Archive for November, 2007

A Tribute to Online Communities

Sunday, November 11th, 2007

One of the really great things about the internet is its ability to build communities. You might call them “virtual” communities, but that implies that they’re not real.

Internet-based communities are very real.

I know from my own experience that people can come together in a series of online communities and have those communities spill over into “real, live” get-togethers. I’ve seen it on the arthritis new groups, the technology groups, and in my own seminars.

This happens in part because people are self-interested (they join a group to pursue an interest, gain knowledge, etc.), but also essentially social beings. After all, we all want to “hang out” with people who share our interests. Whether it’s at a BBQ or an online group, we gravitate toward people like us.

Now let me tell you about a spectacular example of building a real community online.

There is no better analogy for a community than building something with fiber. [Disclaimer: Here's what I know about knitting. It involves sticks and colored string and is best accomplished in groups.]

When we build communities, we tie strings from point to point to point and create a web. Interlinking online points create an obvious web. When we extend that to “real world” activities and events, the web expands even more. And the connections grow stronger.

Over at http://the-panopticon.blogspot.com, Franklin holds court. His blog is about . . . everything. His schtick is that he writes about knitting. And about his imaginary friends, the sheep and the ball of yarn. It’s all very entertaining.

So Franklin has quite a following. Google “imaginary sheep knitting” you will find The Panopticon.

Anyway, Franklin recently had a real-life adventure because of his work in building a community online.

Frank is writing a book. He’s a photographer and has a project to photograph 1,000 knitters. Of course he blogs about the project and has held several sessions to get knitters together so he can snap photos.

My wife knits, and she belongs to some knitting groups. So, two of the members of the local knitters’ guild invite Franklin to come to Sacramento (from Chicago) for the weekend. They advertise that he’s coming, and set up an opportunity for knitters to come by and get their picture taken for the book.

The event was a huge success. People actually bussed in from three hours away to participate. Why?

Because, on one hand, Franklin has been building a community. He gets lots of interactive feedback from his blog. Or perhaps the comments are just a lot of I-Love-It snippets. Either way, readers dig in and love it. And participate.

His report is at http://the-panopticon.blogspot.com/2007/11/there-and-back-again.html. (The role of the charming husband was played by yours truly. And my wife is a wonder to behold.)

On the other hand, Franklin participates in the broader online community. Instead of simply posting stuff and going away, he communicates with people and interacts with the community.

The combination of building a community and participating in a larger community results in a community that cannot be contained online. Eventually it must overflow into the physical world. And so Franklin has the 1,000 knitters project. And he gets invited to fly across country for three days of activities. And people travel hundreds of miles to meet him.

Outside of all the other things people have going in their lives, they carved out time for this. Why? Because it’s fun. And they get to meet up with lots of people who have similar interests.

And because the online world IS the real world.

Here’s the best thing about this event: The entire online knitting community is a little stronger because of all the connections made that weekend. The Guild is stronger because members from across California got to meet each other. Social gatherings and online posts pumped up the event. The reports were all positive. Other groups will want to do this.

Over on my technical blog I’ve been trying to help build communities for years. It can be a lot harder than it looks. So even if this isn’t my community, I appreciate the effort it takes to make it happen.

So here’s a tip of the hat to Franklin (and Beth and Cindi) for building the community web and making it a little stronger.

Posted in Balance, Community | Comments Off

Siesta, Retirement, and Work

Sunday, November 11th, 2007

And old tale.

An American was visiting a small village in Mexico. He came across a young man sitting in a chair on the sidewalk while children played all around him. The American was put off by this laziness. So he talked to the man.

“Why aren’t you working?” asked the American.

“I have already worked. I caught some fish for my family and and some to sell.” he said.

“But the day is young,” said the American. “Surely you could catch more fish. What do you do every day?”

“I do what I want.” said the man. “I get up and fish a little, I play with my children, I take a siesta, and spend the evening cuddling with my wife.”

The American was very frustrated now. “You should work harder!” he said. “You should work more every day so you can have more than you need, and not just enough to get by.”

“Look at me,” said the American. “I work hard every day. Sometimes twelve or fifteen hours a day. I’ve been working hard for twenty years. And when I retire, I’ll be able to go anywhere, and do whatever I want. That’s what you should do.”

The Mexican thought for awhile. Then he asked,

“And what will you do when you retire?”

“Well,” said the American, “I thought I’d find a nice village like this. I’ll do what I want. I’ll get up and fish a little, I’ll play with my grandchildren, I’ll take a siesta, and spend the evenings cuddling with my wife.”

And so the question is: Why aren’t you doing today what you plan to do someday?

Posted in Balance, Goals, Humor | 1 Comment »

Finding Your Business Voice

Wednesday, November 7th, 2007

Did you ever take a class in literature?

One of the things you learn about authors is that they need to go through a process of maturing and becoming the author we know and love. So, their early work is often very different from their later work. Their early work is a little forced. It’s often a variation on someone else’s work. Sometimes an author’s early work is so heavily inspired by someone else that the author is viewed as writing in the “school” of someone else.

When the author matures, all of this is different. At some point the author is said to have “found his voice.” Now the writing seems fresh and new and inspired. Chances are, the author’s writing will become consistent, and better over time. Eventually, the author’s “voice” is very strongly associated with him.

Business goes through a similar process.

At first, you might be copying others, inspired by others, and fishing around to figure out what you’re doing. But at some point you have enough experiences that you “find your voice” in business. It’s like a quickening. Everything comes together and takes on a life of its own.

When you find your voice, the processes all become easier. The rules make more sense, are easier to follow, and can be taught to others. Why? Because they have become your rules. You’re no longer parroting what others do and what you’ve been told is the right thing to do. Now it’s your thing.

Of course that doesn’t mean everything’s easy and perfect. You still have to go to work every day. You still have to work hard. But things are a little easier than they used to be. Motivation is easier. Things make more sense. And the speed of success increases.

The next obvious question is: can you make this quickening take place? Can you force it?

The answer is no. And yes.

At some level, all that goodness comes from experience. You can make life a lot easier by learning from books and avoiding from the “school of hard knocks.” But book learning will normally only get us an intellectual understanding. To truly know, understand, and internalize most things, we need experience. That’s why we can read about certain practices a hundred times before they sink in: We have to be ready for them to sink in.

On the positive side, you can certainly speed up the process.

How does a writer find his voice? He writes! He doesn’t play video games, watch thousands of hours of You-Tube videos, or spend all his time and energy on pointless activities. A writer writes and, as he works at his craft, he finds his voice.

And how do you find your business voice? You work on your business. You fall in love with it. You enjoy it and spend time working on it [not IN your business, but ON your business]. You work on the look, the feel, the philosophy, the taste, the smell, and the sounds of your business. You actively work to make it your own and to make it different.

This takes time. But the more you focus on it, the less time it takes.

No one is in a business with zero competition. Even if no one does exactly what you do, your client still has to make decisions about where to spend money. So, what makes your business different and special? What have you got others don’t have? And how do you deliver it in a way that others don’t?

What’s your business voice?

Posted in Business, Muscles of Success | Comments Off

Life Can Be a Grind

Wednesday, November 7th, 2007

Did you hear about the optician who backed into the lens grinder?

He made a spectacle of himself.

—–

Did you hear about the butcher who backed into the meat grinder?

He got a little behind in his work.

Posted in Humor | Comments Off