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Six Steps to Natural Enterprise: A Synopsis of "Finding the Sweet Spot"
This will be the first of a series of 'teasers' on my new book Finding the Sweet Spot,
available from most booksellers or online from the sites listed in the
right sidebar. A complete set of reviews of the book (thank you,
reviewers!) can be found on Beth Patterson's site here.
I've
spent most of my professional life helping entrepreneurs succeed. After
I'd worked with over a hundred, I began to notice something special
about a small number of them. Their people smiled all the time. They
loved their work. They didn't work especially hard. Their customers
loved them, so much that they rarely had to do any marketing -- word of
mouth was enough. They were partnerships of equals, working together,
with no 'boss'. They had few or no debts, and were beholden to no one.
They were connected to, responsive to, and responsible to, their
people, customers and the communities in which they worked. They were
environmentally sustainable and economically resilient, not vulnerable
to vagaries of the market or economy. They had created the kind of
workplaces that made you say "Boy! I'd love to work in a place like
that!"
So I studied them, to try to find what made them special,
different from all the rest. I found they had mostly done six things
differently from all other entrepreneurs. When I looked at these six
things, they seemed obvious to me, until I realized that none of these
things is taught in business school, and none of them is the
"conventional wisdom" of what starting your own business is about. So I
decided to write a book about them, in the hopes that others could use
this "formula" to escape from wage slavery and create their own
responsible, sustainable, joyful enterprises -- what I have come to
call Natural Enterprises. Chelsea Green agreed to publish the book under the name Finding the Sweet Spot.
Here, in a nutshell, are the six things these remarkable entrepreneurs did differently:
- They discovered what they were meant to do.
The work they do is in the "sweet spot" where their Gifts (the things
they do uniquely well), their Passions (the things they love doing),
and their Purpose (the things people in the world really need, that
these entrepreneurs care about) intersect. This "sweet spot" is Area 3
in the three-circle chart above. When I studied all the unhappy and
unsuccessful entrepreneurs I knew, I found they were doing work outside
this "sweet spot", most often in Area 2 (unappreciated work) or Area 5
(work they did well but hated). So the whole first chapter of the book
is about how to find that "sweet spot" for you, with lots of examples
and exercises. It's really all about knowing yourself, a voyage of
self-discovery.
- They found the right partners.
The biggest mistake most entrepreneurs make is trying to do everything
alone. It's a recipe for failure and exhaustion. Natural Entrepreneurs
seek out partners who share their Purpose, and whose Gifts and Passions
complement their own. That
way, everyone gets to do what they're good at and love doing. Chapter 2
of the book suggests how and where to find just the right partners.
- They did their research to discover a real unmet need.
Where most businesses start with a product, and then try to chase money
and customers for it, Natural Entrepreneurs start with a need that no
one else is meeting. They do that not by copying anything else out
there, or by looking for ideas online, but by talking to lots and lots
of potential customers (this is called "primary research") and
discovering something that people really need which no one is
providing. So Chapter 3 of the book explains a simple, rigorous
research process, one that draws on the processes used by the world's
best research organizations.
- They innovated a product or service that met that need in a unique way.
The innovation process, which I explain in Chapter 4, enables you to
iteratively imagine and then realize products and services that are
significantly different from anything already in the market, so that
you are not competing with anyone else -- you are creating a new market
for something that you have already established meets a need not met by anyone else.
- They made their organizations resilient to marketplace changes.
Because they were so connected to their customers and so responsive to
their communities, they knew what was happening before anyone else, and
they perfected improvisational skills and processes that allowed them
to adapt quickly to change, instead of locking into plans that
inhibited their flexibility. Chapter 5 of the book provides examples of
how to make your organization more resilient and improvisational.
- They built strong, collaborative relationships and networks, and operated their enterprises "on principle".
They understood that powerful social relationships are the underpinning
to all human enterprise, and that collaboration succeeds better than
competition. And by sticking to principles of responsibility and
sustainability they ensured that these relationships were deep,
trusting, and reciprocal. Chapter 6 explains how to build strong
business relationships and networks, and provides examples of
principles that engender trust and guide responsible, responsive
decision-making.
Finding the Sweet Spot starts you on your
journey to Natural Enterprise, and contains a full set of resources,
including books by successful Natural Entrepreneurs like Dave Smith and
John Abrams who tell you their stories in greater detail.
As I
watch our economy unraveling, I am more and more convinced that we need
to create a whole Natural Economy of responsible, sustainable, joyful,
Natural Enterprises, and that the time is now. I hope you'll pick up a
copy of the book and help me make it happen.
|
Radical Empowerment: Reflection on the Bowen "Art of Hosting" Retreat
Leaving the rarefied atmosphere of Rivendell is a bit like a crash landing after a visit to a distant world.
I was privileged to spend three days this week in retreat with thirty
extraordinary people from across North America -- thirty people with
the knowledge, capacities, passion and intention to facilitate
meaningful conversations on subjects important to the participants and
to the world, subjects that are often difficult, complex, and
intractable.
The program is called The Art of Hosting, and it presents a full set of
facilitation methods and techniques -- Open Space, world cafe,
appreciative inquiry, conversation circle, consensus building and
others -- plus discussions on when each is appropriate, and the
opportunity to practice each with one's peers.
The practitioners in this retreat were quite advanced. For most of
them, facilitation is how they make their living, and these three days
were their opportunity to compare notes and hone their skills.
My initial training was earlier this year in Australia with Viv
McWaters and Brian Bainbridge, and since then I've become aware that
this network of practitioners is global, powerfully connected, and
driven to be of use, to make a difference, to make the world a better
place. These people are not in any sense like the old style of
facilitation consultants, who took instruction from senior executives
with a predetermined agenda and pushed participants to deliver on it.
Even worse, these old-style arrogant consultants sometimes introduced
their own 'expert' point of view into the discussion (usually to the
detriment of all).
By contrast, practitioners of this new set of facilitation or 'hosting' techniques aspire to nothing more or less than to enable more effective conversations leading to peer-consensual decisions and self-selected follow-up actions.
If the participants do not have the complete freedom to decide and to
do what they in their collective wisdom know is right, then the
responsible facilitator will simply refuse the assignment up front as a
fraud.
It is hard to overstate how radical this is. It is a reassertion of
democratic principles, personal responsibility, true empowerment and
the wisdom of crowds. It is a rebuff to the infallibility and 'greater
wisdom' of executives, managers, consultants and 'experts'.
Practitioners of these techniques can be catalysts for important and
truly revolutionary change, and in large calcified organizations,
public and private, it may well be the only way to bring about significant change at all.
It is a recognition that the vast majority of actual work that gets
done in organizations, the vast majority of value actually created, is
the result of bottom-up decisions, workarounds and changes (often
hidden from management for fear of retribution for violating official
policies) made by the thousands of individual workers on the front
lines. Those of us who have worked with large organizations recognize
that they are substantially incapable of innovation, and that they
drive their mavericks, bright thinkers, and imaginative people out,
while absurdly over-rewarding (and over-punishing when things go badly)
their senior executives. The potential 'facilitated re-democratization'
of previously hierarchical organizations could reverse this brain drain
and reverse their creative stagnation, to staggering effect.
I think the people who are doing this groundbreaking work realize the
power it has, and that's why they have embraced it with such passion
and have been relentless in urging their customers and potential
customers to use these techniques to set their employees (and in a way their customers as well) free, free to do their best work.
As our world enters a period of unprecedented challenges and
uncertainties, the success of these people to spread this new way of
learning, decision-making and acting could well be pivotal to our
economy's and our civilization's ability to cope, improvise and perhaps
even survive.
As we went into the third and final day of the retreat, I began trying
to figure out what it is that makes these thirty people, and those
increasing numbers like them around the world, so extraordinary, to the
point that I actually ached
leaving them. The intellectual and emotional high I received in their
company has been followed by the typical withdrawal symptoms of
quitting a euphoric drug cold turkey. Since I left a few hours ago I
find most 'outside' people annoying, unbearable. For three days we were
the type of intentional community that idealists only dream of. Now
bland, desperate reality with its horrific imaginative poverty and
ignorance have reemerged as the terrible reality of most of this world.
The world needs these revolutionary facilitators, these artful hosts,
and thousands, millions more like them, self-organizing, connecting,
smashing learned helplessness, corpocracy, hierarchy, bureaucracy, and
inertia.
While this list is probably incomplete, here are the qualities and capacities I recognized in these amazing people:
- a thirst for truth, and an insistence on speaking the truth and being honest to a fault
- extraordinary perceptiveness, attentiveness, and presence
- intellectual and emotional sensitivity
- an almost erotic level of passion and energy
- total dedication to their chosen practices, pursued as lifelong practices, through which they seek only to get better (i.e. no expectation of mastery)
- great instincts
- wonderful improvisational skills
- a love of aesthetics, and not inconsiderable artistic and
creative talent (my sketchbook yesterday was my struggle to keep up, as
they all seem to be able to draw brilliantly)
- a high level of self-confidence, but never arrogance (in fact, humility)
- a desire to be of use and service to others, and the
courage to do that anytime, anywhere (though when I asked them they
said it was the only thing they could conceive of doing that would have
meaning for them, so it wasn't courageous at all)
- exceptional communication skills -- oral, written, and non-verbal
- delightful imaginations
- great trust and respect for each other and for others who are, like them, dedicated to unselfish pursuits
- an aversion to power, and the use of power, and aversion to hierarchy and the cult of leadership
- great intelligence, knowledge and curiosity
- a subtle and gentle sense of humour, sometimes self-deprecating, never cruel or demeaning of others
Where did these people come from? Most of them are drop-outs from jobs
in which they were absurdly under-employed. Most of them are
substantially self-educated
-- they are extremely well-read and have exceptional vocabularies
despite not having much more formal education than the average North
American. They come from caring, informed parents. Two thirds of them
are women. One third of them are LGBT. They skew towards boomer age but
there is a healthy range of ages, and their children seem destined to
follow in their footprints. They love language. Most of them work in
the public sector, as social entrepreneurs. They have amazing networks
that became much more amazing this week.
I expect my euphoria from this week will wear off, but I am determined
to find a way to sustain the incredible sense of peace, joy, openness,
connection and presence I found and felt this week.
Those of you from Rivendell who are reading this, thank you, my amazing
new friends, artful hosts all, for the privilege of your company. You
have filled my heart with love and joy and hope. The conversation
started before it began, and it will continue long after it ends.
|
An Art of Hosting Sketchbook
CCK08 Week Three: Eight Important Questions About Learning and Connection
Week 3 of the CCK08 Connectivism MOOC is principally about network theory. I've written a bit about this, notably about network analysis (Rob Cross) and network mapping (Valdis Krebs, who was this week's 'virtual guest lecturer').
All
week I've been reminded of how, especially once we reach age 50, we
tend to rely more and more on our networks -- both human networks
(communities) and knowledge networks (the places we store what we've
learned). This is partly due to the fact that we have ever more
knowledge to handle, and partly because as we age our short-term memory
weakens. Someone once said, famously, when asked how he could command
such an enormous store of knowledge, "I keep my knowledge in my
networks".
I've started using IM, VoIP, and Google Desktop to
recall my know-who ("who should I talk to about X again?"), my
know-what ("where was that great tapas bar in Vancouver?") and my
know-how ("what was step 6 in my Innovation Process?")
With a lifetime's practice I've learned to keep in mind that I am only a complicity, a space through which stuff passes,
and that my purpose is to touch
the right stuff in just the right way as it passes through, in a way
that brings meaning and joy and value to myself and to others in my
social networks, my communities. To do this I use a particular process (sense, self-control, understand, question, imagine, offer, collaborate) to address each issue, project, decision, and challenge I face each day.
Much
of this process is social, and it is conducted with members of my
communities, my social networks. In fact deciding who to include in
which networks, which networks to participate in, and how, and which
people to invest time in and seek conversation with (and perhaps even
which to trust and love) is probably the most important type of
decision I make each day.
This week, for example, I decided to meet with Jon Husband
for breakfast in San Jose (instead of going back to bed after a 6am
media interview on my book). That important breakfast conversation
inspired yesterday's post. And shortly after that I met with Second
Life friend Michelle Paradis for lunch in Santa Cruz, as prearranged,
and discovered to my delight that she had invited five other
fascinating people to join us: strategic change guru (and another
Second Life friend) Gary Merrill, creativity and narrative consultants Kenton Hyatt and Cheryl DiCiantis, and Living Strategy advisors (and animal menagerie owners) Arian Ward and Beth Alexandre.
Between the seven of us we discovered a remarkable number of
connections and common friends (many of which also included some of my
Tuesday dinner companions) -- to the point we realized that we were all
essentially already 'hidden' parts of each other's networks, one or at
most two degrees of separation apart. (Thanks so much to the amazing
Michelle for arranging all this!)
So I began to think about how
we make the decision on whether and how to accommodate new
acquaintances in our already time-constrained and attention-constrained
networks. After all, a recent study by Tom Davenport concluded that the
most effective (i.e. productive) people in organizations tended to be
those who had the strongest networks and who somehow were able to
invest a substantial amount of time each day in nurturing those
networks.
My right sidebar lists what I've been calling my
'gravitational community' -- the people with whom I have gravitated
because of common interests and passions, mutual admiration, respect
and love. My lengthier blogroll
has been moved off my home page to make room of this more important (to
me) list of key networks. These are people I allow and even encourage
to interrupt me, anytime, for instant conversations -- if I had known
them before the days of the Internet, they would be the people who I'd
invite to drop over unannounced, anytime.
All of this raises some very important questions about networks:
- How
do we best decide who to include in our networks (or to put it another
way who are the people we're meant to be in community with)?
- How
can we learn to accommodate more people and build deeper relationships
with those in our networks, without sacrificing other important
activities in our lives?
- How much time should we invest in networks, with which members, in what ways, and how do we make the most of that time?
- How do we discover the people who should be in our networks, but currently aren't?
My
knowledge networks -- the places I store and access knowledge that is
important, useful or memorable to me, are somewhat easier to manage,
because I use my blog to capture what are to me the important parts of
what I read, see, hear, discover, experience and learn, so I can then
use Google Desktop or the search bar of my blog to recall what I've
learned later, and even 're-learn' it quickly.
So much for
networks. The mindmap above is an earlier list of the things I believe
are most important to learn, the modern 'survival skills and knowledge'
list. I'm an advocate of unschooling (self-directed learning) and I
believe that we are naturally able to learn these things ourselves, as
soon as we discover they are important to us. But I also sense that the
modern education system has stripped most of us of this natural
learning ability in order to make us obedient and subservient. The
Connectivism discussions make it clear that we're as puzzled and
divergent in our views about learning as we are about networks. This
brings us to four more Important Questions:
- If
learning is, as the instructors of this course contend, nothing more or
less than 'making connections' (neural, conceptual, and social), how do
we learn to learn the things in the chart above and the other things we
need to learn to be self-sufficient, useful members of communities --
to be who we were intended to be?
- How do we discover what it is we need to learn?
- How
do we learn to critically assess what we see, hear, and think, and
overcome the prejudices, prejudgements and worldviews that block us
from being open to new ideas, insights, perspectives and knowledge?
- We all have learning 'disabilities' of one kind or another. How do we recognize and overcome them?
I'm
hoping that the Connectivism course will help answer these questions
over the next nine weeks. If it does, it will be an extraordinary
accomplishment. If it succeeds, it will probably be due not to the
catalyzing questions and readings of the course 'instructors', but to
the collective conversations of the hundreds of people engaged in the
course, with each other, in community. I'm hanging in to find out. |
Facilitation, Objectivity, Worldviews, Innovation and Coping with Complex Problems
 I'm
on my way from San Jose to Vancouver and thence to Bowen Island for a
course on The Art of Hosting (a collection of event facilitation and
problem-solving methodologies). Despite the fact that Open Space, one
of those methodologies, makes enormous conceptual sense, and should
work brilliantly as a means to help a large, diverse group of people
address complex problems, I've been disappointed with the Open Space
sessions I've participated in. They were full of optimism and
possibility, but somehow the collective wisdom of these 'crowds' just
never really emerged.
It's tempting to blame this on the
facilitators, but with a couple of exceptions the facilitation of these
sessions was done brilliantly. It's equally tempting to blame it on the
audience, saying they weren't the right people, or lacked some of the
critical capacities needed by the collective group for breakthrough
thinking, or fell victim to groupthink, or weren't engaged, or lacked
energy. Open Space has a rule that "whoever comes are the right people"
but also asserts the importance of a well-crafted invitation and
getting that invitation out to the people you hope to draw to the event.
So
it was interesting to hear Dave Snowden say the other day that
self-managed facilitation events like Open Space
"punish mavericks" -- their ideas are usually too complex or too
difficult to
grasp or too difficult to articulate clearly, and therefore get ignored
or even ridiculed. Could this be the problem with these methods? I've
had several experiences where the most brilliant ideas I heard at an
event were not even recorded in the official or unofficial record of
the event. I've even used mindmaps, displayed at the front of the event
or breakout room, to record what I've heard being said, only to be
challenged by those who 'heard' something completely different.
I'm
always surprised at the response to my own ideas at such events. Half
the time they are simply not heard, because the group has
preconceptions of what the event or outcomes would or should be, and my
ideas just didn't fit with them, and so were considered 'out of scope'
or even 'out of order'. The other half the time they are embraced with
such zeal (one of my distinctive competencies is my ability to imagine
possibilities that others don't seem to be able to come up with) that I
feel guilty for having hijacked the process and 'bullied' the group
into adopting my solution without thinking it through adequately and without properly making it theirs. This is not a robust innovation process.
Or
does the problem perhaps lie in the very nature and premise of
facilitation -- the belief that the facilitator can really remain
objective and avoid steering the supposedly self-managed group in a
direction that betrays the facilitator's bias (or the facilitator's
sponsor's bias)? Can we really be objective, or does our presence as
part of the event inevitably colour it? Just as the observer's very
presence is said to affect quantum outcomes, does the facilitator's
very presence affect the event outcomes? Some of the most popular
current research and analysis methodologies stress the importance of
being 'fact-based' or 'evidence-based' -- euphemisms for 'objective' --
but the world's best researchers will tell you the defining
characteristic of world-class research is asking the right (sometimes 'naive') questions, and such questions are inevitably provocative and subjective.
There
are some (a growing number, it appears) who believe that it is
impossible to be objective, and that all news and information is
inherently biased, not least by the selection of precisely what
information, and details, to report and to not report. George Lakoff's
work tells us that we see and interpret everything through a personal
worldview that colours what we accept and how we react to it. Perhaps,
these objectivity-deniers might argue, the so-called facilitators
should just present their own (or their sponsors') context and
hypotheses, as a 'straw man', and let the participants start with
those, and alter or challenge them as they deem appropriate.
When
I start to 'redesign' such methodologies to try to accommodate these
objections, the most experienced practitioners tend to shout foul,
arguing that these methodologies have been honed to be functional yet
as simple as possible from years of practice and experience, and if
they don't work perhaps a different methodology should be used rather
than adulterating an established methodology.
But I can't resist tinkering nevertheless. Here are some early thoughts on things that I think might make a methodology like Open Space work better:
- In
accordance with Snowden's complexity model, set the initial conditions
for the event, and interject attractors (things that encourage certain
desired, productive behaviours) and barriers (that discourage other,
counterproductive behaviours) at appropriate times to 'manage' the
initial and emerging direction of the event without interfering with
the actual content -- the ideas, knowledge, insights, perspectives and
intentions that come out. If you're going to do this, however, you have
to, as facilitator, be open to challenges that your initial boundaries
and subsequent interventions help rather than hinder the process. So
much for the pretence of objectivity.
- Constantly adjust the
balance and volume of critical thinkers versus creative thinkers. The
best facilitated events I've participated in have got this balance just
right, but it's tough to sustain. Think orchestra conductor rather than
improviser -- an approach that these days is unfashionable.
- As
a corollary to the above, actively squelch the bullies and
manipulators, and draw out the wallflowers. At the same time, when
groupthink emerges rather than consensus, call it for what it is.
- Allow
time -- set expectations and objectives at a level modest enough that
sufficient time is available for new ideas to emerge and be
articulated, for people to think and reflect, for new information and
ideas to sink in. This is a horrifically difficult task in today's
time-starved attention-deficit society. I don't know how you solve this
-- maybe events need to have a series of sessions spread over weeks or
months with some momentum-sustaining and reflection and rethinking time
in between, to provide enough time for real ideation and understanding
and meaningful intention to emerge.
- Teach participants the
capacities they need to be productive participants in this type of
event. Ideally in advance, have self-directed learning events and
resources available to learn and practice holding oneself open, letting
go, brainstorming, creativity, imagination and innovation skills and
processes, and consensus-building and conflict resolution. Reinforce
this learning by pulling participants clearly lacking these skills
aside for some just-in-time one-on-one instruction.
Of course,
even if these complications of the facilitator's role are desirable,
there's a question whether they don't so complicate that role as to
require a small army of facilitators to manage.
It should be an interesting discussion on Monday and Tuesday. Stay tuned.
|
CCK08 Week Two: Expectations of a Course on Learning, and Thoughts About How We Learn
THE NEW ROLE OF KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT (& ORGANIZATIONAL LEARNING)
IMPROVING PERSONAL
PRODUCTIVITY
- •Facilitating
PCM: helping people to self-find, self-filter, self-publish,
self-subscribe, and self-organize ‘stuff’
- •Teaching
research skills: methods, not tools
IMPROVING CONNECTION
- •Facilitating
conversations: with new simple, real-time
connectivity tools (IM, screen-sharing, desktop video, Open Space)
- •Facilitating
JIT canvassing: helping people discover who knows what and
connecting them
IMPROVING CONTEXT
- •Story
teaching/recording: show don't tell; let learners look over the master's shoulders
- •Environmental
scanning: discovering and communicating what’s
new, what’s risky and what’s important
- •Sense-making:
assessing and communicating what it means, what people think about it,
what’s being done, what should be done, who should be talking
with whom, what is important to learn (see chart above)
|
Week 2 of the CCK08
Connectivism and Connnected Learning course was mostly about
"types of knowledge", not of great interest to me, especially since my
current KM riff is about the need to switch attention (and resources) From
Content to Context and from Collection to Connection.
So here I am among 2000 participants from around the world, all focused
on knowledge and learning and how we can improve them. There is a lot
of content being shared, but there is a clear struggle to make meaning
of it, to put it into context that is useful. To do that, what is
needed is conversation and connection. The conversations I have
witnessed so far are mostly those among somewhat bewildered students of
the course trying to figure out what to do. It's the classic
teacher-student co-dependence played out on a massive and virtual
stage: Teachers need students to make a living. Students expect
teachers to tell them something that they can credentialize, get
'credit' for that will improve their resume. They want 'tests' that
will allegedly demonstrate who has learned the most.
Of
course, tests don't demonstrate anything of the sort. They demonstrate,
mostly, which student was cleverest and most knowledgeable about the
subject matter before the course began.
Most of the people in
this massive open online course (MOOC) are not taking the course for
credit (though I suspect many will claim it as personal PD). Most will
not do the written assignments. Many, I suspect, will either drop out
over the course of the twelve weeks when they cease to get anything
more substantive out of it, or will peer back in every week or two and
invest enough time to satisfy themselves they aren't missing anything
important. I may well be one of them.
But in the meantime I'm
investing four hours a week in thinking and conversing about learning
and knowledge transfer, because I think the subject is important. The
two slides above (from my presentation next week at KMWorld & Intranets in San Jose) show where I'm coming from on this.
Knowledge
Management was coopted, early on, by a combination of librarians and
researchers (who thought it was all about knowledge content), corporate
trainers (who thought it was all about learning content), and
Intranet/Internet corporate webmasters (who thought it was all about
web and groupware content). It took a decade before disgruntled users
made it clear that they
still learn and share knowledge the same way they always did: by
picking up the phone or walking down the hall or getting on a plane and
having context-rich real-time conversations. It was, and is, all
about context and connectivity. So as my slide above shows, the seven
most important initiatives of KM 2.0 are context-building,
connection-building, and personal productivity initiatives -- facilitating better, more informed conversations with the right people.
So
far this course has not focused on that. But some of the later sessions
are focused on the changing role of educators, which ties in to the
seven initiatives above. Regular readers know I'm a fan of unschooling
-- of self-directed and self-organized learning, that is facilitated
(coached), not taught. We
learn through conversation, and through direct observation, with people
who know more or different, from whence we pick up knowledge, ideas,
insights, and new capacities. As much as I hate most of the
content-focused KM 1.0 technologies, I love some of the
context-focused, real-time KM 2.0 technologies (IM, screen-sharing,
video capture/conferencing, Open Space) which can enable such
facilitation, and enhance learning.
If the Connectivism course can show other ways to make this happen, I can hardly wait.
Now if only I could find some more robust ways to connect with the other participants, peer-to-peer!
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CCK08: Thoughts on Knowledge and Learning -- Week One
Map of Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) on Connectivism, by Matthias Melcher. Full size map you can actually read here.
I'm currently enrolled in an online course on Connectivism and Connective Knowledge (with 2000 other people) being put on by George Siemens at the University of Manitoba and co-hosted by Stephen Downes. The main course wiki, if you still want to enroll, is here.
The
course runs about 12 weeks and each week has selected readings, live
and taped discussions, and a ton of activity on the collaborative
course sites shown on the map above. In keeping with the spirit, I'm
tagging this blog post to #CCK08, which means it should show up on the
collective everything-that-points-to-CCK08 pageflake page. I've also joined an Ontario discussion group on CCK08.
I've
read all the prescribed material, and scanned some of the daily
highlights and other materials above, but have not yet participated
(connectively) in the course conversations, nor did I stick with the
tedious multimedia discussions. But I did give the subject considerable
thought, and came up with the following Week One Propositions About Knowledge and Learning,
a mixture of what the course leaders espouse, what other course
participants have proffered that I found interesting or provocative,
and how I am making sense of it all. Since Week One is titled "What is
Connectivism" these Propositions are, not surprisingly, mostly about
definitions.
- Knowledge = patterns of connections, of three types:
- neural = know-what,
- conceptual =
know-how, and
- social = know-who); Networks = loci of knowledge.
- Learning = making new connections (of the above types).
- Understanding / coherence / sensemaking = forms of pattern recognition.
- Community = those with shared knowledge and shared learning interests;
we invite individuals to join communities, when what individuals really
want is for the community to come to them (for reassurance and
recognition and appreciation that their understanding is valid).
- Workarounds = the mechanism by which individuals make sense of and
apply their own learning, regardless of mandated knowledge
(instruction) or accepted knowledge ('conventional' wisdom).
- Accepted knowledge (wisdom) = what evolves as power shifts, people die
and the make-up of communities changes; wisdom is inherently
'conventional' and tyrannical.
- The 'wisdom of crowds' is not
'wisdom' at all, but rather collective knowledge = the aggregation and
appreciation of patterns of knowledge of large numbers of independent
people, shared; this is much better than wisdom!
- Not sure yet what intelligence is in the
connectivist context, since its meaning is ambiguous in common usage,
so I'm going to avoid using the term if possible, except perhaps ironically.
- All of this is interesting and informative, but so far not evidently of much practical use.
This
may seem a bit academic, and perhaps unintuitive, but a lot of it
resonates with me for how it reflects knowledge and learning processes
I've observed in wild animals, and how, according to what I've read,
aboriginal and 'unschooled' people learn. As our problems become more
complex, pattern recognition becomes more difficult, and collective
knowledge ('the wisdom of crowds') becomes more valuable than
individual knowledge.
I confess that while I think some of this
will prove to be useful, I'm not sure how, and I doubt it will centre
around whether or not connectivism is "a legitimate learning theory",
which some of this week's discussion has been about. It will be
valuable to the extent it helps refine our intuitive knowledge of how
people learn, and why they (usually) never do. Stay tuned.
"An important scientific innovation rarely makes its
way by by gradually winning over and converting its opponents. It
rarely happens that Saul becomes Paul. What does happen is its
opponents gradually die out and the growing generation is familiarized
with the idea from the beginning." (Max Planck)
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Improv Wisdom
The
way we act, and are seen to act, in this life is a function of two
things: What we choose to do, and How we choose to do it. We can do the
wrong things with style, or, as has been my wont, we can accidentally,
fortuitously end up doing all the right things, badly at first, but
getting better with practice.
There are a small group of people I have known in my life who I would say have presence.
They bring a certain charm and grace to everything they do, and they
generally do it well, even if its accomplishment, in the grand scheme
of things, is not very important. I greatly admire such people, and
recently I have started to study them, to learn from them.
In my
recent post on what I learned from Patti Digh's book Life is a Verb I
described both the things that I now do, intentionally:
| playing | learning | loving | | conversing | giving (ideas,
knowledge, competencies) | self-managing | | being present | writing | reflecting |
and (somewhat less intentionally and much less elegantly and consistently) how I do those things, my approach to action:
Sense:
| Observe, listen,
pay attention, focus, open up your senses, perceive everything that has
a bearing on the issue at hand. Connect. | | Self-control: | Don't prejudge or jump to conclusions. Don't lose your cool. Focus. | | Understand: | Make sure you have
the facts and appreciate the context. Things are the way they are for a
reason. Know what that reason is. Sympathize. | | Question: | Ask, don't tell. Challenge. Think critically. | | Imagine: | Picture, hear, feel what could be. Be visionary. Every problem is an opportunity. Anything is possible. | | Offer: | Consider. Give something away. Create options, new avenues to explore. Suggest possibilities. Lend a hand. Help. | | Collaborate: | Create something
together. Solve a problem with a collective answer better than any set
of individual answers. Learn to yield, to build on, to bridge, to adapt
your thinking. |
Intentionally,
I have increased the number of hours per day I spend doing the nine
things I do (above) from 5.5 hours per day to 8.5 hours per day, with
an eventual target of 11.5 hours per day. And I try to do them, whenever I am self-aware,
using the 7-step 'personal presencing' process listed above. This is
very much a passion-to-action 'U' process: sensing, learning, asking,
opening, letting go and letting come, and then realizing, with others.
I
am, alas, not self-aware often enough, although I have taken to wearing
a bracelet as a constant reminder not to get sidetracked from the nine
things I am meant to do, to do the less fruitful and ultimately
unimportant things that we are so relentlessly expected to do; as a
constant reminder to follow my 7-step approach to action; and as a
constant reminder to practice whatever specific exercises I have committed to do to improve my capacities.
As
I apply the above, I reflect with some awe on the fact that my
intentional behaviour is now guided substantially from what I have
learned from people in my gravitational community: The three charts
above are my personal adaptations of models developed by Chris
Corrigan, Patti Digh and Cyndy Roy respectively -- three people I have
never met in person.
So it was with great anticipation that I read the highly-recommended (by four people in my gravitational community) book Improv Wisdom, by Patricia Ryan Madson. I hoped that, through practicing improvisation, I could refine and make easier my 7-step process.
Madson's
book is delightful slim (148 small pages) and readable. It has some
wonderful insights in it. It is based around a set of 'maxims' which,
paraphrased, combined and oversimplified a bit, are as follows:
- Say
"Yes, and...": Adapt yourself. Accept instead of trying to control the
situation. Don't presuppose that you have a better idea, don't change
or steer the subject, don't correct others, don't disengage. Listen and
go with the conversation. Pay attention and go with the situation.
- Be
resilient instead of preparing: Don't anticipate or lock yourself in.
Learn to be ready for whatever may happen. Breathe and be present in
the moment. Learn to hold balance, to yield, to open and hold open.
- Just
begin: Show up. Start with what's important or what's obvious. Step
onto the stage. Be on time and value your time. Move. Act to discover what comes next.
- Make sense: Be clear, even obvious, rather than trying to be clever. Clarify. Explain. Articulate.
- Pay
attention to details: Stand still and look until you really see, listen
until you really hear. Use all your senses. Learn to remember people's
names and other details. (This is especially hard for me because I find
a lot of what I pay attention to uninteresting, which is a terrible
reflection on my inability to concentrate.)
- Be utterly
truthful: Face the facts, and understand them and why they are so. Stop
wishing that things (or you) were different. See procrastination,
blaming, self-criticism and self-sabotage for what they really are, and
then do something about them.
- Be aware of your purpose: As you
achieve it find your next purpose. Ask what would not be achieved if
you were not here. Do things intentionally.
- Share your gifts:
Be a steward not a master. Know and share your gifts and discover new
ones. Appreciate others' gifts. Mention what you appreciate. Be
supportive and accept support. Share control. Make others look good. Be
kind.
- Make mistakes: Mistakes are how we learn, growth, stretch (the word intention
means 'stretching towards', and intending is a risky and error-prone
practice). It's also how life evolves, makes quantum leaps, gets better.
- Play: Have fun. Be boisterous. Smile.
Madson
notes that there are some activities that do not lend themselves to
improvisation, that need to be done in a planned, precise, intentional
way, but these activities are rare, and most of what we do is better
done without a script. Improvisation takes some courage,
self-confidence, and faith in others, which are also qualities best
learned through practice. Madson asks us to ask ourselves: What would you do if you knew you would not fail?
These
ten qualities of excellent improvisation are imbued with generosity,
humility and grace. To some extent you need to bring them to the
practice of improvisation, and to some extent they are what you acquire
and learn through improvisation, in a virtuous cycle.
I've tried
to figure out how these ten qualities of improvisation fit with my
seven step approach to action. I've concluded, I think, that they are
guidelines and hints on how to be better at sensing, self-control,
understanding, questioning, imagining, offering, and collaborating. And
how to cope when you run into trouble with any of the seven steps.
I'm still learning. Once I've practiced a bit more I'll let you know.
Swan photo from Kevin at Bastish.
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Dave Pollard: Business Innovation
Dave Pollard's papers on business innovation & knowledge management
When Requesting Web Links
Link building is an important aspect of search engine optimization. Search engines view a link as a vote of confidence in a website or webpage. The more links from related sources the greater the webpages importance.
When requesting links, use an email template that can be easily customized for specific requests. To locate prospective link partners, search Google or Yahoo for related keywords or phrases.
When Requesting Links
Logo Concepts
A logo concept is more than just an affinity for a specific character. Logos represent a companys brand, and as a result, serious thought and consideration should be put into your logo. Before hand be sure to consider, how the logo will represent your organization and consider the thoughts that will be associated with specific images that you consider for your logo. Does the logo embody traits that can or should be associated with your business? If your company is global, will the image transcend borders or will some of your customers find the image offensive and distasteful?
Logo Concepts
The Ins and Outs of a Stock Photography
Marketers who struggle finding photos for their promotional materials can no utilize the microstock photo websites for instant images.
There are a number of options available to webmasters and publishers in need of images for web content, marketing campaigns, or packaging. Regardless of the website selected, be sure to read the agreement and licensing terms carefully to ensure that you are adhering to the guidelines.
Royalty Free Stock Photography Quiz
Best Search Marketing Blogs
Attempting to stay current on the latest search engine algorithm changes or search optimization tactics can be overwhelming for webmasters attempting to juggle it all. With this in mind, we have put together a list of the industry's best Search Marketing blogs. These blogs are current and discuss important issues related to search engine optimization and search marketing.
Best Search Marketing Blogs
Directory Submissions that Matter
Links from different directories have different values. A webmasters time is limited, and most webmasters want to get the biggest bang for their bucks. So where should they start when it comes to directory submissions? Search engines assign value to links from the various directories differently, so how do you spend your time where it matters most?
Directory Submissions that Matter
Staying Ahead of the Competition
Staying ahead of the competition can be an on-going struggle. While it is not healthy for a company to focus too much time and attention on the competition, it is important to stay abreast of what your competition is doing. When evaluating the competition, assess the industry giants and companies closest to your space. But be sure that you don't exclude the small companies in your assessments. Sometimes a small competitor can have innovative ideas or marketing concepts, but may lack the capital to really benefit from the concept. This may present you with an opportunity.
Staying Ahead of the Competition
Business Mistakes to Avoid
Small businesses and entrepreneurs often repeat the same mistakes. If you are an entrepreneur, the following is a list of critical mistakes to avoid in your new venture:
1. Promising The World
Entrepreneurs will commonly make bold promises that are often impossible to actually deliver. It is important that you stay grounded in reality, and only agree to things that you know you can actually deliver.
Business Mistakes to Avoid
Where to Find the Deal of the Day Websites?
With the economy in a questionable state, everyone is looking for a good deal. Savvy business owners have jumped at the opportunity to carve out a niche for themselves in the struggling economy. Coupon and Deal-Of-The-Day websites have become extremely popular. Everyone is getting into the action, from large conglomerate websites to small specialty shops, and many now have some sort of Deal-Of-The-Day special where an item is offered at a significant discount for a specified and limited period of time. While the Deal-Of-The-Day websites were originally designed to capture impulse purchasers, many financially-conscious penny-pinching shoppers are now monitoring these sites regularly, in search of good deals on products they might need.
Everybody loves a bargain! Where should you look for a bargain?
Deal of the Day Websites - Where Do You Find the Best Deals?
We had an immediate need and found software on Software Deal of the Day at 50% off!
Why Use Web Templates?
Web templates expedite the process of setting up a new website. The idea behind a web template is that it will save time with the creative design and layout process.
In the business world, time is money; hence, using templates can save money. It can be a challenge to find a web designer for hire, and quite often the designers schedule will not always mesh with the needs of a small business. Time rarely controls a web graphic designer. Artists are, well, artistic, and don't necessarily work by the clock. Instead, they work when inspiration strikes, which can be problematic when there are deadlines to meet. Templates are ready-made, and can be easily edited, allowing you to instantly create a website.
Why Use Web Templates?
Take Website Usability to the Next Level
Website usability is more than just a good navigational structure. A large number of people have visual or hearing disabilities, so you should design your website in ways that allow those with either minor or significant impairments to view and navigate your web content. The following tips will help expand your website's usability so that all users, regardless of their sensory perception and abilities, are able to take advantage of your web content...
Take Website Usability to the Next Level
Reaping the Podcast Rewards
Podcasting is a viable and interesting new method of communication. Use podcasting to boost your company to the forefront of your industry. Leveraging this powerful communication tool will give you a leg up on the competition.
Reaping the Podcast Rewards
A Perfect Link
Webmasters are given the advice that they must attract links, but the key is not just to attract links... they need to attract good links. But what is the perfect link? The search for the perfect link need not be a quest in vain. Consider the following when attempting to attract links...
A Perfect Link
Gaining in Google
Google tends to not rank new domains. In an effort to deter spammers from generating new websites, Google has implemented filters for new websites, which means that it can be a challenge for a new website to rank in Googles organic search results until they are deemed trustworthy.
Gaining in Google
Choose a Domain
Choosing a domain is one of the first steps in establishing an online presence. Changing a domain after-the-fact can be time consuming, and can be harmful to search engine ranking, so it is best to get it right the first time around. Follow these simple steps to select a domain name that will represent your online brand...
Choose A Domain
Made for AdSense Websites
There is nothing wrong with profiting from a website -- commercialization on the web is big business. But there needs to be value that distinguishes a website from its competitors. Content should be designed for website visitors, not for advertisements or search engines. Ultimately, the long-term profitability of a the website will rely on the value of the content contained in the website. If the content lacks value, the website will likely be profitable for only a short amount of time.
Made for AdSense Websites
Blog Posts that Get Attention
Blogs are now a dime a dozen, and bloggers need to make their blog posts stand out. Developing a blog following is not as easy as it once was. Learn how to write blog posts that attract readers and retain their attention. Follow these guidelines to cultivate readers...
Blog Posts that Get Attention
Avoid Duplicate Content Penalties in the Search Engines
Large search engines attempt to filter their search results by removing any results that duplicate the content of other search results. Such filtering is referred to as duplicate content penalty.
It is important to understand and identify what duplicate content actually is. Duplicate content is generally defined as substantive blocks of text that are copied from one site to another. Some webmasters try to use duplicated content in an attempt to manipulate and influence search engine rankings. The search community still occasionally debates the legitimacy and existence of duplicate content filters, but whether they exist today, or will exist tomorrow, is really irrelevant. Most webmasters have simply accepted the fact that the duplicate content penalty is currently enforced by at least some of the major search engines.
Avoid Duplicate Content Penalties
Performing Better Searches
Performing and perfecting search engine results can save web surfers lots of time and energy. Understanding the nuances of searching allows researchers to immediately drill down and locate the information they are seeking, without having to wade through a myriad of irrelevant search results in the process. The increasing complexity of search engines has made understanding search engines a necessity for those who spend any amount of time online. The following search tips are standards that will work in most of the major search engines.
Performing Better Searches
10 Podcasting Tips
What defines a good podcast? Make no mistake -- there is a difference between a good podcast and a not-so-good podcast. A high-caliber podcast is much more than just decent content. The sound quality, and the way a podcast is recorded, will impact the value of the podcast as well. Podcast structure and pre-planning are also important; do not skimp on the production, as it too can make or break a podcast.
Podcast production takes effort, but anything worth doing is worth doing right. Use these tips to help produce a quality podcast that will be distinguished above other related podcasts...
10 Podcasting Tips
How is Your Business Different
Creating a marketing and business plan for a small business can at times seem like an overwhelming task for a new business owner. Yet, it need not be. A business plan is simply a formal statement that contains a set of business goals; and a marketing plan outlines the necessary actions which the business needs to take in order to achieve its marketing objectives.
How is Your Business Different
Real Estate Video Podcast
Let the home shine by using technology to help market the property. Present the home in the best possible light, and through a variety of channels, and watch sales soar.
Tips for Realty Video Podcasts
Website Sales Purpose
When designing a website, it is important that webmasters ask some general questions before they begin the design process...
Website Sales Purpose
Web Log Analysis
Everyone who understands Internet Marketing will tell you to analyze your web logs... but what does that really mean? What particular things should you pay attention to when analyzing your web logs?
Web Log Analysis
Avoid These Common Web Mistakes
Webmasters need to avoid making these common web design mistakes. Website visitors who have a pleasant experience on a website are more likely to trust the website, and as such they are more likely to purchase products from that website. Use the following guide to avoid some of the more common web design mistakes...
Avoid These Common Web Mistakes
Research, Optimize, Monitor and Maintain
The formula for webmasters looking for success with the search engines is ROMM (Research, Optimize, Monitor, and Maintain). Here are some helpful tips and details about each portion of the ROMM concept...
Research, Optimize, Monitor and Maintain
Web Design Questions and Answers
How much do you know about web design? Take this web design quiz to find out how much you know about web design...
Web Design Questions and Answers
RSS Feed Etiquette
We felt it would be helpful to provide general guidelines for those constructing an RSS 2.0 feed. In general, the following are guidelines for constructing an RSS feed. It is good to get into the habit of validating the RSS feed, either with software, or with an online validator.
RSS Feed Etiquette
HTML Web Templates
HTML website templates can significantly ease the burden of designing and creating websites by providing webmasters with a ready-made web layout, structure, basic graphics, and color scheme. Templates can generally be edited and customized with any HTML editor. The biggest advantage for webmasters using ready-made templates is the amount of time that can be saved. There are a number of websites that provide ready-made HTML templates. We have compiled a list of some popular sites to make the search process easier.
HTML Web Templates
Internet Marketing Resolutions
Starting a New Year is all about self-reflecting. Most individuals celebrate the incoming year by looking back, determining what goals were met and what goals fell short. Most who have made past resolutions then look forward and resolve to do better in the coming year.
Like any Internet marketer, I have a long laundry list of things that I intend to get to... invariably each year the list grows longer, and rarely do I make any significant headway on new projects, ideas, or marketing techniques. I resolve for that to change in 2008! I have compiled a list of Internet Marketing resolutions for the coming year. If your list is already too long, consider saving time and using the list below.
Internet Marketing Resolutions
What is Hot and What is Not in Technology for 2008
Top 10 Winners Predicted for 2008
After looking into my crystal ball, I have made a cluster of predictions about what will be hot, and what will be not so hot in technology for 2008.
1. Video
YouTube has not shown any signs of slowing down. With the increasing popularity of portability and the increase of video-viewing technology, the growth of video is unlikely to slow down.
2. Healthy
Healthy is in. It is not only fashionable, but now cool to be healthy. Maybe this will help counter the rise in obesity in the US. Even those who give in to their cravings and indulge agree that it is cool to be healthy. Organic foods are at an all time high with an increase of roughly 20% per year in the US! This may also be a top New Year Resolution.
3. Long Tail
The Long Tail is still hot. Small businesses and big business are all attempting to capture the famed long tail.
4. Buy USA
Buying USA is in. The falling dollar has made US products more competitive in foreign markets. Moreover, the quality issues that came to light in 2007 (lead in various Chinese products) have made US consumers more conscious about buying US manufactured products.
What is Hot and What is Not in Technology for 2008
2007 Reflections, 2008 Predictions
The lens through which viewers receive their news has changed. The images of struggle are no longer frozen in time; technology has helped preserve and personalize these conflicts by producing moving tributes to the conflicts of humankind.
The strife and internal conflicts that marred the globe in 2006 continued into 2007: Mynamar (Burma), Palestine and Lebanon all continue to struggle with internal conflicts in their borders. The differences between 2006 and 2007 are not obvious; however, under close examination, it is evident that several external struggles have been transformed into internal conflicts. In 2006, many countries attempted to influence their neighbors. This was evident with Iran attempting to influence the turmoil in Iraq, and Syria attempting to control Lebanon. Both struggles have evolved into internal personal conflicts in 2007.
2007 Reflections, 2008 Predictions
Create Professional RSS Feeds
More and more companies are using RSS as a means to communicate, so having an RSS feed that is professional and well polished will help differentiate your company from your competition. What makes an RSS feed professional? Follow these simple steps to polish your RSS feed and take it to the next level...
Create Professional RSS Feeds
Reputation Management
None of us enjoy having our name, our company, or our product smeared and sullied online. Online libel is difficult, if not impossible, to prosecute. Learn to use the tools within your grasp to manage your reputation and minimize the impact of any defamatory comments.
Reputation Management
Free Web Marketing Tips
Not all web marketing needs to cost money. Aside from website submissions, there are a number of things that web marketers can do that are free, though they may be rather time-consuming. Other marketing tactics are relatively inexpensive, and are often well worth the investment.
Follow these basic steps to market your website and business.
Free Web Marketing Tips
Business Card Tips
Networking is an invaluable opportunity, and one that should not be wasted. In order to maximize networking, it is strongly suggested that all business professionals carry business cards. The business cards can be exchanged during introductions, both as a convenience and as a memory aid. In other words, business cards allow networkers to further the relationship through future contact.
Business cards may include one or more aspects of striking visual design, but should also contain important contact information. Use this guide to make the most of your business cards:
Business Card Tips
Real Estate and RSS Feeds
RSS feeds are becoming an essential tool for Realtors, who are struggling in a declining market. Real estate offices that adopt technology as a marketing tool will remain one step ahead of their competition.
Realtors use RSS to Expand Their Reach
The Internets Influence on Politics
Can, and will, the next generation of politicians exploit the communication mediums available to them? Will the new communication mediums have the power to influence public opinion? Will politicians be the victims of technology, or will they use it to their benefit? Will one party benefit from the use of the technology more than another?
The Internets Influence on Politics
Basic Color Theory
The first box of crayons you ever got probably had the basic eight: black, white, red, yellow, blue, purple, brown and orange. And at that time, this was all you needed—every shade in the world fit into one of these categories. And then you discovered pink and you had to get the new box with sixteen colors. Your palette expanded. Gray, peach, silver…before long, you asked for the big one. The mother of all crayons. The 64 count set with the sharpener on the box. Surely now you had them all; every color was in your grasp.
Color is an important form of nonverbal communication. From the clothes we wear to the food we eat, color influences our choices. Our perception of the world is affected by color. Likewise, the way the world perceives us is also affected by color. In fact, color, many times, is the most significant feature of an item. Designers, therefore, cannot afford to treat color lightly.
Basic Color Theory
Social Bookmarking Quiz
Take this Social Bookmarking Quiz and determine how much you know about the collective voice!
Social Bookmarking Quiz
Technology and Politics
Maybe as candidates are forced back to earth and voters gain a stake in the process, America will become the voice of the unschooled as well as the educated, the poor as well as the rich, men and women of all ages and every race. After all, isn’t that what democracy is supposed to be?
Technology and Politics
What Makes a Good Logo?
What is a logo?
A logo is a design, graphical representation, image or symbol that represents a business or organization. Logos were initially used to distinguish and differentiate products, the logos assisted purchasers in finding the product they prefer or have come to trust (or not trust). When product selections were limited and items were marked with a logo which a consumer was familiar they would naturally assume a certain level of quality or value, even if they had not previously used that specific product from that vendor. Now many companies not only have a corporate logo, but they have a logo to represent each of their products or product lines.
The company or product logo typically appears on all printed media or websites that are associated with the company or product. The logo appears in all marketing material and media.
What Makes a Good Logo
Listen to Your Customers
Mastering the art of managing customer complaints can seem like a thankless job, but keep in mind that for every customer that shares their worries, concerns or complaints, there are likely more that did not express their dissatisfaction, and instead simply moved on to a competitor. Customer complaints can, and should be treated as opportunities.
Customers that are willing to communicate can help provide information on how your product or service is being used in a specific market segment. Complaints give you the opportunity to see how your company is falling short of customer expectations.
Listen to Your Customers
Blog Tips for SEO
Blogs are the current rage, and many webmasters have blogs but fail to use their blog to its full potential. Blogs provide a steady stream of fresh content, and if this content is written and managed properly, blogs have the ability to increase a website's ranking in the search engines.
Blog Tips for SEO
Common Errors that Kill Search Engine Ranking
Tricking the search engines just does not work. The search engines do not look kindly upon webmasters who attempt to deceive the search engines about the content contained on a webpage.
1. Cloaking
Cloaking a website is a stealth technique used to provide a copy of a web page to search engines while providing an alternate copy to website visitors. The website copy provided to the search engine is optimized and not always reflective of the real content contained on the webpage.
Common Errors that Kill Search Engine Ranking
Getting Press Coverage
Press exposure can significantly impact a small businesses success. Press releases are not just for big businesses; many small businesses find press releases to be an inexpensive way to gain exposure and attention. It is not uncommon for reporters from magazines, newspapers or blogs to scan press releases as a means to locate content.
Getting Press Coverage
Financial Companies are Embracing RSS
Financial institutions are reaching out to clients using RSS feeds. While banks and financial institutions are usually slow to adopt new technology, that is not the case with RSS adoption. More and more professionals are using RSS in innovative ways, to stay ahead of their competition.
Financial Companies are Embracing RSS
Keep Your Website Search Friendly
So you have a fantastic website but no one ever visits. You may ask? Why? Your website should be designed with search engines in mind. Too many web designers are graphic artists that excel at image manipulation, but lack a basic understanding of search engine optimization. Web design and search engine optimization (SEO) should not be mutually exclusive. Webmasters should have a clear understanding of both design techniques and how the search engines work.
Keep Your Website Search Friendly
Royalty Free Stock Photography for Websites
Stock photography websites contain thousands of existing photographs that can be licensed for specific uses. A customer who uses stock photography instead of hiring a photographer can save time, effort and money. Typically publishers can either purchase exclusive rights to a single image or they can purchase a subscription of sorts. The subscriptions allow publishers to download a limited number of photos over a specified period of time.
Stock photo websites allow webmasters, marketers and publishers to locate pictures for their marketing and promotional materials without the hassle of organizing a photo shoot. With copyright laws businesses must be very careful in using unlicensed photos.
There are also risks to using free photographs. Many of the free websites contain collaborative works from multiple photographers and artists. While the websites attempt to monitor the images in their collections in violation of copyright laws, there are no guarantees. If you opt to use photographs or images from a free portal, it is important to keep this in mind.
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