Margie Clayman

Perspective Should Be The New Social Media Buzz Word

Mark Twain recounts an interesting little sidebar story about a friend of his. This friend was a preacher and was on his way to church when he was handed a note. The note said that General Sickles, who had been this man’s mentor and great friend, had passed away (this turned out to be false). The preacher was shaken, but of course he had to continue on. His sermon for the day was on the “begats.” Moses begat so and so who begat so and so. Given his state of mind, the preacher was not able to hold his voice steady and occasionally tears rolled down his cheeks. Of course, the congregation had no idea what the preacher had just learned. To them, it was an absolute mystery why this man, who could maintain a straight and even tone when giving much more emotional sermons, was so distraught over the darned “begats.”

From a different perspective, of course, the preacher’s behavior makes all the sense in the world.

25 ways to use Twitter to improve the world

by Margie Clayman

A few days ago we talked about how you could use a blog site to help make the world a better place. Today we’re going to chat about how to use Twitter in the same way. A lot of people still think of Twitter as “that site where people talk about what they ate for dinner.” It’s true that not everyone uses Twitter in what we might call “meaningful” ways, but there is a huge opportunity for value. Here are 25 of my ideas on this topic.

The Blog Library is Now Open to the Public!

by Margie Clayman

Well, okay, it’s been open for awhile. Details details! But that was all soft launch 🙂

I know a fair amount of people have already heard about this here and there. Maybe you saw a link to a post of yours from the Blog Library site and scratched your head a bit, or maybe you saw the Twitter account or Facebook page. Maybe you’ve been to the site itself!

Whatever the case may be, I wanted to take a brief moment to explain a bit about this project of mine and let you know what some of my goals and objectives are.

Is Google Plus a Men’s Club?

by Margie Clayman

I have a question, and I once again really don’t have an answer, just some sneaking suspicions coupled with some mild and growing concerns. I’m looking for your insight.

See, the other day, as I was gathering posts on Google+ for the Blog Library, I came across a post by the well-known Robert Scoble. The post is called “Why yo momma won’t use Google Plus (and why that thrills me to no end). I read the post and it kind of rubbed me the wrong way, but I was tired and so I figured I was just feeling cranky.

However, I found that as time went on, the post kept kind of bugging me, like one of those darned fruit flies that pops up in July. There are a few things that are bothering me, and coming together with other posts I’ve read, I’m kind of feeling like Google+ is being constructed as a velvet rope, smoke-filled, dancing lady-filled men’s lounge. I don’t have an invite to Google+ so I’m not saying this is so, but I’d like to tell you why I’m feeling this way, and you can then let me know if I’m totally off track.

Deal?

25 ways to improve the world via your blog

by Margie Clayman

So, I’ve done a few posts over the last few months that have decried the negativity that has been building in the online world. Of course, I am entirely aware of the fact that if you merely lambaste people for acting in a negative fashion without offering some way out of the rat trap, you’re just adding to the negative vibe.

Well, I certainly don’t want to do THAT.

So, the next few posts in the Engagement Series are going to offer some ideas on how you can use online engagement in various places – like your blog – to help improve the world.

I hear some of you cynics whispering out there, getting ready to build your case that online engagement can’t really improve the world. Engaging via your blog site or via Twitter probably won’t help find a cure for Cancer. However, “improving the world” has different degrees of involvement. If you improve someone’s day, that’s improving the world, is it not? If you let people know that something bad is going on and that they can do something about it, that’s making the world a better place, isn’t it? It’s those kinds of positive vibes we’ll be talking about here.

So, with that said, here are 25 ways you can use engagement on your blog to help make the world a better place!

The final chapter of an amazing life

by Margie Clayman

I can’t really tell you when I first met Rose. I must have been very very little. Even as a kid, under 5, I recognized that Rose was someone who lit up and then took over a room. Her energy showed through her face, and her long hair coupled with the ponchos and cute hats she tended to wear made quite an impression. Whenever we would say hello or goodbye, she’d hold me close and say, “Ohhh, gimme some sugar.” It took me ages to figure out what that meant, I’m not going to lie.

Rose was my grandpa’s cousin, but rather than referring to her as “first cousin twice removed” or whatever the heck the correct terminology would be, my family and I always referred to her, her children, and her grandchildren as cousins. As I came to appreciate Rose more and more, I created my own special name for her – Bubbin, which is a combination of Bubba and cousin. She seemed to like the word pretty well.

Margie Clayman

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