Insights from #the5

good morning, cool today, need to run before the schedule takes over - Best formula for selling yourself - http://bit.ly/aVEjZw #cnn #the5 

I enjoyed the coolness of the morning much more so than the humidity of the past couple of days. The run however was short and sweet to get completed before the day's scheduled took over.

"embrace your partner's individuality and learn to roll with it" Incite 6/30/2010: Embrace Individuality http://bit.ly/9lYQZ7 #the5

If any one thing should convince you that 'no man is an island', those in a long term relationship should recognize that the partnership is a two way street. Leverage that partnership as you would any other!

Busted Alleged Russian Spies Used Steganography To Conceal Communications http://bit.ly/dnIhqM #the5

They were smart to use steganography. So easy to use out in the open no one would notice. The concern is that their networking and relationship building is not unlike that of many job seekers like myself. Those who worked with them are not finding that their relationship is broken and the trust shattered. What do I take away from this? I'll continue to network, I'll continue to work to build trust worthy relationships. I'll let the story to continue to unfold before doing anything else.

7 Potential Disasters Worse than the BP Spill http://bit.ly/b3IFMV - do you know how to manage risk? #the5

Disaster can be around every corner and under every rock (literally) if you look for it. The real key is have you spent any time on thinking through your risks? and then taking steps to develop some simple mitigations?

RT @MichaelMcCurry #SOBCon does what they call mastermind sessions mix of individual presentation, small groups and panel to follow up -they R gr8! #eventprofs

A bonus link today. SOBCon, a conference I have enjoyed for three year thus far, is starting to branch out to regional versions with the first in Colorado this September. It is more structured than an unconference (a format that I love for the peer-to-peer learning that is embedded within it). SOBCon is structured to foster the peer-to-peer learning amongst a small self-selected group at a table with the topic lead by a speaker (or speakers) and then worked on by the table to make it real. The "what's in it for me" should come out from the table as they work with the topic. If you get a chance to go to one, please consider doing so. It should be worth your while! If you need some additional info, please let me know. I'll be happy to get into more details.

8 Tips on Using Twitter to Build a Powerful Business Networkhttp://bit.ly/d4PmSQ - @lizstrausslays out the process #the5 #sobcon

And to close today, a Tweet from Liz Strauss, one of the co-founders of SOBCon (along with Terry Starbucker). Twitter as a micro-blog tool, can generate content and links quickly and easily. Consider how long it wold take to do a blog post versus 140 characters?

What can you share today?

Starting Tuesday

good morning, time for #the5 before the temp rises too much - "I am terrified of repeating myself" On Changes http://bit.ly/9SpXUy 

repetition, like most else is good in moderation, especially if the repetition can lead to failure

"Teachers will be evaluated based on a population that comes to school expecting to learn" A better yardstick http://bit.ly/ac9Eu5 #the5

Education evaluation is a good topic and one with a 'third rail' effect on some folks. Shouldn't be that way. Need to get into the real details without getting polarized.

25+ Free Nonprofit Webinars for July 2010 http://bit.ly/b2gr0m and free has a great ROI! #the5

Set up your personal learning and development schedule for July. There must be one or two in this listing that would be good and work for your schedule

Google tells you when to wake up and sleep http://bit.ly/9sIAPy "get the times of sunset and sunrise wherever you live" #the5

another easy query to get some basic data

"What if the win is the ability to give a true gift?" Winning http://bit.ly/aqlEUY #the5

How good would that be? Wonderful!

get outside the box

“Problems cannot be solved by the same level of thinking that created them.” Albert Einstein

and

“Ignorant people aren’t stupid but merely uninformed; a marvelous advantage when you need a perspective from ‘outside the box.’ When you consult specialists within your industry, you’re talking to the builders of the box, the guardians of the box, the faithful defenders of THE BOX. So when specialists fail to provide the innovative thinking you need, ask the opinions of intelligent people who have no experience in your industry.” Roy H Williams

The meeting of the Franklin Financial Planning Committee on Weds June 22 was a frustrating one. Had I been a member, I'd have considered leaving. As I was reporting on what transpired, I felt I needed to stay. I did not report all that was said that night. There was no need to. There was nothing new there.

The chairman laid out the ground rules for idea generation, not unlike the brainstorming rules that I had just posted. The rules didn't last long. They were abused immediately and consistently. Even after patience admonishment by the chairman, the diatribes continued. The resulting list of ideas was a whopping two.

Not good progress. Maybe it was there frustration that overspilled the table. Maybe they will come around and begin to approach the problem with cooler heads.

I do believe there is always hope.

Aside from hope, there also needs to be action. Time is just passing on by.

Tim Milburn recently tweeted:

Got a problem? You can a) avoid it, b) ignore it, c) run from it, d) or solve it. Only the last one takes care of the problem.

I want to focus on trying to solve the problem. Getting outside the box will be a start!

job search notes: insights from #the5

What rights should you have as social networker?

Do You Agree with the Social Networking Bill of Rights?http://bit.ly/9vGZ4s #the5

Have you written your resume for them or you?

Do You Recognize These Early Warning Signs of an Egocentric Resume? Best of reCareered http://bit.ly/bAn82c #the5

Be efficient, be smart, spend just a few minutes a day

How To Manage Your Social Media Marketing In 10 Minutes Daily http://bit.ly/9yLDev - me: yes start with 1 platform at a time - #the5

Forget about the one week, the seven steps to the process is key. It really may take more than a week to do this.

One-Week Job-Search: How to Lay the Foundation for a New Job in Just Seven Days http://bit.ly/cKdiLf #the5

The use cases help to lay this out for you.

Matrix: Brand Monitoring, Social Analytics, Social Insights http://bit.ly/aUwL5z #the5 complete with use cases, good stuff

What can you share today?

content and provenance

Two good articles on news, journalism, blogging and what it all means in today's world.

The war between journalists and bloggers at the Washington Post

from Scott Rosenberg's Wordyard by Scott Rosenberg

and

The importance of provenance

from BuzzMachine by Jeff Jarvis

The key takeaway from Jeff Jarvis as a content creator is:

In content, as creation becomes overabundant and as value shifts from creator to curator, it becomes all the more vital to properly cite and link to sources and even to add value to those links, explaining why the click is worth the time and encouraging people to take the trip. Good curation demands good provenance.

Blackstone River Bike Path

If you get a chance to go for a good bike ride, consider the Blackstone River Bike Path. It runs from Woonsocket down into Central Falls. It can be accessed from the northbound rest area on i295 just north of RT 146 and several other points along the way.

This photo shows the low water approaching the Pittman dam at the 8.5 mile post.

I also wrote about my recent ride here
http://passionaterunner.blogspot.com/2010/06/tri-or-no-tri.html

Networking workshops today

If you are looking for work and need a good opportunity to network,  the workshop today at the Hopkinton Networking Group meeting Friday, June 11 25 is one to catch. 


Yours truly will be facilitating two engaging, productive, and fun activities. 

If you have the time, you could not spend it any better than networking at Hopkinton today!

When: 10:00 AM - Noon
Where: St John's Evangelist Parish Center, 20 Church St, Hopkinton
Cost: $1


The details on the workshops as published to the Acton Networking Group listserv:

Hello Everyone,

The agenda for this Friday's Hopkinton Networkers Group (HNG) meeting will be featured by workshop activities.  The facilitator for this week will be Steve Sherlock.   We will devote the first hour, from 10 to 11 AM to the following agenda: Welcome, Landings, Announcements, New Member Intros, and Needs and Leads.   Please arrive early, so we can make every effort to start on time.   In the second hour, we will conduct a workshop with various activities.  Here is how it will be done:

Workshop Activities:

1 - Discovery...Re-Discovery...and FUN:

The handout provided has a 7 x 4 matrix of boxes, i.e., 28 in all, where each box contains an open-ended statement that when completed will yield a more composite picture of the person.

2 - Transferrable Skills:

Bring your resume.  We will break out into small groups and use the classrooms.  After the resume is reviewed, a discussion will take place to determine what transferrable skills your résumé displays.

3 - Name Associations (if time permits):

Think of a relationship of your name with something else that others could relate with and could remember your name.  For example, the association I use (Gil Krispien) is the breakfast serial Rice Krispies whereby removing the last letter "s" and replacing it with a "n" spells my last name.  You will be quite surprised how easily it will be to remember names afterwards.

This was previously posted on the Job Search Jam Session blog here
http://jobsearchjamsessions.blogspot.com/2010/06/hopkinton-networking-group.html

Lessons from #the5 today

Late today, but it is what it is. As a citizen journalist on Franklin Matters, the following may be good info. Hopefully, I'd never need to use it but good to have and share none the less.

What to Do When Police Tell You to Stop Taking Photos, Video:http://www.poynter.org/q/?id=A184955 via @addthis #the5

Only you can determine your future. You are also the first person to stop it. Which you would you like to be?

jeffpulver You owe it to yourself to discover your passions and to follow your dreams.

What did you accomplish? What makes you stand out?

"What did you accomplish in this job that someone else wouldn't have?" 21 Things Hiring Managers Wish You Knewhttp://shar.es/mIonu #the5

Nothing like taking the analysis down to the basic level, what makes the most sense?

"we looked at the price per pound on the meat we were buying" The Accidental Vegetarian http://bit.ly/aOXgmx #the5 from @daveatkins

Persistent wounds? Huh? Yes, they exist inside and out.

RT @AMAnet: How to heal the persistent wounds from your last round of layoffs. #management | http://ht.ly/22DwM #the5

And you get a bonus for #the5 today - "When we learn to fail, we'll know how to succeed" well said. One telling quote from the following:

The Long of Coming Up Short http://feeds.harvardbusiness.org/~r/harvardbusiness/~3/F2I0x9zBKcI/the_long_of_coming_up_short.html #the5

What have you learned today?

job search notes: I'm on LinkedIn, now what?

I prepared this presentation for the Job Search Work Team in the Lincoln office of LHH. This is my perspective on how you can color your world.





If the contents don't answer your questions, please let me know.

Updated 1/26/14
There are two key updates to this presentation that are required. One; the Google Reader has gone away. I now use Feedly.com for my RSS feed reader.

Two; LinkedIn turned off their RSS feed as of Dec 2013. Getting RSS feeds from other sites still works but LinkedIn has shut theirs down.

I'll be updating the presentation in light of these developments to show what alternatives there are remaining now

Spruce Pond Creamery

It is a family tradition to walk to the local ice cream parlor at the end of the school year for a supper of ice cream.

The local choice for us is the Spruce Pond Creamery on King St in Franklin, MA. The sign was recently re-freshed to include the fact that they now offer beer and wine in the restaurant. Their flatbread sandwiches and pizza are very good. Adding the beer and wine option for the accompaniment is good.

Their ice cream take out windows are where we headed on Tuesday.

Ice cream for supper? Why not?

A banana split provides multiple food groups (dairy, nuts, and fruit) with more than enough calories for a meal.

It was good! We only do this at the end of the school year so this is a real treat and not a regular staple of our diet.

What special food treat do you enjoy?

job search notes: Tuesday's insights

RT @CAREEREALISM 3 Traits of a True Careerealist: CAREEREALISM http://bit.ly/dt51VS "give our loyal community a place of prominence" #the5

This reflect a basic human need often referred to with the line from the TV Show 'Cheers' - "where everybody knows your name".

"All. Pretty much feel the same way" Anxiety in 2010 — Jason Seiden http://bit.ly/9WMmz5 me - do you? #the5

Spirit is as contagious as a virus. The mood of one can affect others. Wear a smile!

"having a buddy for support is the key to success" The Networking Buddy System for Job-Search Success http://bit.ly/dvNoMD #the5

Having a buddy group takes this idea a little further. One formed during the recent Job Search Jam Sessions and has been meeting regularly since. Related to the buddy concept is that of a mentor. You still get support, just in a different way.

"Anonymous commenting is an idea whose time has come and gone" Names, faces and anonymous comments http://bit.ly/c5Gq5o #the5

I agree. Anonymous comments were disabled on all of my blogs back in Feb 2008. I understand there is a need for them in some other political countries but they shouldn't be needed here. We will get further if we all learned to conduct a respectful conversation.

"we assume that our self-interest is the same that drives others" Narcissus at work http://bit.ly/cV4irE#the5 me: good stuff!

If we make that assumption, the time has come for thinking 'out of the box'! We need to be open to different view points. One of the problems I have with some of the Franklin anonymous comments on the Milford Daily News articles is that while the commenters logic is generally good, they are start from an erroneous fact. I would like to believe that if they started from the real facts, that their logic would bring them to a better place.

Where are you starting from today?

What colors your view of the world?

What can you share today?

job search notes: Monday #the5

Twitter is 'over capacity' so these tweets haven't actually been sent yet. Hopefully, I'll get to them later. In the mean time, these are #the5 for today with a job search point of view:

"so many people working in jobs that don’t leverage their true gifts" don't be 1 yourself - #the5  http://bit.ly/ayzHuA 

"to remain upbeat and supportive for an extended time, takes a saint"  http://bit.ly/9tJIGV #the5 - be that saint for someone!

"You go to events and conferences for something more than a snack and some SWAG" #the5 -  http://bit.ly/aFsT5G - for forth and learn!

"strong use of networking, well-written and focused resume, and effective interview preparation and delivery" #the5 http://bit.ly/dsPfOU

"finding those tiny bits of straw you can spin into something much better" #the5 - dig into this haystack!   http://bit.ly/bVBRaL

What can you share today?

Happy Fathers Day

Podcamp Boston 5 – September 25 & 26, 2010

 

 

Sent to you by Steve Sherlock via Google Reader:

 

 

Podcamp Boston 5 – September 25 & 26, 2010

via PodCamp Boston Podcast by podcampboston@gmail.com (Christopher S. Penn, PodCamp Co-Founder) on 6/18/10

So many details to share and so many more to come.

We're happy to announce that Podcamp Boston will celebrate it's 5th year of unconferencing on September 25-26, 2010 at the Microsoft New England Research and Development (N.E.R.D.) Center in Cambridge, MA.  Not only that but they have donated the space for us!  So please take a moment to say hi to the folks over there and thank them for hosting us this year.

As we enter a new chapter of PodCamp, we'd like to look to the future and help you to do the same, so this year our theme is Preparing for the Future.

What you need to know:

• Seating is limited to 200 tickets, therefore to give everyone some notice prior to purchase, we're holding off opening tickets sales right away.
• Tickets will go on sale on June 25, 2010.
• The cost of tickets are $50 and this year's ledger will be updated as we go.
• Net proceeds from the event will be donated to the Greater Boston Food Bank.
• The hashtag this year is #PCB5.

We should have more details on the conference, scheduling, session registration, etc in the coming days/weeks as we know it.

If you are interested in volunteering or sponsoring the event, please contact us via the contact form or email at podcampboston at gmail dot com.  (The Enrichment Center wishes to remind you that volunteers are not compensated for being a part of the organizing team.)

We look forward to seeing you in September!

 

 

Things you can do from here:

• Subscribe to PodCamp Boston Podcast using Google Reader
• Get started using Google Reader to easily keep up with all your favorite sites

 

 

Deja Brew - Fuggle Ambrosia

The 'band of brewers' brew crew was at work Tuesday evening at Deja Brew with a full allocation of the six kettles.

I picked the "Fuggle Ambrosia" to make and set about weighing and grinding the grains to start the boil. After boiling, we added the hops ad eventually cold filtered the liquid into the white tubs for the fermenting process. The almost step by step photos can be seen in this slideshow:




The crew is scheduled to return in two weeks to bottle the product and take it home in time for the holiday weekend.

The full selection of our six kettles was:



Downtown Brown -Similar to Smithwick’s Ale. Light in body, heavy in flavor
Fuggle Ambrosia - Nothing but Fuggle hops! Light, sweet, potent.
High Sierra Pale - A Sierra Nevada Pale style. A bittersweet flavor.
Red Tail Ale - A medium bodied red ale, good hop bouquet but balanced in taste
Stunner - A creamy British Pub style pale ale “stunning colour”
Summer Wheat - desc not avail

'Annalee' - Ellis Paul

If you like good folk music, and haven't heard of Ellis Paul, you can get a double treat today.

Follow this link for a free download of his song 'Annalee".
http://www.ellispaul.com/free/foryou.html

Listen and see how it sounds.

Check out more of Ellis Paul here: http://www.ellispaul.com/

I saw Ellis Paul perform a couple of times here at the Circle Of Friends Coffeehouse in Franklin.

A great place for great music!

sound and sense

If beauty (art) is in the eye of the beholder then noise (or music) is in the ears of the listener?


Sound and sense is in Franklin's history. You may recall the story of the creation of the first public library here in Franklin. The town had formed by splitting off from Wrentham and was initially called Exeter. After the successful war for independence and the actions of Benjamin Franklin, a native of Boston, some town fathers got together and sent a letter to Ben. They let him know that they were changing the name of the town to "Franklin" to honor him and his efforts for independence. They asked him to contribute a bell for the town to ring loud and clear on special occasions. He wrote back and said "sense is better than sound". He included a hundred and thirty books. That set of books started the public library and are still on display in the Library today.

good morning, time for #the5 and we'll start with Edit video online with the YouTube Video Editor http://bit.ly/c1FoG3

"focus is not on the tools, but on the application" - Improve Your Tourism Opportunities http://bit.ly/aAFVC0 #the5 good stuff

Are you ready for the Twitpocalypse? http://bit.ly/aRTzlgforewarned is one way to prepare! #the5 from @cspenn

Google reader problems persisting, hinders my processing rhythm for #the5

@GuidoS our buddy @cspenn started #the5 earlier this year, I extended it with Twitter Bingo, links to explain herehttp://bit.ly/c3Nrya

google reader problems resolved by restarting Chrome, still Google issue :-) oh happy days are here again!

"there are really many ways to look at success, value, impact" 5 Objectives for Social Media Measurement http://bit.ly/aOtvB1 #the5

"a whole community united to celebrate" - Twitter Is The Vuvuzela of Social Media http://bit.ly/c6IaCA #the5

What sense do you make of your world today?

Ellis Paul - 3,000 miles

Maybe because the job hunt seems like forever

"I lost her name in the poker game
but her face, I'll never forget"



Enjoy the music!

job search notes: lessons from #the5

good morning, time for #the5 - PdF '10: Clay Shirky Argues for Raising the Bar on Online Politics http://bit.ly/cLSegu

Raising the bar on online politics is a good though-provoking video. Like TED, it runs about 18 minutes, enough of a chunk to get thinking without loosing too much time. No waste. Good ideas. Has some legs for the job search too.

ah, so that's why the tweet counts are off - What's Happening with Twitter? http://bit.ly/adYJpZ #the5

So Twitter as a service has been an issue almost since it began. Of course, they really didn't know how popular they were going to be, and so quickly, so trying to bring a better architecture and stability to an operation growing exponentially has been (and is continuing to be) difficult. Our choice, bear with it.

“What? A free copy of RADICAL CAREERING? …seriously??”http://bit.ly/afLqbs - a must for today's #the5, hurry there's time left 2 get yours

Caught up to Mitch Joel's Twist Image Podcast this week and found a couple of good books there. The first one is from Sally Hogshead and it is free. Since it is on career and I'm in the middle of the job search details (along with a few others) it caught my eye (ear) and might be a god one to dig into. Free has a good point of attraction! 

"perhaps one good idea in action just might trump hundreds of others that fly by" The Reaction Compulsion http://bit.ly/cIw3cmgood #the5

So take the one idea, the free book noted above and then spend time with it before doing much else.

"be like Thomas Edison in approaching social media and experiment" http://bit.ly/9sGCGI great advice from @kanter #the5

Spending time with it should mean trying the ideas on for size. Multiple times. Experiment. Live with the one book/idea for a while before moving on to something else.

50 Power Twitter Tips http://bit.ly/cVSMR8 joining the crowd but it is the ONE @chrisbrogan and hence good advice, bonus #the5

A bonus, and from Chris. Mark the link, put it aside and come back to it after you have spent time experimenting.

That's all for #the5, busy day ahead, I'll check back later to see what happened with twitter bingo http://bit.ly/c3Nrya - Enjoy!

Lessons on discussions from Clay Shirky

Clay Shirky's talk at the recent Personal Democracy Forum is now available to view. He tells three stories then summarizes his 'findings' as follows:

1 - raise the cost of communicating
email is cheap, blogs are cheap, comments are free but maybe if you made them real comments instead of anonymous comments you'd get a better (i.e. progressive and not just noise) discussion. The commitment needs to be there

2 - get them to do something other than send an email
with a higher group commitment, there is more action and less overall signal (i.e. volume) but a high quality signal

3 - assume factions, give them a place to play
"Once you assume there is no such thing as a special interest group, all groups are special interest groups".

4 - regard elected representatives as partners and not targets
here, here! By creating the targets, the conversation tends to drift to a tone where getting the representative involved becomes difficult. The signal to noise ratio is too high a bar for entry.

You can watch Clay here:



If the sandbox is set up properly, there is real play (i.e. learning through play) with fights less likely to develop What are your take aways?

Deja Brew - 6 kettle batch

Catching up to the last batch for the records before we brew another six this evening. This is what was done and how they were labeled.

B - Blueberry Ale
S - Stunner
G - Great White Molson
L - Lawnmower Lager
D - Dunrovin Stout Guinness
P - Piper Scottish Ale


Note: why behind? I missed both the brewing and bottling due to other commitments

Monday #the5

good morning, time for #the5 "putting processes and tools into place will extend things" - From Cottage to Companyhttp://bit.ly/cL4ZPd

"just might spark an unusual amount of comments or conversation" - Marketing In Twenty Minutes (Or Less) http://bit.ly/dxI8mL #the5

definitely spend sometime with this one of #the5 today - 15 more awesome social media infographics http://bit.ly/8Zd8HJ

"1 piece in a multiple-channel job search marketing strategy" - Is My Job Search Doomed if I Don’t Have a Network?http://bit.ly/9erSwQ

"Facts are stubborn things" - Why The Knee Is The Most Dangerous Part Of A Leader’s Body http://bit.ly/98uhtU #the5

"leading people somewhere worthwhile in a tangible, positive way" - why most artist’s blogs fail http://bit.ly/drSijG #the5

TheCR 

  

Lots of conferences going on. Some great comments from #ocu10 & #RagaCisco last week. This week - #e2conf. Good hashtags to watch.


"taste buds - tiny onion-shaped receptors embedded in the tongue - are multipurpose" Sniffhttp://bit.ly/ajwiIO #the5


Yes, I lost count today and you get at least one bonus for #the5. There is also a retweet included to save the link for the hashtags to watch on conference activity this week.


What can you share today?