Connecting dots with The Idea Dude

Perhaps it is archaic education or upbringing, there always existed a distinct difference in my mind between writing and speaking… Reading and writing was a passive, distance activity whereas speaking and listening was an active and intimate experience.

…until now.

Over the past months, I started to speak and listen through my blog.

The words were not just the medium, they were proxies for my voice just as your comments were for yours.

Is it so radical? you may ask.

I think it is, when you read, you want to be educated or entertained. When you listen, you want to be engaged.

When you write, you want to inform or enlighten, when you speak, you want to participate and elicit a response.

It is a question of intent, something that is beginning to change the face of the blogosphere.

The intent to converse and engage…

If that is your intent, then listen to these dots…

Liz spoke this week of what it takes to be a superstar conversationalist. We have to be imperfectly human to draw a response and then be active listeners.

Ann made me wonder, Maybe we need to listen to someone else’s interpretation of the conversation that can only come about if we start a conversation and then leave space for a response.

As a parent, I love reading bloggers describe their experiences with their children. When Nesting Momma spoke about her child, falling from the nest, I realized I was not reading but listening when she spoke about, It will happen often, daily, yearly even in her adulthood; she will make mistakes, have accidents and fall from the nest. I am so honored to be the one that gets to pick her up, dust off her wings and give her wind to fly again.

Robert told us a joke to end the week, it was pretty much the same way I related it to my son. For me, Robert is a story-teller first and a writer second. Isn’t that the way it should be?

Perhaps, the word blog has already outlived its usefulness because for many of us,

we’ve already taken it far beyond where we found it.

Instead of saying I read a hundred blogs this week, I really heard a hundred souls speaking..

I am truly blessed.

So which dots spoke to you this week? pray tell!

May the dots be with you!

Vern, The Idea Dude

Click here to see more dots we connected

Connecting dots with The Idea Dude

I used to think looking good was something you only had to do during a business presentation. Beyond that, my work and talent would take care of my reputation. Many years ago, I read Tom Jeary’s Life is a series of presentations. He said Whether you are talking to a soccer coach or potential client, the way you present your thoughts and ideas to people have a profound effect on the shape of your life..

I felt like someone poured a bucket of ice-cold water over me. I learnt to value each individual who stood before me and take the time to be nice. I don’t always succeed and sometimes under duress or tiredness I walk away from a conversation wishing I did better. But it became part of my DNA. To be deliberate in the experience I wanted to leave with the person I was interacting with.

The first dot that went blink, blink, blink in my head the whole week was Anna’s. Anna blogs about business leadership and has many terrific things to say. But the thing that made her dot blink for me was her tagline right at the top of her blog. People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel. I’m willing to bet that if you met Anna, she would be one of the 10 people you would never forget even if your paths never crossed again.

Dot #2. It reminded me what Liz said about being good and nice.
Being good at what you do is important, but a strong personal identity includes both good and easy to work with.
Sometimes when we’re good or hold positions of authority, we forget to be nice. It’s not only a business rule, it’s a life rule.

In fact, if I recall, it is the ONLY rule that Liz has on her blog.

Speaking of personal brand, what I found most interesting is that the people who were clearly leaders and had a profound effect on me had a common attribute.

They led by serving.

What a paradox! or is it? You’re the people I trust and the people I serve., Liz says in her post this week

I’ll never forget in all my years in business, the companies I wanted to work with were those who asked me the question at the end of the meeting (even though they were 10 times bigger than we were).

So how may I be of service to you?

Let me take you to another favorite dot of mine, his name is Drew. Drew is an extremely smart person and very well-read in the blogosphere. He’s take on how to write an outstanding blog post?? It’s all about you. It is that humility and generosity that makes Drew compelling.

This particular journey would not be complete without stopping to visit Steve. The title of his Greater than yourself mashup series already defines who he is as a blogger and thought leader. The one sentence in his blog that resonated the most with me?

I have to give of myself before I expand myself.

I was reminded of one of my kids’s favorite jokes. How do fit a an elephant into a matchbox? Take out the matches!

As Liz would say, make room for the conversation.

May the dots be with you!

Vern, The Idea Dude

Connecting dots at TheGoodBlogs