I write from the heart, so sometimes I forget to remind you of how you can connect with Epic Living via social media. The following are a few ways to connect (click on the icon badges to go there directly) and it's appreciated:
Leadership and the Social Media Frenzy
Wrote this a few years ago, regarding leadership and the social media frenzy, and it still has relevance today.
I'm all-in on the trends created by social media. This is natural because of my involvement (passion and revenue) in it. Lois Kelly reminds us though, of how some elements are timeless-leadership and change. You can read her post here.
If were a poor leader before the social media frenzy, then you're probably still a poor leader. The way that changes is when you do something relating to your heart. Anything less is a waste of time, and you don't have as much of that as you think.
I am encouraged by quality leaders who went into the social media arena strong, but are now stronger for the tools (Twitter, blogs, etc.) found there.
Which category do you fall into? The answer will be an awakening-either way.
Thoughts on Marriage-The Winning and the Losing
I don't know if I've ever written a post on marriage. I know I've never written about the winning and the losing side of it. With the exception of my wife, I just haven't. Sorry.
Marriage can be a powerful part of Epic Living.
I happened upon this post while on Google + last week. The writer, Kelly Flanagan, is a therapist practicing in Wheaton, Illinois. It is by far, one of the best takes on what makes for a thriving marriage. He does an excellent job of breaking things down in a way that most anyone can unwrap. I think he's onto something that many already know; a life-long relationship is essentially about serving/giving to the person you love. The greatest irony of this is found in the fact that you get so much more back from that serving/giving.
Married or not, you'll gain a lot out of his perspective. I'd love to know if you see applications beyond marriage too.
Ways to Connect with Epic Living on Social Media
Here are some addiitonal ways to connect with us on social media:
Connecting on Google+
I am actively engaged in the land of Google+. If you're a subscriber to the Epic Living blog and would like to connect there, send me an email with your information (email address) and I will forward you an invite.
Does the World Need Another Social Network?
Ok, I've taken the dive with Google +. There are many out there who are wondering if we need another social network. I asked myself the same question this afternoon and came to the following conclusions:
- We do need more social networks. That doesn't necessarily many another Facebook or Twitter. Maybe it's in your community where you live or a cause you're passionate about. It's right as breathing.
- If you're taking the bumble bee approach to social networking (online or otherwise), then you need to reexamine your motivations. Take a hard look at who you are or who you were before you drank the kool-aid, and then order your social networks around that. You've got to do this.
- Google + is rightly placed. Google has such a huge influence around the ordering of content and flow, that for them not to be involved would be silly. I'm not gushing over with Google fan-love when I write this. Google is like Churchill or Edition; what they created and impacted was bigger than who they were as influencers.
- All of this flurry on social netowrks and the experiements, ventures and such created have produced good strategy and tactics for me. Lord knows, you need good strategy and tactics for your brand (personal or business) these days. I'd be overwhelmed if I didn't. For example, I know why I interact on Brazen Careerist versus why I interact on LinkedIn. By the way, strategy and tactics will also lead you to learning the art of saying no and turning off things that have a button.
- If we were living in the industrial age, then Google +, Facebook and Twitter would be nothing more than eye candy and entertainment. Since we are no longer in the industrial age, you should start acting differently. Differently in that you think like an entrepreneur, even if you're far from it in form. If you don't start acting differently, you may wake up and find yourself in a ghost town of one.
8 Areas For Your Attention And Commitment
What if you gave five minutes to your 8 key areas of life today?
It's 1:12 PM EST where I'm at, so for those of my subscribers in Europe and Asia you should apply this on your next day. But for the rest of us, we can fit this in today.
We're talking 5 minutes. A total of 40 minutes out of 24 hours.
Here are the areas:
- Body
- Mind
- Spirit
- Money
- Career
- Learning
- Family
- Social
I fully understand that your career is getting 8 or more hours of your attention, but the point is not perfection or equal distribution of time. The point is attention and commitment to your whole life. I'm recommending starting small in-order to find great. I believe with some effort and desire you might find out how precious your life really is.
Leave a comment and let the community know how your experiment went.
Discovery During A Time Of Rest
Just returned from a great time away on the East Coast of the United States. It was the longest holiday my family and I have ever taken and it is the main reason I've been silent from blogging.
I've been reading Simon Sinek's book, Start with Why and I took it along with me on my sabbatical. The book is great, but more importantly it has ignited some discoveries that before were question marks in my Epic Living journey.
When I started Epic Living, when I wrote the book, when I truly committed to entrepreneurship as the portal for my mission, I couldn't (still can't) explain my motivations for doing my work other than; "I have to do this" or "God placed this in my heart to come out." Crazy or not, that's pretty much how things unfolded-still do.
In Sinek's book, the essential question is "why?" I have answered that question in head, but more importantly in my heart. Maybe you already know this.
Epic Living is about helping people find and keep breakthroughs in the following facets:
- The Spiritual
- The Mental and Emotional
- The Physical
- The Financial
The activities that are impacted range from career, physical health, personal finances, leadership/personal development, and more. To be sure, this story has not been fully unfolded. In the coming days and months this will happen.
Here are some things to look forward to:
- The Virtual Coaching Cafe– An online place where you can get guidance and social community.
- Online Idea Share – An online place where you can house and organize your ideas, thoughts and dreams.
- Seminar Series – An in-person event series designed to put flesh on helping you.
More to come…
How Social Media Can Save Customer Service Training
Was doing some research for a friend/client on customer service training materials this week. I decided to use Twitter (my top choice for social media portals) as a tool to do some research on the matter. A simple search on the term "customer service training" is all it took to create a hmmm moment. And though my research was not very scientific, it did reveal some things I knew instinctively.
First, customer service is a very popular discipline for a number of companies/consultants. Must mean that bad customer service is more the norm than the exception. I agree with that on its face.
Second, I don't think the customers (organizations) of the customer service training product are fully aware of what's going on inside their own walls.
Here's what brought me to the above conclusions:
- My typed search "customer service training" revealed that for every two consultants offering training, there were an equal number of employees who were referring to customer service training as a boring event, a cure for insomnia, or a pain in the rear. Again, this wasn't a scientific result, but it seems that many employees are nodding yes, but thinking and feeling no.
- Employees, especially those in larger entities, feel like their targets for cost cutting and lay-offs. Creates a jaded, if not callused view of things. Wonder how these folks treat customers who have legitimate needs/issues?
- Why the disconnect? Leadership. Some managers may think they're leading well, but have yet to look behind them to find no one following.
- Fixing conclusion #3 creates a bridge for change.
- Employers are missing out on the power of social media. See this article for more on that. But I'm speaking of finding out what's REALLY going on with the employee base. Might save them some money and go a long way in reinventing how they serve-employees and customers.