I want to get better at failing!

I was going to blog about my new kindle but Seth’s blog really hit me between the eyes. 

I remember starting out and hiding from failure.  Perhaps it came from my time in the military where failing is … well … less than accepted.  It more likely came from my earlier insecurities about who I am/was and how good/not good I am/was. (Confused yet?)

This ties in well with my theme of continued education so I thought I would run with it.

Pealing back the onion I guess I had a fear of authority.  Growing up with a single mom (like a lot us) Young human parents with issues of their own; I remember working on projects with my Dad that seemed be wellspring of frustration for both of us.  Somewhere between my childhood and early adulthood I got the silly notion that it was better to not try than fail and mated it the equally idiotic idea that if you were silly enough to attempt something don’t get caught when you screw up. 

No blame here just self-observation.

Having to get off my ass and feed my family tends to motivate me in strange ways.   I started to spend more time looking inward and understanding.  When we stop being so serious about ourselves we begin to learn.   

You’re not so dependent on being right. 

You don’t have a death grip on own ideas.  

… and your wife likes you a lot more.

Failing fast and learning fast are two things that live together quite well.

I would encourage reading Seth’s post about this and like my wife says to me “Get over yourself!”

After you've done your best

(and it didn't work) Seth Godin

http://sethgodin.typepad.com/seths_blog/2011/11/after-youve-done-your-best.html

In the beginning

Despite the religious sound of the this post I will endeavor never to be that way about any of the many interests that I have.

I hope you are ready for a journey because I am!
Hopefully I don't give people whip lash with the different topics and interests I intend to explore.

I debated calling this the ADD blog but that is probably taken ... ;)

Anyway, I will attempt whenever possible to draw some sort of connection between what may seem like the random meanderings of a middle aged man.

Here we go!

Learning a tonne about SEO (Search Engine Optimization) and inbound marketing this week.  "SEO is the active practice of optimizing a web site by improving internal and external aspects in order to increase the traffic the site receives from search engines"  http://www.seomoz.org/beginners-guide-to-seo.  Using the http://inboundmarketing.com program this week and intend to write the exam by the end of the week as a jumping off point to a more formal education in the subject.

The intersection for me is continued learning.  I started programming when I was 14 and I have never stopped learning about technology, this has kept me relevant and given me a perspective on technology that I believe is unique.  Marketing has always captured my interests.  I love to speak and I love introducing new ideas to people and I believe the core of marketing is teaching.  It may be value of the product or a person or simply a concept.  Presenting ideas in ways that engage and excite gets me fired up!  I am a huge fan of guys like Seth Goden http://sethgodin.typepad.com/ and Mitch Joel http://www.twistimage.com/blog/.  When these guys introduce ideas I say to myself "OH YEAH!"

It's like they uncover ideas that were just awaiting the proper trigger within me.
That is teaching.

These past couple years I have been gradually extending my marketing and internet knowledge.  This led me to dive into google analytics www.google/analytics .
I worked for the company the built Crystal Reports so analysis is like a long time friend.

Now back to the learning, today's lesson blogging mmm I should try that!