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Blogging

#3 in 2011: 3 letters that will radically improve every blog and tweet you ever write.

Blogging/ Creativity/ Social Media December 28, 2011 • Comments

Last week, we had an influential musician over to our house for dinner. We’d never met before, but had bumped into each other on Twitter a few times and have a lot of mutual friends.

After he went home and my wife and I were getting ready to go to bed, I wrote a tweet that said, “Great day with @__________, an artist who inspires me to be a better me.”

Then I asked myself a three letter word that has the power to radically improve every blog and tweet you ever write:

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5 reasons to hit pause on your blog this Christmas.

Blogging December 14, 2011 • Comments

Last Christmas, I saw blogger Tony Morgan do something on his blog that was brilliant. I swore in that moment that I would copy it next year and do the same exact thing.

Which brings us to today.

Last year, Tony hit pause on his blog for the last ten days of December. Instead of creating new content, he reposted the top ten most popular posts from the year.

Why am I doing that and why should you too? I can think of 5 great reasons:

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How to find a great waiter (and be a great blogger)

Blogging/ Leadership/ Quitter November 9, 2011 • Comments

I don’t like asking a waiter for a recommendation at a restaurant.

The reason is that waiters are often motivated to get rid of certain dishes. At the start of a shift, a restaurant manager will say, “We’ve got a ton of flounder that we need to move tonight. Push the pepper encrusted flounder dish.”

Then you sit down to eat and ask the waiter, “What’s your favorite thing here?” And he responds, “I love the pepper encrusted flounder.”

That’s not to say every waiter does that. A lot of honest ones are out there. But how do you find them? How do you sort through the ones who aren’t going to shoot you straight? How do you weed through the ones who have ulterior motives? Easy.

You ask them a simple question:

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A new book I just bought.

Blogging/ Resources September 22, 2011 • Comments

I think blogging is hard.

I’ve been doing it almost every day for the last four years and this is the conclusion I have come to.

It’s hard to build an audience, hard to create fresh content day after day, hard to know when it’s time to change things up and hard to know when you’ve strayed a long way from the goals that originally got you into blogging.

When I bump into those challenges, there’s someone I consistently turn to for help – Bryan Allain.

We’ve been friends for about three years now and he has generously helped me with any and every blog question I threw at him. Finally, after years of doing that for a lot of people, he wrote a book for bloggers.

It’s called “31 Days to Finding Your Blogging Mojo.”

I just bought a copy for myself. It’s only $4.99 and whether you’re a seasoned blogging pro or just starting to dip your toe in the water, this is an awesome book.

If you’re ready to overcome the blog challenges that wreck so many people before they really even get started on the fun experience a blog can really be, pick up a copy of this book.

Do authors need blogs?

Blogging/ Creativity/ Social Media/ Writing September 12, 2011 • Comments

A friend asked me that question the other day, and I thought it might be good to answer it via video because it’s one that comes up a lot. Check out the clip, and let me know in the comments if you think authors need blogs .

The secret about blog posts.

Blogging/ Creativity/ Social Media August 26, 2011 • Comments

The posts you think everyone will go crazy about, will get the least amount of traffic, comments and likes.

The posts you throw together quickly that you can’t imagine anyone will connect with will be smash successes.

I don’t know why this happens, only that it does.

And when it happens to you, fear not, you’re not the only one.

It happens to every blogger on the planet.

 

Question:
Has this ever happened to you?

 

What a 7 year old taught me about fame.

Blogging/ Creativity July 29, 2011 • Comments

Right now, it’s easy to self promote.

It’s tempting to spend more time and energy on promoting your idea than you actually spend on creating your idea. With social media we have a thousand ways to grab a bullhorn and tell the world what we’ve created. Which I think can be a great thing. I’ve loved the ability to tell people about the Quitter Conference or my books via social media.

But sometimes I fear the promotion of the idea has become our goal, not the idea itself.

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The #1 Social Media decision you must make.

Blogging/ Social Media July 6, 2011 • Comments

Social media is either a megaphone or a mask.

It allows you to amplify who you are or hide who you are.

Choose wisely.

 

Question:
Have you ever struggled with being someone different online than you are offline? (Funnier, smarter, meaner, etc.?) I have.