10 tips to polish your LinkedIn profile
Never, never, NEVER auto-post your Twitter comments to LinkedIn. It’s annoying, all those #hashtags and @signs are #messy and #confusing to #people who don’t use #Twitter, and you’ll just cause your network to hide your comments, which effectively hides YOU from...
Happy 5th blogversary (sorry!) to me
Five years, 517 blog posts. That’s nothing compared to the outpourings of prolific writers who crank out posts daily or even multiple times a day. But as someone who had a hard time keeping a regular journal, as noted last year at this time, I marvel at having...
Tips & tricks for cleaning up computer clutter
Do you keep your computer organized? Or do you have files in your email folders, files on the desktop, files on USB keys, files tucked in files hidden in files? Professional organizer Deanne Kelleher has seen it all before, and blames our disorganization for the...
Break the bars and say ‘si’ to life
Warm weather dreaming as winter sets in reminded me that last year, I spent five days in Cuba on a quick all-inclusive vacation during Son #2’s week off university. Juggling paying work and my own school work, I didn’t have a lot of spare time but figured...
Is this how to treat a ‘valued subscriber’?
“Dear Valued Subscriber,” the note began. Ah, my newspaper really appreciates my business. As well it should; isn’t the industry in distress? Millennials don’t read newspapers, do they? It’s time to renew my subscription and I’ll...
Friday word fun
TGIF! Time for a few minutes of seemingly mindless fun, with a secret learning component (thanks to Merriam-Webster and Oxford Dictionaries): Don’t you want to find out How Strong is your Vocabulary? (This replaces one that’s no longer available, sadly:...
A new year, a new list to read
Reading is one of my great pleasures, but 2011 was definitely not a stellar year for me and books. School is to blame, of course; between the required texts and assignments, I had very little time to read for the sheer enjoyment of reading. Still, I managed to sneak...
Top 11 posts for independents
On this last day of 2011, here are the top 11 most popular Red Jacket Diaries posts about living the independent communicator’s life: How to get paid what you’re worth What an unpaid bill says about you Some tips for following up Marketing on a tight...