Please join me for the 3rd season of…

The Genre Busters Podcast!

I’ll be featuring the Usual Suspects: writers, artists, authors, photographers, and other Eclectic professionals.

My first guest will be the very lovely Shannon Cherry of Be Heard Solutions. Shannon is a PR Guru, Mompreneur, Blogger, and the mother to a set of loverly twins! She will be sharing her wisdom on the following topics:

• Why Solopreneurs need to master the ‘black art’ of PR,
• The inside secrets to becoming a successful PR consultant (if anyone is crazy enuf to pursue PR work as a career), and
• How she manages a very busy PR business and still finds lots of time to enjoy and parent her precocious 2-year olds!

DATE: Wednesday, January 22nd

To obtain call-in details and register for this informative and fun program, send a blank email to gb-interest@aweber.com

Galley Cat poses the perrennial question about self-publishiing and concludes with:

In other words, yes, technology has made it possible for just about anybody to become a published author—but that’s only the first step in becoming a successful author, and only the people who have the courage and tenacity to see the project through, with or without a big company’s help, will reap the full rewards.

I coach several writers and one best-selling author and let me tell you …. it’s not the writers who are hauling bags of cash home. Nor, is it the book store owners.

That being said, I think self-publishing combined with skilled self-promotion ( a rare skill in the writing community) will put more $$ in writer’s jeans.

I loved the title of this bit by Chris at Media Bistro’s MBToolbox, "Confessions of a Dirty Link Whore"

WOW! Sex, Tech, and Networking! All good things come in 3s.

Chris’ commentary on maxing up your LinkedIn profile makes some interesting points about the power of "Who you know".

It’s long been a tenet of success that it’s not what you know but WHO you know, that is the REAL KEY to success. And, for me, networking is the way to power up who you know.

And, social networks like LinkedIn are great ways to grow who you know.

Go ahead. Power up your network.

And, ping me at LinkedIn if it bemuses you to do so!

A forum discussion with Dawud Miracle of Healthy Web Design got me thinking.

Dawud postulated the notion that Blogging is for everyone and is a phenomenal tool for building relationships.

I’d agree that Blogging is a superb tool for building relationships.

But, I’m not certain Blogging is for everyone.

I work almost exclusively with creative professionals: writers, designers, photographers, and such. And, here’s what I’ve noticed.

A few, rare, professionals are both great designers and superb writers. But, many excellent designers can’t write a word or string a passable sentence together. Nor, do they want to!

Yes, you can teach people to be good writers, competent copy writers.

But, I’m thinking that great writers, powerful Bloggers, are born!

Yep! Born to write.

For some reason some of us are drawn, nay compelled, to put our thoughts into words. To Bleed our thoughts and feelings onto the page! Just as others are compelled to paint, sculpt, and compose music!

So, I’m saying that it those of us who are drawn to the written word that make natural Bloggers. And, I believe that for us audience building is easier.

For the others Blogging will always be a chore. And, therefore will not resonate as firmly with an audience. YES! These folks can create a Blog following… but I don’t think it will ever be as natural, as easy, as right as it is for the rest of us!

Wadda ya think?

Steven Diebold, THE Brand Alchemist, comments on the CEO likability factor and contrasts Jobs and Gates:

"But will I evangelize how great Microsoft and Bill Gates are? Probably
not. That might not impact Microsoft sales directly, but if Mr. Gates
got into any trouble you can be sure no one would be there to give him
the grace they give the others. You can bet your Vista on that."

If Steve Jobs can do no wrong. And, Bill Gates can do no right. Then what does that say for us?

If you are an independent professional, is being likeable important?

I’m betting it is.

Think about it. We are pretty much compelled to buy Microsoft solutions. Does that make us happy?

NOT ME!

But, when I go shopping for an IT guy to service my home office network, who am I going to pick?

The surly geek who can’t interact with a human being?

Or, the weird geeky guy who’s friendly, personable, and take the time to answer my ’stupid’ questions in simple, everyday English?

Easy choice.

Like it or not… likability is a factor in buying decisions.

So, start working on your charm quotient.

Long time ezine reader and Business Coach, Sandra Schrift, passed on this  excellent article . . .

How to Create Sizzling Speech and Book Titles

Do
you know the name of the book that was written in 1937 and outsold
every book except the Bible? It was “How to Win Friends and Influence
People.” This is a great title that is timeless because it focuses on
two benefits that most of us want all the time: winning friends and
influencing people.

Another
example: “What’s Holding you Back?” Thirty days to Having the Courage
and Confidence to Do What You Want, Meet Whom You Want, and Go Where
You Want by Sam Horn. The benefits are: having courage and confidence
to meet and go where you want.

Five ways to design your speech and/or best-selling book titles.

1.Use alliteration  [the same letter starts successive words]
*Monday Morning Mindfulness  (the name of my ezine)
*Living Your Life
*Sense and Sensibility

2.Ask a question
*Are You Getting the Love You Want?
*Does Everything Get Better After Fifty?
*Have You Hugged Your Kids Today?

3.Write a Rhyme
*Niche and Get Rich
*The Cat in the Hat
*Be Funny and Make Money”

4.Use words such as “How,” “Secret,” “Power,”
*How to Become a Highly Paid Professional Speaker”
*How to Write a Novel in 100 days or Less
*The World’s Best Known Marketing Secret
*The Power of Now

5.The Rule of Three
*Monday Morning Mindfulness
*No Honor, No Guts, No Glory
*Shake, Rattle and Roll

“Tell
me a Story”…After you craft your sizzling speech title, you then need
to tell stories to your audience so that you grab and hold their
attention. As an engaging speaker, you will want to relate your story
to your content. Your own personal stories will make your content very
vivid and interesting.

Screenwriter,
Robert McKee says, “Stories are the creative conversion of life itself
into a more powerful, clearer, more meaningful experience.They are the
currency of human contact.” Most of us delineate our thoughts visually,
so use very descriptive words to help the audience see what they hear
from you.

Use
coaching stories that relate to the needs and interests of your
audience. For example, if you are trying to enroll small business
clients, tell exciting stories about how your satisfied clients
benefited from your coaching sessions.

It’s
okay to be funny. If you think funny thoughts, you will live and relive
your story as you tell your story. It is best to be in the “now.” Your
words need to create an image in the audience’s mind so that they will
remember your story.

When
telling your stories, be dramatic, maintain eye contact, use theatrical
gestures , vary your tone and above all…Be a Model of Excellence!

Copyright © 2006  Sandra Schrift.  All rights reserved.

In his recent post about Celebrity Marketing Seth Godin makes these comments about building Your Brand:

It’s no longer about celebrity as endorser. Now, it’s about celebrity as provider. You don’t just get their face… it’s as if they made it for you.

We don’t need another Lexus or Accelant or Verizon. Apparently, we need Frank to do our accounting and Tom to crack our backs… if you’ve got a skill, you’ve got a shot at building a brand. Possibly a lot farther afield than you ever imagined. And not necessarily for the massest of mass markets.

I like the bit about the notion that if you have a skill you CAN build a brand — for a specific audience.

Just imagine what you can do when you’re a Genre Buster(TM) and have many talents!