The first section of Tim Calkins’ Defending Your Brand is titled An Important Note, which admonishes the reader: There are times when this book will make you uncomfortable. You may read about certain tactics and think, “That is so wrong. can’t believe someone would do that.” Some of the approaches MORE >>

There’s nothing better than getting a new puppy. He’s He’s so exciting and vibrant and interesting and funny. It’s It’s fun to think about what he’ll be like when he grows up. Everywhere Everywhere you go people ask you about him, and look at him, and want to hold him. And then the puppy does grow up. And you have to feed him and wash him and brush him and clean up after him. When you go to the park people don’t dislike him necessarily, but they don’t gravitate toward him because. MORE >>

Episode #334 of Six Pixels of Separation - The Twist Image Podcast is now live and ready for you to listen to. Welcome to episode #334 of Six Pixels Of Separation - The Twist Image Podcast. Please excuse the nepotism, but I treat Chris Brogan and Julien Smith like family. The two are more than close friends, they are the best-selling business book authors of Trust Agents and recently published their sophomore effort, The Impact Equation. It's a great read if you're trying to figure out how to make the work that you do not only resonate, but for it to create true value and merit in the world. MORE >>

Over the weekend, we ran a short series of interviews with bloggers of different types, to get a feel for how they’re preparing for the festive season. Image courtesy stock.xchng user danyba. We spoke to the owners of: a product-sales blog. blogger-consultant-speaker. digital publisher. not-for-profit blog. If that series made you realize how underprepared you are for the coming weeks, don’t worry. Today’s post is a checklist for getting ready. Have you worked out when you’ll take a break? The first thing to do is get out the calendar. Set a few goals. What about you? MORE >>

When we normally want the answer to something, we turn to our trusted friend, Mr Google, who knows everything we want to know (provided we know how to ask it the right questions). But at heart, Google is just an algorithim, devoid of any human characteristics and emotions. It is unable to look at things in context and draw upon personal experiences. It can only show what it can find on the web at that given moment, which may or may not be a pile of crap. So what if you need the answer to a personal question? Maybe advice for an embarrassing problem? It took me a long time to warm to Quora. MORE >>