Please take a moment

If you haven't noticed, Gavin Heaton is displaying a new signpost. Yes, Servant of Chaos has been ranked in the Viral Garden's top 25 Marketing Blogs for the past couple weeks. Get on over to Servant of Chaos and congratulate him for putting up that logo!

GH is a kick-ass writer. A tireless marketer for conversation. He is one of the many who continues encouraging me on the blogging path. But he is particularly appreciated for a single key moment. Last August - three whole months into building this corner of the blogosphere - I discovered the "magic" of sharing conversation in this medium. Then I stopped blogging for about 5 weeks. Nobody ever accused me of striking while the iron is hot. I'd picked up this nasty belief that a post had to be perfect and had begun editing myself.

Things like - "Not good enough...nobody will find value in this...who would even care about what I've got to say?" became part of my vocabulary. Most of you know negative self-talk leads to - whaddya call it ? - nowhere. In September, Gavin left a comment on my "magic" post. It was simple...

"OK Bob ... where are you? What happened? where have you been"

It struck me...here's a guy with genuine concern for the "other" ! In a nutshell, that is the worthiest of human virtues. Virtue is part of the magic and mystery of life. As Aristotle reasoned, virtue and ethics lead us on the path to happiness - the good life. Or so I understand :)

Its a habit. It takes practice. Thats how you build value in a community. Isn't that what marketing is all about?

Bravo, Gavin! You can be proud. You are an encourager of the first degree.

If You Miss the Train

there's another one coming - right on schedule! Peter, Paul, and Mary sang this folk song 40 years ago. The refrain includes the phrase "you can hear the whistle blow 100 miles". Its a catchy tune. Its great to play at a bluegrass jam - easy lyrics, easy 3-chord progression and any key. When I committed to RAGBRAI there were some suggestions for training. One of them was to log 600 cycling miles before July. I hit the mark this week. Riding every day got me to the goal quicker than expected. I hum this song - A LOT - lately.

My goal at One Reader blog is building and forming a community around comment and conversation. Liz Strauss gives us 10 reasons to write and publish every day. They are worthy of deeper consideration. Practicing the intent behind them - to become a better writer and ultimately a better person - seems almost virtuous. Bloggers skilled in posting everyday reach goals quicker.

Just like a cyclist riding every day - I can write something every day :)

My First Interview

At least in the blog world. My nephew interviewed me once for a school project. He discovered my gift of gab. I was interviewed once on my hobby of collecting baseball memorabilia - no link to all of it - but I do have an autographed Joe Dimaggio baseball - they don't make those anymore :) and I am a hopeless baseball junkie. I visited a 5th grade class a couple years back in my role as "works for a newspaper" and answered a few questions - although that might be considered more a grilling than an interview.
Diogenes at Quasi Fictional asks a series of questions on blogging. Not sure how he picked my email though it is readily available to all readers of this blog. These are questions we've all though about and answered in various degrees at various times. Considering I'm coming up on a year since my first post, this is a good time to reflect.

Warning: Unlike most of my posts, this one is pretty "link loaded".

Here are Dio's questions and my responses:

How you blog, Why?

How is simple - taking time to sit and write. Blogging is a little bit like painting and drawing to me. Its a creative outlet. Time must be carved out. And we all have 24 hours and I break mine down in chunks - but have never blogged about it. Pretty boring stuff explaining how hours are spent :) Writing a post is comparable to sitting in a studio and staring at a blank canvas. Or watching a baseball game, grass grow or paint dry. Its an investment. There are days when I seemingly think of things to blog about during most waking moments. Unfortunately - or maybe fortunately - many of the ideas I imagine drift away sooner than I can put them into concrete terms. Why I blog is another story completely. I answered it initially for CK's collage. I blog to learn - about marketing, about others and about myself - pretty much in that order. I'm fascinated with the ability to reach across boundaries. To try new things. To add to the challenges each day presents. To use all the dimensions of human nature. As Robyn McMaster puts it - "to celebrate more intelligences". How do you pick topics day after day? Why blog is one of those questions that will always fuel One Reader at a Time. In answering the question "why"? it is important to recognize the value of building community. We have a natural inclination to be part of something bigger. Community through conversation helps fill this need. Plus, like everyone, I want to change the world! Finally, stating it simply as possible, to blog is to feel good.

What do you think about blog template, promotion tools and how you promote yours, your networking and community?

I use Blogger and have considered switching to TypePad - but I'm basically lazy. The templates available in Blogger are adequate for me at this time. Redesigning would take a big time commitment. I've been through a few redesigns in my life - lots of details. While I'm something of a detail freak, maybe one day I'll be motivated enough to switch. I play with a number of widgets as promotion tools - if you visit One Reader you'll see them. The best promotion - and community building - tool I've found is commenting on other blogs. Too often people visit blogs and leave without comment. When you find a post that's worthy of a comment - say it! Trust me when I say the poster will appreciate and honor you. The true conversation architect will respond. I like the Daily Fix at MarketingProfs for inspiration - I'm a marketer :) Believe me, there are many fine blogs on which to leave comments. Another good way to promote your blog is participate in a project - like "Advice for Graduates" or "The Age of Conversation". Of course, the "Z-List" has taken on a world of its own :) And Dio's Fine Art of Blogging is a worthy path of promotion.

Why blogging matters?

Blogging matters to me because it is a form of exploration. Organizations are in a state of constant motion. Think of them as part of the ever expanding universe. They are organic in my view. They either grow or enclose on themselves. In order to grow, an organization must reach out - leave the shore that is comfortable. Blogging for organizations is still new when you take a long view - back and forward - of organizational life. My blog viewpoints are mine alone. In a general way, I will post on current topics in my industry. They are in now way intended to be taken as news or a reflection of organization's views. The only connection is I work here. I have been part of this system and culture for over 20 years.

Personal high blogging points in your blog life.

Any comment to a post gets me "high". I think that could be assumed for all conversationalists. There are 3 posts that stand out. First one is probably here - wherein I discover the magic of conversation with David Armano at Logic+Emotion, Mack Collier at The Viral Garden and Gavin Heaton at Servant of Chaos. Second is combination posts. The value of community is recognized in these posts. Meeting Liz Strauss at Successful-Blog as a mystery unfolds plus being named an official SOB. Thirdly, would have to be the fun of the Turtle Meme. The lesson and value of blog sharing is evident in this little game. Fourth - I know I said 3 but the beauty is in breaking the rules - is the book review here on "A Whole New Mind - Why Right-Brainers will Rule the Future".

How do you make money by blogging (if you do)?

I don't. I've thought about it Google text ads. I've thought about Amazon book links. Never figured out exactly where any of them would fit. I've determined the few pennies aren't worth the effort. I could be wrong :)

You, too can complete this interview. Answer the questions in a post and send them to Dio in a word doc - include a photo if you want along with links from your blog. Share your knowledge and discovery plus what is important to you - we all win in this "Age of Conversation".

Special thanks to Diogenes for posting this at Quasi-Fictional. (post is up - go leave a comment - Dio's got a nice blog going)

An Astounding Gift - Past, Present and Future

Drew McLellan blows my mind with his example of genuine love for college grads. And to get it all together in less than 2 months! If you're not hip to his just posted e-book - check it out here. The version with pictures is best :) A surprise with every contributor. Amazing in it's diversity of thought and ideas, this is a stroke of brilliance, folks. Unfolding as clouds move across a clear blue sky. Flowing as the river during the Spring thaw. This is gift to grads and beyond. Heck, lets call it what it is - a gift to everyone associated with a conversation community.

Check the contributors - WOW - and then check their blogs.

Aaron Potts Andy Brudtkuhl Andy Nulman Andy Wibbels Ann Handley Ann Michael Anne Simons Becky Carroll C.B. Whittemore Carolyn Manning Chris Cree Christine Brown CK Darren Barefoot David Reich Delaney Kirk Derek Tutschulte Designer Mike Doug Karr Doug Mitchell Drew McLellan Joan Schramm

Kevin Hillstrom Lewis Green Liz Strauss Mario Sundar Mark Goren Mark True Mary Schmidt Nick Rice Patrick Schaber Paul McEnany Phil Gerbyshak Roberta Rosenberg Roger von Oech Rosa Say Seth Godin Sharon Sarmiento Stephanie Weaver Steve Miller Steve Sisler Terry Starbucker Toby Bloomberg Tony D. Clark Valeria Maltoni

And if you haven't already done so - be sure to thank Drew for HIS generosity!!!

Go Green - Be Gentle - Change the World

Remember the dream of a paperless society? One year I made a resolution to print only on the flip side of paper that had already been used. I'm proud to say I never opened a ream of paper in 2003. Of course, the printer I had went belly up and that added to the disposal stream but thats another story.

Many of you are might be printing less these days - whose got time to print stuff when all your time is spent reading and commenting on blogs? :). If you run - or are part of - an organization that "sure seems to go through a lot of paper" then here's one possible solution.

My pal, Tom Sowa, has a great blog called TXT. He wrote a story on greening up your printing habit.

No one has accurate data on how much paper is wasted by printers in the United States. One study by printer manufacturer Lexmark said the average U.S. office worker throws out or wastes 1,500 pages per year. Citigroup estimated each sheet of wasted printer paper costs 6 to 13 cents, depending on the amount of ink, toner and recycling effort a company spends to manage its paper flow.

GreenPrint's Hayden Hamilton says:

We call what we’re developing environmental software - it’s a green evolution in how we use printers. What we’re doing is not really rocket science. This is an area that people haven’t associated with conservation or greenness. I don’t think the high tech industry as a whole has made this a part of their mission.

Here's their tutorial. It's about 4 minutes long. GreenPrint estimates, with widespread use, 20 million trees could be saved per year. Thats not even considering the saving for ink, toner and CO2.

Happy Friday!

In Praise of Creative Conversation

Imagine that Elvis Presley, Bob Dylan or the Beatles were breaking into the music and recording business today. Yeah, the question shows my age but bear with me. You can insert the most popular - or your favorite - recording artist from your own bad ass era. Do you think Lennon & McCartney would have a MySpace page? How much control would Elvis hand over to his fans? Would Dylan have peddled "Blowin' in the Wind" as an mp3 download on iTunes? What would Miles Davis blog be like? Would Johnny Cash have kept us posted while in prison?

One of the first posts I read from Mack Collier was his "100 CDs for 100 Bloggers". I thought "this guy must be in the music business"! Come to find out, he's a merely great marketer and social network wizard. I've chewed on different ideas of music marketing since then. Its no secret that cd sales are in the tank - something like 20-25% this year depending on what metrics you use. Downloads are way up although how many are being "purchased" is elusive to determine at best. Suffice it to say - you want music, its easy too find it. Music for money is a far different game than your momma and daddy played. And while there is a ton of mediocrity - there is also some terrific music being played and passed along. I still believe the best is had live by a bunc h of rank amateurs...but thats for another time.

Most recently what got me reflecting on internet music marketing (or any internet marketing for that matter) was a story by Clive Thompson in the Sunday magazine at nytimes.com. Titled "Sex, Drugs and Updating Your Blog", the article looks at current practices by "b-list" artists. None of the names above would be considered anything but "a-list" though they had to start somewhere - right? The piece is about 4500 words and well worth the read. I'm going to focus on one part of the story and call it "BobNotes". (no disrespect to Cliff)

A one-time computer programmer named Jonathon Coulton decided to bag his job for a year in order to write and record a song a week. Then he'd post them to his blog. Thats 52 songs in a year and no small challenge. He managed to embark on this "forced march to creativity" and by the middle of last year had more than 3,000 people on average - per day - to his site. The most popular songs were being downloaded as many as a half million times. What do you suppose he discovered along the way? He found that his fans not only wanted his music - but they wanted to be his friend. They wanted to interact and communicate. They want a conversation. hhhmmmmm? Sound familiar? They send email. And while he responds to each of the more than 100 emails per day, it has got to be tiring. Thompson writes "his replies have grown more and more terse, to the point where he's now feeling guilty about being rude". (although this may be overstating if you visit this post) There are music videos from fans on YouTube. Along with asking advice on how to make more dough with his music, Coulton has toured. How does he decide where to play? Post a poll for fan interest in a given city and if there's enough to make it worth while (more than 100) - he goes and plays. He asks, then listens. I'm going to put a label on him - populist artist.

Which is really what blogging and marketing is about - asking and listening. These are the times I tend to philosphize - isn't that part of what being human is also about? Listening and learning.

I'll conclude with 3 quotes, and my reactions, from the article. The first about online networking -

"It is the central paradox of online networking: if you’re really good at it, your audience quickly grows so big that you can no longer network with them. The Internet makes fame more quickly achievable — and more quickly unmanageable."

I'm not convinced its unmanageable. Seems to me we all make a choice how to deal with whatever attention is afforded us. And we all deal with it in different ways. Some are more hands on than others. It becomes a paradox when your unable to fulfill whatever goal you've set in any given situation. Thus the importance of setting a goal.

The next about what caused the biggest spike on Coulton's website -

"Coulton’s single biggest spike in traffic to his Web site took place last December, when he appeared on NPR’s “Weekend Edition Sunday,” a fact that, he notes, proves how powerful old-fashioned media still are. "

I'm a big believer in old media - and new media. My newspaper enters its 125th year on May 19. An organization in existence for that many revolutions around the sun plans to be around for a few more. Sure there are bumps along the way. Ain't life grand!

Finally, Thompson's observation on creativity -

"For many of these ultraconnected artists, it seems the nature of creativity itself is changing. It is no longer a solitary act: their audiences are peering over their shoulders as they work, offering pointed comments and suggestions. "

This statement might be defining the nature of creativity a little too narrowly. If the artist does not take time for herself - she will burn out. Its pretty simple. We also live in a time where pointed comments and suggestions come from anywhere and everywhere. Art by its nature is ever evolving and ever changing. Thankfully, we can experience current day creatives through ever broadening options. The opportunity to grow through conversation and connection can only make us better.

The Prize in the Paper

Wiley Miller's Non Sequitur is one of my favorite cartoons. The Friday May 11, 2007 episode jumped out at me. Here's the link for a better view.

Happy Friday!

SOBcon - a shout out to all who are there!

Break a leg, willya! The line up of speakers as listed at SOBevent page. All of you top notch. All of you ROCK and have no idea the influence you project. I hope to see piles and piles of posts. To think it all started with trying to keep it quiet....shhhhhhhhh! Forever will it be one of the best event launches I've ever experienced.

• Andy Sernovitz
• Phil Gerbyshak
• Liz Strauss
• David Armano
• Mike Sansone
• Drew McLellan
• Mike Wagner
• Terry Starbucker
• Rodney Rumford
• Ben Yoskovitz
• Chris Cree
• Robyn Tippins
• Diego Orjuela
• Vernon Lun
• Wendy Piersall

And attendees!?!?! - ooohhhhhh, am I jealous. Remember to HAVE FUN!

• Sandra Renshaw
• Brad Shorr
• Timothy Johnson
• Tammy Lenski
• John Yedinak
• Joe Hauckes
• Tim Draayer
• Jeremy Geelan
• Carolyn Manning
• Sheila Scarborough
• Steve Farber
• Dawud Miracle
• Doug Mitchell
• Jeff O'Hara
• Dave Schoof
• Jamy Shiels
• Adam Steen
• Hannah Steen
• Chris Thilk
• Barry Zweibel
• Eric Bingen
• Ellen Moore
• Cord Silverstein
• Jean-Patrick Smith
• James Walton
• Sharan Tash
• Vernon Lun
• Tony Lee
• Paul Mangalik
• Scott Desgrosseilliers
• Mark Murrell
• Muhammed Saleem
• Kammie Kobyleski
• Easton Ellsworth
• Mark Goodyear
• Ann Michael
• Kent Blumberg
• Ashley Cecil
• Robert Hruzek
• Sabu N G
• Mazur Krystyna
• Lisa Gates
• Franke James
• Chris Brown
• Troy Worman
• Karen Putz
• Chelsea Vincent
• Jesse Petersen
• Terry Mapes
• Andy Brudtkuhl
• Premchand Kallan
• Lucia Mancuso
• Peter Flaschner
• Derrick Sorles
• Michael Snell
• Ella Wilson
• Mike Rohde
• Ayush Agarwal
• Thomas Clifford
• Rajesh Srivastava
• Claire Celsi
• Jason Alba
• Cristiana Passinato
• Sean R.
• Alex Shalman
• Lorelle VanFossen
• Cristiana Passinato
• Brad Spirrison
• James Bergstrom
• Raj Majumder
• Keith Levenson
• Ari Garber
• Dr. Rob Wolcott
• Cheryll Cruz
• Sharon Scherer
• Jonathan Phillips
• Todd And
• Jason Wade
• Jill Pullen
• Doug Bulleit
• Xochi Kaplan
• Wendy Kinney
• David Dalka

Here is the quest - again from the event page:

• Respect that in business and blogging all things are based in connecting relationships
• Treat our blogs like a business, or a business-like hobby
• Define a vision for our blogs that inspires others to be part of it
• Identify like-minded bloggers whose blogging goals match our own
• Evaluate our blogs through the eyes of a first-time reader
• Use links, trackbacks, and comments to lead to increased participation, and extended reach that could develop into business ventures
• Ensure presentation, navigation and all reader experiences are intuitive, simple and elegant
• Know our brand values as readers define them and be able to articulate the unique and remarkable values we offer
• Understand basic tools that are useful in adding video, podcasting, social media, and voice commenting
• Reach out beyond the blogosphere to non-blogging readers to become a resource they rely on
• Recognize the traits and characteristics of a successful and outstanding blog

What an astounding opportunity to learn and share with the best of the 21st century! Changing the world one blog at a time.

I won the lottery!

Not THAT lottery - my favorite response to that lottery is "what the heck would I do with that much $$$"?!?!... No - I'm talking about the RAGBRAI lottery. I'm #88695. The chance to ride across the great state of Iowa in July! This is the way Pork Belly Ventures (my support friends, Tammy & Pete) put it - on the t-shirt

"its not so much the heat...its the stupidity!"

A bit of history on this fun ride from my lens. Thirty-five years ago it began with a simple idea from a writer, Donald Kaul, who's column called "Over the Coffee" was part of my daily ritual. As I recall, the term was "dumb" idea. My response was pretty typical of most Iowans who read the Des Moines Register, "what kind of fool would ride a bicycle from the Missouri River to the Mississippi River". You see, Iowans have a certain sensibility about the heat and humidity of summer - do as little as possible. Its not so much a belief as a state of mind. I've carried it with me during the 30 years I've lived in Washington. It's not so humid here but its hot.

So how does it come to be that more than 8500 fools would want to sweat across the state in 2007? More specifically - what changed my mind? In a nutshell, it promises to be a challenge and fun. There's something about accepting fun challenges that drives individuals. Its one of the reasons I blog at One Reader - its a challenge and fun to bring story telling to people. Not to mention being part of the magic associated with technology. Linking here and linking there. Conversation and connection with some creative minds. Its the simple things for which we live.

The small towns dotted over the verdant Iowa landscape are full of friendly folks. Its a chance to reconnect with my roots. There is even an overnight stop in Dyersville - home to the famous "Field of Dreams". A bit touristy but what the heck! I've been there before - just not on a bike. I've even hooked up with a member of the Iowa Blogga Nostra. I hooked up via email with Doug Mitchell who purports to meet up with me in Cedar Falls :). He says he's "in better shape" this year. Maybe I can meet a few more of you :)

So I train on! 300 cycling miles logged as of today. A test will come on June 3rd when I ride my first half-century (fancy term for 50 miles) - the Cancer Patient Care's Loreen Miller Memorial Ride. I'll let you know!

Near as I can tell Donald Kaul's current gig.
Link to the Des Moines Register online newspaper
Wiki on RAGBRAI

update: My brother Tom - along with Mo, his wife - are planning to join me in Cedar Falls, too.

Newspapersaurous

David Reich has an excellent analysis of a WSJ Op/Ed piece by Walter Hussman, publisher for the Arkansas Democrat-Express, on how to sink a newspaper. David calls his blog my 2 cents but today I feel like its worth way more than 2 cents! I'd say he gives a dime's worth :) The reason? Its about the comments and the conversation that follows the post. Call it a cheap thrill but anytime blog creators and readers talk about newspapers its a happy day in the neighborhood. It means they care about the community here and where they live. Its easy NOT to read a newspaper - easier still not to pay attention to issues affecting the local world. You know, the one you pay taxes to and expect the water to flow when you flush the toilet. I'm being a little harsh but lets face it - culturally we've slipped a notch or two when citizens don't find $.50 worth of value in their local fish wrap. That has got to be one bad newspaper! But thats the way it is...its not my point, however.

To paraphrase the post, Hussman makes the case that some newspapers blew the cannonball through the hull of the ship by giving away their news on line - and they are paying for it now. Hussman says its a mistake to give away then news that publishers spend hard earned money on. His model suggests a mix of free and paid. I think thats the way to go, too.

Giving it away was very popular as the WWW expanded - or is that exploded?!?! - about 15 years ago. As the Yahoos, MSNs, and Googles developed ways to get the news out cheaper, faster, 24/7/365 - newspapers continued to print everyday AND tried to get news online. In the not too distant past high speed connections to the home became available. Then we got cellphones - or is that vice versa? Then we get Blackberries or Treos or iPods...all of which can send/receive "news" messages. Now this thing called Web 2.0 whereby even a dinosaur (my wife's term) like me can create - and publish - a blog. This is a very brief history of publishing through my lens. And the "publish for free" battle is still being fought .

Its about the worthy and worthwhile comments David's readers make - Matt Dickman, Techno//Marketer Supreme, (dig his Monday post on the term "blog" :) weighs in by asking why would anybody pay for news when its free? Good question - I don't actually pay for free news either - unless you count time as money (which my Boss does). But my time is of less value than my money. Matt pays for WSJ news online. Its a value to him. And he reads his local news online. Check this post he published after reading a story in the NYT. Now there's a good use of bloggers. I also think, secretly, that Matt reads a printed newspaper more often than he admits ;). he certainly grasps the concept of relevance.

Its about the comments - Ann Handley at MarketingProfs Daily Fix weighs in on the conversation with a passion statement for the NYT and web 2.0. MarketingProfs is not a newspaper but newspapers might think about stealing a page from their business model. Post a lot of stuff - most of it good - but invite the reader to pay for the real good stuff. Stuff being a technical term I picked up in grad school :)

Comments? you want comments? CK talks about the economy of sharing in todays publishing world. And she brings up the dough in newspapers comes from advertising. Isn't that where the dough online comes from - hmmmm? There seems to be a pattern developing here. You need people to read so advertisers can sell. The kicker is newspapers have figured out a way to measure those eyeballs - or so most advertisers believe - and online hasn't quite got there...its real close. But really, really, really - I'm not kidding - check out CK's post here. NOW! GO! CK's blog is all about interaction, relevance and conversation!

Mark Goren, Transmission Marketing publisher, newspaper fan and now I find out baseball free agent, adds to the dialogue with a great understanding of advertising revenues - print and online. More to come from Mark as we exchange more information.

David's post is a classic example of the feedback and encouragement that surrounds blog communities. That it focuses on newspapers - my livelihood - makes it a bonus. Newspapers in one form will be with us for a while. My belief is they will remain ink on paper for some time to come. There is no denying pixels on a screen add value to some readers. Its finding the balance for readers, advertisers and publishers. The dinosaur meets the computer.

Update: Pardon the Disruption adds to the conversation here.

Spokane River

A year of the Spokane River at Monroe Street

This is the mighty river that runs through my town. Its an everyday view on my afternoon walk. Click the image to view it in Picasa. I've set the slide show sequentially beginning with May 2006 and ending with April 2007. I only wish the roar could crush your ears like it does mine. Who knows? The way technology explodes it may already be possible. I just haven't found out how to do it.

This is the initial spot of generating electricity for a town on the brink of 300, 000 residents - or so I understand.

I took 2 photos each month for a year and recorded the flow in cubic feet per second. Tried to get close to the same angle but as you can see - it wasn't always successful. Remembering from one hour to the next is challenging enough - but month to month?!?! Memory...what a concept :) Thats just one difference between me and a professional photographer. Its my first attempt at showing "home" photos on One Reader. I tried music a little while ago. It didn't work all that well. But don't think I'm giving up on that one :) Why NOT bite off more than you can chew?

Higher education pays off BIG time

If this is the kind of thinking skills university graduates are carrying into the market...there is greater hope for the future of organizations than I imagined. We need more focus on this type thinking, learning and imagination. Ryan Karpeles at Living Light Bulbs reminds us to look for the silver linings in everyday things. But how he reminds us is by asking the question - what if?

I often speak of biases and have committed to admit mine - at least the ones I've learned to know and love. This is a strong one - the University of Iowa is my alma mater. (disclosure: it was - ahem - 30 years ago and my degree is in Painting). So I feel a special pride extending this blog love and congratulations to Ryan for his outstanding accomplishment (thanks CK for the tip). And especially when I read this quote about making a "silk purse out of a sow's ear" (my analogy) :

For instance, if your boss tells you to go to the bank and cash some checks for her, don't get caught up in how lowly that task makes you feel. Instead, be glad that you get to leave the office, spend some time alone, get some fresh air, and possibly meet some interesting people along the way. I realize that I might be a little too optimistic and fluffy about all this, but I honestly believe there are nuggets of gold in 99% of these crappy situations. Our job is simply to find them.

How many of us referred to our boss as "her" upon college graduation? Or even yesterday? Or ever? So Ryan has learned a bit about gender equity - BRAVO! That's not to say we're even close to any sort of equity but we're talking recent college graduate about to hit the street - there is HOPE.

I hope Ryan never feels too optimistic or fluffy. We as a community and as a citizenry need more of whatever kool aid they pass out at university!

And be sure to check out his Italia pictures!

The Fox Street Journal

David over at my 2 cents got me thinking about newspapering again today - as if I need a reason. He shares good news about online readership, particularly with the elusive 18-24 and 25-34 year old age groups. I love good news! Believe me, the newspaper business doesn't celebrate enough of it.

In addition, a brief that caught my eye this morning. Drinking coffee and eating a banana...sorry no bear claws today :)...I noted somebody wants to plunk down $5 billion for Dow Jones, the publishing company for the Wall Street Journal. I'm not a reader of WSJ but the bid made Page One - a prime piece of real estate. Columbia Journalism Review covers it here - darkly I might add. The Christian Science Monitor does a nice job here. MediaPost Publications gives it some play right here. Whether it comes to fruition or not, Rupert Murdoch buying THE brand in US financial news is a little bit creepy. Why does this guy - who already owns Fox News (using "news" lightly) and the London Times - want more?

Marketing Rag touches on the "conventional" wisdom. Which is that online revenue projects huge increases in the next 2-5 years and he wants to make more dough. Can't disagree and the guy was pretty shrewd buying MySpace but does MySpace generate the revenue of advertising dollars that newspapers do? Somebody tell me, please. Newspapers are a bargain right now. Advertising in them, too. Ask Google.

Here's the main issue for me - as more independently owned newspapers are gobbled up the balance of news tilts too far toward one voice. Thats a bad thing in a democracy. Call me old fashioned but Thomas Jefferson said it best:

Were it left to me to decide whether we should have a government without newspapers, or newspapers without a government, I should not hesitate a moment to prefer the latter.

of course he also said:

I do not take a single newspaper, nor read one a month, and I feel myself infinitely the happier for it.

I'm not too sure what happiness has to do with it :)

Heres a spoof on what we can expect from the new WSJ.

I added a new widget - rate this post. I'll see how it plays.

Page of Flakes

When Steve Woodruff at StickyFigure sent me an email about a marketing portal and use flake in the same sentence...well, I thought he was getting a little personal :). But seriously, he has put together a terrific little nugget to keep track of some favorite blogs. You can chew on it right here. Yum-m-m-m! I am seriously humbled to be in the company of this group. I like how Steve has broken out the categories. He placed One Reader in the Social Media tab. Mike Sansone at Converstations compares the page to a bear paw - or is that bear claw? I like Mike's thought on using the tool as a blogroll.

It leads me back to a reflection of the importance of keeping regular with posting on a blog - this one in particular. Just like breakfast - its an important part of the day! You see - and some of you know - I've been on vacation. Yes, it was nice - thank you! We had a terrific time in Seattle. Kicked back and did a whole lot of nothing - except walking, talking and generally crowd watching. As a result, valued readers and friends have come by and seen a stale post. Albeit a good one ;). Now its time to ramp it up for I found 3 things I missed - my guitar, my bike, and blogging. Jamming on Sunday took care of my music jones. Rode my bike into work today so my heart rate went up! And now a brief post. Were it not for the encouraging email from Steve, Mike's post on the new breakfast and a visit to PageFlakes - I'd still be engaging my time with the drudgery of work rather than being amazed at the creativity and inventiveness of my fellow humans!

So what do you think - blogs for breakfast? better than oatmeal? or into the night? when is your favorite blog time?

Link to TechCrunch all about pageflakes

Laugh Out Loud? No - seriously!

Maybe its because a week's vacation is beckoning me? (and I really need it even though its nothing exotic) Maybe its because Robyn McMaster salutes the mature mind here? Perhaps its due to a chapter on laughing in Dan Pink's book "A Whole New Mind" about right-brainers ruling the future world (brief review) ? Or how about David Armano writing on old brains? It could be just because I want to laugh.

Robyn lists these tactic to increase serotonin via Dr. Ellen Weber at BrainBasedBusiness. Serotonin is a fancy word for connections between your brain and nervous system that make you feel good!

• Stop to smell the coffee brewing
• Listen to your favorite music on your way to work
• Laugh at everything today -- especially at yourself
• Look at art around you as the artist might enjoy it
• Go for a walk at lunch
• Invite an old friend for dinner
• Give away one of your most successful strategies to a fellow worker
• Stretch...move...breathe deeply
• Remember a time when you were good to you - and repeat it
• Snack on trail mix or something for good energy
• Tell a story or invite one from a younger, less-confident worker
• Plan one thing you most enjoy to do today after work

This morning - knowing the day before vacation is busier than most - I determined to have fun with it. Put on the coffee, inhaled deeply, and stepped into the morning air. My walking partner, another Bob, have practiced laughing for no reason whatsoever. It works - try it...c'mon...loud enough for somebody to hear. It works!

Our organizations can function better. Our communities can grow. Our humanity can flourish.

Those of us with lists of stuff to do, with plans, with appointments, with deadlines and demands...wait a sec! - thats all of us. We'd all do well and remember to exercise a couple of these tactics. What a great day!

Not that I'm an expert...Drs. Kataria are the ones to visit.

What is it you care about?

Dr. Margaret Wheatley is on tour - not quite the same as Dylan, the Rolling Stones, CSNY or Iggy and the Stooges. Much as I'd pay to see BobbyD (within reason, of course) its better for my ears to listen to her. Her dreams and vision of community and organizations are part of a new story we can share. I think and write a lot about the journey we're on. Its a journey with many paths. If she's in your town, check it out!

I was privileged to hear Meg speak Friday afternoon. President Emerita of The Berkana Institute, I was introduced to her work 5-6 years ago through the book "Leadership and the New Science". If I were to review this book in one sentence - "We live in a world of chaos becoming connected". She's an extremely readable author especially for the non-scientist - me. Dr. Wheatley has newer books that taking her beliefs deeper and broader - so dig in. You should dig somewhere else if you prefer technical business, economic, leadership or marketing reading though. If your looking for answers all I can say is expect questions.

Her current slide talk begins with this quote:

"There is no power greater than a community discovering what it cares about".

As I sat in the law building lecture hall (she was the first to point out the irony of the set up as all good conversation happens in a circle), it struck me that discovery is constantly evolving. A community (insert organization anywhere you feel like it) no sooner gets what it wants then its on to the next thing. Its through this action where we engage each other. The relationships we develop during this evolution are what allow us to discover our true humanity. It is the people and the connections who make the community powerful. And the community is not a flow chart but a mish-mash of interconnections. I kept thinking of all the directions blogging and linking can take us. The image in the upper left reminding me of spheres of influence conversation in August and January. Its part of the story.

Wheatley talked about leadership principles that are found in healthy communities. Think about these as you build conversation and community on your blog. Think more critically about the principles as they impact your organizations.

• People only support what they create. We have a strong desire to belong to anything we had a part of building. It begins with relationship. We are creative by nature but deny it too often for any number of reasons. Let it flourish.
• People only act responsibly when they care about the community. When people care about the success of the organization they act as if what they do really matters. How they act, what they say and how they think. When a community is lead by loving and caring it is healthy.
• Depend on diversity. The greater number of eyes, ears and voices - the better. Who is missing? Widen the circle by learning more stories. You can't dislike someone once you know their story. Its loud, its messy, it works!
• Listen - listening is healing. Try to listen and not preach. Who fights that one? I know I do. Remember we are weaving and reweaving relationships of success and influence one comment at a time.
• Everybody is an expert in something. You never know who will be critical to success.
• The solutions to the problems are already here. They just haven't been re-discovered
• Expect leadership to emerge from anywhere. Expect to be surprised when you see it.
• Learning must be the primary value. We never stop learning from our experience. Problem is we forget what we learn too often. Ever do the same thing expecting something other than the same result?
• Recall people to purpose. Why do we do the things we do? Why is it worth it to pour your heart into the work? Remind each other the reasons. I'm going out on a limb here. At least one purpose you blog is so your readers find occasional value in your thoughts and ideas. You have many others - what are they?

Remember that whatever the problem might be - community is the answer. We have the chance to make community the norm in our organization. Speak out on the issues you care about.

Thursday thought - fueled or fired?

Too often I just shut up. Sometimes you can't stay quiet. I've never listened to or seen Don Imus. Only briefly seen Howard Stern. They're in the same league as Rush Limbaugh in my book - name-calling, offensive, impolite, rude, arrogant, witless media personalities. They must have their fans as evidenced by ratings and the $$$ they command. Imus for certain has some new enemies. The rats are jumping ship.

All of these on-air personalities are protected by this little thing we call "free speech". I continue to try and make sense of the senseless. I probably feel its a bigger deal than some and a smaller deal than others. Sadly, its what we are as a citizenry - at least in current US culture.

It's hard to put into words how deplorable and uncaring his recent comments are to me. I can only imagine how it feels to be a young woman on the Rutgers basketball team. The public uproar will quiet him for a while. Given the benefit of the doubt, his apology is sincere. More on that later. He's horribly confused trying to equate being a "really nice guy" with being racist. They are not even remotely connected. The main story should make us all stop and think.

MSNBC fired him - or won't co-broadcast him - whatever the hell that means. Soon every major broadcast (NBC? CBS?) company will ditch him. Sponsors and advertisers are running like mad. Should he be fired? Probably. Will he find work again? Undoubtedly. Should he be made to shut up? Nope.

Here's what I'd like to happen. His face to face meeting with the team goes well. He should be nervous as hell. He realizes, through conversation, that he's part of a big racial wound in the world - and particularly the US. He goes on to be an advocate for understanding differences and sensitivity toward one another. We all become part of the solution to actually living what we believe to be true in a democracy - that all are created equal. That gender, race, color, creed makes no difference. It's hard work and we don't care for the really hard work.

Update: From AP on Friday AM . There is also a Friday PM story from the AP via the SF Examiner which I'm not going to link (copyright and all that jazz) - you can read it in the paper in the morning :) - or online right now at your favorite newspaper site.

Essentially, the team accepted Mr. Imus apology and is in the "process of forgiving". As I rambled on above, this singular incident is not only an individual problem for Don Imus but societal as well. I am eternally hopeful that somewhere in the mess is a spark toward change. Alas, there are many who feel firing was too harsh. I say "tough".

And here's a fine blog entry on MP's Daily Fix by word wizard, Eric Frenchman, long time Rutgers Women's Basketball Team fan.

What do we want to learn?

Are marketing blogs positive or negative?

Kevin Hillstrom has a keen analysis on the MineTheData blog today. I picked it up from a post on JaffeJuice. Bless those feed readers :) Kevin digs into The Viral Garden's top 25 Marketing Blogs by creating 9 categories to analyze. He's trying to find out whether his hypothesis - that top marketing bloggers are negative toward brands - is true or false. Not to spoil the fun - you need to read, it's good - he concludes his assumption is false. He does discover some key differences around brands between the 1-10 group and the 11-25 group.

What grabbed me about his analysis is the recognition of "perception" at the very start. We all live with biases and perceptions. When we recognize them, it takes effort on our part to make sense of them. In addition, he uses a tool that is often overlooked in this age of technology - paper and red marker. He clearly spent some time with the exercise. It reminds me of a statement often made about the press - specifically newspapers. Some people say "They're too liberal". Some say "They're too conservative". Ever notice how its always "they'? It gets loud and rowdy along the spectrum at times. It swings back and forth. In 2000, I got tired of hearing it and decided to "analyze" the columns we ran in our paper. Can you guess? Almost 50-50 - a slight tilt toward conservative. Good enough for me to consider it balanced.

Kevin's 9 categories of posts can generally be used to analyze the blogs I read for positive/negative comparison. I had never thought of looking at them through that lens. But it does beg the question: In addition to links from other blogs and staying power (longevity) - what drives the really good ones to to the top 25, 50 or 100?

And this is totally subjective but I'd classify Kevin's post as a positive comment on the marketing blogosphere :)

Got Conversation?

How about the desire to contribute to the dialogue? Or the urge to build stronger community? Gavin Heaton and Drew McClellan have imagined a way to share the collective knowledge of 100 excellent bloggers. Plus make the world a better place! You can click on either link to their original posts for more detail.

In a nutshell, the concept is for 100 of us to craft words - or images - about "The Conversation Age" as it relates to our exchanges through these blogs. Yes, the very same blogs you spend untold moments writing, reading and reflecting on. It's a broad and diverse topic. The project will gather these 100 pages and publish in ebook form. We'll attach a small fee to purchase with all proceeds - this I really like - contributed to Variety International. Variety is a child centered international charity begun in 1927.

Here's what Drew writes:

"Who is our audience? Our intended audience is anyone who has to create marketing tools in this Conversation Age. It might be a small business owner, a CMO, a marketing student, an agency type, a marketing blogger, or even a professor who is teaching tomorrow's marketers".

To participate and join the conversation - click on the balloon at the top right of this post. Go to The Marketing Minute and send Drew an email - he's the co-organizer of this herd.

Here are the contributors to date:

• Gavin Heaton
  
• Drew McLellan
  
• CK
  
• Valeria Maltoni
  
• Emily Reed
  
• Katie Chatfield
  
• Greg Verdino
  
• Mack Collier
  
• Lewis Green
  
• Sacrum
  
• Ann Handley
  
• Mike Sansone
  
• Paul McEnany
  
• Roger von Oech
  
• Anna Farmery
  
• David Armano
  
• Bob Glaza
  
• Mark Goren
  
• Matt Dickman
  
• Scott Monty
  
• Richard Huntington

Why not become a contributor in the expanding conversation? Submissions are due by the end of April.

Who Reads Newspapers Anymore?

It looks like a few people with blogs sure do! Let's start this with my standard disclaimer - I work for the local newspaper. I'm biased. And I love any talk about - for or against - newspapers. I don't write for the paper - I market it. Mark Goren at Transmission Marketing posted on an award-winning newspaper ad campaign and asks the question

"But did it sell any newspapers?"

According to Mark's sources the answer is a resounding "no". Not a surprise, as newspapers have watched circulation decline for a couple decades. Since I was in circulation for most of those 20 years, I've often asked the question, "Why did my boss keep me around?" :) David Reich at my 2 cents - whom I've shared comments with (if you haven't checked his blog - just do it) - posted about Mark's piece. He asks the question:

"Any other ideas to help newspapers grow their readership, whether in print or online?"

The three suggestions mirror Mark's and he gets comments from Lewis and Cam. Lewis is a newspaper guy and has added to my perspective. While I've not talked directly with Cam (about newspapers anyway) his comment goes directly to an online newspaper question - "Do you drive the reader from print to online or from online to print?" Then he suggests a more capital friendly approach to readers who get free content. I'm going to assume that means "Why not charge for the content?" And David follows up with a "what if" a newspaper website posted capsules of the story and pointed to the "full story" in the print edition. That would sell a few more single copy. You can read all this if you go to David's post.

Allow me a little ramble here. Its not my intent to be simplistic or presumptuous. But I do speak with pride. I think newspapers too often get a bum rap. Let's assume we all want a perspective on local news. It's what has sold the newspaper since the turn of the 20th century when more and more publishers got presses. For the purpose of this post, I'm talking US newspapers. Prior to that most of the news came from the big cities via transportation like Pony Express, the Union Pacific, etc. People got the news from the "national" viewpoint during the western US expansion. It provided (and still does) a daily history. I've recently read 3 books - Team of Rivals, Devil in the White City, and The Worst Hard Time - and am astounded at the local newspapers that are cited in both the prose and the bibliography.

But more than merely wanting a perspective on local news - we want to be part of the community. We want to know what's going on around us. As intelligent humans, we have a strong desire to help create a thriving environment where we exist. A local newspaper provides an "avenue of discovery" we can travel down. We want to be part of the solution - not the problem - and a good newspaper reports on the community. Good news and bad news - 365 days a year (366 in leap year) - and now, with online websites, 24/7.

Altruistic? Probably - and still circulation declines - one subscriber at a time. Readership is another measurement altogether. Some recent research shows total newspaper readership - which counts online - among 25-34 year olds is up 15% (source:Scarborough 2006) . A recent story in Editor & Publisher (industry bias to be sure) says the same thing in a different way. What we do here is give full online access to home delivery subscribers. We call it added value. You can subscribe online only for $7 a month - but I get home delivery so haven't paid real close attention.

If you are a local newspaper reader - Bravo - keep reading! My guess is that most of you are. When you get a chance - visit the paper in Spokane (links are everywhere on this blog:). Most of the website is accessible. Tell me what you think - or not. We have a long way to go in exposing the overall value of newspapers.

Here's an informative page -regarding advertising - from the Newspaper Association of America.

And thank you David, Mark, Lewis, Cam, Cord, and Robyn for carrying on the newspaper conversation. As our editor says - News is a Conversation.