Oh well, the BodyMind CD waits. Clients always take precedence.

I’m re-branding the relaxxation and meditation CD label as “Disc of Light Wellness Media” to differentiate between our podcasting services and my other music-based venture. I always joked that if I started a rock label besides Disc of Light, I’d name it Disco Flight. I just may do that…

Inspired by Nataly Dawn and Pomplamoose (found via Boing Boing) I’ve created a new YouTube account and resurrected an old MySpace page to focus on Disc of Light as a musical project.

While I’m a bit self conscious to make videos featuring myself, I realize that people don’t go to YouTube to hear music without visuals, so I’m starting to make videos to go with some newer and older songs.

Here is a rough version of my latest, called Residences:

I am also proud to say that our first album, The Beach: A Journey In The Mind’s Eye, has been re-edited, remastered and put in a lovely new package designed by the folks at DiscMakers! I’ve got 986 remaining copies at the moment, and you can grab yours at CDBaby here: The Beach or download it from Amazon.com here: The Beach (also at iTunes, DigStation.com, etc.).

Please consider writing a review of The Beach at Amazon or iTunes or rating the video of Residences on YouTube!

Ugh: Fail Whale Fan Club

While I personally would like to see Plurk improved and make it my base of operations, realistically that isn’t going to happen. Maybe someone can find a way to easily thread Twitter via the API? I hope so!

Maybe they already have! Do you know a conversation-threading tool that hooks into the Twitter API? Let me know!

Many people are aware of the Podsafe Music Network. It is a source of specially licensed music that can be used freely (as in beer) on your projects with some simple stipulations. The idea - a good one - is to help indie artists like Uncle Seth or Matthew Ebel to promote themselves. Anyone can be a Podsafe musician or band (I am, myself, under a secret identity!).

However there are alternatives for podcasters looking for free-to-use music besides Creative Commons or Podsafe licenses. The public domain.

Podcasters typically use music in two different ways, either playing songs in order to showcase them, or as background, mood music. For most old PD music, the first use would tend to be limited to very niche shows, but it’s really quite useful for the latter.

The main advantage of the public domain (other than the freeness) are that you may be familiar with the song or the artist already, or at least the genre. If you are quickly looking for something to set a mood -say something comical or ridiculous - you know you can just look for dixieland featuring kazoo, or a particularly bawdy old blues song. Want something frantic? How about some old bluegrass or a foxtrot? Classical and Marching music is great, too. You are unlikely to easily find modern pop or rock, or newer country music in the public domain, though.

Example: I’m Wild About That Thing by Bessie Smith

Where do I snag public domain tunes?

The Internet Archive 78s and cylinders collection
and
Public Domain 4 U

I know there are dozens of you out there who know more and better sources… So why not share in the comment section?

It has been over a week since the end of PodCamp Boston 3, and I’ve had some time to collect my thoughts on the experience. Here they are in no particular order:

1. It is rewarding to run a 1-on-1 101 session for a newbie.
2. Creating content on the fly is exciting, even if somewhat daunting.
3. Use websitegrader.com
4. That rule of 2 feet? Use it. Ruthlessly.
5. Chris Penn is a font of amazing practical knowledge. (Seems I re-learn this at each PodCamp I attend!)
6. Spend time in the brainstorming area.
7. See a useful freebie? Pick up an extra and then give it away on day 2 to someone who missed seeing them.
8. If at all possible, attend any extra social events in the evenings.
9. Occasionally, the Fail Whale can be amusing!
10. I’m not the only human with social media overload issues.
11. Never, ever doubt the power of a focused and like-minded group of creative thinkers (to crash a Harvard University load balancing server).
12. If you have a question, keep asking around until you get an answer.
13. Don’t assume presenters are recording the sessions they lead. Bring a media device of your own.
14. Don’t concentrate on networking with just A-listers or just peers, bring everyone into your social network, Today’s newb will probably be tomorrow’s Rock Star/Ninja.
15. Don’t condescend. You’re not all that.
16. Don’t get involved with melodrama: you’re here to learn and share, not star in a soap opera.
17. Have a ready answer for the question: “What do you do? / what are you working on?”
18. Polish up that elevator pitch!
19. Not everyone with an elevator pitch knows what he/she is talking about!
20. Give and give freely - it comes back to you.
21. Link to stories on CNN.com. They link back.
22. In July Heat, get specific directions to meetup places before setting out on foot to find them.
23. Bring a camera, even if audio is your shtick.
24. Bring a lanyard with a badge-holder.
25. Stuff your business cards into that badge-holder for quick access.
26. Drop your card in the raffle bowls!
27. Understand that a lot of the sessions may focus on Industry. If you don’t like that, create breakout sessions on stuff like “Using Audacity” or “WordPress SEO 101″.
28. Yes, your XYZ business should have a social media presence to one degree or another.
29. Is your site’s Raison d’Etre hard to succinctly describe? Figure out a simple way to say it and put it on your front page.
30. Guido Stein is a mensch - Find him and befriend him!
31. Whitney Hoffman’s kids are fully capable of leading a 101 “What is a PodCast” session.
32. No matter how good the alternatives are, Twitter is too sticky to go away (any time soon). They could drop the whale on a bus full of children, then bake their parents into meat-pies and people will still use Twitter over anything else.
33. Chris Brogan is not only a competent rhythm guitarist, but is amazingly good at extemporizing on social media themes. Search for a recording of the “New Media VS. Old” breakout session he moderated on day one to see what I mean.
34. Use Ping.fm to help avoid social media overload.

After a very short while, I realized that it was ridiculous to risk missing client calls (though I could still check voicemail over the web) AND continue paying for a service I was not really able to use in any worthwhile way.

When I walked into T-Mobile to replace my phone, I had made some resolutions and decisions about how I would maximize the value my new phone would give me.

Resolutions:
1. Don’t spend extra for a phone that does what I don’t need.
2. Get Google Grand Central service
3. Use Jott and/or Utterz to increase productivity while away from my desk.

So, Kevin… How’s that working out for you?

The phone:
I had only one requirement in a phone - a clamshell design. I hate trying to unlock a locked phone when a call comes in, and since I usually keep my phone in my pocket I need some way to avoid accidentally calling my clients at 5:00 AM on a Sunday.

I’m not a big user of texting, and while I used to have an expensive cameraphone, I would always leave my pics on the phone because I wouldn’t otherwise pay for internet on my phone plan. For me, mobile internet connectivity is a distraction and an expense I can easily do without. Now I have an economical “good enough, last-year’s-model” digital camera with a lovely USB cable.

I ended up getting a “free” Samsung clamshell phone by extending my contract one additional year. It’s ugly and has zero bells and whistles, but certainly gets the job done.

Grand Central:
I first heard about Grand Central’s unified phone numbers about a year ago at either Mashable or Lifehacker (or maybe both!). I promptly signed up for a spot on their waiting list and got accepted more or less immediately. I then proceeded to forget all about it before I even claimed the invitation!

Fast forward to now. I knew I wanted in, but read that since Google bought Grand Central the invitations had become much harder to secure. I assumed that a year-old invitation would have expired, but much to my delight, I clicked the “Activate” link in the old email (thanks to Gmail, I can keep everything forever!) and voila! I was in!

After spamming all my friends and associates with a “Here’s my new number” email, I no longer worry about missed calls.

For additional savings, I understand T-Mobile users can pair their My Fave Fives with Grand Central by making your Grand Central one of your faves. This makes all calls coming in via that number unlimited and free! I am not paying for the My Fave Five plan as I have never exceeded my alloted minutes, so I don’t get to enjoy the benefits of this.

I also understand that T-Mobile has a plan that will automatically switch your calls over to Wi-Fi VOIP, but that calls for a high end phone and an internet plan. Again, no love for me.

A note on how I chose T-Mobile: Previously my wife and I were on Cingular, until AT&T bought them. AT&T kept screwing up our account every month - we’d call and get it fixed, then next month… rinse and repeat.

We knew we needed a new provider. I did a little research and found an interview with Consumerist editor Ben Popkin where he was asked “Who is the best cell phone service provider?” Ben said that he didn’t have a firm opinion, but that he saw the least complaints coming from T-Mobile users. Well, that was as good as a recommendation for me! Billing and service have been fine since we signed up over a year ago.

Jott and Utterz:

I have just this week started using Jott in earnest, although I’ve had an account with them and Utterz for a while. I have Jott set up for exactly two uses, emailing myself memos and reminders, and sending Tweets on Twitter.

I love sending myself messages while driving or shopping, but ultimately I don’t enjoy Tweeting this way because I don’t check Twitter via SMS or TXT or IM or whatever protocol people use for that (gosh, I’m such a Luddite!) and Tweeting in a vacuum is useless unless you enjoy being essentially a bot.

I have one issue that mostly kills the potential usefulness of Utterz for mobile micro-podcasting (its intended purpose). Namely, I stink at extemporizing. I’m working on that.

I am enjoying much improved productivity from these adjustments to my phone use, but I bet you have some great ideas that never occurred to me. How do you maximize your phone productivity? Share your thoughts with the world in the comments section below!

In reviewing material for my newsletter marketing push I came across a website run by marketing “guru” Justin Michie. He belongs to a certain segment of the marketing industry that I think of as the “Internet Warriors Forum Disciples”. Now, I don’t know if Justin is an actual member of that forum, but the style of marketing they practice is usually typified by things like free (but recycled) giveaway “reports” and ebooks, a heavy concentration on affiliates, the patented Really Long Sales Page™. You may recognize some of the more prominent practitioners such as Mike Filsaime , Cody Moya, Willie Crawford, etc.

These guys are all about their opt-in lists, but make no mistake, it’s not because they’ve gotten the Seth Godin religion, it’s because they fear the U.S. CAN-Spam Act.

Anyway, at Justin’s blog I found the post “What’s The Best Way To Build Your List?” where he’s plugging a product for which he is an affiliate (and invites you to become one as well). In describing how he uses the product, “the $7 Script,” he states this:

After completing payment through Paypal, they’re sent to an opt-in page where they need to opt-in before they can download the product (you get a new subscriber).

In other words, he sells you a download of a product, then AFTER you pay via paypal, he requires you to join his Opt-In list to actually receive the product you’ve paid for. This kind of hubris disgusts me at a very primal level.

UPDATE:
I haven’t actually been to the Warriors Forum in over a year, so I was heartened when, in the flood of visits to this post from there I found this: Wso Sellers: Stop forcing buyers to opt-in.

I guess there are responsible types there nowadays. My respect for some of those folks (the ones who “get it”) has just gone up a notch.

This post is also getting some traction from The Internet Marketing Inner Circle forum (members include Mike Filsaime and Willie Crawford), but it’s closed to non-members, so I have no idea what their take on the topic is.

Also, in the comments section, Justin Michie has responded that he is considering editing the offending blog post. Unfortunately he also is asserting that mandatory opt-in is “usual”. If that is true, it is sad. CAN-Span, anyone?

Oh, one more thing. I don’t actually want to diss Willie Crawford because he once gave me an awesome BBQ recipe (for opting in)!

What do you think- does this cross the line? Speak your peace in the comments section below!

Creative Commons photo by gynti_46

The main theme of this productivity tool is putting to use what you have learned, why we often don’t, and how to overcome these tendencies. The authors correctly point out that we tend to enjoy learning a lot more than doing, so aim to teach the best way to overcome that resistance.

The major themes are:

• Repetition - By covering a subject up to six times you will not only learn and “own” a skill or approach, you will also overcome resistance to implementing it.
• Non-critical mindset - Not that you study materials without using judgement, but rather that you approach them from the perspective of looking for what is useful within them, rather than poking holes in it as you are trying to assimilate it. Use of this will reduce the number of repetitions needed to master the material.
• Sharing - By sharing what you have learned, you complete your mastery of the material.

It isn’t anything groundbreaking, but is useful as an entry point or refresher; it is blessedly brief, coming in at a mere 2 CDs.

Link: Know Can Do [Amazon.com]

Creative Commons photo by Lady-bug

Have you read this? Do you have a favorite book on this topic? Please share your thoughts in the comment section below!


]]> http://www.kennedy-spaien.com/productivity-know-can-do/feed http://www.kennedy-spaien.com/checking-in-with-the-social-web http://www.kennedy-spaien.com/checking-in-with-the-social-web#comments Mon, 28 Apr 2008 19:35:35 +0000 Kevin http://www.kennedy-spaien.com/checking-in-with-the-social-web I’m really pleased with the current batch of projects I’m working on, and thought you might be interested in some of these yourself.

First, as always, I’m neck-deep in producing The Livin’ La Vida Low-Carb Show With Jimmy Moore. This has gained a lot of prestige in the last few years. The show airs on Mondays and Thursdays and is currently featuring interviews with various low-carb celebrities and physicians. [I also did the theme customization for this site.]

Also, I’m producing the Twin Peas Blog and Podcast for host Kelly Damron. Kelly shares knowledge and experience dealing with issues of infertility, premature birth and parenting twins. I’m very proud of this one- it has tons of original music (by me) and the overall effect is similar to “This American Life”. [Another customized theme, here.]

Recently I completed a blog setup for the amazing Phoenix Gilman, author of Diet Failure: The Naked Truth.

Hmm, a common theme - everyone I’ve worked with lately is a published author!

Anyway, please check these out and, as always, please consider giving the shows a review in the iTunes store!

Links:

Livin’ La Vida Low-Carb Show Site and iTunes
The Twin Peas Pod site and iTunes
Diet Failure: The Naked Truth Blog
My company, Disc of Light Media and Consulting

Whaddaya think of them apples? Let me know in the comment section below!


]]> http://www.kennedy-spaien.com/checking-in-with-the-social-web/feed