All posts in Work

A Year Ago…I lived in Mongolia

by jaywalk1 on November 2, 2012 in Thoughts, Work with No comments

Last night I had the great opportunity to reconnect with a friend and former co-worker from my days in Mongolia. We had a great time reminiscing and comparing our expat trials and tribulations. All good fun.

However, it stuck with me today and really made me think. A year ago, I really was living in Mongolia. Those were definitely crazy times but worth it personally and professionally.

Here’s a quiet, little blog where I documented parts of the experience: DC to UB.

 

Inner Chuckle: The “How Might We” Question

by jaywalk1 on September 18, 2012 in Thoughts, Work with No comments
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Working with designers and developers can be very challenging in our line of work. When you are tasked with not only being creative, but providing creative solutions as well, you end up in an interesting place.
You’ve left the realm of existing because you are shooting for something new.
But, if you’re not in that space, you have to find your way into the realm of possibility.
I can come up with 3 million ideas for online engagement, but the million dollar question (sometimes literally…) is whether or not we can build a platform or find one that can be customized to facilitate those ideas. I fully trust my team of designers and developers, so if they say something’s not possible, I’ll believe it.
That said, we were only talking about the execution. The idea can still be brought to life; we just need to pinpoint the right way to do it. This is when the “how might we” question comes into play!
I read this Harvard Business Review post on what they call the “Secret Phrase Top Innovators Use” and chuckled because I constantly find myself asking this question. You’d be surprised at what you can come up with when “No” is no longer an option.

The Truth about LinkedIn

by jaywalk1 on August 22, 2012 in Professional Development, Social Media, Social Networking, Thoughts, Work with No comments
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The truth about LinkedIn is that it is not meant for the lazy. Networking is actually work, and it doesn’t become much easier when you are trying to connect online.

If anything, things can become a little more difficult because you will be competing with emails and three million other distractions as a person browses through their LinkedIn profiles.

It is so important to make a clear ask and provide some background when you attempt to connect with someone via the popular professional networking platform.

So what sparked this post?

A piece from blogger and PR pro Sakita Holley. If you’re not already, you should follow her on Twitter for some inspiration, good PR tips and laughs. For me, the laughs come because she has no problem telling it like it is. Case in point:

BC using #Linkedin‘s default request msg is hustlin’ backwards, I give you six ways to do it right.

With that tweet came a link to a post about LinkedIn featured in Madame Noire. Sakita successfully tells it like it is when it comes to LinkedIn invitations and provides six templates that you can tailor when you reach out to people in a variety of scenarios, from connecting with former co-workers to seeking out prospective employers. Check it our here.

 

Today’s Lesson: Explore What You Feel

by jaywalk1 on August 13, 2012 in Thoughts, Work with No comments

 

I recently spoke with a colleague about a project we were working on. To be honest, it was difficult to find a rhythm with people on the project and the feedback we received was not stellar. I could live with it, but it was not what I wanted to hear.

As I shared the feedback with my teammate, she said: “I knew it. I just felt like there was something off and we have never had that feeling with a project before. I could feel it, and they always say that if you’re feeling it, they’re feeling it.”

At the time, I had a feeling too, but I wanted to be optimistic. When there’s an inkling of trouble, my first instinct is to try to fix it – usually by finding a way to deliver more than what is expected. As PR pros we provide a service – be it strategy or outreach or reports. I thought that if I could up the service, the feeling would go away on my side and theirs. Unfortunately, there’s not always enough time to fix the problem this way.

The lesson: You may not always have enough time for the workaround. Explore what you feel…and then hit it head on.

Problem noted. Solution realized.

Hopefully moving forward, the feelings you get from projects and teams are more energetic like those of James Brown or will.i.am.

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