Riding Out The Storm, We All Have a Story To Tell
We all want things to happen quickly, we all want them to happen without too much effort, and we all don’t want to wait. I think we would all being lying if we didn’t think this now and then, it’s human nature, we want what we want and we want the thing to happen easily. I’m generalizing of course, but I would have to be foolish to believe everyone has the same motives and thinks exactly the same way as me.
We all have our stuff, our baggage so to speak, we justify our situation and have enough excuses to choke a horse as to why nothings changed. I’m guilty of this, well, I used to be guilty of this. What I love about people the most, is the stories, the hardships they had to work through and overcome, what they learned through those hardships. Most of all, I’ve learned that everyone has something to offer, it’s up to you to decide what value they have on that offering.
I have the privilege of speaking to 500 people this weekend, I’ll be sharing about what I do and what I’ve learned on my journey. My story is not that different from yours, but it is my story, may it encourage you and may you learn from it.
I’ve been on the Internet for many years now, I’ve had websites but never a Blog. Blog’s remind me of Bulletin Board Systems (BBS), they were communities of people learning from each other and sharing what was happening in their life at the time. These systems were the Social Media Networks of the day. I even ran my own BBS for a short while, but found the allure of the Internet to be overwhelming. I’m a technology man, I learned how to use computers when I was in Radio back in the early 80’s, I had learn how to program and use automation systems. You can see my background on the About Owen Page here on my Blog.
I started Blogging about two years ago, I started with another Blog before this one and then started all over with WordPress in a self-hosted environment. I also run a small but modest webhosting company called Billyhost.com for my clients, I wanted to provide the service so my client’s didn’t have to worry about it, it is a value-added service.
I still work crazy long days to make Billyhost.com & my Blog happen, I often wonder if it’s worth all the effort, not from a monetary stand point but from the perspective of, am I helping someone, am I making difference, do I bring value? Don’t get me wrong, I do want to derive revenue through all that I do here online but it’s not my primary focus, helping others is the goal. I have the gift of helps, and I figured this Blog was the perfect way I could help others, answer questions, provide information that may be useful, and most of all encourage and give hope to those feeling alone in the storm. I try to make myself available to any and all but let’s be honest that’s not realistic, there are only so many hours in a day. On this journey I’ve come to learn that I’m not alone, the good news is there is a way to get through the storm.
My story, my storm. Eight years ago at 43 years of age I suffered a heart attack (March 4th, 2001), I discovered all that I was working for, all that I was trying to accomplish, was for me and me alone. I’ll state upfront, don’t do that, it’s wrong and you won’t have the life you want to have in the long run. Life took on a different meaning for me after that episode, my wife & kids became my focus, people close to me seem to have more value and I just couldn’t stop thinking about those less fortunate than me, those struggling to get through the storm. I am also a Diabetic, I have hearing aids, and I wear Progressive lenses. I’m falling apart at the seams and I’m only 51 years of age! I’ll be 52 November 27th, 2009 : )
Two weeks after my heart attack I was out playing road hockey with the neighborhood kids, 2 hours a day for two weeks before I had to return to my job. I lost 20 pounds! I wasn’t going to let this heart attack beat me, if I was gonna die, it was going to be on my terms (sort of). If you want to succeed you have to think that way, after all, the option of death was not an option at all, so I was gonna make my life count, make it matter. As you can see I’m still with you and it’s October 2009.
Fourteen months ago I found myself unemployed, now I’ve always made money on the side fixing computers and doing consulting but not as a primary source of income. I started Blogging back then because I wanted to take what I knew and what I was doing offline to the web for ease of access, for me and for my customers. I have been doing Social Media for many, many years through different channels, but not like today, we have so many new options and tools at our finger tips. I would have loved to have the networks we have today back in the beginning of my Internet journey.
The problem of being unemployed is only a small part of my storm, you see a year ago I discovered I had a hernia and had to have surgery. I was booked for surgery in October, November, December 2008 and finally January 14th, 2009 I went under the knife. I was out of commission for 6 weeks recovering, by then I had already been established on Social Media Networks like Twitter & FaceBook. Then in July (the 5th,2009) I broke my shoulder, I was doing warp speed down the soccer field chasing a younger fella on a break away, I clipped his back foot and what should have been a tuck & roll was a SPLAT! I shattered the Clavicle at the joint of the shoulder. I was fortunate in the fact that the shoulder wasn’t dislocated or the shattered bones out of position, so I just had to wear an immobilizer for 4 weeks.
After the 4 weeks was up I figured I could get back to normal, wrong, the shoulder wasn’t healing, on October 20th, 2009 I finally got the clearance to resume normal activities, I can do whatever I want.
During the past 14 months I’ve applied and interviewed for many, many, many jobs only to be denied time and time again. My wife works but doesn’t earn a great deal and we can’t live on it, we own a home (well the bank does) and two cars (paid for). My only source of income was the existing clients and what I make here online, it’s not enough so don’t think life is a bed of roses. The challenge with having the surgery and the broken shoulder was I couldn’t do any kind of physical work, that wasn’t good for my self-talk and mental health. If I did land a job it couldn’t be physical work.
I didn’t let that stop me, I wasn’t going to let the health issues beat me, sound familiar? I recognize I can’t overcome all health related issues but I have been able to so far, your situation will be different. During the past 14 months I have spent 8 – 10 hours a day on the Internet, I have been writing and spending time helping others on Social Media Networks. I have been invited to speak at local events, get more consulting opportunities and me & my Blog are considered a resource to help understand Social Media & I.T. Strategic Planning.
I’m still in the storm but it seems to be subsiding, I am learning from it and I’m building all through it. Progress is being made, and I’m really excited about the ambiguity before me. You should be too. Learn to embrace it, embrace the storm because storms always end, they never last forever and you almost always become a better person because of them. The wisdom you acquire is priceless and you will be presented with opportunities to help someone else going through a storm. As I mentioned earlier, the storm is the loneliest place for a person going through it, that’s because it’s for you and only you, and only you can learn from it.
No matter what the storm, no matter what you want from life, you will pay a price, you will learn to overcome and persevere and you will at times always feel alone. Chris Brogan talks about this in his video called Overnight Success, if you want it bad enough you will certainly pay a price. The good news is, you have freedom of choice, you get to choose. You don’t however, get to decide when you will be at the place you want to be, success always requires time, lots of time, and you will always need the help other people to help you get there….always. You will go through a storm, maybe many storms before you can win, I can’t wait to hear your story, how you suffered and overcame, and how you helped others be better off because you lived.
We all have to ride out the storm and we all have a story to tell….what’s yours?
My 100th Blog Post!
It seemed like it’s taken forever to reach the century mark on my Blog, maybe it’s because writing is labor to me. I love to write but I didn’t master the English language like so many others that have gone before me here on the Internet. I set a goal this month to write an article or post everyday, so how am I doing? Let’s see, it’s October 21st so that means I should have 21 posts this month right? This post would make #20 for the month of October so I should say something deep and important so that it matters. 🙂
I will say this, if you haven’t started a Blog or are thinking about it, talk to a few veteran Blogger’s who have been doing it for awhile before embarking. I don’t mean that in a negative way, I didn’t ask and just jumped in, so I’ve made a ton of mistakes. The good news is, I overcame the blunders for the most part and things seem to be moving in the right direction.
The #1 best thing I did was to adopt Social Media Networks, all my reader’s have come from Twitter, FriendFeed, FaceBook & Google. Now I haven’t paid for traffic in any way, it’s all organic in nature, so I’m not lighting it up.
The secret to Social Media is service, help people, provide good information and resources and you will build credibility and trust over time. I’m still in the infancy stages of my Blog, afterall, 100 Blog posts isn’t much in the grand scheme of things. In the end you must keep your word and care for each and every person you come into contact with, do whatever it takes to keep those relationships healthy. In the end, that’s all that matters…the relationship.
A couple great books on this topic belong to two people I would consider Mentor’s, Chris Brogan & Julien Smith’s TRUST AGENTS and Gary Vaynerchuk’s CRUSH IT! (Amazon links) They are as solid as you get on building relationship’s online and working insane hours on your passion.
So, THANK YOU all who have clicked the RSS button my Blog, those who keep coming back to see what I’m yakking about now and especially those who follow me on all the Social Media Networks on the Internet, without you I would have no reason to write and be here. Thank you and Many Blessings to you from every part of my heart!
Always ask yourself this question when you wake up everyday:
How Many People Are Better Off Because You Lived?
The 3 P's of Social Media
I was working on a project today and found myself being distracted, sometimes you have these epiphany’s that give you a perspective you never had before right smack in the middle of working hard. You know what I’m talking about, the subconscious never stops, we day dream, we scheme, we plan and sometimes we get deep. So here it is, I stopped working to write this because it wouldn’t leave me alone!
The 3 P’s of Social Media
- Presence
- Placement
- Participation
Presence
It’s not that complicated, we do these three without giving them a second thought or give them the credit they deserve. We all have presence at some level or another here on the Internet, some are very influential through their presence and become high profile, maybe you. Each organization, group or person has a different strategy to ensure that presence. Some may even be misleading, but I like to believe most are honest and true to their mission and vision. Doing the right thing right, being honest, having integrity, the very things required to be of value and trust worthy. Without those qualities your presence could be damaged without you knowing about it.
I wrote about the three parts of a social media marketer back in June:
- Marketing Knowledge
- They are Entertainer’s
- A dynamic personality.
Those three components add up to people that are, savvy, have trust and brand. Don’t take my word for it, follow them, watch, listen and learn.
The 3 P’s are really a platform those three parts leverage, we could go deep six on characteristics and personality profiling but that’s not what this is about.
The dictionary’s definition of Presence:
– the state or fact of being present, as with others or in a place.
In order to be successful in anything you must have presence, you must be present, you have to show up! Showing up is 90% of success in my humble opinion. What you do with that presence sets you apart from everyone, why? There is only one you!
Placement
In order to have presence you have be present somewhere, to be seen or heard, that’s where placement play’s it’s role. It’s part of your strategy in building a presence, in your marketing efforts, and is the playing field to which your brand can have success in the top of mind awareness game.
The definition of Placement:
– the act of placing
– the state of being placed
Where do place your presence? The Internet is the platform that allows all players a level playing field, but not all understand the power of how to leverage the Internet. The Internet is home to a new thing called Social Media, to be frank, Social Media is old news really, it’s always been around under different names and activities. There are literally hundreds of Social Media Networks, you probably know many of them, Twitter, FaceBook, YouTube, Tumblr, FriendFeed and so on. The principles of these networks are primarily the same, how you participate is the critical thing. Give considerable thought to how you present yourself, because it impacts your Social currency and only you can ensure that currency brings value.
Participation
The strategy is done and the presence component has been determined, also where that presence will be maximized, and now you have to heed the call to action…you have to participate. Without this action of participating you have a strategy going no where, it looks good on paper and that’s just where it will stay. Once you have determined placement, you will participate with consistency, persistence and deliver a message that is compelling and powerful.
The definition of Participation:
– the fact of taking part, as in some action or attempt: participation in a celebration
– an act or instance of participating.
Now I know you’re thinking these things are common sense and you are right. We do these things without thinking really, like breathing. The problem isn’t doing them, the problem is not giving these things the respect they deserve, they need their 15 minutes of fame. That’s what I’m doing here, oh sure you could probably explain this better than I but, this is my epiphany 🙂
Take inventory of your strategy and make sure you have given the 3 P’s it’s due attention.
If I Was In Real Estate Today
If I was in Real Estate Today, the very first thing I would do is identify my PURPOSE, the why I think I should be using Social Media Networks. This would appear obvious but it can be misleading, if you don’t believe Social Media will increase revenue, help build a stronger market share and develop community around your brand, your right, the strategy will be an exercise in futility. If you do, get to work and build a plan.
Get started by doing the following:
- List requirements needed to implement strategy
- Key Result Areas – What are they
- Discern objectives
- Identify Key Success Factors
- List Core Competencies
- Complete a S.W.O.T. Analysis, a plan needs to be well thought out.
Once you’ve completed the above get the following action items flushed out and then make it happen.
- Setup accounts on multiple Social Media Networks and get active, participate, get involved in the communities…then….listen to what is being said, what is happening and where it’s being said. Never stop listening, never stop having a presence in these communities. People come back to things and places that are useful to them. Especially if you can help them.
- Use all SM Networks like Twitter, FriendFeed, YouTube, Viddler, Tumblr, FaceBook, StumbleUpon, Digg, Del.icio.us, Technorati, MySpace, LinkedIn, Seesmic, UStream.tv, and BlogTalkRadio. There are many more.
- Blogging is a must, convert or add a Blog to an existing website, this is where you build community and give customers a place to go and something to do.
- Take advantage of video, do LIVE open house events streamed via UStream.tv or one of the other web broadcasting services. Record those events and archive them, build a library, make them available to anyone to view at their leisure. These video’s can also be training or teaching prospects on what questions to ask, how to and so on.
- Do a live web radio show, field questions on a live video show that has Twitter embedded so it’s real-time.
- Do video interviews, record testimonials…etc.
- Sponsor or Host a major Social Media Event, these events charge for attendance and should not only cover expenses but should realize a profit. Bring in people who are actually doing or using Social Media at a high level, not just lip service.
- Hire or contract a Community Management Officer or a Social Media Director.
- Get Educated on Social Media, attend major conferences and get around those who are high profile in Social Media, and read books for more insight.
I’m just scratching the surface of your plan, but make sure you actually have a plan before jumping into the Social Media mayhem.
This doesn’t have to be difficult, it doesn’t have to be hard, but one thing you do, is work if you wish to realize the results you want from your efforts. It will take time, money and above all else, EFFORT! Whether you are a Broker or an agent, it makes no difference, build a plan, work the plan. But hey, you already know that, but do you know the technology and how to implement it? Do you know how to prepare? Are you willing to pay the price?
In this business, success is not measured by fitting in, it’s by standing out. (Mad Men)
Things You Couldn't Find On The Internet in October 1995
I was sharing on Twitter today about a Newsletter I used to write & produce back in 1995 and Rob Cairn’s said he would like to see it. I thought I would reproduce the content and post it here for you to chuckle over.
Back in 1995 I produced a Newsletter called, ” MARKETING TODAY “, it was an informational piece that was distributed electronically, and the local book store was gracious enough to put it on the magazine rack back in the day. So for a walk down memory lane here is a list of things you couldn’t find on the Internet in October 1995. I even had advertisers in this little beauty!
1.) Material on any subject more than a few years old.
2.) Information about small privately held companies.
3.) Information about most companies not USA Headquartered.
4.) Information about Subsidiaries of major companies.
5.) Specialized Dictionaries or handbooks on business subjects.
6.) Directories of companies by industry and location.
7.) Information on business and trade associations.
8.) Information from small commercial databases.
9.) Franchising companies information
10.) Court reports from state and local jurisdictions.
11.) Telephone, fax and TELEX Directories.
12. Business information in languages other than English.
My closing comments on that article were:
I started this section by saying that the information which isn’t on the net now, soon will be. The Internet allows all of the originators of the information to present themselves, the traditional “middle man” data gathering groups are no longer needed.
Just for fun, I also recommended Seth Godin’s book called, ” E-Marketing”.
Also, the topic of the day was whether or not you should upgrade to Windows 95, OS2 was still very popular back then too.
Of course much of the above if not all is now available and has been for many years, I hope you enjoyed the walk down memory lane.