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February 2010

Bloggers of the Female Persuasion

by JimRaffel on February 28, 2010

Alrighty then, it’s Sunday funday, so I am going to have a little fun with this blog post.

There is a group of female bloggers that I follow regularly in my Google Reader feed. As a group they provide daily inspiration and perspective in my life. Oh, and quite a few laughs along the way. I’ve had the good fortune of meeting many of them in real life but feel like I know all of them well. All but one have nothing to do with my industry so they often help me start tangential thinking on subjects.

I have provided links to both their blogs and their Twitter handles.

Bananzattack written by @bananza – Last Fall while searching for a new voice for this blog I found Anne’s blog. Several of her posts from last Summer provided the courage I needed to become more raw and out there with my readers. I figured out that you guys want to know I am a real person with some of the same real problems you deal with everyday. Now, help me thank Anne by checking out her blog and leaving some comments on her posts that speak to you!

These next three claim they started their blogs in part because of my blog posts. I’d prefer to think they started because it was just time.

The Production Side written by @DKKipp – Closest to someone in my industry. A great writer who has an amazing amount of comments for a new blogger – Go Debbie Go!

what i’m loving today written by @rachelbernhard – Rachel is a great writer and she just writes about what’s on her mind today. Normally fun and light and sometimes introspective.

j_neitzel writen by @j_neitzel – Jodi is just getting started but I sense a great writer so I am keeping my eye on her blog. It’s going to be fun to say “I knew her when” after her first novel gets published.

More great blogs to read:

Barbara Maldonado written by @bmaldonado – I met Barbara at a Tweetup and even though I met her in real life first I consider her my first of many great Twitter friendships. Her blog takes a professional look at social media with a personality all Barbara’s.

Candid Carrie written by @candidcarrie – I wish Carrie would just send me an email each morning to remind me that life is supposed to be FUN. Enough said.

Conversation with myself. written by @krittabug – Just go read it. If you aren’t doubled over in laughter by the end of the 2nd or 3rd post I’d be pretty surprised. Don’t be fooled, however, Krista covers some pretty heavy topics as well and those have helped me deal with issues in my own life.

Don’t Sell Yourself Short written by @meganpfischer – A great blog about marketing, social media, and life – always a good read.

Sarandipity written by @sarandipity – Equal parts great photography, funny writing, serious writing done in a funny way, food stuff, craft stuff. She’s fun go read her blog.

Sara Santiago written by @sarasantiago – Sara comes from a big family like me and upon meeting for the first time declared my wife Cheryl and I family. She meant it. If you aren’t a big fan of strongly opinionated people Sara’s blog may not be for you. I love it and only wish she’d post a little more often!

Stacy’s posterous written by @stacysnook – Everyday for 500 days Stacy is sharing what’s going through her head. She’s on day 36 as I write this. Trust me, it’s always worth the look. Stacy is awesome and loves life.

Tracey’s Space written by @tmgessner – I think just because Tracey ended up last (alphabetical and all) you should consider it saving the best for last and click on over to take a look for yourself. Besides when Tracey runs a race she’s often the first Fit Milwaukee woman to finish.

I originally wanted to title this post “Chicks I Read” but thought some of them might be offended. What do you guys think – would that have been a better title?

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Continue Reading 13 comments }blogging

Patience and Smiles – vBlog

by JimRaffel on February 27, 2010

Twice in the last few weeks I have found myself in the middle of snow storms while on the road. While sitting in my hotel room in Stamford, CT yesterday I recorded some thoughts on how smiles and patience help me deal with the uncertainty of business travel during inclement weather. I was also able to splice in some video from Atlanta a few weeks ago. You won’t often see Atlanta covered in snow so the video is worth watching to see that.

I’ve had people asking me for more vBlogs so I hope you guys like this one. As always let me know what you think in the comments. Also, what subjects would you like to see me tackle in future vBlogs?

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Continue Reading 2 comments }blogging, motivation, Travel Tips

Smiles and Patience Part II

February 25, 2010

Your ability to shift or totally eliminate the point at which you become completely frustrated and quit will dramatically improve your life. I have always been good at the not quitting part (perhaps to a fault). You don’t stay self employed for almost 15 years without that tenacity. On the frustration side, let’s just say [...]

Breakthrough Moments come after Radical Thinking

February 24, 2010

Do you have breakthrough days? I woke yesterday morning just knowing it was going to be a breakthrough day. Since writing about radical thinking about a month ago I have been busting my butt and hustling to put systems in place so that my life and my business do not need me all day everyday. [...]

Unique Small Business Community

February 22, 2010

Today Sunshine Suites houses 1400 “shiners” (they don’t call them tenants) representing 600 small businesses. Recently I had the opportunity to have a conversation with Cheni Yerushalmi who co-founded Sunshine Suites 8-1/2 years ago with Joseph Raby. From the beginning it was clear to Cheni and Joe that long-term leases make no sense for start-up [...]

Radical Thinking Results In More Time

February 20, 2010

This is a follow-up to the action item at the end of my More Time Through Radical Thinking post. Action Item: On a quiet morning grab a cup of coffee and a blank sheet of paper. Write a list of ten things you would stop doing “if you could.” It does not matter how impossible [...]

Twitter Works: Dining Like a Local

February 18, 2010

On my home turf of Milwaukee Twitter has significantly changed my social life. With Twitter as the enabling technology my wife and I have found a whole new group of friends with interests similar to our own. We have also tracked down local places like AJBombers, Streetza Pizza and Water Buffalo where the Milwaukee Twitter [...]

Patience, Criticism and Apologies

February 16, 2010

A day in the life of the struggle to live a real, authentic and sustainable life. Yesterday I signed up for a cool new tool for on-line copywriters. It’s called ScribeSEO and it analyzes your blog posts and web pages to make sure you are getting the best possible placement is search engines like Google. [...]

Reputation Matters

February 15, 2010

My reputation is determined in part by my writing about and living a real, authentic, and sustainable life on this blog. Reputation is everything, it can’t be bought, it must be earned and once earned it must be guarded with your life. You can lose your reputation in an instant. If you do be prepared [...]

Smile and Put Your Patience On

February 13, 2010

You and only you get to decide what kind of day you are going to have. Real smiles backed up by patience and offered authentically to people serving you in less than ideal circumstances, will result in a lasting and sustainable desire to help you and others. I woke up this morning in a hotel [...]