inspiring and heartwarming. I’ve encountered it more than once myself.

A few years ago, at the Seattle Special Olympics, nine contestants, all physically or mentally disabled, assembled at the starting line for the 100-yard dash. At the gun, they all started out, not exactly in a dash, but with relish to run the race to the finish and win.

All, that is, except one little boy who stumbled on the asphalt, tumbled over a couple of times, and began to cry. The other eight heard the boy cry.

They slowed down and looked back. Then they all turned around and went back……every one of them. One girl with Down’s Syndrome bent down and kissed him and said, “This will make it better.” Then all nine linked arms and walked together to the finish line. Everyone in the stadium stood, and the cheering went on for several minutes. People who were there are still telling the story.

It’s a lovely read, but it’s not what happened. [Read more…]

Do You Know a Customer When You See One?

April 18, 2006 by Liz

True Story

I was in my mid-twenties. I had left teaching and had an executive job in downtown Chicago. I was a young professional with a disposable income, who needed some business suits. My mother had taught me the value of investment dressing–now that I’d finally quit growing. She had said it was worth buying classic, expensive clothing that fit well, because the investment never went out of fashion. A 36-inch inseam meant off-the-rack clothing wasn’t an option for me anyway.

It was a Saturday afternoon when I arrived at the storefront on Wabash Avenue. This was the kind of place where CEOs sat on embroidered couches reading Forbes magazine, while a wife or current affair of the heart decided which 7 or 8 suits and dresses she simply could not live without. Then he paid and, they both left happy.

Three women, all at least 10 years older than my mother who was 30 years older than me, were standing at the elegant counter when I walked in. I was wearing my baby blue, down-filled ski jacket with the torn pocket, a bright red ski sweater with a bicycle tire embroidered on the front, and my blue jeans that came complete with frayed bell bottoms, a patch on each back pocket–have a good day/have a nice night–and a drawing in ink up the inside right thigh that I had made while talking on the phone the night before.

All three ladies, who worked on commission, looked up when I came in. I was the only other person in the store.

I wasn’t the usual vision that walked through the door.

Hoity Hoity Meet Saloonkeeper’s Daughter

Two of the ladies–hoity toity is the only word to describe them–frowned and immediately went back to talking. They had tried to intimidate me right out the door. It was sort of like that scene in the movie, “Pretty Woman.” That didn’t bother me. I was a saloonkeeper’s daughter. Obviously they’d never seen one of me. [Read more…]

Just Say YES!

April 15, 2006 by Liz

Unless There’s a Really Good Reason Not to

When someone asks for a favor, just say yes. Most favors don’t take as long as thinking up a reason to turn them down would. Doing one feels better than turning one down does. You might be surprised at the ways that the favor comes back to you. I was reminded of that twice just this week with a lovely gesture and a clever response to a request for a critique. Take a look, if you have the time. I’d love for them to get them your comments.

There’s no rule that says you can’t run a business and have a heart. In fact, I look for a heart in the people I do business with.

–ME “Liz” Strauss

Customer Think: IÃ¢â¬â¢m Not a Kid, IÃ¢â¬â¢m a Person
Customer Think: Saying Things without Talking
5 Sure-Fire Ways to Break the Promise of Your Brand

Great Find: Success in Technology or in Life?

April 13, 2006 by Liz

Okay, so you may not call an editorial on technology and life a Great Find, especially one that harks back from last November. I’ve been keeping this one for some Thursday when I had the feeling that folks might be ready to think about the quality of life. Around here it’s about to be a glorious spring again. That seemed like reason enough to pull this piece out. It can’t be too preachy. It’s Wired News after all.

Great Find: Eat, Sleep, Consume, Die by Tony Long for Wired News
Type of Article: an editorial rant on life before technology
Permalink: http://www.wired.com/news/technology/0,1282,68742,00.html http://www.businessweek.com/careers/content/mar2006/ca20060327_414798.htm?campaign_id=nws_insdr_mar31&link_position=link18
Target Audience: Anyone who has tendencies toward work addiction

Content: Let’s face it. Research has proved it out. The laptop may have made our work lives easier, but it also meant that we are working longer. As Tony Long points out we’re living in a world where technology has this kind of impact in many places– in our homes, at work, and in our cities. Tony writes with intelligent phrasing and biting sarcasm. He’s decided there’s too much techonology being thrust on us, and he’s no shy about saying that it’s making him (and I think he’s implying us) cranky.

But that’s the point. My expectations have been raised to this ridiculous level by technology running amok through my heretofore-bucolic existence. I used to be a laid-back guy. Now I’m impatient. I chafe. I get irritable when my gratification isn’t instantaneous. And it isn’t just me. The whole world is bitchier these days.

It’s definitely a piece worth reading, especially now that we’re talking about how we’re treating each other. Being bitchy and overworked isn’t great promotion for your business, your brand, or your blog. As always, a click on the screenshot will take you to the article.

Wired News Eat, Sleep, Consume, Die Screenshot

I’m chaning my plan to work all weekend. I want to keep being the nice one.

I have a feeling this article will become more timely the older it gets.

–ME “Liz” Strauss

The Headline’s NOT the Story

April 9, 2006 by Liz

Newspapers Need to Change Metrics

For years, publishers have relied — often to their detriment — upon the metric of paid circulation. But circulation for the core product has been on a long, steady decline, causing some to suggest that print is on its way out.

The industry has touted the notion of readership — a metric that takes into account how many people read the paper whether they buy it or not — for years, but has often taken halfhearted steps toward giving it true legitimacy.

Then there’s the confounding, if promising, online angle. If you count Web traffic, newspapers are actually more popular than ever.
Jennifer Saba, associate editor, Editor and Publisher, Dispelling the Myth of Readership Decline

Surveys Say Move Online–Really?

I came across For Future Readers, Papers Should Look Online earlier this week. It was written by staff writer, Sara Kehaulani Goo, in the Washington Post. I read it and set it aside as not much, but it nagged at me. At first, I was puzzled. Why was the Washington Post writing about this? They were ahead of most at knowing where the readers are. This couldn’t be news to them or their readers. The piece itself didn’t offer much depth. It almost seemed to be filler.

The point of the article was that two surveys–one by the Newspaper Association of America and a second by marketing firm, Scarborough Research–point to the fact that 18-24 year-olds want news, but not newsprint. The point was supported by data and some compelling quotes. I’m guessing this one quote will be all over the Internet.

“People who are not necessarily engaged with the print product are increasingly using the newspaper Web site for news and information in their local market,” said Randy Bennett, senior vice president of audience and business development at the newspaper association. “Blogs, video and other multimedia content beyond what appears in the newspaper are all having an impact on usage of newspaper Web sites.”

Done But Not Over

This morning I decided to use the Washington Post article to inform an article I was writing on my personal business blog, Lizstrauss.com that came to be called WashingtonPost Now to Editor and Publisher Then. While I was doing further research, I found a more serious analysis of the newspaper readership issue written up last November by Jennifer Saba, associate editor of Editor and Publisher. Ms. Saba’s four page article not only cited and quoted the same sources, but laid out the challenges and the potential of what lies ahead for print newspapers. I finished my writing a short while ago, yet the Washington Post article was still in my head–puzzling me. I was done with what I had set out to do, but it seemed my job was not over yet.

The REAL Story

I went back to the Washingtonpost.com article one more time to figure out what it was that was bothering me. Then I found it. It was a quote. This quote I suspect everyone will overlook. It’s the only new information in the article. It says volumes about how the MSM looks at the Internet. This quote is the real story. How I wish Ms. Kehaulani Goo had started her article here.

“But if you continue to grow 30 percent or more a year, within five years, for example, online classified revenue will equal what you’ll get from your print model,” [John] Morton [newspaper analyst] said. “My concern is how newspaper managers treat this online profit. If they treat it as ‘found’ money and don’t use it to shore up the economic model of the declining newsprint model, it’s going to spell bad news for newsrooms.”

Do You Hear It?

Mr. Morton is worried that the newpaper managers won’t take the online readership and profits seriously. He understands that they need it to make the economics of a 21st-century newspaper work. Why wouldn’t managers see the way he does? Do they know something he doesn’t? Do they have their heads in the sand? Perhaps they are preparing to teach citizen readers too.

God bless the mainstream media! They are so generous.

And here I thought I was the nice one.

–ME “Liz” Strauss