Saturday, October 16, 2010

Share your Brain: Take Action #22

Each of us has the gift of having our own personal experiences, relationships and lessons.  I believe it is part of our job to share those with others so that we all can learn from the knowledge we have gained.  For example, if I just started a business and went through the process of getting a loan, forming an LLC, creating a website, buying a phone system, and more, it would be great to share that knowledge with someone else who wants to start a business.  This helps to short-cut the process for the new business owner. 
If I am expert at gardening, rather than watch my friend suffer through planting the wrong flowers in the wrong place at the wrong time, perhaps I could help save her frustration and an ugly garden by giving her some tips.
We do this every day in our personal relationships with our children, co-workers and friends, but how about sharing it with a larger audience?  Creating a blog is free and there are various resources  wordpress, blogger, blog.com.  Or, if you have a Facebook account, you can write a note and tag all of the people you think would get value from your advice.  You can write an article for the community newspaper or an on-line newsletter.  You can provide advice through groups on LinkedIn.  You can go to lunch with someone who needs advice or ideas.
So, go share your experiences and your brain with another person today!
Have fun Taking Action.

Angela

Thursday, October 14, 2010

Take Action #21: Own Your Name

I read an interesting article  the other day that said that some parents have e-mail addresses for their babies before they are born and 80 percent of children have a profile online before they are 2 years old!   People thought I was nuts when I reserved my kid’s domain names – i.e. www.angelalieb.com   I did this when my daughter Jessica was producing a music demo cd.  I thought that if they were ever going to do something where their name was part of it – then I wanted to make sure they owned their domain.  It makes it difficult for folks like John Smith or Julie Jones – but if you can, I would encourage you to reserve your namesake domain – you can get one for less than $10/year.  GoDaddy, Register.com, NetworkSolutions are just a few places to purchase your domain. 
Another benefit to having your name as a domain is if someone does a Google search, the first thing that will pop up is your namesake website.  For example, I meet you at a networking event.  I want to learn more about you but I forgot who you work for or the name of your business.  I do a search for you on Google.  If you have a domain name, that will be the first item to pop up on Google.  Even if you aren’t using the domain, it will come up.  You can always point your domain name to your existing website or you may be able to point it to your LinkedIn or Facebook account.
So, if your name is important to you and you think you will ever want to promote yourself online, make sure you own your domain name.  So Take Action and go claim your name online!
Have a great rest of the day!
Angela

Sunday, October 10, 2010

Take Action #20: Laugh!


I read a great article in Fast Company about Oxytocin and how it affects our brains - it is known as the "love hormone" and we all have it - mostly known for the bond between mother/child - however it is also the hormone for empathy, trust, and connecting.  Our Oxytocin levels have been known to increase when we are face to face with a friend or loved one.  Researchers have also been studying if our Oxytocin levels also increase with online relationships and they are finding that yes indeed they do AND companies need to get on board with understanding how they can interact with those consumers online and build trust.

Here is a link of a baby laughing that was uploaded by a dad video taping his baby - cost = FREE - number of views on YouTube = 140,673,872.  Here's the link to the video. 

Today is an awesome day because it is 10-10-10.  It is also a beautiful sunny day in St. Louis, MO.  Take Action and find something to laugh about today.  If you need help, see the video above - or interact with someone online that makes you laugh or go out with a friend or family member that makes you laugh.  Life is short and those who laugh live longer!

Have a happy day.

Angela