Serendipity helped this blogger find his voice.
January 13, 2009
On January 7th, 2009 I became unemployed for the first time in my life. Not only that, it is the first time I have not had a job since I was 13 years old. It wasn’t the prospect of being unemployed that was daunting. It was the prospect of self promotion. For the last nine years I have been using my channel communications to promote the companies that I was employed by, not myself. So the questions begged to be asked? How do you promote yourself? What voice do you utilize on a personal blog? What best practices and subjects should I blog about? These questions dominated my mind only briefly- then the answer clobbered me in an epiphany like fashion.
Jim Storer, my long time colleague and friend at Mzinga, talks incessantly about how Twitter offers up serendipitous moments on a silver platter. My moment didn’t come from Twitter- it came as byproduct of a recent act of kindness having to do with my youth.
To me Ned Perrin was my crazy neighbor growing up. He was the guy driving an electric car in 1987. He worked like a man possessed on the 85 acres of land he owned and was a bit of a recluse. But he was always kind to me. I used to help him with Maple Sugaring and in return he gave me free reign to go sledding on the hills in his cow pasture. It wasn’t until recently I found out that Noel Perrin (the locals called him Ned) was a famous author and Dartmouth Professor. So when Hadley’s (my girlfriend) family friend (Tobey) mentioned seeing Noel Perrin’s house- I was more than happy to take her. We made our way up to Thetford Center, took some pictures, got a house tour and completed a thrill of a
lifetime for Tobey. Thinking nothing of it, Hadley and I completed our holiday obligations and came home. After which my quandary was launched into full bloom.
I received a package in the mail from Tobey thanking me for the experience. Adjoining the note was Noel Perrin’s “Amateur Sugar Maker- 20th Anniversary Edition ”. In the book Ned passionately wrote about working his land, the farm trade, fence building, brutal winters and sugaring as an old man. After he passed away he left the 85 acres of rolling Vermont hills to the state in conservation. He once said “There will be cows against the skyline, and there will be four new stone walls visible,” he noted. “It will be no bad legacy.” It was at that moment the dimmer switch gave way to a blinding spotlight.
Noel Perrin was an accomplished college professor, but it was his writings about the passions in his life that stapled his legacy. In life he was true to himself which ultimately led to the success of his writings- not to mention a fruitful existence. With that realization established, I made the decision that the voice of my blog will be nothing less than my true professional self. After all, what is social networking without transparency, valuable information, individuality, professionalism and a dash of heart?
I have been telling my clients to be the Mayor of their communities for years. In general, I have found that community leaders will figure out the subjects to blog about organically. The community itself will dictate the direction of the SME blog topics. But it is up to the SME to figure out how those topics are delivered. With that knowledge, I should have listened to myself. Instead it took my past to remind me that not all that much has changed here in the present. The job is different but the voice is still the same. Thanks Ned!
Entry Filed under: Random Schmoozing, Thought Leadership. Tags: Blogger voice, serendipity.
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1.
Misty | January 13, 2009 at 8:10 pm
Nice work Derek! I’m thinking about blogging about my weight loss journey myself. the blank page is daunting sometimes.
2.
Lisa Strong | January 13, 2009 at 8:31 pm
Really interesting and touching, too. ‘Use what you have’ is a good message to me in my job hunting. Thanks!
3.
jstorerj | January 13, 2009 at 8:38 pm
Hey Derek – Nice to have you blogging! Keep it up, but don’t feel like you always need to write in-depth posts like the one above. I did a podcast with @lizstrauss a few weeks ago and she talked about the concept of “consistency” in blogging vs. “frequency.” Her recommendation was to post in a consistent pattern (once a day, once a week, whatever) vs. “binge blogging” (putting up a bunch of posts one week and then going dark for a few weeks before doing it again). Good luck!
4.
Scott Carter | January 13, 2009 at 8:54 pm
Great article Derek.
It’s nice when one can find inspiration and guidance for the future from those whose lives gave true meaning to the past.
5.
Rachel Happe | January 13, 2009 at 9:09 pm
Kudos for jumping it – the best any of us can do is to be true to ourselves, call it like we see it, and try not to inflict any unnecessary damage along the way.
I love the story – a very nice start to your new blog!
6.
shannon Courtney | January 13, 2009 at 9:45 pm
Very cool story…I think you are off to an amazing start!
7.
heatherjstrout | January 13, 2009 at 11:54 pm
Derek. Really great post. I’m taking my layoff as an opportunity for introspection and it’s giving me the opportunity to think about what I really want to do next.
Misty, (Derek, please pass along), I urge you to start blogging about your weight loss journey at http://www.mybestsize.com/MBS_EU_blogsCCz/index. You’ll find lots of supportive folks there who will give you great feedback and advice. Also, you’ll be able to read blogs by others as well. (I used to manage this site before I got laid off, and I was always inspired.)
8.
Jennifer Boenig | January 14, 2009 at 12:17 am
Derek, I love what you wrote so I’ll keep checking in. We should talk soon… Give me a call.. Jenn
9.
David Wright | January 14, 2009 at 1:19 am
engaging, sciintillating. You should consider a career in writing.
10.
Barbara Hannan | January 14, 2009 at 3:57 am
I’ve got to tell you I thoroughly enjoyed this post. The writing is superb and made me want to read more. I am hooked. What good are the lessons we learn in life if we aren’t given the chance to apply them?
11.
Mark Wallace | January 14, 2009 at 1:55 pm
Derek:
Loved your honesty and writing style. Your message is fantastic. Look forward to reading future blogs.
Mark
12.
Steve Sommers | January 14, 2009 at 2:17 pm
I am looking behind the glass for our schmooze and it is 9:16 and 23 second on the FAN New York City.
13.
Peter Gold | January 14, 2009 at 10:52 pm
Derek
Nice start to your blog. Everything happens for a reason so make the most of the opportunity. You know the growth potential for social networking, find a niche within the niche and focus on it, become the expert, and don’t give up! Your skills will be needed by many so you’ll be cool.
Peter
14.
derekshowerman | January 14, 2009 at 10:57 pm
Thanks Peter. Agreed on all fronts. I am quite good at doing community audits (data layered on top of research, then making sense of both & mapping to success). So I am throwing around the idea of doing more of that. But thanks for the follow, I will add you to my blogroll.
15.
derekshowerman | January 14, 2009 at 11:00 pm
Thanks to everyone for the kind words, tweets, follows, emails, etc. It was overwhelming and exciting to get that much response to my first blog post. Blog # 2 is forthcoming.
Have a great evening….