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The Mic is On: It’s Autumn Colors and Grey Skies to Come!

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It’s Like Open Mic Only Different

The Mic Is On

Here’s how it works.

It’s like any rambling conversation. Don’t try to read it all. Jump in whenever you get here. Just go to the end and start talking. EVERYONE is WELCOME.
The rules are simple — be nice.

There are always first timers and new things to talk about. It’s sort of half “Cheers” part “Friends” and part video game. You don’t know how much fun it is until you try it.

Yellows, Reds, Golds, and Grey Skies to come. . .

If you live in a four-season climate in the northern hemisphere, you’re seeing the change of colors begin. The days are getting shorter in ways that are easier to see and feel too. The colors are beautiful, but the also mean winter is around the corner.

  • What do you like about fall? What do you wish you capture and keep?
  • What part of fall makes you nostagic?
  • What fall activities do you most look forward to?
  • What about fall do you like the least?
  • and if you’re in the southern hemisphere or where you have sun all year, feel free to give us a little perspective on what you’ll be doing while we’re raking leaves.
fall_trees

And, whatever else comes up, including THE EVER POPULAR, Basil the code-writing donkey . . . and flamenco dancing (because we always get off topic, anyway.)

Oh, and bring example links to share — about fall activities.

–ME “Liz” Strauss
image: sxc.hu
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Open Mic 7pm Chgo Time: Autumn Colors and Impending Doom!

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Join Us Tonight

Yellows, Reds, Golds, and Grey Skies to come. . .

If you live in a four-season climate in the northern hemisphere, you’re seeing the change of colors begin. The days are getting shorter in ways that are easier to see and feel too. The colors are beautiful, but the also mean winter is around the corner.

  • What do you like about fall? What do you wish you capture and keep?
  • What part of fall makes you nostagic?
  • What fall activities do you most look forward to?
  • What about fall do you like the least?
  • and if you’re in the southern hemisphere or where you have sun all year, feel free to give us a little perspective on what you’ll be doing while we’re raking leaves.

Oh, and bring example links to share — about fall activities.

The rules are simple — be nice.

Do be nice. 🙂

–ME “Liz” Strauss

Related article
What is Tuesday Open Comment Night?

OspitalitĂ ! Prego! What My Italian Grandmother Knew about Community Building

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Community Is about Welcoming People In

flower_in_window-Italian_village

Most of the kids I grew up with were 2nd generation American, which meant our grandparents spoke a language other than English. Adult immigrants had a hard time learning English. My grandmother, who was born in 1888, never did.

I can only imagine what it was like, knowing that her grandkids couldn’t understand what she was saying . . . Still my grandmother knew how to connect and by the time I was six I was talking with her through gestures, faces, and a tiny Italian vocabulary she gave me. We could spend hours enjoying each other’s company.

I didn’t understood the magic of what she did until I visited her village in Italy. I realized the humanity of my grandmother’s gifts when I felt strangers offer the same sort of welcoming, reaching out. It was a way of life not just a “family thing.”

You could feel from the smiles in their eyes. You could hear it when they said “buonasera” as they walked by. You could see in the flower pots placed outside the windows of every house. I felt welcomed. It didn’t matter that they didn’t know who I was.

In the last 24 hours, I’ve spoken to three people about blogging and social media. All three, in their own way, said they feel as if everyone is speaking another language. They all felt that they didn’t know how to find their way to connect. That’s why I’ve been thinking about what my grandmother did . . .

What My Italian Grandmother Knew about Community Building

My grandmother was born in 1888. Her name was Liza. She knew a lot about people and life. When she came here, she owned a small saloon in a small town in Illinois. Though she had no English — she only knew Italian — every person who came there felt welcomed and most came back.

Her tavern was a living example of a participatory culture. Social relationships and community thrived. I saw these things with my own child’s eyes.

  • Welcome! Every time someone walked in the door, her face lit up in a smile. Whether they’d been there before or just arrived, she stop to welcome them as if they’d come home from a long journey.
  • See! She had an uncanny way of looking at each person fully and individually in the eyes. It didn’t matter if their words weren’t the same. The attention she gave said how she valued every one of them.
  • Smile! She was a woman of joy! Joy is contagious and attractive. My grandmother was a tall, thin 80 year-old woman when I knew her, but until her last day she could make a room glow.
  • Listen! Because she didn’t have the words, but often knew what people were saying, my grandmother listened better than anyone I know. That made a person feel like a great communicator and feel like a fine lady had heard.
  • Laugh! When she didn’t understand what someone was saying, she would laugh at herself as if words were playing games. Then she’d look for another way to reach out for meaning.
  • OspitalitĂ ! Prego! Any person who spent an hour in her saloon couldn’t leave without knowing that those two words meant Hospitality! and Yes, of course! The entire venue was about the people who came. She loved every one of them.

My grandmother wasn’t afraid to build a bridge on the language she didn’t know because she trusted herself to connect in other ways. We can build a bridge to the folks who don’t know social media by taking a clue and some cues from things she did.

Where are you seeing great examples of hospitality and bridge building in our Internet culture? What can we do to help them grow?

–ME “Liz” Strauss
Work with Liz!!

Creating Conversations and Relationships Using LinkedIn

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“What is LinkedIn good for when you are not looking for a job?”
The short answer is: a lot!

The long answer is found in this list of articles in a group writing project started by Brandon Hull of SalesTeamTools. I found this list some time ago and definitely suggest checking it out: 100+ Smart Ways to Use LinkedIn (from the LinkedIntelligence blog). There are many useful ideas from actual LinkedIn users.

:

People talking
People talking, people connecting

More than an Online Resume

As you can see, Linked in is much more than just a futuristic resume, it is a tool for connecting. Here are three more things that I to do with LinkedIn:

  1. Focus on connecting. Whenever I get a business card from someone I enter them into my Highrise HQ account, then search for that person on LinkedIn right away. Because I have their email, I can send them an invitation to connect.
  2. Increase your visibility. Don’t add people to your network and then forget about them. While everyone you meet may not be a “business” contact, they may be a referrer. How will you know? Use the Question and Answer function on LinkedIn. Also, make sure your public profile is complete. I like to recommend people in my network, I also ask them to recommend me. Every time I do one of these activities, LinkedIn posts updates online and in weekly updates to everyone in my network.
  3. Make LinkedIn your homepage. Whenever I open my browser, I can immediately review my “LinkedIn Home Page” which shows what others in my network are doing and who they’re connecting with. I also check every 2-3 days to see “Who’s Viewed My Profile.” Just as you can use web statistics to see who is looking at your website, you can also see who’s been checking out your profile.

For a real-world example, I recently used the Question and Answer feature for doing some research on a post about working from home. This is something that I have been struggling with for some time now and it occurred to me that I had a large base of people that I know that have been working from home for years. Who better to ask for tips?

I asked a question, and a lot of people answered! In fact, many more than I expected. I consider myself blessed to have so many contacts that are so engaged and willing to help. One of those that chimed in with an answer was Grant Griffiths from Home Office Warrior, who graciously offered to host the collection of tips as a post on his blog. Click on through to see this amazing list of tips for working at home.

25 Words that Connect Us — Pass It On!!

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Can 25 Words Change the World?

The Living Web

Thank you to everyone who participated in the 25 Words that Connect Us Project. It was another amazing example of the power of writing. It was also another challenge to make this one shine as brightly as the words.

Thank you for your wisdom!

You shared thoughts about technology, spirituality, love, playing, friendship, family, relationships, pain, war, suffering, sorrow, selfishness, kindness, empathy, vulnerability, hope, oneness, distance, proximity, intention, synergy, generosity, reciprocity, first contact, listening, service, faith, joy, fun, inspiration, investing, neighbors, networks, diversity, experience, expression, dreams, sharing, humanity, imperfection, interconnection, creativity, living, reaching out and changing the world.

Here’s what you wrote.

25 Words that Connect Us

View SlideShare presentation or Upload your own. (tags: wisdom of)

Click the single right arrow to move to the next slide. To embed this on your blog or share it with others, just click the “embed” tag on the viewer.

I checked twice to be sure I got everyone’s selection. But if I missed you please let me know and I’ll edit and add you in immediately. The 25-word authors are:

Amy Derby
Stacy Lang
Karin H
schizo
Chris Brogan
Luke Gedeon
Kara
Robert Hruzek
Todd Jordan
Avital
Todd Smith
Bob Whaley
Karl Edwards
Davina
Mark Salinas
Joanna Young
David Taboada
78% water, 12% caffeine
SpageAgeSage – Lori
Michael VanDervort
VanillaCokehead
Wonderwebby
Heather Rast
Kelly Erickson
Work Happy Now!
Connected Creativity
Giovanna Garcia
Shadows Edge
Make or Break Moments
Damien Franco

Thanks to everyone who participated by writing or reading!

I’ll be updating this when enough new submissions come through.

And if you missed it . . . 25 Words of Work / Life Wisdom — Pass It On!

–ME “Liz” Strauss
Work with Liz!!

Money or Principles: Do We Have to Pick One?

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Are We Better than That?

Tonight AiraBongco said “. . . it’s an issue on what a person values: principles or money.”

I know. But it’s not like it’s been all honey up until now. I don’t know anyone who’s been living easy. I can’t imagine you’ve had it much differently. Do you know anyone who’s life hasn’t been hard won?

We use easy to describe some other guy’s life not our own.

Yeah, I worry about how things came this bad and where they’re going. The story is complicated, on the other hand, nothing new happens where humans are concerned. The good keep being good and the bad, well you know. People keep doing the same people stuff again and again.

Didn’t we see misbehavior like this on the playground and survive it then? We’ve made it out with self-respect in tact and our feet on the ground before.

money grabber

Warren Buffet, one of the richest men in the world, didn’t gain the confidence of million dollar handshakes by being untrustworthy. His businesses were built on his principles.

I guess I look at it this way, principles will get you through times of no money better than money will get you through times of no principles.

Maybe we should write that on a wall.

Do we have to pick one — money or principles?

–ME “Liz” Strauss
Work with Liz!!