I'm Not Taking My Own Advice

I admit it. I am not good about taking my own advice. As the owner of a PR business for creative types and "kitchen table entrepreneurs", I extol the virtues of social media with my clients. From blogging and Facebook to LinkedIn and Internet radio, there are unlimited channels in which to unleash your passion.

But, you have to use them. Duh. If you have a blog, you have to update it. Not once every six months. Not when you feel like it, but often. Granted, you have to have something of value to say. No one wants to read nonsensical jibberish anymore than they want to listen to it, but the way to build a community of followers is to create and deliver high value content on a regular, consistent basis.

And, this is where I stopped taking my own advice.

In the past month, I have had two craft shows to get ready for, which always seems to result in many late nights despite my best efforts to be organized. My husband and I also finalized the adoption of our adorable little foster child, Justice, on National Adoption Day.

Two days later, we had a huge celebration at our house. Now, I have two more craft shows to get ready for, plus Christmas. My house still isn't decorated, I don't know what I'm serving for Christmas Eve dinner, and I haven't started my shopping yet. And, I haven't blogged in three weeks.

What puts me to shame, though, are all the amazing (and I do mean amazing) blogs of creative entrepreneurs who are moms to many more kids than me, who already have their decorations up, whose kids and homes look like pages out of a magazine, and who post a new craft project everyday and write about it. Check out Jellybean Junkyard, Little Pumpkin Grace, Today's Creative Blog and you'll see what I mean.

So, in the spirit of authenticity, I'm going to start taking my own advice. I'm not going for perfect and I'm not trying to be Supermom. I'm just striving to be consistent. And, that's something I think we can all be better at.

To Infinity and Beyond...

I consider myself pretty crafty. I watch HGTV and do the occasional craft show. So, when my four year old announced that he wanted to be Buzz Lightyear for Halloween, I thought, No problem, I'll make it. I refused to fork over $40 for a costume he would wear once.

I have to admit I'm pretty proud of the results. And, when he said I was "the best Buzz Lightyear making Mommy ever," that made it all worth it.

It also made me think about the importance of having a vision and believing in it, no matter how impossible it may seem.

At CGI Communications, the internet video company where I do PR, we ran a contest called "My School's Cool"  for all the students in our County's school districts. The students each submitted an essay (written or video) that answered the question "My school's cool because"...

Each entry was different, yet captured the essence of what each student's school means to them

The winner will receive a 60 second video produced by our company along with an avatar for the school's website. The student will be able to write the script, star in the avatar, and shadow our production team during the entire process. It's an educational experience outside of the classroom that's invaluable for the student.

But, it was invaluable for me, too, because it reminded me that creativity knows no boundaries, and we have to unleash it to appreciate its true power.

To infinity and beyond!

I Wanna Be a Cover Girl!!

My parents tell me I was a beautiful baby. So beautiful that, apparently, I could have landed a modeling contract when I was two. And, been living a life of leisure, today, from all the money I made.

Yeah, right.

When I was 12, I landed a modeling gig for Sears. It paid $500 and I got to take the day off of school. I was told that it was for the catalogue the buyers used to choose which fashion lines would be carried in the stores the following season. It didn't sound very exciting, especially since no one would see it, but I got to miss school and pretend I was important, so I didn't care. (Several months later, during the holiday shopping season, my grandpa was in Sears picking out pajamas for my sister and I, and saw my face staring back at him from thousands of packages of PJ's.) That was my funny 15 seconds of fame.

I've never had a burning desire to be a model. Not really. Well, maybe a little.

I possess zero of the qualities required of models. I'm short. I'm not a size 2. Nothing fits me without needing drastic alterations. I have a bump on my nose and a scar on my forehead from the many times I flipped over the handlebars on my bike or ran through a plate glass door.

The only thing I really had going for me was that I was blessed with good skin. That, and I'm told I look younger than my 49 years. Apparently a lot younger. Up until a year or so ago, when they made it a law to ask for ID on everyone (even if there was no doubt you were over 21), I was still getting carded.

A. Cameron, a local salon and spa in Rochester, is having a contest to find the next face for its marketing campaign. The prize is a year of free salon services. I submitted an entry.

As a frazzled mom to a busy four-year-old who is lucky when she can take a shower in peace, I entered because I really want the salon services (and to be a pampered princess for a year and not feel guilty.)

But, as I get ready to turn 50, a teeny tiny part of me wants that modeling contract I never got. With your vote, I might have a shot. Vote for me!

Boobs are Good for Business

Remember when any talk of breasts at work usually involved a pin-up calendar, a mechanic, and a sexual harassment lawsuit? No more. Today, boobs may actually be good for business. At least during October.

It's a month when most organizations, including every team in the NFL, are wearing pink, selling pink products, or sporting pink ribbons all in the name of breast cancer awareness.

I recently read an article about an entrepreneur who made her first sale topless and, in the process, managed to make a powerful statement about breast cancer and rocket her business to success. A win all around.

As the daughter of a breast cancer survivor, the importance of this cause is immeasureable. In business, though, there's also a value here that should not be overlooked. But, often is.

In my role as PR person for an internet video company, I am responsible for making sure our messages align with our brand so that they accomplish three goals: make brand ambassadors out of our clients, make brand ambassadors out of our employees, and leverage our expertise in the industry.

Our brand is about connecting communities and businesses through our digital technology, so we need to leverage that whenever possible, even if it's for a good cause.  I raised the idea of producing a video about breast cancer awareness for our clients with our (all male) executive team. Although they all have wives, daughters, sisters, and moms, their focus was a little lower--on the bottom line. "How much will it cost?" and "How will it make us money?" they wanted to know.

I explained that it was aligned with our brand, would help us build relationships with our clients, and that we could use the video to showcase our capabilities in ways that would open up new market opportunities for us. (And, oh yeah, it's the right thing to do.)

We produced the video using our employees, which made them feel good, and sent it out to our clients as well as anyone else we could think of. The executive team loved it. One wants to take it to a black tie fundraiser for breast cancer research. Another wants to produce a video just like it for another project.

While savoring this victory, the phone in my office rang. It was the lab where I had my mammogram done yesterday. They want me to come back in for more pictures.

Please let this just be a Kodak moment for my boobs.

Hello Blog World

I'm here. Finally. I feel like I've travelled for many, many days, had long layovers and gone to the wrong airport a couple of times. And, all in the name of setting up my blog.

I'm in public relations and internet marketing. I've worked in television. I've been exposed to some sort of digital something or other for most of my life. I advise clients and colleagues on the importance of being connected to your customers in real space and cyber space.

So, why when I finally started to focus on my blog was I acting like the poster child for computer illiteracy. Because I'm the poster child for computer illiteracy. I "friend" and "follow", I can talk about the number of "hits" to a website and not sound like I'm putting out a contract on someone. Heck, I can even tweet. But, put me in front of anything technical with directions that might as well be written in a foreign language and I am completely lost. I can't even figure out how to work the remote on our TV.

Luckily, the information that will be posted here will be far more valuable than my (lack of) technical expertise in blog design.

Your feedback on these pages is most welcome. A dialogue requires a two-way conversation otherwise I'm talking to myself and laughing at my own jokes.

And, that won't be nearly as interesting as hearing from you.

Thanks for stopping by!