SpaceRace

My spry and busy 62 year old Dad had a heart attack in October while playing tennis in the Senior’s Games in St George, Utah. Were it not for the decisive and immediate CRP he received  from another player in the tournament, I’d be writing this through a very different lens. That’s why I loved seeing Ken Jeong (of Hangover fame) pop up in my Facebook feed this week – he’s the face behind an awareness campaign from the American Heart Association. The campaign is nearly a year old – debuting in June 2011, which makes it not new, but new to me, okay? And a year on, are you familiar with the latest best practices in CPR? If not, please share this.

The message is simple: performing CPR is as easy as keeping the beat to Stayin’ Alive…it’s disco, baby. What makes this spot so effective is it’s inherent stickiness – Stayin’ Alive is a powerful earworm if ever there was one, and to link of the action of CPR to the song’s beat is really brilliant.  I probably won’t hear it again without performing involuntary chest compressions. So beware if you invite me over and plan on spinning some BeeGees.   The AHA have created something so memorable in it’s zaniness, familiarity, and sheer simpleness of message- something certainly worth sharing for it’s important content and entertainment factor.
It’s hard to get it right – but when it works, it really works.

Another great thing: (more…)

Usually I like October. I enjoy cramming my ham hocks back into jeans. I enjoy the plethora of boot styles to gawk at behind storefronts. And I love Hallowe’en and great costumes and candy  and Dachshunds dressed up like hot dogs.

This year, I’m in a bit of a funk. Not a funky, James Brown funk, but a negative headspace that seems to be fuelling itself through social media and the internet. Now, when I say “fuelling itself”, I of course mean that I am fuelling it by allowing myself to dwell on the nasty behaviour, lying, and misrepresentation I see, from Twitter bullyin……(see, I almost allowed myself to dwell on something there, but pulled the nose of the plane up just in time).
Enough!
Over the last few days, I’ve actively sought out some strategies to help quell those negative voices. Meditation helps (and it’s damn good for your brain). Exercise, too (and it’s damn good for your ham hocks). And surrounding yourself with trusted family and friends also does wonders.
From a professional standpoint, it’s very important to prevent the murk from entering the workflow. I could build another analogy here, but won’t because not everyone loves toilet humour as much as I do. (more…)

Here are the slides from Facing Facebook for Small Business, delivered to fabulously fun peeps at the Fernie Chamber of Commerce on Thursday, March 24.

[slideshare id=7392302&doc=facingfacebook-110325191512-phpapp01]

And some cool links:

Facebook Demographics 2011

How to Use Facebook Social Plug-Ins on your Website

This morning, in the most frigid of weather conditions, members of the Fernie Chamber of Commerce came out to hear me wax strategic on social media, Web 2.0, and the potential of the internet for small businesses.
Despite a weird orange LCD effect on the presentation slides, it was a nice opportunity to share ideas and information with a terrific group of people.

Here are the slides:

[slideshare id=7046400&doc=goingsocial-ferniechamberofcommercefeb24-110224114703-phpapp01]

And as promised, I will be uploading some handy hand-outs in the next few days.

Thanks for coming out in the cold!

I discovered Branch Out today. Well, rather it discovered me in an invitation to connect with a friend who works in a similar industry to me. So I did. I was awarded a Super Connector badge. I discovered 8 other friends who’d also signed up. I imported my LinkedIn profile…..

Wait a minute….I imported my LinkedIn profile? Why did I do this?

It’s a few hours later now, and the harsh reality of mid-afternoon is setting in. I love LinkedIn. I find it to be a great business resource. I’m connected to previous colleagues, people I’ve met at industry events, clients, and other fine folks with whom I have a business or networking relationship. Not (necessarily) people I went to band camp with, snogged, am related to, used to be related to, and send Kenny Powers quotes to (although some of my LinkedIn people have crossed the line to become Facebook friends too. I trust they won’t judge me for making the odd penis joke). LinkedIn has afforded me speaking opportunities, job offers, helpful groups and discussions, and referrals within the confines of a business environment. Now I have the ability to give an endorsement to someone who shaved my eyebrows at a volleyball tournament (we’ve since made up)….and something isn’t sitting right with me.

Branch Out is “jobs and career networking on Facebook.”

We Facebook for pretty much everything else, so why not jobs and careers? I’ll tell you why. It all boils down to the premise that your coworkers are really NOT your friends.

• your job and colleagues may rock the Casbah, but don’t be fooled that the business environment is driven by anything but business decisions. Not who sent you a birthday message or “liked” your Top 10 Albums of 2008.

• I hate to say it, but the goal for most people in a business environment is advancement. Meaning you’ll have your head chopped off if you’re standing in the way of someone who’s resolutely on their path. And then it will be really hard to prevent yourself from spamming their wall with vitriol when they (cuss) you over.

• you probably didn’t “friend” your boss, and on purpose. We all know that once it’s online, it’s fair game, but now you’re going to really have to censor the one place where people still seem to have no problem posting pictures of their bellybuttons.

Job and career stuff can be fun, but not the same fun stuff as happens on Facebook. And there’s a reason for that: it’s still – even in our hyper-connected lives – possible to separate business from pleasure. Let’s keep it fun, okay?

* Here’s an article on Branch Out from the big brains at Tech Crunch.