People: Online & Offline Blog

I am writing this on the ride home from Time4Wine. To those of you who made it to Time4wine, YOU made the weekend. It was a weekend of wine, food and, yes, debauchery — but not without the intellectual comfort of great conversations about social media, technology and all the gadgetry that makes us tick.

Geeks and wine…why?

Don’t we spend enough hours together at conferences, tweetups, et al? Yes, but much of that time is also spent multitasking, focusing on work or developing new business relationships. It’s not ‘our’ time and is compromised by professional distractions and obligations.

Indeed we work together, but we also play together, and those who could have asked their employers to foot the bill decided to go on their own dime to ensure that the direction of relationships were untangled by business objectives.  No doubt, we developed valuable ties, that process never ends, but without name tags, sponsors or VIP’s, conversations began over flights of wine and plates of cheese. Even geeks bond by breaking bread, and nothing much has really changed about human nature.

During the wine blending session at Alpha Omega Winery, we learned to choose a metaphor for wine, relate it to something you already know, and suddenly wine is less complex. Nothing new, right? Consider Time4wine our time on the golf course, without the rigidity of uniforms or the old boys’ club.

Take a look at the Twitter and Facebook activity around Time4wine (#Time4wine), and you’ll notice there were no keynotes or super stars. Even Gordan Getty and Mayor Gavin Newsom made unplanned appearances, but they didn’t steal the spotlight for long, and I like it like that.

It’s about the people, people, not the wine.

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Give her something geeky…

When I mentioned I was creating a list of my favorite geeky items, I asked if others would like to take a peek.  I was surprised by how many people responded, so here it is.

Valentine’s Day is around the corner,  so you have NO EXCUSE.   These items range from inexpensive to pricey, and  each has brought form, function and style to this geeky girl’s  life.

Asus EEE Netbook

9.5 hrs of battery life, lightweight and available in many colors.  Mine is boring black, although, I can’t use it in public without sparking a conversation.  It turns Mac owners green with envy, because it is lightweight and will free you from chasing power outlets.  I use both a Mac and an EEE, but the EEE is ideal for travel.   It won’t break the bank, either.

Buckyballs

Rolling Stones Magazine rated these clever little magnetic balls the best gift of 2009.  I got Buckyballs for Christmas, and they are almost as addictive as Twitter.

If you think this looks like a mere toy, check out the YouTube videos of Buckball pros showing off their skill.

What are you waiting for? Get Buckyballin’!

Barcelona Bags

Available in many different sizes and colors, these pouches are perfect for chargers, small gadgets, business cards and  post-its. Each ballistic nylong pouch has  three sections: a zippered nylon mesh front pouch for easy visibility, a zippered middle pouch and velcro fastened back pouch.

Hayden Harnett Ibiza Flight Tote

This bag comes in many colors, is made of durable nylon AND has a built-in  padded laptop sleeve that fits my 15″  MacBook Pro (and everything else I need) all without making me look like a hobo.

What you don’t see is that the bag comes with instructions on the multitude of ways it can be folded, snapped and contorted to go from massive to tiny on the fly.

I also adore InCase’s sleek bags and laptop cases, but I am not lucky enough to be an owner, so it’s hard to comment on usability.  Hayden Harnett’s Ibiza tote, however,  is the first bag I have found that works with or without a laptop.

Fran’s  Dark Chocolate Salted Caramels

Dark chocolate, buttery caramel, a dash of salt  and compact enough to slide into your pocket for a quick fix.  Need I say more?

CB2 Bed Tray

Surely it was meant for breakfast in bed, but I use my tray for my laptop, Blackberry, newspapers, snacks and whatever else I want within arm’s length.

Sharpies

Few items this amazing can be found at Walgreen’s. Imagine the possibilities.  I have this trusty pack, but I am still drooling over the deluxe travel set.  Why? Because a gal can never have too many Sharpies.

Canon PowerShot SD1200IS 10 Digital Camera

Ideal for impromptu photowalks. You’ll be surprised at how great the photos turn out.  Pair it with an Eye-Fi card as I did, and it is twice as much fun.

Smashbox Limitless Long Wear Lip Gloss

Before you say no way, consider the magic inside of this little tube:  it stays on for hours, acts as a moisturizer with  SPF and the colors are so sheer that they look good on anyone.  I consider it Carmex with a kick. Geeky girls can be girlie, too!

What am I missing?  Please help me add to this list.  I look forward to hearing what’s on your list.

Liza Sperling

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By Liza Sperling

I recently enjoyed an evening at Cirque du Soleil’s, Ovo, the best work holiday treat I can imagine and my first Cirque du Soleil show.  I was blown away by what seemed to be less of a performance than a celebration of reality.  Seeing the dancers’ muscles shake with fatigue was an odd comfort, as if they, too, were humans, in spite of their ability to move like insects and contort their bodies in ways that make yoga look like child’s play.

Those whose stumbled or dropped props, remained confident and moved on without losing their focus.  The audience was unable to discern the intentional from the unintentional.  Only when we consider mistakes something to hide or worthy of shame and embarrassment do they become glaringly obvious.  Ovo resolved a paradox:  achieving mastery requires embracing imperfection – you cannot have one without the other.

Outside of the circus tent,  if you attempt to master anything, be prepared to embrace screwing up, consider it confirmation that you are pushing beyond what is safe and familiar.  When you stumble,  and we all do, it is only proof that you are challenging yourself, you are growing.  Growth is impossible without growing pains.

2009 was a year of highs and lows.  Instead of stumbling gracefully, I tripped and fell flat, doubting that my goals were possible.  A good friend asked me why I had given up hope, and it was only then that I realized I had in fact given up hope. That night I sat down with a sheet of paper and wrote the word “hope” over and over until I filled the page. I got back on track, but I won’t forget that painful evening.

Ovo served as a timely reminder to start the New Year resolving to accept screwing up.  When I  screw up, I will remind myself that it is simply a part of the process.  If that does not work, I will head to Vegas to see another Cirque du Soleil show.

I wish all all of you a happy and healthy New Year.  Thank you for reading, responding, and sharing your wisdom with me both online and offline.

Go forth, conquer your resolutions and be prepared to screw up along the way!

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This year,  I managed to avoid holiday preparation altogether.  I neglected to even make a list (forget about checking it twice). When I landed in Eugene, Oregon on the afternoon of Christmas Eve and was met by my mom and 98 year old grandmother, I felt empty-handed and ill-prepared.

At the last minute, my mom and I hung some Christmas lights and headed to the local pharmacy to pick up some Oregon Ducks socks for my grandmother.

We wrapped up anything that didn’t move, dipping into my grandmothers’ locker of ancient holiday wrapping  supplies. The packages included salted caramels I purchased in San Francisco, a package of dish towels, a lagniappe of odds and ends.  We were also sure to include plenty of ribbons for my grandmother’s brand new kitty, Inky.

Christmas morning, I thought of friends and loved ones who were far away and recognized that I had forgotten to send many cards or gifts. I drew a doodle for my friend, Tara, and sent her a photo of my efforts.  The fleece blanket I picked up at Walgreen’s for my grandmother’s new kitty made both my grandmother and Inky purr.  Inky finally hopped onto my grandmother’s lap for the first time, to burrow her face in the fleece.  My mom surprised me with Buckyballs, an addictively, geeky toy I can’t put down.  We shared the salted caramels, and now we are spent, full & happy.

Image by Rich_Lem via Flickr

No fancy gifts or patent leather shoes – more importantly, no overhyped expectations of what Christmas should be or what I should give or receive.  I have had many difficult holidays, but not this one. This Christmas has been sublime, and it’s not over yet.

P.S. Thanks to Chris Brogan and the holiday photo project for inspiring me to share my holiday with you. I have enjoyed the photos and videos of so many Christmases thanks to his efforts.

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C’mon feel the noise….

If you follow me on Twitter, you know this already:  I am loud.  I tweet a lot, to a lot of people about a variety of topics.   I  support and communicate with the people and communities I care about, express my opinions,  and analyze the products and companies that interest me.  Does my volume mean that I don’t listen?  NO.  I listen a lot.  I observe others’ thoughts, wishes, wants, reactions, statements and behavior in this uncharted territory we call social media.  I love to respond and join the conversations.

Please do not assume that because someone talks a lot that they do not listen.  I accept your decision to unfollow me, but don’t tell me that I must follow certain “widely accepted rules” about online communication.  I’d be lying if I said I don’t care what others think, it’s just that I don’t know how to predict what others think, so my only alternative is to be me.

Many of us are trying to figure out how our online and offline personal and professional lives can coexist, but no one has the magic bullet.  Don’t let someone else’s rules become your rules.  It’s a time of trial and error and constant change for everyone in this space.  Go with what feels right to you.  Create your own rules and don’t forget to remind yourself that the only thing we know for sure is that everything is subject to change at anytime.

Do you have rules? Have they changed over time? Tell me about it!

Liza Sperling

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A year ago I was commuting to Palo Alto daily, seeking to be a part of
a community, yet unsure how to make it happen. Today, I am sitting at
my local coffee shop, where I know every barista’s name. The Creamery
is one node in my local community that reminds me that I have managed
to join many communities, but how?

We don’t become a member of a community by default, by moving or
getting a new job. Being a part of a community requires time,
patience, effort, investment and supporting the community and it’s
individuals. Sounds like a lot of work? It is, and maybe it’s not for
everyone. For me, every ounce of effort results in compounded returns.
Relationships are no longer linear, but take on new dimensions. I
support others’ efforts across multiple communities, and I see others
doing the same. It’s not utopia. There are barriers to entry,
disagreements, misunderstandings in any community. There is, however,
one shared goal: to keep the community thriving. It’s just not
possible to maintain a thriving community without each member’s
effort.

You are probably a part of many communities, too. Do you agree? Do
you work to maintain your community and its members? How did you
join/select desired communities? Do your communities overlap? If so,
do you work to create areas of overlap? If not, do you prefer the
separation? I’d love your feedback as I nurse my coffee and ask myself
the same questions.

Posted via email from People & Communication: Online & Offline

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The more technology races ahead, the faster we want to go, the more we
want to cram into every second of every moment and, accordingly, we
are less tolerant of even minor delays. We complain when systems
crash or the fail whale interrupts our tweets, While it’s exciting to
see how technology allows us to automate and expedite many things we
once did manually, I wonder if this expectation of speed is setting us
up for disaster. Not everything can be expedited. Example, the
learning curve.

Starting a new job has left me giddy with admiration for my coworkers,
yet eager to get up to speed – yesterday. I want to know all of the
systems, learn every aspect of the product and be able to communicate
all of this knowledge to others flawlessly. I know it is impossible to
do so from the get go, and yet, the learning curve feels like an itch
I can’t scratch.

Learning a new role is not as simple as downloading an app. It’s time
to accept that I am no robot and to tolerate, perhaps even enjoy, the
ambiguity of not knowing. It does not come naturally, but it beats
being a robot.

Posted via email from People & Communication: Online & Offline

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Today was my first day at Scout Labs. When I started my first full-time job out of college at Morgan Stanley in 1998, my first day was devoted to paperwork followed by an entire month of training. Today I started with a brief, yet comprehensive overview of Scout Labs and the online brand monitoring landscape from Jennifer Zeszut, ran over to hear Margaret Francis speak on a panel at the Enterprise 2.0 Conference, and got up to speed on the systems and technology.

The most painful part of the day? Choosing a title for my business card.  Everything sounds either too narrow to encompass what I actually do or too broad to convey any meaning.  My role involves a variety of responsibilities – this is becoming more common today in a world where nearly every industry is questioning and reshaping its business models.

My solution, to leave the title field blank.

Does a business card require that I define my role? Isn't that my job? A business card provides contact information, and if I can't leave a meeting or conversation without an individual knowing what I do and/or knowing why we should stay in touch, then my business card is likely to end up in the trash anyway. 

What do you think?

Liza Sperling

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In social media, we measure, quantify and analyze even seemingly intangible concepts like trust, authenticity, even friendship.  When Tara Hunt (aka @missrogue) wrote Soup Metrics, she defined the soup metric as “the number of people in your social network that you know would bring you soup if they knew you were sick and/or get your back in any other real friend way – to help you feel better OR help your career.”

Soup metrics gauge relationships well if you are in your hometown, but for those of us who have scraped together resources to attend conferences all over the country I have seen another metric emerge: the hotel room metric. I know it sounds far less wholesome than chicken soup, but the definition is 100% innocent. The hotel metric is defined as the number of people at a conference who will offer up an extra bed or a place to crash without expecting anything unsavory in return.

I have shared rooms, taxis, meals and even toiletries at multiple conferences to save money, and I am not alone. The social media community that gathers at conferences is not as uniform as one would think. Many conference attendees have free tickets to conferences but can’t pony up airfare, hotel expenses, etc… Let’s face it the economy is rocky, and it’s impossible to know who is in need unless we make our needs known.

It was not until the 140 Conference in LA last week that I noticed the hotel room metric popping up over and over. Fortunately I was offered a place to stay in LA, which was a pleasant surprise, until the offer was rescinded.  I spent a hectic morning dragging my luggage down Hollywood Boulevard and did my best to ignore the feeling of being homelesss in a strange city to stay.  I shared my problem with people, and I was overwhelmed by those who offered up solutions, some of whom I had literally met that day. Ultimately, the lovely Sarah Kennon put my name on her room registry and left a key for me at the front desk. A hotel room has never felt so inviting as the Hotel Roosevelt that evening.

Later the same day, Zane Aveton, a dear Twitter friend I met in person for the first time at the conference, sent me a text message. She needed a place to stay. I reached out to Rich Greenberg, who had an extra bed in his hotel room.  He was pleased to donate the spare to Zane, although they had never heard of each other.

Let me be clear – I don’t encourage anyone to show up in a random city for a social media conference expecting free digs or a hotel room.  If, however, you do find yourself stranded at a social media event, reach out to the people in your network.  My guess is each of us have friends who are willing and able to help. You never know when the person in need will be you.

Liza Sperling

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Posted via email from People & Communication: Online & Offline

In social media, we measure, quantify and analyze even seemingly intangible concepts like trust, authenticity, even friendship.  When Tara Hunt (aka @missrogue) wrote Soup Metrics, she defined the soup metric as “the number of people in your social network that you know would bring you soup if they knew you were sick and/or get your back in any other real friend way – to help you feel better OR help your career.”

Do you really want to hold a grudge, seek revenge and remain grumpy or recognize that growing pains are an inevitable part of Twitter (and each of us) growing up? Let’s admit, it is getting crowded in here, but there is still plenty of room for each of us. It’s okay to be grumpy, I was when I started writing, but I feel better already. The note in the movie, Juno, said it best: If you’re still in, I am in.

I will end this as I end and begin most conversations, with a question: Are you in?

 

Posted via email from People: Online & Offline

IMG_0203.JPG,
originally uploaded by lizasperling.

On Saturday, I found myself in the middle of real, live “Fairy Tale Wedding”. The pictures don’t lie.

What’s more interesting is how many onlookers were mesmerized by the idea of a funky, dress up wedding, where the guests are dressed as dwarves and bunny rabbitts. The parents did not seem amused, but it revived my hope in my idea of a happy ending, finding someone who appreciates the quirky parts of us we all have.

Shouldn’t a wedding be a celebration of what the couple loves and the future they plan to carve out together? And if it is Santacon, Alice in Wonderland and pancake makeup, so be it. Why should a couple spend the time and money to create an illusion we have all seen awkwardly replicated too many times?

I admit, I teared up as these perfect strangers said their vows, but I was not alone. The wedding drew a crowd, and as the couple departed, we all cheered and clanked our bottles of beer in the air.

Here’s to happily ever after.

Posted via web from People: Online & Offline

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  The Lost Art of Play:
Are You Having Fun Yet?

I am 33 years old.  I have spent nearly a decade on Wall Street, two years starting a fund and volunteering as a Mounted Patrol Officer in Wyoming,  and I am currently enjoying my second year in San Francisco. I have proven that I can hack it in the toughest of professional and social environments. I read voraciously, DVR Charlie Rose daily, and need my Sunday New York Times, but it recently ocurred to me that these activities had become so routine and feel like a part of my life’s carefully planned choreography.  I was doing just about everything while focusing on the next rung on the ladder.  I had forgotten how to “play”.

What is “play”? My definition: to explore or engage in an activity with enjoyment as the sole objective, or doing something for sheer pleasure rather than factoring in the potential learning quotient, monetary gain or the intellectual value the activity provides.  Sure,  the desire to master, achieve fame & fortune and tackle new goals may result from playing, but it’s NOT play if we seek out those outcomes. I set out to relearn the art of play and to have fun for the sake of having fun.

• I doodle. Using my sublime set of 36 dual-tipped Copic markers and a massive pad of inexpensive newsprint, I draw swirls, polka dots, whatever comes to mind. I post the doodles on Flickr.com and received an handful of offers to purchase my doodles, but they are not for sale. Instead I give them to friends or use them as wrapping paper. You can see one of my doodles in the photo above.
  

• I take pictures: I bought a point and shoot camera, and I take photos of whatever draws my attention, without any criteria or purpose. I began posting the pictures on Flickr and found others’ examples as inspiration that even the mundane can be fun to photograph.  You can check out my Flickr feed here:

• I Tweet, Friendfeed, check-in, follow & engage online & offline: I am an an active participant on multiple social media networks, and have made a point to take my online friendships offline.  Somehow I have managed to make great friends who I would otherwise never know had I been hesitant to engage in these online networks.

• I Whuffaoke: Yes, that’s me in the Whuffaoke or Bust track jacket, singing without a care in the world.
  

• I blog: I do not publish as much as I would like, but when I do a post it is because I want to, not because I have to, and I don’t worry about who, if anyone, will read it.

• I code (?!): In an effort to learn HTML, I am using a website targeting 10 yr. olds,(www.Neopets.com) My interest in blogging and technology, lead to exploring Wordpress, Posterous,  Blogspot and the integrations of tools and widgets like Zemanta, Disqus et al.  While incorporating some of these tools into my blog is easy, others have forced me to look at the underlying code. After breaking many templates, it is fun to finally understand the components of a new language.

The big question: am I having fun? Yes!  Of course, learning or relearning anything takes time, and many activities are an acquired taste that require patience before the enjoyment kicks in.  Many people have been playing since the day they are born, some do little more than play, but there are also those of us who forget the basics as we transition into adulthood.Don’t let any more time pass without asking yourself these questions: Do you know how to play? What do you consider play? As always, I want to hear your thoughts, so please join the conversation.

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Image by Laughing Squid via Flickr

By Liza Sperling

For a while, I assumed the references to #Blamedrewscancer on Twitter were an inside joke.  Who is Drew? Does he really have cancer? If so, why are people laughing about, even blaming Drew’s cancer for everything from AT&T’s pathetic network coverage coverage to getting dumped .

If you take a look at Blame Drews Cancer, you’ll learn that Drew Olanoff was diagnosed with cancer May 20, 2009.  It did not take long, and already Drew has replaced an outdated model of mobilizing support with a simple hashtag: #blamedrewscancer. To date,   nearly 10,000 people have blamed drews cancer on over 20,000 things.

Who could have imagined a a hashtag could launch a viral movement to raise awareness for cancer? Drew did. Since when is it okay to laugh about cancer and talk about chemo so casually? That’s just it – it is more than okay, in fact, it may be the ONLY thing that works in a day and age when traditional PR strategies are losing their efficacy.  Another PSA featuring a celebrity to whom I cannot relate? No thank you.

Last night I headed over to Blame Drew’s Cancer Blowout expecting an ordinary social media gathering.  I was wrong. Drew came on screen, thanked us for attending and ‘blamed his cancer’ for not being able to attend in person.  He’s real, funny, wore killer red goggles, and he is not a “cancer victim”, he is one of us. He did not let a diagnosis change him or his ability to relate to others.

I want to be a part of something larger than me-don’t we all?  Drew inspires his supporters with his brutally honest portrayal of cancer and offers an easy way to engage supporters in his mission – the hashtag is the tool that lead to what is now a nationwide movement.  The hashtag, however, is just the beginning: I am hooked.  I want to see President Obama in a Blame Drew’s Cancer tee-shirt. Why not?

I have already reached out to friends of mine who are already involved in Blame Drew’s Cancer to see how I can help. So, if anyone wants to join me (and many other phenomenal people) to support Blame Drew’s Cancer, let me know.

Feel free to contact me at any of these links:

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by Liza Sperling

In the past month, I have been asked if I work for Eye-Fi, Posterous, Twitter, even Friendfeed.  I don't work for any of these companies, but I do talk about them a lot. The only way to describe my relationship is as an "evangelist."

What is an evangelist? Beyond it's old school, religious roots, an evangelist has been redefined in the technology community as shorthand for a passionate user, fan or cheerleader for of particular product or brand. To clarify my thoughts, I asked others this question on Friendfeed and Twitter to see others' opinions (http://ff.im/6povW). Here are some of the responses:

1. Someone who is so passionate about the product/service/cause that he/she is willing to spend the time/energy to spread the word about to everyone even without any compensation. – Claire Chang
2. Someone who consistently promotes an idea, concept, technology or some other tangible or intangible entity for its own sake. – LANjackal
3. An empowered and knowledgeable cheerleader. – Andy Sternberg
4. It's someone that knows a lot about a product and that looks to promote or spread the good that product makes to other people. For example, promoting apple's many features like, easy to use, better performance, best software, etc. An example, could it be Scoble and Friend Feed. – Jorge
5. Someone who spreads the good news about something. – Gus
6. Someone who loves and pimps the hell out of something they love to do – Holden (First God Of FF)

Evangelists are self-motivated and are expressing their views because it is their nature to support what they love. They are not seeking pay for their efforts, but that does not mean it is is a thankless task.  There is an enormous amount of joy in contributing to success. It is irrelevant whether I am talking to peers or perfect strangers, I will always support what I love, whether it is my favorite novel, coffee shop or technology.

As an evangelist, I find my enthusiasm is often misunderstood. We are intelligent and, as power users, we typically know a great deal about the ideas we support.  Don't underestimate our intelligence or think of us as groupies.  We are also quick to acknowledge flaws and a big part of our role is to suggest ways to improve the products, so criticism is fair game.

Many of the people we look to to provide guidance in the age of new media will tell companies the importance of finding individuals who will pick up the prodigal torch and express enthusiasm for their ideas and products. 

The challenge is not finding evangelists but creating them. Can you create evangelists? Probably not, but you can nurture them by recognizing who these individuals are and responding to them as if they do work for you.  We are not asking for much in return for our word of mouth support, no money or swag, we seek transparency to better understand your products, feedback to our suggestions and the tools to respond to others' questions. Sounds like a fair trade to me, what do you think?

Liza Sperling

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img src="http://www.images.wisestamp.com/blogger.png" border="0" height="16" alt="Blogger" width="16" style="vertical-align:middle;padding-bottom:5px;" />

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Today I spotted real love at my local Starbucks.  I took a picture for those of you who will insist that love does not, cannot exist. You’ll say, Impossible. Not in this crappy economy with scorching unemployment.  Not when we have protesters showing up at town halls with ammo. Not when we have aircraft crashing into each other over the Hudson River.

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I spend a lot of time reading, commenting, sharing and linking to a variety of of technology articles, lists and tips.  Recently it occurred to me that in spite of the volume of information I consume, I rarely absorb information that has long term value.  It may be interesting and helpful today, but tomorrow, technology will change, and the information may no longer be relevant.   Specifically, I rarely stumble onto old-fashioned advice, the the low/ no-tech tips that are timeless, however their value is often overlooked.

In the spirit of reviving the trend of passing on those tips that may seem simple, but prove valuable over the long haul, I will share on of my favorite tips a friend shared with me years ago:  baby shampoo. Years ago, my friend exclaimed, baby shampoo is a godsend.  Obviously an overstatement, but her tip has saved me a lot of money (and packing space) over the years. 

Baby shampoo is a way to “go budget” without feeling like you are giving up anything.  A few ways you can use baby shampoo:

• Save some money, already.  We are in a recession, folks, so as much as I adore Bumble & Bumble products, I can’t fork over the cash for Seaweed Shampoo like I did in the past.  I am pretty sure you’ll appreciate it when you get your next credit card bill.
• Wash your undergarments (or just about anything) if you are on the road or too cheap to buy laundry detergent.
• It’s not just shampoo, it does a good job from head to toe without making you smell like your dad’s cologne  – or Axe body spray, ack.
• Use it as a facial cleanser- it won’t irritate your eyes, even contact wearers. Remember “No more Tears”?
• Leave it at your significant other’s place.  You are unlikely to get any flack for the innocuous clear bottle filled with magical golden goodness. In fact it may be the only toiletry that is uniquely unoffensive to any gender.
• Use it as a pick me up.  The hint of a scent appeals to all ages and conjures up fond memories for most of us.  For me, the scent brings back memories of snuggling with my niece after washing a melted Dairy Queen Blizzard out of her hair.

I suggest you pick up a bottle to test my advice.  (FYI:  If Johnson & Johnson is not on sale, go with the store brand. I actually prefer Walgreen’s baby shampoo to J&J because it  works just as well and is available in a handy three ounce, flip-cap bottle for under a buck. TSA  won’t confiscate it and you won’t  lose the itty bitty cap on the J&J travel size, which I have done many times.) Let me know how it goes, if you find new ways to use it, or even if you hate my advice.  I am willing to bet you’ll like it…Or your $0.99  back.

Liza Sperling

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At a recent tech event, I found myself looking for a place to escape the crowd and made the mistake of sitting in a “reserved” booth.  An angry woman confronted me, and when I asked if it was okay to borrow the booth until the party returned, she blanched and asked, Who ARE you?

I blew my top, yes, lost it. Who am I? Why does it matter to you? And who made you the Paris Hilton for the night? Now that I am calm, I realize it was a great question, so I am answering it right now, here I go…Who are you?

Liza Spering

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By Liza Sperling

I love Google Profiles. Ironically it makes “Googling” someone less of a necessity.  If you pull up a Google Profile, you can garner the basics about someone without doing a broader Google search or bothering to visiting my LinkedIn profile to see if we have shared a professional relationship.

Image via Wikipedia

Compare this to the Facebook profile: Google did away with the clutter and the dreaded “relationship status” field.  As a rule, I leave that field blank, no matter what the case may be. Unlike most of my tech savvy peers, I can’t get comfortable with even entertaining the idea of combining the internet with romantic relationships. Just today, however, it hit me, Google can probably guess who is single or not, and that scares me.

While the Google Profile masters simplicity it’s newly souped up siblings, Google Reader and Google Friend Connect, serve as an indication of what may be next in Google Labs.  I am afraid, very afraid. The stage is set, and I fear that my innocuous Google Profile will not remain the same for long.

Contact Liza Sperling

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Practicing Self-Promotion: Where Do We Start?

By Liza Sperling

PSST…I think I just had my 15 minutes of fame.  Don’t Tell Anyone. - Overheard

I have joined several discussions both online and offline on the need for BOTH men and women to learn to promote themselves, so it’s about time I start to eat my own cooking.  One post that drew a lot of attention and placed the ball squarely in each of our courts is Cathy Brooks‘ guest post on Brian Solis‘ blog: Gauntlet Toss or Clarion Call.  I am going to do my small part now. Don’t worry, though, I promise not to let the stardom go to my head.

Please enjoy this great article where my friend, Ken Yeung, said some great things about me. I am truly flattered. http://blog.thelettertwo.com/2009/09/04/followfriday-its-all-about-the-awesomeness/ (Thanks, Ken! I hope you are all following Ken’s blog, The Letter Two.)

Big deal, right?  Well, I am just getting started. I still think promoting others is a heckuva a lot more fun, so consider this is an experiment. Jokes aside, I am working on more creative tools to promote those who we think are superstars AND ourselves. I WELCOME your feedback, so please let me know what you think. Tweeting or blogging a link is NOT the answer, but if we put our heads together, we can develop and execute new ways to help our friends and mentors sell more books and hear them speak more frequently at industry events.

• Confessions of A Natural Born Evangelist (lizasperling.wordpress.com)
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Image via Wikipedia

pleiad

PRONUNCIATION:(PLEE-uhd)

• Artificial Authenticity at Google I/O (lizasperling.wordpress.com)
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Image by cobalt123 via Flickr

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Chris Shipley announced some pretty amazing news on the Guidewire Group blog during DEMO 2009.  Here’s an excerpt:

Today, Guidewire Group is taking advantage of this unique economic environment to launch new initiatives that will deliver on this promise:  the Guidewire Assessment Framework, Studio G, and Innovate!100.- Chris Shipley, guidewiregroup.com, Guidewire Group

My first DEMO experience exceeded my expectations in many ways, much of which is due to the culture Chris Shipley has promoted at DEMO.  While Chris leaving DEMO marks the end of an era for many, my hope is that the values and community she created will continue to flourish.

Best of luck to Matt Marshall as he takes the reigns  – if Matt’s dancing skills are any indication of his future at DEMO, he is off to a great start.

I also can’t wait to see what Chris Shipley and the Guidewire Group have up their sleeves.  My bet:  the best is yet to come.

Posted via email from Online & Offline

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As I stepped onto the long red carpet connecting the conference to the pavilion, I confessed to the man beside me that the long red
carpet made me uneasy.  I  joked that I was glad to see there were no
paparazzi.  He asked me why.

I love taking photos of others, and I obviously enjoy attention, but I
don’t enjoy having my photo taken. To combat this fear, lately I do it
as much as possible. Thanks to kind photographer friends, I am less
scared of the camera, and sometimes, if I am really enjoying myself, I
hardly notice the camera’s presence. The “faux red carpet”, however, was a
new challenge.

So when a virtual stranger suggested we enjoy our red carpet stroll
and offered his arm, I agreed.  Why not, I said, let’s pretend that
there are flashing cameras, that we are dressed in our finest
clothing, and let’s revel in our stardom.  I loved it and was dismayed
when the carpet ended.  Inside the pavilion we toasted to our red
carpet moment and, only then, did we finally introduce ourselves and
talk business.

There is joy to be had in these small encounters.  We think of
“conferences” as uber-networking sessions, but if you open your eyes,
you’ll find endless opportunities to get to know others beyond their
titles.

Isn’t this what counts? Isn’t this why we get on planes at the
crack of dawn, cram onto hotel shuttles, and sit with strangers over
coffee long after we have finished our buffet breakfasts?  If these
“moments” did not matter, teleconferences would make conferences
irrelevant.

Would you rather do business with someone who can rock the “faux red carpet” or someone who only shows you their professional side and a slidedeck? You know my answer, but what do you think?  I want your feedback, please!

- Liza Sperling

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Dear LinkedIn:  Do Relationships Matter
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Image by DailyPic via Flickr

Beneath the noise, however, connections form, personalities emerge, and we communicate on a level that seems impossible to non-Twitter users.

Like most people I “met” Chris Brogan on Twitter, but, I am also fortunate to have met him in person. Each of us has our own lives online and offline, and every now and then we cross paths.  This afternoon, our paths crossed. This is what exactly what we said:

From Chris Brogan:

@marlamarkman – my 3 yr old is a scaredy cat. My 7 yr old girl is brave until she’s not. : )

From Liza Sperling:

@chrisbrogan I am your 7 yr old, but somehow turned into your 3 yr old. Working on getting back to my old ways.

From Chris Brogan:

@lizasperling – now that was interesting to read. : )

From Liza Sperling:

@chrisbrogan Did it make sense?

From Chris Brogan:

@lizasperling – made perfect sense. I just liked the poetry of it.

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Contact Me

Posted via email from People: Online & Offline By Liza Sperling

Danielle Laporte posted the quote below today on her blog White Hot Truth, and it was too good to keep to myself.  I think Henri Nouwen was on to something. He has a clear mission and defines his own desire to be useful, but he is wise enough to question it.

The Desire To Be Useful

“More and more, the desire grows in me simply to walk around, greet people, enter their homes, sit on their doorsteps, play ball, throw water, and be known as someone who wants to live with them. It is a privilege to have the time to practice this simple ministry of presence. Still, it is not as simple as it seems. My own desire to be useful, to do something significant, or to be part of some impressive project is so strong that soon my time is taken up by meetings, conferences, study groups, and workshops that prevent me from walking the streets. It is difficult not to have plans, not to organize people around an urgent cause, and not to feel that you are working directly for social progress. But I wonder more and more if the first thing shouldn’t be to know people by name, to eat and drink with them, to listen to their stories and tell your own, and to let them know with words, handshakes, and hugs that you do not simply like them, but truly love them.”

- Henri Nouwen, Catholic Priest

How do you define your desire to be useful? Does it change with age or wisdom?  I don’t think anyone knows with 100% certainty how to answer these questions, but isn’t it important to ask them?

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I have always doodled to decompress or to take my mind off of challenges that confound me.  Usually I lose track of time, and it’s hard to drag me away from whatever I am doodling.

A while ago, my mom picked up a set of markers and a large pad of newsprint paper from an art supply store. When I saw the supplies, I sat down and began to doodle, eager to fill the massive swath of paper in front of me.  My mom eventually gifted the supplies to me, and I have put them to good use.

A blank sheet of paper offers possibilities.  I never know what will result and withhold judgment until the page is filled.  It is similar to writing, but with a more immediate visual effect.  I  doodle without the rules that sometimes get in the way of writing.  No rules, purpose, I just enjoy the process.

After I shared a few of photos of my “art” on Flickr, friends began to ask for their own doodles.  I laughed off most requests, until my friend, Arthur Huang, asked for a doodle to take on his move from San Francisco to Tokyo.  I made sure he did not leave empty-handed.

Just the other day Arthur sent an email with the subject line: Doodle Has A Home In Tokyo.  He included a photo of the doodle handing in his apartment.

My doodle hanging on Arthur’s wall in Tokyo:

I feel like a proud mom, knowing that something I made is hanging in a friend’s apartment on the other side of the globe.  Arthur, I wish you the best with you new job in Tokyo and hope that the doodle acts as a good luck charm as you embark on your challenge.  Be sure to visit soon, or I will be tempted to drop in on you in Tokyo to be sure my doodle is still hanging on your wall.  Thank you for bringing a big smile to this girl’s face.

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Image by ahockley via Flickr

Just when you think you have found that perfect app: infinitely useful, easy to navigate, cheap (or free!), possibly “life-altering”, someone tells you that it is unintuitive.

You start to see the flaws that only another perspective allows and demands.

Really? I never thought about it that way. Hmm…

Do you effortlessly accept another opinion? No. Do you hold firm to your own, too blinded by perfection to consider what someone else considers flaws? No. Either extreme is avoiding the effort that improvement demands in any realm.

To explore how the experience is different from another user’s perspective because it truly matters to us – that is adding value.

Anything else is just pitching in your two cents.

Liza Sperling

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What does this picture mean to you?

It's fair game, I don't know who took the photo, nor do I know the subjects' names or circumstances.

I have, however, heard many detailed interpretations. Why do people connect with the photo and feel a need to describe a deeper meaning.

Isn't it just a guy with his dogs? Or not?

What do you think?

Liza Sperling
San Francisco, CA

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Image by Toban Black via Flickr

I am smitten. It’s love, or as I called it over a month ago #GISTLOVE.

Utterly smitten by Gist. Sound funny? Well, I am not kidding.  After griping about LinkedIn (remember this post: http://lizasperling.wordpress.com/2009/09/21/dear-linkedin-do-relationships-matter/) and wondering when someone would come along with a solution managing contacts AND related content on both social and professional networks, Gist has done it.

I am working on my post about Gist, but BEFORE I post it, I want your feedback.  So here is your Beta Invite link: bit.ly/PmY0c

In the interest of full disclosure, Gist is offering a free trip to Defrag to whoever is able to move the dial the most.  While this is a nice perk, I started using (and Tweeting about) Gist and even created the hashtag #GISTLOVE far before I knew about the contest. While I will always be an evangelist for the technology companies I love, I will never compromise my opinions for perks. You have my word on that!

So, please, what do you think about Gist? Love it? Hate it? Why? Why not?

You know I love it, but I want to hear your feedback to ensure that I am not drinking the #GISTLOVE koolaid.

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Last week I met the CEO of a biotech company.  He spends much of his time trying to understand how our brains work.  In spite of decades of hard work, he admitted that scientists know very little about the dense grey matter packed into our skulls.  The exchange reminded me of a quote by Philip Roth that has stuck with me.  I share his words with you below to see what you think:

You fight your superficiality, your shallowness, so as to try to come at people without unreal expectations, without an overload of bias or hope or arrogance, as untanklike as you can be, sans cannon and machine guns and steel plating half a foot thick; you come at them unmenacingly on your own ten toes instead of tearing up the turf with your caterpillar treads, take them on with an open mind, as equals, man to man, as we used to say, and yet you never fail to get them wrong. You might as well have the brain of a tank.

You get them wrong before you meet them, while you’re anticipating meeting them; you get them wrong while you’re with them; and then you go home to tell somebody else about the meeting and you get them all wrong again. Since the same generally goes for them with you, the whole thing is really a dazzling illusion. … The fact remains that getting people right is not what living is all about anyway. It’s getting them wrong that is living, getting them wrong and wrong and wrong and then, on careful reconsideration, getting them wrong again. That’s how we know we’re alive: we’re wrong. Maybe the best thing would be to forget being right or wrong about people and just go along for the ride. But if you can do that — well, lucky you.

— Philip Roth

Is living about getting people wrong? Surely we are always wrong about others, and, yet, this quote still seems jarring. What do you think?

Liza Sperling

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Image by inju via Flickr

I am thrilled to announce that I am joining Scout Labs. As a natural born evangelist, this is what I consider the ultimate role: to promote a brilliant application that addresses companies’ needs to interpret online conversations, determine consumer sentiment and identify signals in the noise.

In my quest to find the this opportunity, I have focused on the caliber of people as much as what the company does.  My goal all along has been to find a company whose product is as mind blowing as the people.  If I am going to devote most of my waking hours to a company, I want to be as impressed by the people as the technology. After several dozen conferences, meetings and interviews and researching hundreds of people and companies, Scout Labs impresses me on both levels, but if it were not for a random offline encounter I may not have found this opportunity.

I met Mars Hall at my local coffee shop. I asked him what he was working on, and he explained that he is a developer for Scout Labs.  He was kind enough to give me informal demo, and I probably drooled as we discussed the technology. Mars laughed because he does not meet many strangers at coffee shops who are fascinated by online brand monitoring or understand what sentiment analysis actually means.  Our conversation was not limited to Scout Labs, however. Mars and I discussed yoga,  hiking and his love of Austin, TX.  In short,  it was an opportunity get to know a member of the Scout Labs team from both a personal and professional perspective. Mars and I exchanged contact information, and shortly thereafter, Jennifer Zeszut, Scout Labs’ CEO, emailed me to meet for coffee.

It is ironic that offline interaction lead to an opportunity to join Scout Labs, a company that monitors online conversations.  I am intrigued by online communication, and I spend a lot of time interacting online, but I continue to say over and over that it is impossible to replace real world interaction.   For those of you who spend a lot of time online developing connections and interacting, don’t forget about about the local coffee shop, taqueria or happy hour.  Don’t forget to show up.

P.S. Mars, I know I sound like a broken record, but thank you.

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