There’s a lot of buzz going on about transparency and authenticity and whether or not these concepts apply to social media. The two words have become buzz words in the social media marketing word, but nonetheless they are important words to consider, provided you also consider the actions that accompany them. It’s all fine and well to throw buzz words around, but when we look at authenticity and transparency and the actions involved in displaying such concepts, it’s not so simple. What does it mean to be authentic and/or transparent? How much information do we provide? MORE >>

Whenever I see someone post a link to an article or a blog entry or something else, I wince when it looks like it’s automated. The reason I wince is because the social impression it creates or rather lack of a social impression. Ideally you want someone to click on your link and go to your website, blog, or wherever else, but if there is no motivating reason to do so the link becomes useless, and also acts as a strike against your social presence on social media. People want social engagement and this includes engagement as it pertains to your links. MORE >>

The other day I had a chat with a friend and he pointed out that there’s a trade off when you choose to do things your way versus doing it the way someone else does it. He astutely pointed out that what you’re really doing, when you go your own way is claiming the life you want to live and business you want to own, whereas when you do something the way someone else does it, you are choosing to model at least part of your life on how that person lives his/her life. It’s a good point and one that is sometimes missed in the rush to be successful at business. MORE >>

I’m reading The Magic of Thinking Big and one phrase really stood out to me: Action cures fear. In thinking it over, I found myself agreeing with that statement. Fear, as an emotion, tends to cause indecision, even causing a person to freeze. When I feel fear, it holds me up. I’m not as quick to do something, because I’m too busy thinking of all the what-if scenarios.Fear causes a person to postpone action and second guess their thinking. Action cures fear because once you act, you don’t have time to focus on your fears. Do that task. Take action! Our actions define us. MORE >>

Lately I’ve been getting Facebook messages from people I don’t know about random subjects that I have no interest in. It’s basically spam and I’ve marked it as such. But it highlights how a social networking site can quickly become more than just social networking. Now it’s becoming another site where I can get spammed by people who I don’t even know. One of the issues that arises in any communication system is how people will use that communication as a way to catch other people’s interest and get them to their website or product. MORE >>