How do you overcome your mountains? The challenges you face both in business and personally – are you dealing with the small mountains to overcome the big? There’s a fairly well-known phrase that goes, “Stop making mountains out of molehills.” For anyone that’s not aware of it, it’s basically saying that there’s no need to make a big deal out of something much smaller. Usually it’s aimed at people who make a song and dance about the smallest thing. You know,…

Sometimes, as marketers and/or business owners, we over-complicate matters and offer so many facts on ideas and products that none of them stick. Sometimes, the simplest of ideas work. This ebook is a collection of simple ideas that may work for you (they originally appeared on my Posterous account).  Enjoy. (Either click on the image to open, or right click and “Save Link As” to download) Pin it

Today sees a very cool event called Help a PR Pro Out, or HAPPO. Initiated by Arik Hanson and Valerie Simon, its aim is simple – to connect PR jobseekers with agencies and businesses with PR positions available. I’m honoured to be part of the “team” that’s bringing HAPPO to Toronto, along with PR guy supreme Dave Fleet, of Thornley Fallis. Below you’ll find some current job listings in the Toronto and GTA area – please retweet on Twitter (there’s…

So this week’s been really quiet on here, due to a particularly busy project over at Maritz Canada. Now that project has at least resorted to more normal activity levels, I’ll be jumping back in here and reverting back to normal frequency. First up will be the continuation and conclusion of the 7 Days to Turn Your Blog Into a Social Media Hub series, and this will be followed by some thoughts I’ve been having around operational social media and…

You have a new product. You need to test it before it goes public. You hire an agency to carry out a focus group for you. You pay people to tell you what, essentially, you want to hear (many focus group participants won’t be completely honest since they want repeat invitations). You’ve just spent five figures to find out just a tiny bit more than you knew before about your product. Now. You have a new product. You need to…

Ideas begin with one person, but the best ones are chewed over by many before being released to the public. There’s a reason for this. Personal bias and parental protection often makes us myopic about letting go, and this can make us miss the bigger picture. Afterward, we realize our good idea became great because of universal viewpoints. Something to keep in mind the next time you’re about to tell someone they’re too junior to offer an input into your…

Untapped is a weekly video blog that looks at everything and anything. Not just social media; not just business; not just blogging; but more the human voices behind these and more. To receive the latest episodes, feel free to subscribe via email and get the latest video in your Inbox every week. Stupidity Tries Pin it

This is the fourth part of a seven part mini-series looking at how and why to turn your blog into a social media hub. You’ll be able to find the complete series here. So far we’ve looked at prepping the networks you’re going to be using for your hub, and what features you might want to consider. By now, you should have a pretty strong idea on what your hub is going to look like, so all we need to do…

In 1986 I thought I ruled the world. I had just turned 18 and the world was mine to use as I saw fit. In 1988, I almost died in a car crash that would leave me in hospital for a month and on crutches for three. In 1997, I was on top of the world. I was in a lucrative job and living the bachelor life to the fullest. In 1998, I had been unemployed for 6 months and…

This is the third part of a seven part mini-series looking at how and why to turn your blog into a social media hub. You’ll be able to find the complete series here. Last time we looked at decluttering your social networks, for the simple reason that having too many spreads you too thin. Being spread too thin dulls your impact, and to use social media for your goals (and meet those of your customers) you need to have impact at…