Expert in the Rough, Brian Monahan

Recently I ran a contest on Twitter.  I offered 100 Word Promo to my 100th follower on Twitter.  I find it rather interesting that a Social Media Company ended up being my 100th follower.

For those of you unfamiliar with Twitter, it is basically summed up as a Micro-Blogging platform limited to 140 character length blog posts.  This seems like a ridiculous format but it has become the rage of the blogosphere.  The key feature of Twitter is the “Follow” feature.  You choose who you want to follow and therefore you get only the information you approve.

Twitter lends itself to Personal promotion and interaction but many Brands have jumped in setting up Twitter profiles.  The jumping in of Brands on Twitter often pisses people off since many of these brands forget Twitter is a personal platform.  They forget to talk to people versus broadcast at them.  Their manners often come off as a one way conversation.

I have not been following @HubSpot for very long on Twitter but I will give them a pass on setting a Twitter profile since they add value in a number of ways.

Hubspot’s tag line is “Inbound Internet Marketing System”

Hubspot is actually an evangelist for the new marketing model.  Instead of broadcasting at everybody they teach you to develop a web presence which attracts the people who want or need your product.  It’s the smell of home cooked cookies approach versus the megaphone approach to marketing.

I recommend 4 HubSpot Products:

HubSpot Internet Marketing Blog

Website Grader is a great tool for identifying what areas your blog/website is performing well and what areas your blog needs improvement.

Free Internet Marketing Kit, They might call you once but they have not bothered me since.

Twitter Grader is just another way to benchmark yourself against other websites and bloggers.

My Grades:
Website Grade: 89 (up from 59 in July)
Twitter Grade: 59 (My first reference)

Thanks HubSpot for following me @coachbriany

I think that was a bit more than 100 Words!

Besides my addiction to notebooks and notepads, I have an addiction for Google Tools.  One of my favorite Google Tools is Google Docs.  Google Docs is a free web based word processor.  It has most of the features of Microsoft Word and has a few other benefits Word cannot offer.  Those benefits include online collaboration, sharing and search capabilities to name a few.

If you are addicted to ideas like me but have a hard time taking your ideas from inspiration to blog post then Google Docs might be the tool for you.

First you are going to need to sign up for a Google Account.  If you don’t have one you are missing out.  I currently use over 19 Google Products regularly and Google Docs is one of my favorites.

Google products are all about saving time, collaboration and most importantly search capabalities.

One of the first things you will notice is the ease of use.  I don’t even give my documents titles.  I simply type my idea on the first line and that will be its title.  Of course you can choose a title if you like but I like the speed of this technique.

I use Google Docs 4 ways.

1. Compiler of my journals.  I will type in my hand written ideas periodically for easy access when searching for new post ideas.
2. Primer tool.  Often times I will simply type one sentence as a primer idea for a later date.
3. Working area for blog posts.  I take the primers and flesh them out before posting.
4. Search tool.  You can search your Google Docs just like searching the web.  It’s a great way to see trends in your ideas or writing.

In a kind of Pavlovian way Google Docs actually spurs my creativity since I have established it as the home of my inspirations.

Give it a try, it’s free.

A “Blog Recession” is when you do not post to your blog on consecutive days equal to your average weekly posts minus seven times two.

Blog Recession Formula:

My blog is 19 Weeks old and I have 48 posts.

Average weekly posts equal 2.53 posts per week.

7 – 2.53 = 4.47

4.47 x 2 = 8.94 days.

Therefore, if I do not post for 8.94 days my blog is in a recession.

In fact I did not post to my blog from September 11 until September 20th.

My blog was clearly in a recession.

So is your blog in a recession?

Here are 9 Tips to overcome a blog recession.

1. Update post.  Instead of telling your readers you are sorry you have not been able to post, tell them about what you been up to.  This is far more interesting than “Sorry I have not posted.”
2. Do a book review.
3. Share a link with commentary.
4. Drop a bomb, announce something controversial or private.
5. Share a picture or a graph that inspires or touches you.
6. Share a quote
7. Request a guest post from another blogger.
8. Write something totally unique, such as your own metric, as I have done with the Blog Recession Formula.
9. Use the Nike technique, Just Post!

Thinking tommorow will be a better day to get started.

Kajagoogoo the Nostradamus of musical acts made a bold prediction in 1983 with their hit song “Too Shy.”

When it comes to Social Media, I am “Too Shy.”

Social Media has been a buzzword around the blogosphere.  Oops that is too many buzzwords in one sentence but if you were wondering Social Media is basically people talking to each other via electronic media.  This includes blogs, Facebook, YouTube and Twitter to name some popular platforms.  It’s a loose definition but chances are you are engaged in some form of Social Media.

What I have found interesting is when I engage in new Social Media arenas I often find myself experiencing many of the same anxieties I face when in person.

On Twitter a micro blogging website which allows you to follow people and their short insights or daily interactions often feels to me, much like a loud cocktail party.  People are sharing their opinions left and right with nonsense about their daily challenges or links to blog that they read but I am a little shy.  Do I reply to people direct or share a link.  Do the people posting actually want to talk to me.  Will they reject me.

When I go to a high profile bloggers website and read a post and comment will they check out my blog and judge me since I am just getting started.  Maybe I need a professionally designed header.  Maybe he will notice I am using a free Wordpress Theme.  I am just a hack.  I couldn’t even afford to pay for my template.

I just Dugg one of my own blog posts.  I bet people will think I am narcissistic.  Am I a bore to be promoting my own blog?

Patty Craft a friend of mine who also blogs recently posted about how she was blasted by a new acquaintance as being “self-centered and grandiose.” I thought that was kind of funny.  I actually had to break it to Patty that maybe that person was right.  I think the idea of even having a personal blog is “self-centered and grandiose,” but so is having an opinion for that matter.  I guess the difference is where or how you share it???

Social Media is no different than the ancient cave drawings that scatter the world.  Social Media is the same feelings you have on the first day of grade school.  Social Media is the jokes on the bathroom stall.  Social Media is just that another media for socializing.

Mark Hayword at My Tropical Escape, shared his thoughts on how to successfully use Social Media this week.

Be Human.

That reminded me I am on the right track.  Since I am feeling shy and anxious when I Twitter and when I go to networking meetings in person….yes I am the same person online and off-line.  By the way I also am having a blast exploring writing as a hobby and a career.  Blogging is my training ground.

Social Media is just the tool.  Just like the phone, a letter or an email.  Be yourself.  Follow your dreams and the rest will follow.

Follow me on Twitter

My Human/Personal Website Coachbriany

I know this sucks but sometimes you need to set up strategies for success. 

I like to blog.  I like to read blogs.  I like to dream up new ideas. 

I don’t like to run.  I don’t like to do the dishes. I don’t like to clean the house.

What’s a man to do?

A) Run, Do the Dishes and Clean the House.

B) Blog, Read Blogs and Dream.

C) Rinse and Repeat

Sometimes on the way to our dreams we have some things that need to get done and some things that we want to get done.

If you take care of your needs first, you can have a clear mind and conscious to enjoy the things you want to do even more.

You might actually find you want a clean house and a fine physique.

Deep Thoughts by Jack Handey

It takes a big man to cry, but it takes a bigger man to laugh at that man.

- Jack Handey

Deep Thoughts Extended by Brian Monahan

The Biggest Man claims his work and laughs at the man crying who wishes he would have claimed his idea years ago when he first thought it up, before the biggest man got credit for it.

-Brian Monahan, Expert in the Rough

Most of you are familiar with Deep Thoughts by Jack Handey as a Saturday Night Live skit but most of you do not know that Jack Handey is actually a real person.  He is a humorist and writer.  What you can learn from his piece Deep Thoughts is be sure you sign your work with a name.

Its been almost 20 years since Deep Thoughts first aired on Saturday Night Live and I still remember his name.  Claiming your work is the least you can do to build your brand and it’s effective.

Looking for a great tag line for you blog?

Try ending with – “By insert Your Name”

This post was brought to you by:

Brian Monahan, Expert in the Rough

I just learned of Blog Day from one of the blogs I follow Awake @ the Wheel, By Jonathan Fields. Blog Day comes with an assignment to share five new blogs which I find interesting. You are in luck since I read over 50 regularly.

If you think in terms Blog Day being a birthday, Expert in the Rough is merely a fetus at this point with less than 4 months since conception. Thankfully I have been reading a number of blogs for some time now and can share with you five that I truly enjoy and anticipate each new post.

I must admit this feels a little cheesy and “manufactured viral” but isn’t that what blogging is all about anyway?

Here are my favorites:

1. Seth’s Blog – Seth Godin is the master I have not read a better blog.  Seth has a laser clear vision of intersection of life and marketing.  No nuance is missed by this man.
2. Awake @ The Wheel – Jonathan Fields covers career, entrepreneurship and life in a manner which makes me feel comfortable.  You can tell he is comfortable with himself and his message.
3. join me on the path – Patty Craft is a dear friend.  She is a cancer survivor and a wonderful writer.  Patty is a big part of my writing since she was editor for my e-newsletter What’s Up With That.  Her expertise as a writer and editor gave me the confidence to share my voice.  Her personal stories and insights on her blog carry great meaning to me, knowing her battle with cancer gives great perspective to life’s simple pleasures.
4. Insights for Consciously Creating a Very Cool Life – Drew Rozell is a fabulous writer.  I have known Drew for over 8 years.  I can honestly say the man is perfectly aligned with his desires.  He writes with truth from experience and is the “Biggest Secret” in the personal development industry.  Drew teaches a practical approach to the Laws of Attraction.
5. Conversation Agent – Valeria Maltoni has great insights into new media and the conversation.  Old media is one way and new media is all about the conversation.  She even takes it a step further and asks the question what are the results of the conversation.

Béla Károlyi is not only a fabulous gymnastic coach, he is also a great example of how to manage your “Expert” opinion.

Pete Blackshaw recently posted about how Béla Károlyi had nearly surpassed Bob Costas with media and blog mentions.  Now this may not seem significant but Costas easily has 10 times the exposure as Károlyi during the Olympics but people are interested in Károlyi.

Of course Béla Károlyi is a loved gymnastics hero and has trained the best of the best but I believe there is one reason and one reason alone for his popularity right now.  He is willing to speak his mind and be politically incorrect.  During this years Olympics there has been numerous gymnastic events where the Chinese competitors have won gold medals with questionable judging.

Many commentators are willing to allude to such scenarious but Béla Károlyi has been adamant and clear in his convictions.  He does not sugar coat his opinion he says it like it is.  His remarks about the Chinese being “half-people,” are a bit off color, but you must he adds some spice to an Olympics that otherwise feels over commercialized and hyped.

I suggest when it comes to your blog or your opinion you do as Béla Károlyi does and say it like it is.

No need for sugar coating in this world.  The internet and media is crowded.  Those who speak, write and communicate with conviction will stand out.

Don’t be a “Half-Blogger.”

Have you ever felt like a fraud?  If you are new to blogging or writing you may be experiencing what I like to call Fraud Factor.

I experienced my first case of Fraud Factor when I started my personal coaching business in 2001.  In 2001 blogs were a mere sparkle in your eye.  E-zines or E-newsletters were all the rage for marketing your coaching business or just about any business for that matter.

I started by giving my E-zine a title “What’s Up With That!?” it later morphed in to “What’s the Big Idea?” and that is about where the  fun ended.

I figured it would be an easy venture but as I sat down to write my first article I started to experience this weird feeling that I was a fraud.  There was no reason for me to feel this way.  I was not trying to mislead or rip off anybody but inside I felt like I was misleading or better yet, maybe I was not up to the task.  Maybe I really did not know what I was writing about.

How could that be true?  I was merely sharing my idea or opinion.  How could I be a fraud? It was my opinion or idea…right?

You might be experiencing something similar.  In many writing books they call it the inner or self critic.  Whatever you call it, it can be a crippling experience.  Sometimes when I feel this critic creep up in my mind, I can’t even write a draft.  I start and stop, rethink and judge my work.  Over the years I have created some strategies to overcome the critic or Fraud Factor.


Here are 5 Strategies to Overcome the Fraud Factor:

1.  Write frequently and request feedback from friends and family.

2.  Set a time limit for writing an article or post make no edits until after the time limit has elapsed.

3.  Write about what you know like the back of your hand, put away being clever write about the obvious.

4.  Forgive yourself for being less than perfect. You will probably never feel 100% confident about all that you write.

5.  Take a class, a seminar or read a book; continued education is the key to becoming an expert.  The more you know the greater your confidence.

As you grow the Fraud Factor will creep up from time to time.  It can mean one of two things.  You are trying to share what you don’t really know or you are actually growing and claiming new territory.

So the next time you feel like a fraud it might actually be a good thing.