Road Rash

How Do You Spell Champion? V-O-I-G-T!

Team Saxo Bank's Jens Voigt!

We rocked this photo while standing close enough to feel the road dirt from his tires. Just look at the intensity on his face, and this was the Prologue...not even day 1 yet. He's a machine...

I have never seen the grit displayed at this years Tour De France. It's mind blowing the amount of tenacity these riders have shown through multiple crashes, rain, extreme heat and ridiculous mind games. But my "Champ of the Tour" Award has to go to Jens Voigt, hands down! Check out the two stories I have linked to below to find out why. He not only survived a blow out going crazy fast down a descent he took whatever bike was handy and rode on to find his team car in order to get a new one. Note, the high performance shoes shoved into the old school shoe cages, classic!  He never says DIE. Only a loss of consciousness during last year's tour stopped him. It doesn't matter what number is next to his name when he finishes in Paris or what color jersey he's NOT wearing, he is a true champion in my book any day of the week and twice on Sunday.

This is him last year, and if he hadn't lost consciousness I guarantee he'd have been up and back on his bike to finish the stage.

http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/battered-voigt-determined-to-reach-paris

http://www.bicycling.com/tour-de-france/tour-features/saying-no-sag-wagon

Contador Lacks Respect for Cycling So I Lack Respect for Him.

Ok, so it's been awhile since I blogged. I could make excuses but instead I'll just get right into it. 

 

Stage 15 of the 2010 Tour de France. What can I say? Should Contador have waited, yes. Can you make comparisons to other sports and say that it was Schleck's own fault, sure but this isn't another sport this is professional cycling. There are unwritten rules that those that deserve the title of Champion follow. A respect for the sport, a respect for the race and Contador failed to follow those. Might he be the winner of the 2010 Tour de France, maybe. But will he be considered a champion with the respect and reverence of cycling fans? No. 

There is something to be said about beating the man, not the machine. If your competition has a mechanical failure and you take advantage of that failure and attack what does that say about you? The Tour de France proves who is the strongest and who has the most endurance, a mechanical failure doesn't give you a true indication of that. Say and believe what you want about Lance Armstrong and his did he or didn't he dope drama but that man respects the sport, respects the Tour and above all else respects his adversaries. He waited for Jan Ullrich in 2001 and has cooled the heels of the peloton on many other occasions when needed. 

Contador has shown over and over his lack of respect for anyone else and I contend a lack of respect for the sport. He seems, in my opinion, to only respect competition and winning at any cost.

There, I have said my piece. 

BE A PERSON. BUT MORE IMPORTANTLY BE THE SAME PERSON

BE A PERSON. BUT MORE IMPORTANTLY ALWAYS BE THE SAME PERSON.

 

Here is my counterpoint on personal branding in response to the original post by MIke Brown of Brainzooming

Click Here for the Original Brainzooming Post.

Here is my counterpoint....agree, disagree, feel free to comment.

Be authentic, be transparent, be a person other people WANT to do business with. These are points made again and again by the many social media ‘gurus’ I have read or listened to as they presented on engaging in the social space. Ok, I buy that. Business in any space is based on relationships. You buy from, listen to, connect with people that you like and trust.

So, how do you get people to like and trust you? By being yourself. So, how, unless you are schizophrenic, can you be two, three, four different personal brands and still be yourself?

No matter what business you represent you are still you…first and foremost a person with thoughts, feelings, opinions, views and a personality. You are this person no matter where you go or who you represent or who you interact with; this I believe is the definition of being an authentic person. You are who you are and adjusting that to fit the audience you are speaking to is disingenuous.

Now I am not speaking to the need when addressing a group of church goers to decide not to drop the F-bomb in order for the rest of your words to be heard so they don’t get caught up in the obscenity, that’s just manners…not branding. I am speaking to the practice of adjusting your viewpoint or personality to fit the context or audience you are in the midst of. Didn’t we hate those kids in school the ones who were whatever everyone wanted them to be or who everyone around them was, didn’t we have a name for them….oh right….FAKE.

Some may make the argument about varying content/interests and having different accounts depending on what topics you are talking about. It’s ok to be well-rounded, it’s even preferred. We all have varying interests and if you are only worth listening to on one subject what does that say about you? Sites like Twitter have lists to divide people by content and you might just have an opportunity to educate others on something new to them, because they follow you.

None of this is to mean that you shouldn’t place yourself in positions where you will interact with those who can either inspire/benefit you or vice versa; that’s just being smart about positioning yourself. Positioning yourself in the company of or in front of the right people isn’t having different brands for yourself; it’s still being the same person, just in a different locale.

And just to clarify I didn’t say I “drop the leavers” I said “people take or leave me, some leave me, and that’s ok…I’ll stick with the takers”. I have never believed in being anything that I wasn’t or being what anyone else wanted me to be I feel that if I am myself through and through those I am supposed to do business with either personally or professionally will cross my path and we’ll enjoy each other’s authenticity.

YOU ARE HERE, SMARTASS. That's just how I roll

YOU ARE HERE, SMARTASS. That's just how I roll.

This is a venn diagram made about me by my own boyfriend. It's no secret to anyone who has interacted with me for more than 5 minutes that this diagram is absolutely accurate. I don't ever pretend to be anything that I am not, I feel it's a waste of time, energy and truth. So why am I sharing this with you?

It has come to my attention in the last few weeks that the explosion of social media has created a population of users who are professing that they are being 'real' online and connecting with others and creating communities of users who are true.  I think, if they were really true to themselves they would have to admit that they are interacting on a purely superficial level but expecting others to trust, follow and eventually buy from, hire or recommend their services to others that we value. Unless your follower or those you are following is someone you know in person or you've met more than once in the flesh, they are not truly as important as you keep saying they are. If they dropped off the social planet tomorrow you'd replace their spot in your life as quickly as you can log into your twitter account.

So why is that the case?

Because very few people are actually spending any emotional currency online. These people that I speak of are being who they think we want them to be, but the funny thing is we just want them to be themselves. I want to know the person I am engaging with online, I want to know the personality behind the twitter account, even if the account is a brand.

Everyone who follows anything I put out online can tell that the venn diagram above is true of me. I don't hide any part of my personality online, I don't try to be who I think those who are following me want me to be, that's too exhausting. I have enough to do in life that I don't have time to worry about what part of my personality I need to display depending on what social networking site I am currently on. If someone who is following me on twitter because of something I posted about my work is suddenly offended by a smartass comment I make about last night’s Lost episode, then that's fine and they can unfollow me if they so choose. Their rejection online won't hurt my feelings, because I don’t really know them anyway and if we were meant to connect for personal or professional reasons they’d laugh at my joke and one up me with something better, because that just how I roll.

The one thing you need to do to get more followers and how to keep them

THE ONE THING YOU NEED TO DO TO GET MORE FANS AND FOLLOWERS

AND 

THE ONE THING YOU NEED TO DO TO KEEP THEM

It's tough as new technology is developed and we all venture into the social media arena together to learn all the etiquette involved with all that is going on. This weekend I was reminded of two important points to keep in mind when you are communicating via social media.

 

The first is to grow your audience organically. There are tons of 'fly-by-night' online companies offering to get you more twitter followers...FAST, EASY, NOW. The number means nothing. Old adages are old adages for a reason, because for the most part they are true and "quality over quantity" is absolutely true here. It doesn't matter if you have 200 or 2000 followers it matters if they are engaged in your conversation, if they care about you and your brand. If you have 200 followers who are committed to you and will act when asked that is far more valuable than 2000 followers who never engage with you and could care less when you ask them to act. If you are good at what you do, they will come. Others will recommend you, others will promote you because they believe in what you provide. It takes time, it's an investment....not a purchase. Anything worth having is worth working and waiting for. I know it's not what we want to hear but it's the truth. In this world of immediate gratification at every turn with a medium that is all about immediacy it is sometimes hard to accept that success at it takes time and commitment, but it's true.

 

The second is like any other form of communication it is not what you say or your intent that matters it is how it is interpreted by the audience who reads it. The saying goes that there are three sides to every story my side, your side and the truth. And the only side that matters is your side. Remember that on the other end of that 'post' button are flesh and blood humans and they have their own frame of reference through which they are digesting your words. Every number on your friend or follower list corresponds to a real human, with their own narrative and their own set of feelings. Remember to take that into consideration when posting. The use of the cocktail party analogy for social media has been used many times in books published on the subject and it's a good analogy to keep in mind. Before you click 'post' ask yourself this question...If I was standing in a room with all those on my friend/follower list would I say this out loud to them? If you wouldn't or if you would really have to think about it then don't post it, remember we are all on this spinning rock together, let's remember that.

 

Sticks & Stones from Coulter & Palin

STICKS AND STONES.

Here we have Ann Coulter and Sarah Palin, many are familiar with them but not for noble reasons. Both are in the news this morning. Both stories focusing on their RIGHT to free speech. Here we go again.

Why is it that these type of stories always focus on the speakers RIGHT to free speech and not the responsibility that goes along with having a RIGHT.

The 1st Amendment to the Constitution, yes we all have the RIGHT to free speech, and it is a wonderful thing that we have that right. We can stand on a street corner and tell anyone who will listen that we disagree with our government, that is a blessed gift from our forefathers. But with any RIGHT comes the responsibility to use that RIGHT wisely.

Now, I know some will argue that it is also our God-given RIGHT to be an ignorant idiot, and I would guess you are correct. But once you cross over that invisible line into someone with a public presence, someone the media will follow, quote, critique and debate your responsibility becomes even greater, because more people than just those who pass you on the street corner are listening. And I am not infringing on anyones RIGHT of free speech I am requesting that everyone, but especially those in the public eye, remember their responsibilities as a member of the human race. (Refer to my post about the Golden Rule) We have a responsibility as humans living on this earth together to respect one another for our differences, that doesn't mean you have to agree with someone else's opinion but the RIGHT to free speech means you have to respect that they have the RIGHT to have it and speak it freely. 

RIGHTS mean nothing if no one respects them. When your need for publicity exceeds your ability to be a good human the media needs to stop following, quoting, critiquing and debating you. I heard a debate regarding Sarah Palin's use of the phrase Don't Retreat....RELOAD on her twitter page yesterday and her use of this cross hair graphic on her Facebook page  and I have to say while I don't believe she was calling for Republicans to load actual weapons against democrats she is also media savvy enough to know that this gets her name in the press again. Is it too much to ask that those in the media limelight for political reasons utilize the opportunity for the good of the country not just the good of their own narcissistic need to be in the press? That they use their "powers for good instead of evil" as the saying goes. If people will turn the cameras on you when you speak and you truly disagree with the status quo then use that media time to educate people in a well-spoken intelligent manner rather than sound bytes and rhetoric that incites ignorant debate rather than true change.

As far as Ann Coulter goes it's saddening to me that a woman with such presence and strength chooses to spend her words insulting people and deriding their heritage rather than using it to encourage other women to be strong and speak their minds. Imagine what good she could do if she used her talents (and I do believe she is a strong and talented woman - it takes true skill to stand up and debate against some truly boorish men, as she has done skillfully in the past) to inspire young girls. To encourage them to be proud of their intelligence and be outspoken in their beliefs. Instead she is using those same skills to get publicity by being a bully and making money/getting fame from hurting other human beings. As far as I can tell Ms. Coulter is a human being as well (until science proves me wrong I will go on believing she is indeed human) is there no compassion in her heart for any one else in the human race? It is sad to see someone with such strength and intelligence use those skills to tear down others, especially other women.

I just ask that we be smart, enjoy our RIGHT to free speech and all the other RIGHTS our forefathers and our current service men and women fight to keep in tact. But when the day is over RESPECT others and their right to have their particular views and use your words to better the world not cause pain to others. "Sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me", is a fallacy. Words can hurt much deeper and for far longer than any stick or stone you can throw at me and I just ask that  you think about that before you hurl them as a weapon.  

The Golden Rule

 

The Golden Rule: Do Unto Others As You Would Have Them Do Unto You. 

I know it's basic and we all learned it in pre-school. However, I feel that very few remember the 'rule' and even fewer follow it. It's not just 'don't call someone a name because you wouldn't like to be called a name', although that is important....it's everything. 

If you want others to listen to your ideas and give them respect....then you do the same, doesn't even matter if it's a good idea, they spent time, effort, energy, and their creativity on it. 

If you want others to let you merge into traffic...then you do the same, you don't always have to be first.

If you want others to help you when you most need it.....then you help them when they most need it, even if it's inconvenient for you....because it might be inconvenient for them when you most need it.

If you would appreciate understanding for your situation....be understanding of others in their situation, especially since you can have no way of REALLY knowing anyone else's plight.

If you'd appreciate someone giving you their undivided attention and actually hearing you when you speak....then give the same to them, don't check your phone while they are talking, don't look at your computer monitor, don't look anywhere but at them....at their face....in their eyes. 

Believe me I am the consummate multi-tasker (if there were a multi-tasking olympics I'd win gold) but we need to slow down and focus on one thing at a time, especially when that "thing" is another person. Show someone they are important and who knows they might just do the same for you.