It’s my contribution to the3six5 project, created and run by Len Kendall and Daniel Honigman from Chicago. They’re nearly halfway to creating a log of 365 posts from different people around the world explaining how their day went. There are so many unique experiences and life stories being shared, it’s really worth taking the time to have a peek!
We strive desperately to look for the next big thing, the next big secret, the magic wand that will make everything better. What we tend to overlook – or most of us, anyway – are the little secrets, the little hacks and tweaks you can make to your day, your year, your life to help things operate better.
Instead of writing 11 Secrets in one post, I thought I’d pace them out over 11 posts, in case I waffle on
Little Secret #1 – The Secret of 15 Minutes Uninterrupted
I never realised how important 15 minutes was until I had a colicky baby. A beautiful little cuddly boy – who screamed. And screamed. And slept for an hour at a time. I thought it would end at 3 months. Or 6 months. But on he went, growing, smiling, laughing, playing and very awake for a couple of years. Time took on a whole new dimension.
This is how I dicscovered what 15 minutes really means.
If you have an uninterrupted 15 minutes on your hands – you can do SO MUCH!
From time to time I get emails from companies wanting to advertise here on Wonderwebby. Instead of replying with my standard “no thanks” response, I thought I’d write something here.
Why” No Thanks”?
Because this is my playground.
But don’t you want to make money?
Sure. But not here.
Are there other ways I can promote myself/my product through Wonderwebby?
Sometimes I’ll write about a relevant book or product sent to me. But I’m not paid for this. And sending me something doesn’t guarantee it will find its way to this little corner of cyberspace. Unless it’s full of wonderment
And every so often I like to share things that inspire or interest me, like this video from my employer. (See the disclaimer to the right…views expressed here are my own, not those of my employer, yadda yadda yadda.)
I suppose sharing corporate content is blurring the lines a bit. But it’s a personal choice, and that’s what I’m comfortable with.
I’m not saying every single blog should be ad free. But it’s still a choice, not an obligation to use Google Ads or to be paid for advertising. Do you know what I mean? What do you think?
One, it’s shifting my perspective. Guess what happens when you look for something wonder-ful each week? Yep, you start noticing more and more sources of wonder.
Two, it creates a visual record of the year, 52 weeks of captured moments I’ll be able to look back on at the end of it.
What does Wonderment mean to you? Do you like to capture those moments?
I see you – clicking and peering through your screen, hoping to happen upon a tasty morsel on the interwebs. Well, let me tell you about my friend Kieran.
Kieran and I first met in 2007. I was wearing some kind of fancy frock thanks to some alien-like amazon woman dressed in a hideous ballgown. You seem to be new here. Look behind the orange cratesover there. You’ll find some free dresses that look a little more….3D, she said, looking me up and down in one awkward jilted motion.
Equipped and fully rezzed in a new foofy cocktail dress and shoes, feeling rather gauche – and having fed my baby late at night – I teleported to my corporate playground to do some research.
Oh Jazzydee! I’m so glad you’re around! Gizzy Electriteeth whispered to me, I want to introduce you to my friend Kieran.
This is how we met. In a virtual world, exploring new ways people could learn and engage. We chatted on an ambient dance space platform about life, work and serendipity. She had four kids. I had three. We both worked from home for the same company, but on different sides of the world. She wanted to use technology for social good. So did I. She would post Girl Scout peanut butter cookies to me. I would send her some Furry Friends.
Image by Amber Rhea
Later, Kieran and I would apply for the same exciting job. She got the gig. I And you know what? I was happy for her, because I knew she deserved it. She cheered me on and eventually I would find an equally exciting role. We Twittered. We Facebooked. We Slideshared. We chatted. She encouraged me. And still does.
This is what I like about online social networks. The people. We discover people who share their dreams, adventures hopes and ideas. We connect with new friends who live in different cities and continents. People like Kieran. Like Gizzy. Like you. And our brief conversations inspire big dreams.
One day, we might just meet. But – you know what? I feel like we’ve met already.
This is a post for SOBCon10 BlogIt, Earn It “The Virtual Meets the Concrete”. You can enter too. “Write a blog post about a person (or people) online who has (or have) made a difference in your life. Celebrate how they have made your life easier, better, smarter, more productive, more meaningful.”
This week we drove to Adelaide – around 700km away (440 miles) - and back for quick holiday. Just now, looking through my photos and deciding which photo to select for a weekly wonderment challenge, I noticed something.
The sky. Our big, beautiful blue sky.
Why did I notice it? Surely I was taking a photo of the train which seemed to be racing us, the road which went on forever, the golden fields or the red, red earth which graced our path.
Because without space – which may not seem to speak volumes on its own - it’s more difficult to notice the things which tell a story.
It reminds me that when you want to imagine, when you want to wonder and discover fascinating things – you need to begin by getting rid of the distractions. By scaling back. And allowing the weight of space, the sheer volume of the seemingly unimportant, to grant you a little perspective.
Once upon a time, when you wanted to raise some funds for a good cause you would ask your friends, neighbours and your local community. Nowadays when you raise funds, thanks to social media there’s a chance that anybody, anywhere might notice that you are raising funds. Which raises the question of whether or not you are raising funds to be seen raising funds.
It takes me back to a childhood memory of fame and the less fortunate. Every year when the annual Christmas Children’s Hosptal Appeal was on TV, my father would ring up and donate a small amount of money in our names. And every year we would eat lolly gobble bliss bombs and sit through the bad variety acts, watching the fundraising tally rise higher and higher.
Image originally uploaded by Hellebardius
We watched that screen very, very closely because at some point, one of our names would be read out or displayed on telly “Thanks Jasmin for donating 50 cents” (hey, that was a lot of money to a kid in the 70′s!) To us it may have been three seconds of fame, but we also realised we had made a difference to sick children, along with thousands of others. It all added up.
Recently Darren Rowse aka Problogger shared a dilemma on Twitter about the issue of public vs private giving . He stated that bloggers are in a position to help others in situations, like the current devastating situation in Haiti. However this could create an appearance of “being seen” to be helping. He shared on this occasion, he would be following his heart. A sentiment echoed by many others in response.
I’m not sure there is any right or wrong in using your influence to blog about a good cause. So how do you wear your heart on your sleeve, without shoving your avatar around in the faces of ….well, anyone and everyone.
Here are some of my thoughts. I’d love to hear yours.
Relax – It’s OK when I know where you’re coming from.
After all, it’s for a good cause, isn’t it? If I feel like I know you, if I trust you and believe you have integrity and credibility, it won’t bother me when you blog about a cause. Not one bit. I might even donate more to you than the guy who just knocked on my door (seriously, somebody just came around doorknocking for Epilepsy.)
Respect Your Community.
Sure, use your influence to help somebody else get attention for a good cause. Just be respectful with your choice of words and the amount of resources (time, skills, creativity, money etc) you may demand. T’aint what you do...
Know Thyself.
“Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don’t matter and those who matter don’t mind.”– Dr. Seuss. What is your definition of success? If you ended up raising funds but losing “followers” would it really matter to you? Why do you want to help out? What do you have to lose? What do you hope to gain?
Be Part of Something. Contribute to a greater project. You don’t have to start your own fundraiser or creative challenge. Do a Twitter search or blog search. Find out what others are doing about the things that matter to you, and join them.
Thank Someone. Thank Everyone.
It should go without saying, but it’s very, very important. Remember to thank the people who help you out. Make a list if you have to, so you don’t forget.
What do you think? Have you had any positive or negative experiences using your blog to raise funds?
Update: some points from @JoannaYoung in the comments below included:
6) think about how you’re adding value (helping to raise awareness / spread the word as well as fundraise / donate)
7) keep the focus on easy ways other people can get involved and contribute… if they want to bear in mind if it’s a major catastrophe your readers don’t need awareness raising… they might want to know simple ways to give
“You mean, there’s a face-to-face side of this whole Twitter thing?” a colleague asked me recently.
Yes. If you like.
So why bother attending a Tweetup? Many moons ago (back in ’96 or so) I used to hop along to different new media meetups. In fact, at one point I even found myself coordinating a few for artists wanting to learn more about new media. People swapped ideas and business cards while they discovered new ways to turn multimedia projects into something remarkable.
These days, Tweetups are another good way to swap ideas and business cards. But this time, you get to meet people you have already met…through Twitter. People from all walks of life. Business connections. Personal connections. And a chance to talk about social media and the things you would like to learn from/do business using/create art with new technologies.
These days I don’t get along to as many events as I used to. And while social networking helps to fill the gap between working part time, caring for my family and pursuing my passions, I still enjoy meeting and hearing what people have to say at these tweetups.
After meeting so many locals using social media to make a difference, it only seems right to continue the conversation (and to swap more ideas, and more business cards.) Announcing…<drumroll>…. a Melbourne Netsquared local group for those of you wanting to talk about using social media for social good. At this stage we are looking at a venue in the east as many interested parties find it difficult to get into the city. The first meetup/tweetup is planned for Tuesday April 13th and we already have a number of RSVPs.
You can join and read more about the Melbourne NetSquared meetup group. We will only be meeting every quarter, but to keep the momentum going you can attend a weekly eastern Tweetup #mescm at the same place and time which Patricia Dodd and David Warwick are starting up. Once we can find a suitable venue for coffee and breakfast around Blackburn-ish, with wifi that is.
While you might not be able to make every tweetup, you might discover some interesting people if you hop along to SocialMelb (Friday mornings, City) or TweetupMellers (monthly Thursday nights, Windsor) or #mescm (Tuesday mornings, eastern burbs TBD).
There are plenty of tweetups to choose around Australia and the world. You never know what creative projects you might dream up or join in as a result. Personally, meeting people from Twitter has helped me to raise funds for different nonprofits, given me speaking engagement opportunities and introduced me to some wonderful creative do-gooders and resources. It is “social” networking after all
What’s your experience? Have Tweetups been useful for you?
There are some people who have an extraordinary legacy of giving. It always inspires me when you see somebody with a reslience and heart that keeps on giving – and giving – and giving. One of these special people, Beth Kanter is celebrating her birthday. I’ve mentioned Beth here before:
“One of the things that really stands out about Beth is her absolute dedication to arts and community based organisations. She is a trainer, coach, blogger and social media strategy consultant to nonprofits. She shares information on her blog about effective ways of using social media with others. She finds ways to involve her kids in making a difference. Beth even takes time out of her incredibly busy schedule to help out with other nonprofit projects on the other side of the world, like my Women’s Investment project for Opportunity International” (See slide 13)
Beth has a birthday wish this year, to send 53 Cambodian Children to school. To participate read more on her blog http://bit.ly/beth53
So far over 60 bloggers have shared blog posts and tweets in honour of Beth and the great work she does (I’m a little delayed number 63 thanks to the heatwave that hit Melbourne yesterday!)
Also please take some time to check out some of the blogs above. I need to update my blogroll and feedreeder to include some of these passionate people who keep on giving!
I think it’s important to include ways to give in your plans for 2010. If you can’t do much, start with something small. It all makes a big difference.
How to you plan to celebrate the year ahead in acts of kindness?
As any mother will attest, parenthood is full of all kinds of interruptions.
Something like this…
So, I’m making a concerted effort to count on interruptions this year. Yes, I’m planning on being unfocused. At home with my hubby and these three amigos, and at work. Totally. Distracted. Interrupted.
It seems we spend so much time figuring out ways to getting things done, that we try to find ways to avoid distractions. But I’m embracing the good distractions as a way to limit the more unpleasant distractions.
Setting up some interruptions for 2010.
So here are some things I have done to count on interruptions this year. It’s my “Distraction a-la-mode”.
1. I have stacked up several particular books I plan to read or re-read (You might be interested in this post on reading a book per week this year) along with my notebook for ideas. I’m reminding myself to read them – even if only 20 minutes at a time – when I want some time out. It’s easy to get distracted with other things, games, TV etc and before you know it you’ve spent 20 minutes doing nothing. Which becomes an hour or two per week when you could be doing something.
2. Setting up my columns in Tweetdeck so I am “interrupted” with useful information on Twitter from some wonderful people. Last year I used a loan laptop for a while. I missed my Tweetdeck terribly and dipping into a conversation of 2000 people every day was too much for this Wonderwebby. Now that I have my own laptop again, I still dip into the general conversation as there is lots of interestingness to be found. But I need to use Twitter lists and Tweetdeck to serve up the most useful information and to stay connected to the lives of some lovelypeeps.
3. Setting up snail mail reminders. Putting cards and stamps in my glovebox so that I can write cards before school pick-up. I have one friend in particular who has reminded me how special it is to receive a handwritten note.
Of course there are a gazillion ways to count on interrupting yourself. Like turning the wifi off your computer so that you can get through the work you need to (you will still find other interruptions I’m sure!)
This week however, before I go back to work, I plan to be interrupted by family, distracted with new ideas, and completely preoccupied with noticing the people around me
What kind of distractions do you hope to set up for yourself this year?
As an aside: I’m thinking of finding a weekly Flickr challenge to stir my imagination this year. Any suggestions?
bear in mind if it’s a major catastrophe your readers don’t need awareness raising… they might want to know simple ways to give
