So, where have you been Jess? All that talk about facing your fear of failure, the drudgery of greatness and the other soft stuff you’ve been spewing and you just drop off the face of the earth? Um, yes.

Have to confess, I found myself burning the candle at both ends. All work, no play. No focus. Ignoring the work I love for paying the bills. At least that’s what I told myself. And I wound up crunchy, burned out and just over extended. Motivation was plain tough to sustain.

Turns out, all the busy, crazy-making tasks you take on inevitably obscure your path. It’s so easy to get distracted and misdirected by the latest shiny object. By focusing on the “shoulds” and “musts” and “everyone else is” you give up the opportunity to make definitive choices.

By staying busy, busy, busy, you - ironically – face less risk. When you don’t have time to make a decision, you can’t fail. Hockey great Wayne Gretzky once said, “You'll always miss 100% of the shots you don't take.” Skating quietly at the edges of the rink usually keeps you out of harm’s way. But it gets pretty boring, doesn’t it? 

So, as we move away from the winter solstice and into the New Year, I’m developing a new plan. Details, you ask? Here you go.

• Write, write, write. I love to write. I love to look at – and opine on - the world around me. I love to engage with other people and share and grow our knowledge. I love language and finessing it so goals are met. I just ordered a T-Shirt with this exact slogan. (It’s also a fundraiser for Reading is Fundamental. Loved them as kid. I digress.) Life is too short to focus on ambivalence. So, expect more writing.
• Breathe. You can’t do your best work, you can’t be your best you, you can’t succeed if you aren’t taking care of yourself. It’s time to definitively schedule time for me and my well being. Family, fitness, food, fun. Not necessarily in that order.  
• Say No. I wrote about this before. But this time, I mean it. It’s so critically important to focus on the things that matter and to say no to the things that don’t move you forward. To quote Steve Jobs, success “comes from saying no to 1,000 things to make sure we don't get on the wrong track or try to do too much.” Two letters. Big implications.

I hope everyone has a fabulous holiday season, and that we get to chat soon. What are you plans for the New Year? How will you better your efforts? I’d love to hear about it!

I was at a Tweet-Up just the other day. As one does at these things, I grabbed a beer and struck up a conversation with a fellow attendee. I quickly learned he was the blogger for a well-known program at a major university. Shortly after handshakes and how-do-you-do's, he started bragging about "his" blog. “I have a real blog,” he gloated. “Not a vanity blog.” I asked what was wrong with “vanity” blogs. His response: “Nothing. But I have more than three readers.”

Pretty disingenuous and self-congratulatory for the first five minutes, no? Would he really have all those readers if he couldn’t capitalize on big university’s brand? Could he have grown that type of fan-base from scratch? Should those of us without a pre-built cadre of admirers just bail out of the blog-o-sphere? Is it just hopeless?

I certainly hope not. All blogs – even those read by thousands of supporters - start off with just 3 or 5 or 10 readers. Chris Brogan readily admits – and repeats – that it took him years to build his brand. Most folks in the social media rock star space do.

Building a blog, growing a brand is hard work.  There’s lots of competition. You will have ups and downs. You will have wins and losses. You will have traffic spikes and dips and days where your only visitors are friends and family. (Thanks Mom!) You will lose focus and motivation. You will be tempted to tweet about your breakfast. (Don’t.)

Most of us start at the bottom. But, if you love the process, if you want to create and share something new, then write that blog post, upload those photos, film that video. Engaging with total strangers requires a bit of vanity. From everyone. Regardless of the medium.

Fighting off the fear of failure is hard enough. Don’t let naysayers increase the burdens of production.

What do you think?  Is there room for those of us not on the Ad Age Power 150? Or, should we just quit wasting our time? Please leave your thoughts below!

It’s easy being in a bubble. It’s fun chatting about the subject you love with other admirers. Social media and communications folks are famous for this. We read each other’s blogs, we buy each other’s e-books, we retweet each other’s content.

But, we aren’t the only ones. Everyone sticks to what they know. It’s scary trying something new. It’s frightening to fail in public. We often keep our hobbies to ourselves, afraid to let anyone see that we might not be perfect.

So, I’m recommending that everyone stretch. Try something new. Tell someone about it. Share what might be less than perfect and encourage others to do the same.

And, just to put my money where my mouth is, here is my first Flickr photo set. These were taken by yours truly at Long Beach, NY with a Panasonic Lumix FZ-35. (Yes, I confess, it’s a super-zoom).

What do you think? Do we diminish our brand by branching out imperfectly? Or do we make ourselves and our world a little better by showing our flaws? Let me know your thoughts!

Moms always say if you don't have anything nice to say, don't say it at all. This truism came to me a few weeks ago during an interesting online conversation with a colleague. I criticized a brand in the social media influence space. I thought they used a somewhat hypocritical approach to implementation considering their claims. In private, my colleague agreed. But, he said, he always tried to be positive on social media channels.

His viewpoint got me thinking. Is there a cost to honesty? Is it wrong to criticize in public? What about when it's well founded? I'm not talking snarky, cutting, mean-girl pettiness. I'm talking constructive criticism of brands that I trust, that I frequent, that I support. Should we all be nice on social all the time?

Maybe. Statistics indicate that nice guys finish first on social. According to Dan Zarella, consistently negative tweeters have fewer followers. But, isn't social media supposed to be about brands engaging with their users? Isn't this supposed to be the new era of customer engagement and inbound marketing and allowing the customer to help you sell your brand? What about Domino's successful advertising campaign that acknowledged - even embraced - the negativity?

I get that some subscribe to the "don't make anyone cry" school of management.  But brands that are in the social space, that are using it to help their bottom line, need to be able to take it as well as dish it. An inability to differentiate between trolling and talking demonstrates the most superficial of social media strategies. And while constructive criticism may be hard to accept - I don't like it any more than you - it doesn't mean it's worthless. Indeed, a well meaning critique might be just the thing to take your brand to the next level. 

Are you always nice in public? Do I need an attitude adjustment? Would love to hear your thoughts. 

Yesterday, I was privileged enough to attend - and speak at - the Inbound Marketing Summit. I was in the presence of oodles of A-list presenters. Social media and inbound marketing rock stars. There was lots to learn. Most speakers were - as you would expect - fabulous. But none of them rocked the day like Scott Stratten.

Many of you know Scott by his Twitter handle, @unmarketing. The last speaker on the first day, he had a thankless task. Re-animate an engaged, but tired and slightly burned out group on a dreary, cold, rainy October day outside of Boston. We already had cookies and too much coffee. His slide deck failed. He had nothing to work with but his message and charisma. Thankfully, those were more than enough.

My recap can't possibly do Scott's presentation justice. He was funny. He was animated. He said a lot of smart, intuitive things about social media, about marketing, about connecting and about business. The two most critical points - and probably least repeated were these:  

1. People spread around emotion and awesome. So, only blog when you have something passionate to say. Better to blog once a week on passion, than three times a week on meh.
2. Be you. Be authentic. When you are yourself, you have no competition.

In today's world of viral video and retweets and and Klout and page views and other measures of influence, these are the real takeaways. Don't co-opt someone else's persona. Don't be what you're not. Don't do what you hate just because it worked for someone else. And don't expect a quick fix. 

Be you. Be the best you that you can be. Share your best self with the world. Build your relationships slowly and with attention and care. Give value and authenticity and truth. And over time, you will build a network of people thrilled to hear from you. Just like he did.

I'm including this older video of some of Scott's work. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did. I would love to hear your thoughts. And Scott, thanks. Your presentation was the best part of my day.

Autumn is my favorite time of year. This past week, in celebration of the change of seasons, I unplugged from Twitter, blogs and email. (Okay, I did check in on FourSquare.) I traveled to the Berkshires, where the air was crisp, the foliage was vibrant, and the mood festive and relaxed. 

Even during my downtime, marketing lessons abounded. Here are three lessons learned on my autumn vacation:

• Don't forget mobile: When I head out on vacation, I rarely plan an itinerary. Instead I choose to wander, letting my mood and the roads take me here and there. Of course, such spontaneity  is enhanced by an iPhone and Google Maps. Apple picking seemed appropriately autumnal, so I Googled to find an orchard. We meandered the country roads only to be told that, in fact, our chosen orchard wasn't allowing public apple picking.
  
  When I asked why it wasn't on their website, they showed me it was. On an interior page accessed from a link below the fold. 
  
  Now, had I been on a full size screen, I might have seen the "apple picking" link at the bottom of the page. But on mobile, I just wanted a destination, an address and directions. I took the homepage at face value. Mobile usability tests show this isn't uncommon. While mobile devices are super convenient, keeping us connected and in the loop at all times, what you notice on the small screen isn't necessarily equivalent to full size.
  
  So, don't forget mobile. Best practices suggest all companies need a separate mobile presence. If you don't have one, make sure you prominently position your most important information. Keep it at the top, first in the series of navigation links, and in an easy to read font. People on the go will thank you for it. 
   


• Market socially: Sure, social media is hip. Companies big and small are leveraging Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, hoping to impact their bottom lines. Success stories abound. But what message are you promoting? What causes people to engage with your brand? What will make people want to tell their friends?
  
  During our travels, we visited Green River Farms in Williamstown. (Notice all the prominent, upfront information on their site?) They had a clean, bright petting farm, a beautiful, artistic playground, and a happy, harvest focused theme. But most of all, they had employees who were enthusiastic, who loved their farm, and who worked to ensure that their visitors had a good time. 
  
  GRF isn't leveraging social media just yet. And yes, they should. But, they are still using social marketing.  Fans will promote them on and off the web. Word of mouth works to their advantage, and distinguishes them from the other agri-tourism stops in the area. When they do venture into social media, they will be unstoppable. 


• Under promise, over deliver: When on vacation, we eat out. A lot. We visit dives, gourmets, and everyplace in between. 
  
  We rolled up to the Ye Olde Forge restaurant on a whim. We were hungry.  It was raining. We needed to get out of the car. 
  
  The outside was… well… underwhelming. First steps inside weren't much better. But, we were greeted by attentive, gracious staff, a unique, robust beer list and a surprisingly sophisticated menu. We had a fabulous meal at a reasonable price. 
  
  Rather than focusing on fancy plates and ambiance, Ye Olde Forge concentrates on their passions:  great food, micro-brews and a friendly atmosphere. I was pleasantly shocked. In contrast, we visited a high end bistro in Lenox a few days before. The food was okay, but 3 dollars for a small orange juice? Really? Though we were the only lunchtime patrons, service was slow and unresponsive.  
  
  Sure, looks matter. Of course, you never get a second chance to make a first impression. But if you can overcome expectations, if you can hit it out of the park, when you define your image, you have a fabulous opportunity to make life-long fans. They will frequent your business, they will tell their friends. They will, in short, help you succeed. And the surprise factor? Priceless.

The moral of the story? Marketing, public relations, image management. They never sleep. Even on vacation.  

What about you? Ever have lessons pop up during your down time? What do you think of these? I'd love to hear your thoughts!

We’ve all heard the saying “those who can’t do, teach.” It’s a sad slogan, presuming that instructors can’t hack it as professional musicians or videographers or candlestick makers. You teach, the reasoning goes, because you have no other way to stay connected.  You are proficient enough to educate, but your passion will never fill your pocketbook. You’re just not good enough.

Wrong. The best instructors both do and teach. Teaching allows you to prove - to yourself and to the world - you know and love your craft. Teaching reinvigorates your dedication to your field. It forces you to see your daily grind in a different light. It enables others to question you, put you on the spot and make you defend your why and how. Teaching forces you to proclaim your passion or get out of the way. Teaching insists you put your money where your mouth is. Teaching requires you to answer.

Sure there are plenty of lecturers and professors who simply go through the motions. But they don’t inspire or drive those around them. In fact, they probably neither do nor teach. They just take up space. If you love what you do, share it. Try teaching. It may surprise you.

Do you like teaching? Have your best teachers been full practitioners or did they just mark time? I’d love to hear your stories!