Scenario One
I decided that Pinterest might be
a good platform for my consulting business MARGIN. So I added a board I named, “FOR THE ENTREPRENEUR.”
On my personal boards my pins
consist of things I liked or objects of desire.
But with the entrepreneurial
board I pin consciously because the pin is meant to share useful
information. Curated from corners of the
web I attempt to pin material that is inspiring, profit-generating, motivating,
problem-solving, strategy building and at the same time, visually
entertaining.
On the other hand I have a friend
who is the queen of the “repin.” Never
leaving Pinterest to find board content - if she’s not seeing it on Pinterest
already you won't see it on her boards. Her
effort is minimal, but she is quickly gaining momentum and her following is rapidly
mounting.
Scenario Two
I’m involved in a 13-week webinar
supported by a nationally known nonprofit association. Our instructor who owns her own consultancy is
excellent as she plows through tons of information and online marketing
concepts.
Last week we spent a good amount
of time discussing blog posts. During
that discussion she said something that had my full attention.
She said we all get stymied
occasionally when it comes to post topics.
Her suggestion was to find a relevant online article. Copy and paste it as your blog entry while
giving full credit to the original source.
Next edit the article by giving
it a new title and subtitles that enhance or optimize your website. Add your name, address and phone number (nap)
at the end of the post. Blog post
finished. Done in less time than it
takes to let your fingers find the home keys and create that snazzy new optimized
title.
Confusion/Conclusion
I’ll admit to being just a little confused and disillusioned. I’m looking
for balance. . .and I'm not sure I'm finding it.
Surely there’s value in the
repin; you're sharing information with a new group of friends who possibly couldn't
find the info on their own. But never to
take the journey beyond the site in search of fresh content doesn’t feel right
either.
The same goes for the
cut-and-paste blog post. Certainly
there’s room for borrowing and sharing content, but I thought the whole notion
of a blog was a platform for original thought.
I know an artist with a form of
Muscular Dystrophy who still pushes through the stiffness in her hands to
create her striking black-and-white illustrations.
With razor-sharp scissors, and an
eye focused on perfection, my barber takes an hour trimming my hair making
certain I leave with a perfectly sculpted afro.
I know bakers who talk all day about
whether they should use Mexican or Madagascar vanilla in their delicious, from scratch, cupcakes.
And I know results-driven
consultants who work tirelessly to deliver original product that gives clients innovative,
solid strategies.
Are these craftspeople
relics? Is it all about the shortcut;
has the scenic route been oversold so much so that it’s lost its value?
I suppose it drills down to a personal inventory. How do I want to make a living? What values and beliefs supervise our
behavior and become our guiding light?
As usual there’s no right and
wrong. And for certain on this one I don’t
know the answers. I'm just asking the questions.
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