It s a shame I've been sitting on this book for about two years now. A friend of mine gave me Never Eat Alone , by Keith Ferrazzi a couple years ago (thanks Rey), and it s been on my bookcase ever since. It was resting there not because I didn't want to read it, but because I already had so many others in the pipeline. I finally got around to reading it last month and I definitely recommend it. In very simple terms, Ferrazzi explains why networking is important and how to do it. From how to make call lists to planning dinners to personal branding to goal setting, it s all here. He also maintains a valuable blog .
Inevitably there will be times when you have setbacks or things don t go your way. Maybe you didn't get a job you thought you were sure to get. Maybe you lost a job unexpectedly, didn't win a contract, or lost a major client. Your car always seems to break down right after you've had some other unexpected expense. These kinds of situations immediately place us in crisis. They don t feel good, but sometimes they re what we need in order to grow. The beautiful thing about crises is that they force us to take a step back and reevaluate what s going on in our lives and rediscover what we truly want and need. When we get over that initial shock and feeling of disappointment, we might realize that maybe that job wasn't really the best for us anyway. Maybe, just maybe, that wasn't what you really wanted to spend your life doing. Maybe that friend was holding you back instead of pushing you forward. The way I deal with crises of these sorts is simple: If something doesn't go my way professionally, I try to create a situation that would be more rewarding than the situation originally planned. A while ago, I was offered a job that looked very promising. After I accepted the offer, they pushed the start date back three times, later informing me (via e-mail) that they wanted to bring me on in the near future but I should feel free to explore other options. I was extremely disappointed. I felt disrespected and angry, but decided to make the best of the situation and follow my dream of working internationally. I then flew to Santiago, Chile and had great professional and personal experiences I wouldn't have had otherwise. Later, reflecting back on the original opportunity, I realized that working for a company that avoids a start date three times and then can t pick up the phone to explain the situation is probably not where I need to spend my time. Use setbacks as an opportunity to put your goals in order and act on them. In the moment, it s difficult to look at a setback as temporary, but they are. They happen to everybody. It s how you respond to them that will determine how they affect you.
Sometimes people just get it. Just when I thought I was going to take a break from school and relax a little bit, I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to take a summer class with arguable one of the pedagogues at Bainbridge Graduate Institute, Christopher Allen. With about 6 hours before the first class begins (today), I enrolled in Social Web For Social Change. Of course, I wasn’t aware of the amount of “prework” that was supposed to be completed before tonight’s class. In the process of getting caught up (how am I behind before I even start class?) I watched his Introduction to the Social Web. I’ve embedded it here. Pretty good stuff. I think we’re going to have some good conversations and debates in this class. Looking forward to it. Okay, gotta go do homework now.
Introduction to the Social Web (2010-07-14 final)
View another webinar from Christopher Allen
Solveig Whittle put me on to this article this morning and I think it’s a very relevant one. In this Sensei Blogs blog post, Sam Fiorella writes about the clash between personal and corporate brands and how times are changing. As is many times the case, the large corporate structure can be slow to react and take notice of emerging trends and opportunities. That’s not always the case, but it is in this story. Read the full article here.
However, on the day of the award ceremony, 99.7 The River’s parent company issued a cease and desist letter to the award committee demanding they change the nomination and award from Mr. Reynold’s name to that of the radio station. Upon his return to work after accepting the re-named award, Mr. Reynolds was terminated “with just cause” and little other information Read more here.
Solveig definitely has her pulse on personal branding and social media. For more from her, check out her blog and follower her on Twitter at @shadesofsolveig.