Be a Better Friend
What are your thoughts and wishes?
What are your dreams, hopes and worries? Day in and day out I know what bothers me and what I need, but I believe it is more rewarding to know I can help others.
Whether it’s physically, mentally, spiritually, or emotionally- helping someone find direction or explore their passions is an awesome thing. By reaching out and extending a helping hand you make yourself welcoming and accessible.
I also like it when my friends reach out and make me think.
A good friend mentioned that my blog doesn’t exactly translate who I am. Got any advice?
-Mike Toner
www.miketoner.com
Photo Credit: lissalou66
Clearly Distracted
My thoughts have been all over the place recently. From life & love to business & new media and how leadership and communication fits into it all this?
The conclusion: it’s easy for your passions to become your distractions. If I spend all of my time watching and reading what others do…then what will I do, what will I add?
Almost every moment of a recent car ride down I-95 I was thinking, “I should write about this or that…” with no real purpose or direction.
This is the difference between doing and dreaming, practicing and playing. Or as Robin Sharma puts it, “Ideation without execution is nothing more than delusion.”
Leadership is about dealing with distractions and staying focused on what’s most important. In your work and within your life, have the motivation to deliver with passion and execute with clarity.
-Mike Toner
www.MikeToner.com
Dive Into the Social SOUP
For those who think facebook is the extent of your online persona - think again. We are entering a new era and those migrating into social networks are quickly learning how to communicate online.
I like the idea that we are collectively learning and brainstorming how to use social media. Do you think it is a learned skill…?
In Here Comes Everybody: The Power of Organizing Without Organizations, Clay Shirky discusses the mass amateurization that comes with social media and what “happens when people are given the tools to do things together, without needing traditional organizational structures.”
So, are you ready to dive in?
S is for Social
Social Media has given individuals an online platform to facilitate the sharing of information. We share ideas, songs, powerpoints- you name it, you can find opinions and ideas about that topic online and this information is now within your social network.
O is for Openness
The social web encourages transparency. There is no way to hide what you say online, everything is searchable and archived. The Freedom of Information age is upon us.
U is for Ubiquitos
Access will be mobile, allowing for constant interacting among individuals through virtual, online portals.
P is for Privacy
The internet and the information being gathered by google, facebook, linkedin, gist and twitter is a gold mine for marketers who want to anticipate our next move and find creative uses of GPS enabled location-tracking devices, like cell phones. When and where I’ll be hungry is a great place for a sidewalk lunch-special sign, isnt it?
What does all this lead to?
Well, it leads to the to optimization of the optimizer or a place where machines can analyze all the data on the Web, and computers behave like personal assistants and ultimately can respond to my questions and recommend my likes and dislikes based upon our prior behavior.
What is your next move online?
-Mike
www.MikeToner.com
Rounding a Social Media Curve
Social Media is about engagement, right?
Yes, but maybe you started off with social media the way I did; quietly listening while learning the ropes, lurking and not really being social at all!
In fact, my first tweet was on October, 26th 2007. Great, except- I sent 15 tweets in the first month and not one was an @ message! I wasn’t talking to anyone… I wasn’t there yet.
Today, I am somewhere between participation and relationship building with regards to social media. I’ve made the mind shift from 1-way to 2-way, although I sometimes find myself reverting back to my old 1-way ways.
My ultimate goal is to, “Share more value with the blogosphere than [I] you take from the blogosphere”- mixmedia
This almost implies tuning out a little, doesn’t it?
In order to concentrate on providing value, I may need to block out some of the noise. Perhaps stepping out of the echo chamber will allow me to focus on the task at hand. A Tim Ferriss’esque idea -no doubt.
During my own adoption of social media, I focused heavily on reading and listening, so much so- that this has become a comfort zone for me to run back to. Recently, I have stopped reading my google reader everyday. Instead, I am going to do some thinking of my own and stop relying on old meme’s to create new content.
I hope that by eliminating distractions I will be able to provide quality information and value to my network.
Where are you on the social media curve?
-MikeToner
www.MikeToner.com
Writing Practice
Sometimes a case of writers block takes a change of scenery, a new journal and a nice pen to get my thoughts and ideas onto the paper.
As you may have noticed, I write with a rational, cause-and-effect tone. This is me, this is how I write, but often I get stuck in this cause and effect mindset.
It makes sense- we all find a way to do thing things we’re good at. We all like to practice the things we enjoy and we continually do the things which we know we can complete, right?
“Practice means to perform, over and over again in the face of all obstacles, some act of vision, of faith, of desire. Practice is a means of inviting the perfection desired.”- Martha Graham
So, I’m gonna step out of my comfort zone and start practicing the hard things.
Writing with emotion is hard for me.
Don’t Look Like a Fool: Your Online Resume
College students about to enter the workforce during these weak economic times have an opportunity to control what their potential employers will know and need to know about them-
at least more than a paper resume could ever show. It wasn’t so long ago that I was applying for my job and I relied predominately on a piece of 8 1/2 x 11 1/2 piece of paper.
I crammed as much text as possible onto that resume. My reputation lay in the hands of the information I presented here and maybe the three individuals I list at the bottom as references.
If Barrack Obama taught us anything over the course of his campaign it was how influential an online resume can be. He built an online network unlike any other and used it to supplement his traditional campaign.
In the end, he used social media to get the job, so-to-speak.
The blending of real world networking and online social networking can be the difference between getting your first interview and getting your first job.
For the seniors in college, I encourage you to think about hard your facebook profile and yes, delete pictures that put your reputation in question. Share your life online, share your experiences, but share wisely.
Your employers will google you.
Those results are your new resume.
Tech Toys, Gadgets and Casino’s
Here’s a little video of my time out at the 2009 Consumer Electronic Show in Las Vegas last week.
I had a great time out in Vegas. It was my first trip to SinCity and to be honest, it was an easy test of my self-control. I played craps for about an hour and stayed clear of the slot machines. In old Vegas, I did play $5 blackjack, but all in all, I’ve still got my dignity AND my money.
In the video, the little netbook is from iRiver. The e-cigarette doesn’t have any nicotine nor a flame. It runs on a battery and is more or less a heated concoction of flavored steam. The Segway-table is an interesting use of an existing technology.
Pleo, the robotic baby dinosaur was a little too life like, but would make some kid really happy.
The coolest thing I saw didn’t make the video, mostly ’cause I met the guy on the monarail. This guy was wearing a flashlight looking thing on his belt and his T-shirt said something like, “As I walk, I’m charging my cell phone.” Essentially, the flashlight holster was a battery charger, called nPower PEG. It relies on the frequency movement you generate while walking to store the energy and charge whatever you want via a USB port.
Imagine harnessing wave energy with buoys placed out in the ocean. It can work to store and re-purpose the extra energy being produced just about anywhere. Very cool.
-Mike Toner
www.MikeToner.com
Act Right!
This is a follow up to my thoughts from Monday’s post on customer service.
I believe that every conversation with a potential customer is a representation of the larger organization; you are now acting as the company. In the same way, every performance for a stage actor is a representation of the way the playwright intended the script to be performed, mostly a larger depiction of reality.
Now lets take customer service as a new character role:
Service Provider: Not always seen as a hero, SP is the complicated antagonist of the play. After generations of observing good service he or she uses their experience, along with the desire to help to increase the position as a service provider. He or she is often forced to depend on the kindness of their customers.
On the flip side, it’s often difficult to recognize good customer service and even harder to BE A good customer. Yes, that’s right, as the customer you must be willing to listen and be receptive to the service offered to you.
Customer: Often not ready for a new process or sequence and can be easily caught off guard. During his or her ‘demanding moments,’ customer is at their worst. In contrast, the quieter times seem good and this leading character will willingly engage in an interchange of questions and answers with SP.
As an audience member, there are certain rules or etiquettes that should be followed by all parties involved. As with theatre, there is an expectation that the show will be professional.
Do you recognize good customer service? Moreover, are you good at being a customer?
What characteristics does each portray?
Photo by: Tabbi Kat
Make Every Performance Seem Like the First
As I headed to the Kennedy Center last night for a show, I began thinking about the preparation involved in stage production and what an immense undertaking it is. The behind the scenes work takes months to produce a seemingly effortless result; the performance.
I was always taught that the trick to acting is to make each performance seem like the first time. To make each word and motion authentic to the moment, current and un-contrived.
I believe the same idea applies to real life and to business, especially from a customer service standpoint. Each interaction with a customer or client should feel real, not a canned corporate answer and definitely should not sound like a rehearsed script.
No matter the interaction, act as though you are the only personal contact that the customer has with your company. Be prepared and behave as though the entire company’s image depends on you.
More on this tomorrow…
Photo by: Beck Exposed
Self- Indulgent Marketing
Do marketers avoid being persuaded by their own art?
Or do marketers love the hypnosis that comes from their own craft?
Over the past 3 years I’ve worked with a lot of marketing and PR professionals. As a result of the work I see happening around me I have become much more aware of my surroundings and the messages that are being sent to be from products and logos. Simultaneously, I have found myself analyzing and critiquing advertising campaigns.
I feel comfortable saying that most folks find a little enjoyment in making sure Apple doesn’t do something politically incorrect, or that Coca Cola doesn’t run into a communication crisis over water pollution or something, right?
We all want brands to do well- but not too well. I also think that fans of good branding campaigns enjoy that the message being received by them also says something about them.
But I wonder if marketers are a little too keen on the meanings of messages and ads they see in their everyday lives? Take McDonalds Olympic ads: I know that Olympians don’t eat McDonalds and drink soda. Or what about Gas and oil companies? We have all noticed an increasing amount of commercials and positive green campaigns. But- because I recognize the message being sent, what does that say about me? I still eat McDonalds. I still buy gas.
I think the interview with Exxon’s CEO, Rex Tillerman was one of the best examples of a company explaining themselves. He said his job is to provide, fast and reliable energy.”- That’s it- Not to save the world. Remember, he wants to get paid just like you and I - and I think he was correct in saying this isn’t up to just Exxon.
Consumers have the power. If we continue to buy cars that run on gas -we fuel the flames- so to speak. He explains that there is not just one simple solution; this will take a hybrid (some jokes?) approach. We will need to combine other energy sources; sun, water, light & wind, to create a balanced energy solution. Now I sound like a politician…
I believe that Exxon and others like them can sit back and wait for their consumers to tip the multi-faceted energy scales from oil to something else. But Green Ad’s do nothing for me.
We have to walk the walk first to bring about change- literally, walk.
When is bike to work day? Did I miss it?
