Rothacker Reviews

Malcolm and What the Dog Saw

Absence does make the heart grow fonder.

Due to our present financial situation, I've had to hold off on buying new books. But like a person of ill-fortune who finds scraps of food in the street, I've gone back to my bookshelf and reread old friends. While the spark of new discovery is no longer there, the pulse beats of soothing wisdom wear well in the ruts of my neural pathways. It's all good.

I recently received Malcolm Gladwell's book What the Dog Saw for a Christmas present. What an absolute wonderful spark! Normally, with a book like this, I would scorch through one reading and then go back and read it twice more. Not this time. I plan on sipping this baby like strong whiskey. I'm gonna keep adding ice cubes till the flavor's gone.

You know how when you were a kid and dreamed of being a rock star? You know, when you had hair. You'd get up on stage with your crew and lay down such powerful beats-n-chords you'd melt the girls in the first hundred rows from the heat. And then when those vocals kicked in the girls' heat turned into a dampness... Well, that and your drop-dead good looks carried on by a tight body - underneath all that hair.

It's that connection man. That Ed Sullivan-Beatles-girls-screaming-losing-their-minds-connection. That grab-the-soul-n-squeeze-till-it-hurts-so-good connection. 

In the preface to What the Dog Saw, Malcolm talks about a similar connection (minus the wetness). Malcolm talks about how "good writing succeeds or fails on the strength of its ability to engage you, to make you think, to give you a glimpse into someone else's head..." This glimpse into someone else's head is what the book is about.

As a writer, you dream of laying down such powerful music your readers white knuckle ride your words. It doesn't get any better than that. Right now I'm listening to Nazareth's Love Hurts and I am most certainly dreaming...

Happy New Years!

Feeding Your Muse

Ray Bradbury, author of Fahrenheit 451 and one of the most popular American writers of all time, where do you get your ideas from?

Ray tells us where our muse is in the chapter How to Keep and Feed a Muse, in his book Zen in the Art of Writing.  This one chapter is worth the price of the book.  One place our muse isn't, is out there, floating in the wispy ether of never-never land waiting to be summoned by chance, stance or circumstance.

Ray tells us our muse lies within and can come from two different sources.  One is the life that we've lived.  The other is what we feed ourselves by way of reading.  Ray strongly recommends ingesting poetry, essays and books that cater to our senses.  He says to read material written by authors who write the way that we hope to write.  And also not to feel bad about a diet of comic books, TV shows, plays, magazines and film.  Passion is what pulls this all together.  Passion fueled by curiosity to explore and learn from all of these sources.

Wanted muse from Bayroadphoto/laura on Flickr; Three muse by third.eve on Flickr;

Zen in the Art of Writing is a must read!

Isabel Joely Black: Writing Coach

What are the qualities of a good writing coach?

• A passion for writing
• An active imagination
• A deep love of writing
• A love of art
• A proven track record
• A degree of sensitivity
• Inspirational
• Creative
• A desire to see others flourish
• Intuitive
• Compassionate

Absolutely.  And Isabel Joely Black is everyone of the above!  These characteristics are clear and evident in her writing and communication. After doing a little research on Joely, it is clear and evident that others feel the same way too. 

Joely Black is an incredibly intuitive and generously supportive writing coach.  The progress I've made with my writing struggles since I've been working with her have been remarkable.  Diane Whiddon-Brown, author of Outdrivingmyheadlights.com

Read more from Diane here.

I was so excited when the opportunity arose to work with Joely as my writing coach.  I was feeling very stuck and uninspired before we began working together.  But she is so excited about writing and the art of living creatively that it is impossible to remain stuck around her for long.  Working with her has helped me give myself permission to relax, and to let go all of the rules I was making up about how writing was "supposed" to be.  Jenny Ryan, author of Using My Powers For Good.

And for good measure visit with Alex Fayle.

Now everything that I've told you about Joely is just there.  It's there in black and white for all to see.  But I need to tell you something else about the girl that is there.  It's something that is not necessarily in black and white.  But when you read her words you can just feel it resonate throughout your body.  Isabel Joely Black is thoughtful.  And if I am looking for a writing coach, that's what I'm looking for first!

By the way, if you are in search of a fantasy novel about a young woman on a journey of self-discovery, bent on learning right from wrong, and set in fantastical world...with an occasional dragon, search no more.  Visit Joely's most excellent work: AMNAR THE AWAKENING.

Mary Pipher on Writing: Be Brief

Mary Pipher, in her book, Writing to Save the World, says, "Our goal as writers is to convey to readers the greatest meaning with the most precise images and the fewest words."

Mary also says, "Your desire to communicate originates from some internal combustion of intellect, heart and experience."

I reviewed Mary's book last year.  The intention of today's post was to extract two quotes from Mary's work that have the potential to pierce through the white noise of Twitter traffic and inspire those of us who love to write.

This is a great book and I highly recommend that you engage yourself with it...that is, if you love to write.

How to Write a Better Blog

Do you love books?

Okay, now explain that love in relationship to these two different scenarios:

1) You are sitting in your home office surrounded by all of your books.

2) You are browsing in the library, surrounded by the county's books.

You love your own books, don't you?  You sync with a book's idea or theme.  You buy it.  You read it.  But you just don't read it, you romance it.  You write notes in it.  You fold its pages.  You highlight its text.  You write notes to the author in it.  You picture yourself as the leading character (that wasn't Paul Allen in Bill's garage, it was you.  "No problem Willy, go ahead and give your money away, I'll watch the store").

It's not like you actually wrote the book's content, but the book is yours and the material just morphs into your conscious.  Okay, now watch this...

You love other people's personal Web sites.  (I hate the term blog. I only used it above to get cuddly with Google). Why?  Because you connect, you relate.  Instead of going to the library to enjoy another writer's essay, you collect it and place it on a shelf on your own site.  Then you can romance it.  You can write in it....

The following is from David Armano's most excellent Web site, Logic + Emotion.  David writes about a book in which the 40 top bloggers (the book's term), share their writing secrets.  IMHO, David's secrets (he's one of the top 40 writers), pretty much sum up what one has to do in order to be a successful writer.  The writing in red below is where I have marked up this book.

My Blogging "Secrets" Revealed

The thing about people who write blogs (notice I didn't say bloggers) is that we don't have a ton of secrets to our "craft". If you choose to follow what we do, you'll pretty much figure it out for yourself. That said, Steph Grenier has put together a book called Blog Blazers where 40 indivuduals including the likes of Seth Godin, Steve Rubel and Rohit Bhargava share their tips. I'm in it too. Here's what I said:

SG: What makes a blog successful according to you? Is it traffic, reach, revenue, etc.?
DA: In a word—influence.  Influence is the most important way I can think to gauge a blog.  It’s not easy to measure influence, but popularity has something to do with it.  The broader a blog’s reach, the more influence it has. The more people a blog influences, the more successful it is.  It’s not about size—you can influence people in niche groups.

SG:When did you decide you finally reached success with your blog?
DA: Having it featured in the print version of BusinessWeek. If you were to ask me, David reached success the first time I read his material, cause it influenced me.  Here’s one of the few magazines that I admire and actually read and there’s my blog—in full color!  At that point, I felt I had crossed into a different league.

SG:How long does it take to become a successful blogger?
DA: That’s like asking how long should you wait until you get married. It’s different for everyone.  It took me just under a year to get some serious traction—but that’s rare.  It could take many years.  Or you could be blogging for 20 years and never reach the goal of “breaking through” to the audience you want.  It’s something that requires passion.

SG:Who do you think are the most successful bloggers on the internet today?
DA:As far as size goes, you’ve got Seth Godin, Steve Rubel, Guy Kawasaki and Robert Scoble.  All have HUGE followings.  Personally—I’ve been influenced by Bruce Nussbaum, Kathy Sierra, and I enjoy reading industry blogs such as the Adaptive Path blog and Putting People First.

SG:Which five blogs do you regularly read?
DA:
Nussbaum on Design
Adaptive Path
Micro Persuasion
Web Strategist
Putting People First

SG: Which websites would you recommend for any new bloggers starting to blog? I'd recommend Logic + Emotion.
DA:
Techno Marketer
Boing Boing
Mashable

SG: Which book(s) would you recommend for new bloggers (these can range from marketing books, blogging books, etc.)?
DA: Made To Stick.  I'd probably throw Tribes and Beyond Trend in here.

SG: What is your most successful blog post ever?
DA: Creativity 2.E

SG: What's your biggest tip on writing a successful blog post?
DA: Write something that people will want to talk about.  Write something that you care deeply about.  Do something that others are not.  Make each post memorable.

SG: What's your best advice in regards to content and writing for bloggers?
DA: State your opinions.  Don’t try to write like a journalist.  Do something different.  Use visuals. Egads Dr. Seuss!!  If only I could do this!!  Let your voice come through in the writing.  Write in conversational tone vs. formal.  Be true to your personal brand and if you don’t know what that is—figure it out.

SG: How important do you think are the headlines of your blog articles?
DA: Fairly important, but not as important as the content.  Best to write headlines that are both enticing and informative.  If you want Google to find you, think about those headlines.

SG: Do you spend any money and time on marketing?
DA: No money spent except on Typepad.  I don’t market except through being myself and participating.  I probably spend about 15-20 hours a week on Twitter, blogs and participating in general.

SG: What are your main methods of marketing your blog?
DA: I’ll promote links on Twitter and Facebook, but the best marketing is the content.  That’s where I spend most my time.

SG: Which marketing tactic has surprised you the most in terms of its effectiveness?
DA: The visuals.  People love my visuals and want them for themselves. Amen brother! It’s both my product, content and advertising.  People take my visuals and distribute them on the Web.  This eventually creates a bigger audience for me as most people can find their way to the source of the visual which is my blog.

SG:What are your quick and short five best tips for blogging?
DA:
1. Find your voice
2. Do something different
3. Be true to your brand
4. Provide value
5. Only write what makes you happy

SG: What is the most common pitfall new bloggers generally fall into?
DA: Self doubt will kill you.  When you’ve got people commenting on your stuff or calling you out or challenging you—you have to be prepared to guard yourself from being something that isn’t you.  You must be yourself first, as imperfect and flawed as that may be.  You won’t make everyone happy.  Most successful blogs are polarizing—people either love them or could care less.  The worst blogs are bland, generic and have nothing original to offer.  Doubting yourself is the first step down the path of boring. Funny, I was just about to include this thought in the point on the five best tips. I have had some very BIG time personal Web site writers comment about how brave I was to try different stuff like RadioBack.  Heck, I'm not brave. I am very comfortable however, with all of my imperfections and flaws. At least to the point where I recognize them and try to improve.

SG: If you knew what you know now when you first started, what's the one biggest tip you'd give yourself today?
DA: Have an idea where you want the whole thing to end up.  When I first started blogging I had no idea where I wanted it to go and went with where it took me.  Now I’m a bit more strategic.  I’m blogging to build credibility in the industry and to make my job more rewarding and enjoyable.  I also like using it to help the company who employs me.  I have a lot of freedom because of the blog.  I would have established a vision for where I wanted to take it earlier.  I've been trying to do this for over ten years of Internet writing.  And it is exactly why David is where he is and I am where I am.

SG: What repels you the most from a blog (animations, in your face advertising, etc.)?
DA: Bad Content, bad design and over-promotion.  And also a lack of personality.  I love voice and good design!

SG: Do you make any direct money from your blog through advertising, product placements, etc.?
DA:No

SG: What is your best monetization method (Ads, affiliate marketing, etc.)?
DA: My monetization is indirect. I get lots of professional opportunities.

SG: Do you find you get more from direct monetization of your blog or from opportunities that come because of the existence of your blog?
DA: I get invited to speak at places.  If I were on my own, I could make a business of that.

SG: What's your most interesting story related to your blog and blogging experience?
DA: I once wrote a post that was only a sentence long and included a visual.  I asked my readers to write the post for me based on the visual.  The comments were amazing!  Take a look for yourself.

SG: What's the one biggest opportunity that came to you because of your blog?
DA: I wrote a very popular article for BusinessWeek called “It’s the Conversation Economy Stupid”. I was invited to write the article because of the blog.  It was a great experience—I got to work with an excellent editor and write in a very different way than blogging.  It was pretty cool.

SG:Any other comments or thoughts you'd like to share?
DA: Yes.  Everything I know about blogging is in this slideshow

Hope the interview was helpful. For the other 39 interviews, you'll have to get the book.

Thursday, November 20, 2008 | Permalink

Helpful David?  I am going to place this on the shelf right next to my most favorite books!!!

 

The thing about people who write blogs (notice I didn't say bloggers) is that we don't have a ton of secrets to our "craft". If you choose to follow what we do, you'll pretty much figure it out for yourself. That said, Steph Grenier has put together a book called Blog Blazers where 40 indivuduals including the likes of Seth Godin, Steve Rubel and Rohit Bhargava share their tips. I'm in it too. Here's what I said:

SG: What makes a blog successful according to you? Is it traffic, reach, revenue, etc.?
DA: In a word—influence.  Influence is the most important way I can think to gauge a blog.  It’s not easy to measure influence, but popularity has something to do with it.  The broader a blog’s reach, the more influence it has. The more people a blog influences, the more successful it is.  It’s not about size—you can influence people in niche groups.

SG:When did you decide you finally reached success with your blog?
DA: Having it featured in the print version of BusinessWeek. If you were to ask me, David reached success the first time I read his material, cause it influenced me.  Here’s one of the few magazines that I admire and actually read and there’s my blog—in full color!  At that point, I felt I had crossed into a different league.

SG:How long does it take to become a successful blogger?
DA: That’s like asking how long should you wait until you get married. It’s different for everyone.  It took me just under a year to get some serious traction—but that’s rare.  It could take many years.  Or you could be blogging for 20 years and never reach the goal of “breaking through” to the audience you want.  It’s something that requires passion.

SG:Who do you think are the most successful bloggers on the internet today?
DA:As far as size goes, you’ve got Seth Godin, Steve Rubel, Guy Kawasaki and Robert Scoble.  All have HUGE followings.  Personally—I’ve been influenced by Bruce Nussbaum, Kathy Sierra, and I enjoy reading industry blogs such as the Adaptive Path blog and Putting People First.

SG:Which five blogs do you regularly read?
DA:
Nussbaum on Design
Adaptive Path
Micro Persuasion
Web Strategist
Putting People First

SG: Which websites would you recommend for any new bloggers starting to blog? I'd recommend Logic + Emotion.
DA:
Techno Marketer
Boing Boing
Mashable

SG: Which book(s) would you recommend for new bloggers (these can range from marketing books, blogging books, etc.)?
DA: Made To Stick.  I'd probably throw Tribes and Beyond Trend in here.

SG: What is your most successful blog post ever?
DA: Creativity 2.E

SG: What's your biggest tip on writing a successful blog post?
DA: Write something that people will want to talk about.  Write something that you care deeply about.  Do something that others are not.  Make each post memorable.

SG: What's your best advice in regards to content and writing for bloggers?
DA: State your opinions.  Don’t try to write like a journalist.  Do something different.  Use visuals. Egads Dr. Seuss!!  If only I could do this!!  Let your voice come through in the writing.  Write in conversational tone vs. formal.  Be true to your personal brand and if you don’t know what that is—figure it out.

SG: How important do you think are the headlines of your blog articles?
DA: Fairly important, but not as important as the content.  Best to write headlines that are both enticing and informative.  If you want Google to find you, think about those headlines.

SG: Do you spend any money and time on marketing?
DA: No money spent except on Typepad.  I don’t market except through being myself and participating.  I probably spend about 15-20 hours a week on Twitter, blogs and participating in general.

SG: What are your main methods of marketing your blog?
DA: I’ll promote links on Twitter and Facebook, but the best marketing is the content.  That’s where I spend most my time.

SG: Which marketing tactic has surprised you the most in terms of its effectiveness?
DA: The visuals.  People love my visuals and want them for themselves. Amen brother! It’s both my product, content and advertising.  People take my visuals and distribute them on the Web.  This eventually creates a bigger audience for me as most people can find their way to the source of the visual which is my blog.

SG:What are your quick and short five best tips for blogging?
DA:
1. Find your voice
2. Do something different
3. Be true to your brand
4. Provide value
5. Only write what makes you happy

SG: What is the most common pitfall new bloggers generally fall into?
DA: Self doubt will kill you.  When you’ve got people commenting on your stuff or calling you out or challenging you—you have to be prepared to guard yourself from being something that isn’t you.  You must be yourself first, as imperfect and flawed as that may be.  You won’t make everyone happy.  Most successful blogs are polarizing—people either love them or could care less.  The worst blogs are bland, generic and have nothing original to offer.  Doubting yourself is the first step down the path of boring. Funny, I was just about to include this thought in the point on the five best tips. I have had some very BIG time personal Web site writers comment about how brave I was to try different stuff like RadioBack.  Heck, I'm not brave. I am very comfortable however, with all of my imperfections and flaws. At least to the point where I recognize them and try to improve.

SG: If you knew what you know now when you first started, what's the one biggest tip you'd give yourself today?
DA: Have an idea where you want the whole thing to end up.  When I first started blogging I had no idea where I wanted it to go and went with where it took me.  Now I’m a bit more strategic.  I’m blogging to build credibility in the industry and to make my job more rewarding and enjoyable.  I also like using it to help the company who employs me.  I have a lot of freedom because of the blog.  I would have established a vision for where I wanted to take it earlier.  I've been trying to do this for over ten years of Internet writing.  And it is exactly why David is where he is and I am where I am.

SG: What repels you the most from a blog (animations, in your face advertising, etc.)?
DA: Bad Content, bad design and over-promotion.  And also a lack of personality.  I love voice and good design!

SG: Do you make any direct money from your blog through advertising, product placements, etc.?
DA:No

SG: What is your best monetization method (Ads, affiliate marketing, etc.)?
DA: My monetization is indirect. I get lots of professional opportunities.

SG: Do you find you get more from direct monetization of your blog or from opportunities that come because of the existence of your blog?
DA: I get invited to speak at places.  If I were on my own, I could make a business of that.

SG: What's your most interesting story related to your blog and blogging experience?
DA: I once wrote a post that was only a sentence long and included a visual.  I asked my readers to write the post for me based on the visual.  The comments were amazing!  Take a look for yourself.

SG: What's the one biggest opportunity that came to you because of your blog?
DA: I wrote a very popular article for BusinessWeek called “It’s the Conversation Economy Stupid”. I was invited to write the article because of the blog.  It was a great experience—I got to work with an excellent editor and write in a very different way than blogging.  It was pretty cool.

SG:Any other comments or thoughts you'd like to share?
DA: Yes.  Everything I know about blogging is in this slideshow

Hope the interview was helpful. For the other 39 interviews, you'll have to get the book.

The Right to Write

The Right to Write by Julia Cameron.

It's a cold, frigid morning in Maine.  You want to read the morning paper, but to do so will require walking through two feet of snow to the end of the driveway.  What if, what if your driveway had been plowed of snow overnight?

Do you write?

You do?  Well then, put a hat on, put a coat on, wrap a scarf around your neck and lets go get that newspaper.  Oh yeah, don't forget to make a check out to Julia Cameron's Snow Plowing Service.

The Right to Write is a collection of over forty life-navigating essays for the writer.  Julia draws upon a rich life of writing as she puts her arm across our shoulder, reassuring us that as students of the written word, we are on the right path.

Although at the end of every chapter Julia provides a writing exercise, her message is more of a balm for the writing-spirit than it is an instructional writing guide. 

The Value of Julia

Julia laces within each essay, a few sentences, paragraphs - ideas, that will cause a double take.  "How did she know?" you'll ask.  It is like Julia is tuned to a satellite that has captured your GPS coordinates on the writing journey.  I've owned this book for four years and have read it about four times.  Here is an example of where Julia connects with me every time I read it:

"Writing is about getting something down, not about thinking something up."

To get something down, I must first observe.  This takes me in the opposite direction from thinking something up.  It takes away all of the pressure from, what do I write about?

This little bit fits into my own personal life philosophy of Oz is the Yellow Brick Road:

"If we are invested in a writing life - as opposed to a writing career - then we are in it for the process and not the product."

In the early years I used to shovel the driveway.  And then I used a snowblower.  I sure wish though, someone had told me about Julia's Snow Plowing Service!

Words That Work

Words That Work by Frank Luntz.

Words That Work is the best book that I only read half of!  Author Frank Luntz weaves a recurring theme throughout his work:  It's Not What You Say, It's What People Hear.  It probably explains why I only read half of his book.

This paragraph hooks me early on:

This chapter and this book are not concerned with words that are beautiful, words that are timeless, or words that are ideal in some abstract, philosophical sense.  Rather, it is concerned, again, with words that work - language of everyday utility, language that generates practical results.  My concern is with the unadorned, commonsense language of small town, middle America, not the intellectual gamesmanship of the ivory tower.  It's language that has bubbled up from the American people themselves.

While the ivory tower comment would go on to energize me for the entire book, the part that nearly caused me to drop kick the book into the street was that Frank is involved in politics and he relies heavily upon this experience throughout the book.  Of course this reveals my small-minded intellect to the world, but I go stone cold deaf when I hear a politician's name.   I am sorry, I tune it right out.  So in order not to throw up while reading Frank's book, I skipped over anything related to politics.  Of course Frank schools me before I even get to page five:

Before you can create, and certainly before you judge, you have to listen to people and respect them for who they are and what they believe.  Just because you may not ultimately accept or endorse someone's subjective perceptions is no excuse for refusing to acknowledge that they exist.

Frank is passionate about using the correct language to deliver a compelling message, one that has impact.  His passion overwhelms the political-speak and makes it a non-issue for me.

To me, Words That Work is a road map to improving relationships.  When I write, I am writing to people with whom I want a relationship with...if only for them to read and understand my words.  Frank's ten rules of effective language illuminate the highway towards a more meaningful relationship.

Would you care to go on a journey into the future with me?  I sense a world of possibility up around the bend.  I see more and more people engaging in meaningful dialog.  I see effective communication breaking down the stone walls that people have built to keep the world at bay.  (Like mine that keeps the world of politics off of my radar).

I only ask you to do one thing on our journey.  I ask that you place the world of status-quo behind us and lock and load the most powerful force known to the human race - your imagination...

Imagine a culture of shared knowledge.  A culture spread planet-wide and one fueled by the most primal rule known to man - the Golden Rule.  Imagine a cloak of non-religious spirituality lying in casual elegance over top of this vibrant culture.  People speak and write in their native languages but are understood by everyone.  There is no war.  A universal peace of mind steadies the planet and allows for  a never seen before, hassle-free exchange of knowledge and wisdom.  A teenager in Peru converses with a teen in Moscow in an evolved version of My Space.  They quickly learn that boys are boys no matter where one lives.  And they learn through crystal clear dialog that souls and hearts can be healed in a safe and healthy manner. 

The fruit and prosperity yield from this environment causes an evolution.  Though people remain independent in their thinking, the collective consciousness guided by the Golden Rule, initiates a higher level of understanding.  Innovation and risk are taken on with renewed spirit.  A planetary system of support allows people the right and freedom to move forward.  A bold idea is met with encouragement, not resentment.  The results of this movement are not held to monetary measures.  Instead, accountability is simple:  Did you learn something today?  Were you able to help someone learn something today? 

A can-do attitude prevails the planet.  There are no ivory-tower dwellers.  Those in leadership consider an efficient day a day that a barrier was removed from an individual with a can-do spirit.  Financial security follows enhanced knowledge.  A balanced approach to a worker's mind, body, heart and spirit is an investment into the company's future and yields more money than can be counted. 

A planet is restored to a village amongst villages.  Elders connect to youth with revitalized language.  Youth embodies a spirit of respect and listens in wonder.  Yes, it still requires an effort to speak out.  But a lifestyle fueled with the desire to share knowledge, wisdom and information overpowers the effort.  Yes we can rejuvenate our spirits and reinvent that one small village that turns out to be our planet by way of crystal clear, sharp communication. 

Go out today and pick up Frank's road map to improving relationships. Somewhere out there in the future people will hear our voice, no matter what language we speak.  Thanks Frank!

The Power of Language

To move forward we must embrace our audience with the deep, passionate kiss of language.

1. It must be a pretty good book if I could only make it to page thirteen before being compelled to write something about it.
2. Smoke plumed from pages one through twelve but fire crackled and roared from page thirteen.  The power to alter a career in one sentence.  check this out...
3. I just cracked open Mavericks at Work and came upon this jewel of a sentence...

Roy Spence, president of ad agency GSD&M, on how you talk about your company:

Sure, you could say that Southwest Airlines really wants to get more people to fly.  Or you can say that the company is in the business of democratizing the skies.  Would you rather be in the airline business or the freedom business?  Language is what creates the edge - and operating on the edge leads to more creativity in business.

The last part of Roy's statement is what tore away my attention!  Don't you love the edge?  To dance upon the brink of where status-quo will not go;  And forge into promising frontiers on the backs of creative, clear and concise language.  As writers, we have the opportunity to do this every day:

• Get your message out
• Try to use good grammar
• Don't let concerns with grammar stifle your message
• Go for the edge
• Liberate creativity from the gatekeeper of language-as-usual

In items one through three above I was experimenting with various ways of telling you that I began to read Mavericks at Work, quickly came upon Roy Spence's comment and got so excited that I had to write about it here.