Archive for May 2009
Social Media A Business – NOT a Party!
Think about why you’re failing doing business on the Internet, in the Social Media Networks. If you’re posting and tweeting everyday and nothing is happening, you need to stop and ask the question, are you telling your story? It may be that your attitude towards what you’re doing is not right. This is business not a party! If you don’t believe in what you are doing then you need to find out what you do care about, FAST! Because your BRAND matters. I can’t share this any better than Gary Vaynerchuck, he is very passionate about telling your story, Tell your story, tell it everyday and you will have a business. Here is a clip that should help you get on track.
Your Passion Is In Front Of You – You're Just Not Paying Attention
There are 30,600,000 (million) references on Google for ” How To Find Your Passion”. Hard to believe there are that many experts on the topic, are you one of them…I’m not. I was thinking about this while taking a shower this morning, I know…I won’t go there. Gary Vaynerchuck said in his address at the BIG Omaha Conference, that he hated the question of, ” How do I find my passion?” the most because he didn’t have a simple answer. Maybe what I’m about to share will help you Gary, it appears to have helped me figure out my passion I’m just getting out of the starting gate. If you think this article is on track please send it to Gary Vaynerchuck and let him know I have found the motherload. 🙂
I had to stop and think for a moment, if we are creatures of habit and we tend to gravitate to things we love like events, books, movies and people, why is it so hard to figure out? I’ll take me for example to help you look at your own desire to find your passion. If you were to look in my home you would get an idea of who I am and what my family likes to do. Since we are talking about me I’ll leave the rest of my family out of it. Let’s start in my office, lets look around a bit, hmmm….lots of tech books, Business Plan Books, IT Strategic Planning, tons of sports (stats) books, Home Business, training books from my Radio & Television days and boxes of all the software I have purchased over the years.
Let’s go down to my rec room, there you will find a set of drums, two guitars…yep I’m a musician (drummer, singer) and so are my two boy’s including there Mom. In our Family room we have very little, it’s the hall of shame, all our wedding pictures and random family pics line the walls, also, the TV, WII, PS2 and the like are in there plus a small book shelf of Christian reading material.
Now you’re probably getting the picture of what I (we) are about, if I was to just use that inventory as a snap shot of what I gravitate to when I’m downtown shopping I would suggest to you I have a passion for Family, Music, Christianity, Technology and Business. As you can see there are a few things I could consider my passion, but the one that gets me more than anything is Technology & Business, it’s the first thing I look for when I’m at a magazine rack or just thinking about business & marketing, how should I position my business (passion). If you were to spend any amount of time with me you would learn that I love people, I love to help others be better than they are. If you could just see how you could be, what you were designed and meant to be, know your role in this EPIC you were born in to, your passion would become obvious.
It’s a simple process I think, but if you look closely at where you spend your time & money, what you like shows up early. Take inventory of what you tend to buy most often, what you spend your time on when relaxing because it interests you, you will most likely find that is the very thing passionate about! Try it on for size and see if you could write about it, talk about it for hours on end on video or just tell it’s story…desire can not be planted in you, you have to find it within yourself and that is the thing Gary says you can monetize. Your passion is in front of you, your just not paying attention.
Please pass this along if you feel it’s of value and leave your comments. Send it to Gary Vaynerchuck to, (I don’t know his e-mail address) I would love help him with his dilemma of answering this question. I’m either on to something here or I’m just plain wrong, you decide.
Many Blessings, Owen
Am I Crying Wolf?
After spending a couple hours downtown in my community today I was just vibrating with the thought, ” These poor business owners”. What do us Social Media Geeks see that traditional business owners don’t? I felt like standing on a box and screamming STOP IT! Stop what your doing and look up…pull your head out of that dark warm part of your anatomy and pay attention! It’s like a tidal wave is coming and these traditional business owners are looking the other way as if it wasn’t there. Is there something wrong with me, am I speaking to a brick wall, am I just crying wolf?
I couldn’t wait to get back to my office and write to you, it’s like venting I think but I’m wondering what it will take before everyone starts to actually pay attention. I look at how many people in Canada actually have Twitter accounts and I’m hard pressed to find many, with only 34 million people in the country you would think there are more than a few paying attention. I’m in Western Canada, ok Bristish Columbia, I live in a suburb east of Vancouver called Abbotsford. There’s not much out here if you are an executive like me, you have to commute to the bigger cities to find work, but that’s a problem too! Resume’s…do they even work anymore? Even these online job banks rarely work…why…because traditional thinkers don’t look there, they do look for referrals though.
Even the local Chamber of Commerce is looking the other way, they want traditional businesses (bricks & mortar) to buy memberships and insurance packages. My only chance is to try and influence through my online show, Owen Greaves LIVE! maybe. Maybe, just maybe, I can reach them and maybe you can help me. If you are a person who believe’s passionately our way of doing business is changing and care enough to get the message out, then contact me and I’ll invite you to share on my show. That’s the only way to get in front of them and get them to listen…on the Internet and that’s where I’m setting up shop, not downtown in a building. Thanks for reading and listening I guess, we will talk about this on Monday’s alot at 2PM EST / 11AM Pacific on Owen Greaves LIVE! Join me won’t you?
Owen Greaves LIVE!
I’m finally heeding the call, after countless Tweets, E-mails and posts suggesting I should start my own show, I’ve decided to take the plunge. I will go live on the Internet Monday May 18th, 2009 at 2PM EST….why… Because I love to help people and I want to help YOU. I want to hear your story, I want to help you figure out your passion,what technologies you should be using to deliver that passion. Also, I’ll introduce you to some very special people to keep an eye on in the Social Media circles, give you an opportunity to participate and give shape to the show. That’s right, I want you to tell me what you’re trying figure out, what do you want to know in this new world of business called Social Media. Now I don’t claim to have all the answers, but I promise you this, I will find out,invite, or direct you to those able to answer your questions.
I hope you will find value in the show because some of you asked for it, that’s tip #1…give your community what they want!
Come join me and we’ll walk together learning how to shape your passion, build your community, decide which technologies to use and hear from many about how they are using the Internet and Social Media. I’ll also rant a bit on what I like and dislike, share what trends are taking shape plus give you an opportunity to be apart of the wave I’m riding hear at Owen Greaves LIVE!
Many Blessings and I hope to meet you at http://live.owengreaves.com
If I Could Do Anything, What Would It Be?
I was asked that question this morning, I hated it because I had stop and take inventory once again. I’m going to share some thoughts with you, I only hope it makes sense and reaches the deepest part of you. I think a great many of us do work or do things we never thought we would have to do to pay the bills. There are times when it feels like the dream left and it isn’t coming back, discouragement is the biggest dream killer I know and it always comes from those who claim to love you.
So, back to the question, If you could do anything, what would it be? If you look back over the years (depending how old you are) try to recall what energized you and brought the most fulfillment and was most meaningful to you. A time and place where you felt this was what you could do for the rest of your life. I know, I know, many times we think we’ve found it and poof it’s gone for whatever reason.
Technology, no…society has changed, business has changed and some of us are struggling to change just so we can make the ends meet, to have some sense peace of what we are doing, then every once and while someone asks the dreaded question. The question that urks me most, If money were taken care of would you do it? DUH! Of course you would!
I have always felt people could be better than they are, get back on track and be in a better place…. why? Because we lost our dream, we lost the thing that made us want to learn new things, seek new challenges, build and create. We bought into the industrial age of JOB, we have been cooked like the frog in water and now we are discouraged, wondering how we got to where we are and thinking, this isn’t what I wanted.
Now that I got that of my chest, what to do? Firstly, write…get everything out, it might take a day or two and maybe even a week but write and figure out what it is, what’s the magnet pulling you, your deep down desire….your dream. I did this and I have recovered my dream….go figure something so simple could work! Now, you need be prepared, this dream will not be easy and you will have trials & tribulations once you have found your vision. You will need people around you that will help you so don’t kid yourself into thinking you can do it by yourself. I encourage you to find likeminded people, people that have a dream and desire to be more than they are, people who want to give something back to thier communities. Without people, there are no successes. God created us as relational beings, that means we need one another to acheive, to grow, to build, to create and to succeed together. Each one of us has a passion or two that makes us get out of bed in the morning, find it and live the life you were meant to live.
So What’s my Dream, what’s the If I could Do Anything, What Would It Be?
Stay tuned and be sure to follow me on Twitter, if you are a small company with less than 10 staff and you are not shy doing Radio & Television (Video), drop me a note.
Many Blessings on you.