Oh go on, you know you love them too.

5. Spice Girls - Stop. It's sad, really. they finally sort of figued out hair and makeup by this video, but broke up shortly after.

Grab on iTunes - http://cpwr.me/ddUgAX 

4. Salt 'N' Pepe feat En Vogue - Whatta Man. The crowning glory of the 90s

Grab on iTunes - http://cpwr.me/csCzy4 

3. TLC - Baby, Baby, Baby. Remember before TLC went sexy and they always had brightly coloured condoms stuck too their outfits?

Grab on iTunes - http://cpwr.me/bOH9dn 

2. SWV - Right Here. I heart this song. I've always thought of SWV as the girl version of BoysIIMen.

Grab on iTunes - http://cpwr.me/c4miH9

1. All Saints - I know where it's at. Don't believe that the tank top/sweat pants look was cool? Videographic proof...and they still look hot.

Grab on iTunes - http://cpwr.me/bB8CMf 

Go ahead, go way low, in my honey lovin' arms

Oh Lykke Li, how I've missed your Swedish charms! While her album isn't out until next year, you can Download Get Some and Paris Blue off her website, check it out to see her lovely handwritten lyrics. Hearts and sparkles, music lovers.

I love TED. I watch TED talks and instantly feel smarter. When the TEDx program started, I jumped on board and organized one in Calgary with a great group of people. I’m proud of that event. However, I’m over TEDx and here’s why:

5. TEDx events are independently organized. TED has some pretty strict rules around how to put one on, but it’s hard to enforce.  I recognize that TED is very exclusive and that it ridiculously expensive, but that means you know what you are going to get. TEDx events are all over the map and this means I no longer trust the TED brand like I used to. This disappoints me.

4. You cannot be negative about TEDx. That’s not cool. I want conversation. I want intelligent arguments. I want stuff that inspires me to think! If a TEDx speaker isn’t doing that, I want to be able to tell them they need to up their game. TEDx shouldn’t be an inclusive event where you practice your talk. TEDx is an event where you should nail your talk or get booed off stage.

3. TEDx speakers don’t follow the TED commandments of speaking at TED. The one that gets broken most often by TEDx speakers is DO NOT SELL FROM THE STAGE. Ugh. Another forgotten TED commandment is that speakers need to tell a story. If you’ve done something great, don’t detail what you did, that’s what Wikipedia entries are for. Explain why you did it, or share your vision for what you’d like to do next. If you’re smart, you don’t even need to talk about your previous successes, I’d prefer to hear what’s weighing on your mind right now.

2. I want to hear from people doing jobs I didn’t even know existed. I don’t want to hear from people talking about something unless they invented it or perfected it. TEDx organizers should be looking for local people that we’ve never heard of or trying to bring in the best in the world. I know that is hard work, but that’s sort of what organizing a really great event is about.

1. We’re currently too caught up in our own intelligence. We’re a smug, self-congratulating bunch and that gets old, really fast. No more talk of innovation for innovation’s sake. I want expansive concepts, with focused scope. No more innovation coaches, creativity curators, social connectors or any other title that basically implies you don’t really do anything yourself, you just get the people that are doing stuff to pay you for your services. I realize this means if I organize another TEDx event, I probably wouldn’t invite myself. Blast!

I’m not writing this to say that the people that put TEDx events on don’t work hard. I can tell you from experience, it is really, really hard work.  I’m writing this to say that I’m looking for something different. I want interaction. I want dinner conversation. I just don’t know where to find it at an event. If you know of any, share a link to it in the comments below!

The smartest man in the world, Saul Colt, posted something on his blog this morning that got me thinking about formulas for social media success. Is a community around local events going to want the same information, at the same frequency as a community around a brand? Do followers of an account designed to tweet out news stories want to see replies mixed in? Does everyone on the planet consume media in the same way? …or want to, for that matter… I don’t know everything, but I’m betting the answer to all of these questions is no.

Keeping in mind there isn’t a single correct way of doing things, how do we figure out the right way of doing things individually?

5. Think about the goal. This is important for both brands and individuals. What is the goal of your social media accounts? Is it to sell your product, bring people to your website, or create warm feelings about your brand? For your personal account, is it to keep track of your friends and family, to try and get more work or to build up your belief that you are the funniest human alive? These are all good reasons, but you need to have a goal clearly defined before you start and keep it in mind with everything you do.

4. Think about the people you are trying to attract. How do they use social media? The easiest way to attract them is to emulate their behaviour. The Internet is very much in love with itself. Use the same tools in the same way as your target market and you’ll find it easier to attract your ideal customer/friend/fan.

3. Think about the time you have to invest. Do you want to be putting in an hour per week on social media or eight hours per day? How much time you are willing to put in will dramatically change how you will be interacting with everyone and every tool.

2. Think about the resources you have. Million dollar campaigns look very different from ten dollar campaigns, but that doesn’t mean that one is better than the other (unless you get a fancy car out of one of them). Don’t overestimate what you are able to accomplish, as it will leave people with a sour taste in their mouths.

1. Think about the effort it will take to make your vision a success. This one goes hand-in-hand with the previous two. You’ll need either time or money (preferably both) for your social media successes, but there is no getting around working really hard. If you’re putting in the effort, what you are doing will pay off sooner or later (the age of participation, blue ribbons for everyone!).

If you mix all of these together, you’ll be able to figure out a plan that is exactly right for you. I guarantee it will look different than what I should do. That’s cool. If everyone did everything the same, it would be really, really boring (and a little weird). You’ll notice that all top 5 reasons start with the word think. That’s no accident. Thinking before typing is the most important way to make sure everything you are doing on the Internet is exactly right.

Bottom line: For every employer that says they’d never hire anyone who posts party photos on Facebook, there’s another employer that recognizes they’d never find anyone to hire if they made that claim. As long as you are being true to yourself and your brand, what you are doing is right on the money.

 

 

Nobody likes a grumpy pants, so here are what I love most about reading updates from other people. These little gems can come from the most unexpected of places and that’s what I enjoy most about reading Twitter at odd hours, or clicking links in blog post I’ve already finished reading. Here are the updates that make suffering through all of the bad ones worth it:

5. The wisdom. Here’s the winning formula for this: Adjective, noun, description of noun, link. For example: Smart blog post on penning updates:  http://post.ly/14Jr2

4. The share. I appreciate this mostly for music, but this extends to sharing whatever-it-is-you’re-really-into. The Internet was built for the rapid exchange of information and this is why people still use it. If you love food, instead of saying what you ate for dinner, link to the recipe, tell us how difficult it was to make, what you’d do next time and if it was worth it.

3. The rapier wit. No matter how you slice it, social media is a form of entertainment ( a time waster, some might say…). Therefore, I encourage you to be entertaining. Dazzle me with you wit, regale me with humorous stories and impress me with intellect.

3. The sharp-shooter. Hey, if you can’t figure out what I like by reading my blog/Tweets/Facebook account for five seconds, I don’t think you should be in sales. However, if you do figure out what I like and tell me about something I am for-real interested in, I won’t recoil in horror. In fact, I’ll probably read it/buy it/love it.  

1. The tipsy tweet. I don’t think you can really know someone by their online persona. Most are carefully crafted. While I can’t recommend having too many drinks and then hopping online (Au secours! Au secours!), the “I’m having fun at this fun event, you should get over here” tweet has always been my favorite. 

 

I’m not saying I know more than you do, I’m just saying I have to sift through a large amount of crap on the Internet. Here are the top 5 updates I’d prefer not to have to read again:

5. The threat of inbox zero.  Whether it’s bragging you’ve managed it, or complain-bragging about how busy you are and how so many people email you every day, the Internet doesn’t care. To be honest, I assume someone is paying you with the understanding that you are competent enough to manage your inbox, so I’ve never understood why inbox zero was something to talk about. Isn’t that something for your performance review?

4. The scatter-gun sell. I hate this. On most social networks, you have to choose to follow someone. This means, I’ve chosen to follow the person that thought this was a good idea. This makes me feel conflicted on the inside, because it means I choose to follow people with no idea how the Internet works. Why would I do that? Do I not know how the Internet works? Am I not as smart as I think I am? It’s a downward spiral that starts with a tweet about acai berry juice and ends with me on the bathroom floor having an existential crisis. Please, save me an evening of regret-filled angst.

3. The complaint about bad service.  When people write out, “You’ll never get my business again” I read, “Don’t you people know how important I am?” Truth is, you’re probably no more important than the rest of us and I doubt the $2 you spend on a coffee there once a month will have much impact. If you really have a problem with the place, why not voice your concerns in private, with the owner? Basically, aim for a solution to the problem instead of doing something that makes you look like a pompous ass *and* has zero impact.

2. The salute to all the fierce women in your life. Yes, it’s probably true you have great friends. They are probably amazing as otherwise, you probably wouldn’t be friends with them. Instead of just saying you are thankful for all the “amazing, independent, smart, fabulous” women in your life, why not share what makes them awesome? Again, brag with purpose. Let everyone else know what makes your friends great and your social updates will become that much more valuable.

1. The faux-humble, self-congratulatory update. If you are proud of yourself for doing something awesome, I’ll have more respect for you if you say, “Hey, I’m really proud of myself for doing something awesome.” The whole golly-gee, fishing for a compliment really doesn’t work.

Next up: The top 5 social updates I love seeing!

 

Ok, I can’t grow a mo, but that doesn’t mean I can’t be super pumped about Movember! As the captain for MovemberYYC, I’m really hoping I can get as many of you to join my team as possible. This means dudes need to sign up and grow a mo, the ladies need to sign up and support the mo growing dudes. You can grow your mo to raise money for the cause, or just grow your mo to raise awareness – both are reasonable grounds to bust out the soup strainer/walrus/cookie duster.

5. The mo is way cooler than a neck beard. When you are kickin’ it with a glorious ‘stache, remember that you need to tell people that you are emulating the likes of Tom Selleck, Lanny McDondald and Eddie Murphy circa RAW for a reason. If you were growing a neck beard, you wouldn’t get the chance to remind people, as they would be avoiding you.

4.  A feeling of camaraderie. You know when you’re out riding your bike and you give the nod/wave to everyone else riding their bike? Same goes with the mo, bro! When you see someone else with a mo, you can go ahead and give them the nod (or a subtle raise of your scotch glass). If you’re a mo sista, you can go ahead and let the unknown-to-you mo bro know that you salute him. Instant conversation starter, lifelong friends…

3. This is a nation wide challenge. We want to put Calgary on the map for being just as involved as other cities. Toronto has already compared mo growing to saving puppies. Since no one wants to hurt puppies, Calgary has a lot of work to do to catch up! Also, we need to embrace more than just the ironic mustache. The ironic mustache is dead. Manly mustaches are the way to go.

2. In my opinion, growing a mo is about getting dudes comfortable with that which is not-always-comfortable. Prostate cancer isn’t cool (dude, if there’s blood in your pee, go to the doctor*), but neither is depression, skin cancer or the multitude of other illnesses that guys generally don’t like to talk about. Ignoring it won’t make it go away, so learn how to talk about it, just like you’ll be learning how to rock a great mo this November.

1. I’m not really sure who Malin Akerman is, but she’s pretty hot and she made this video:

*first time I’ve ever written something like that on here…

 

Sometimes, work can get you down. While you’re out there, struggling to provide meaningful moments between the company that pays you and the people who are their customers, someone else is trumpeting they can do twice as good of a job for half the money. You know it, I know it. This person is really great at selling themselves and little else. How do you make sure people know the difference?

5. Take what you know and explain it in the context of what other people know. People learn new stuff by relating it to stuff-they-get-already. What other reason is there for cell phones to use a little icon of a cassette tape for voicemail? Also, who doesn’t love a good analogy?

4. Don’t be tempted by the dark side. You understand the way social media works. You know your employers do not. You know that if you follow 1000 random people while drinking a bottle of Malbec one evening, your boss will be impressed by the number of new followers you have next week. Please resist the urge. Keep making meaningful connections. Those connections appreciate it.

3. Be a champion. If you see someone doing really great work, point it out. If you are trying to get a new contract or job, don’t put down others that are also applying. Celebrate success, it’s good for everyone.

2. Don’t forget that it isn’t just your Internet friends paying attention to what you do. You are a leader in a relatively new field. People are interested in this industry and want to figure it out. Sooner or later, they will know the difference between doing a good job and doing a bad job, but right now, they can only go on what they see. If they see you being snarky, rude or unprofessional towards others, why would they want to hire you? Trying to prove your point by being a big baby only proves the point that you are a big baby. Fight the good fight. If you think you are better at what you do than others, lead by example and education.

1. Every morning when you wake up, you have to reach for the big boy pants. Proving to the person that signs your paycheck that you are a worthwhile investment is hard, but *necessary.* If you believe your job as a social media expert/community manager/content strategist/group hug giver/whatever you prefer to call it is worth it, you need to be able to show that.

Finally, remember that everybody’s gotta make a living, so instead of assuming others have bad intentions, why not work with them to figure out why they are doing something you don't like? 

 

 

A few years ago, Cawlin and Chelsee challenged themselves to listen to one new album every day for a month. We (and by we, I mean a random collection of people on the Internet) all loved the idea and participated as well. It’s been a great way to catch up on tunes that I’ve missed over the year and discover stuff I hadn’t heard of through the #monm hashtag. It isn’t easy, especially as in the past, we did it in December. This year, we’re bumping it up a month and declaring Novmber as Month of New Music. Here are my Top 5 tips to make sure your month is successful:

5. Decide whether you are doing every single day, or just Monday to Friday – once you commit, you gotta get it done. However, I think the rules are pretty lax, so if you have to listen to two albums in one day, go for it.

4. Mix it up. The idea of brushing up on one style of music is appealing in theory only. You’ll get sick of it around day 5. My plan is to mix it up with some oldies that I’ve never gotten around to, some new stuff and some current (within the last year) stuff that I can’t believe I haven’t listened to yet.

3. Post, post, post! Share your thoughts on each album you listen to! What you liked, what stunk, and what will go on heavy rotation. If there’s a stand-out track and the rest of the album is vanilla, save other people the trouble and let them know what it is. Also, summarize everything at the end of the month. What worked, what didn’t, what you’ll do next year and most importantly, a super sweet playlist of all your new favorite tracks.

2. Follow the hashtag. Music discovery is the best part of #monm. Most people that do it have really great taste in music, take advantage of that and find out what they are listening to. You’ll get the low down on even more new music than just the albums you are listening to.

1. Start planning now. Being busy is nice. It means you get paid. However, it also means you won’t have too much time to organize yourself every day. If you think you can work, choose an album every day, download it, listen to it and review it, you are wrong. Don’t be wrong, be right!