Much ado about .... blogging

To many entrepreneurs, small business owners and mom n' pop organizations, the idea of doing a daily, weekly or even a monthly blog is overwhelming. Why not, say, just schedule an appendectomy? It would probably be less painful.

So what's the better alternative? For some, it is often just to do nothing, and then worry about it while your competitors are forging their own little niche in the blogging world. It's sort of like the proverbial ostrich, head and sand scenario. What's a professional to do?

Just as you would invest in a contractor to improve or repair your workspace, you really need to take the leap and hire a writer to keep your website up-to-date or to develop new content. It's really that simple. So put your feelers out, find someone who can understand your business or industry, and make sure they have a firm grasp of your "voice" or perspective. Then sit back and watch the action. Trust me, it's much more fun than surgery!

Go ahead people ... hire a writer!

If you are an entrepreneur, executive or small-busines guru, and you are spinning your wheels with web content, marketing or advertising efforts, do yourself a favor: hire a writer.

I'm not saying this so you'll hire me (necessarily). I'm suggesting this because I'm trying to help you get some sleep! Here's why:

1. No matter how long you stare at the computer screen for hours at a time, if writing is as hard for you as, say, singing "God Bless America" while reading MacBeth and memorizing the Periodic Table, well .... give yourself a break. As much as you'd like it to be so, you will not suddenly grow a prose brain and morph into James Patterson. Just as I will not wake up with weird hair and become Donald Trump, portfolio and bank account to match. Give up the fight, and hire someone who can write without having a brain aneurism.

2. Especially if you are part of a small business (or a one-person show), you need a second opinion. You need someone to read your blog post or letters to customers with a disengaged eye. Because what might sound perfect in your brain might not come across as sensible to customers or end-users. Sometimes you need to step out of your business box and see things from a different angle. A writer will help you do so.

3. You need to spend your time making money, getting new customers and networking your patootie off. You don't need to be spending countless hours structuring sentences, racking your brain for blog ideas, or trying to figure out a killer opening sentence. There are other fishes to fry, so to speak. Your time is worth money, baby. Learn to delegate and get to the more important money-making matters at hand.

So take a breath, make a note to call a writer as soon as possible, and plan on getting some good sleep tonight! Sweet dreams.

Anatomy of a Nook

I've been resisting the urge to buy an ebook for a  year. I just couldn't bring myself to "go there," what with the whole idea of reading text without a binded cover and all. I felt the electronic book concept somehow presented a moral dilemma. "What about good old-fashioned paper?" I asked, to nobody there. "What about the feeling of pages in hand, or the majestic smell of a new novel?" Or in my case, the odor of mixed germs and bacteria from a well-handled library book.

But six months ago I wandered into Barnes & Noble, and my world turned all zig-zaggedy. Right there by the front entrance stood the ebook display, and it only took me a minute to get sucked into the electronic vortex of the Nook. I spent the next thirty minutes discussing the virtues of ebooks, the plethora of fine reading at the tip of my fingers, and the convenience of multifunctionality. But I walked out of the store empty-handed, because there was a tiny voice under my eyelids begging me not to give in. Wouldn't I somehow be contributing to the collapse of world peace and harmony if I succumbed to ebook temptation?

But yesterday I received a splendid, crisp and sleek Nook as a gift, which I've named Nookie (after Jersey Shore's Snookie .... get your head out of the gutter). I'm salivating at the chance to download my first book, however I now can't decide what it should be. I feel obligated to somehow pay homage to the classics for my obvious betrayal. Perhaps Shakespeare or Jane Austin? Maybe I'll stick to a classic tale of crime and punishment. Maybe that's what I deserve.

Either way, I'm happy with my Nookie. I'm excited to see what the future holds, and so far, my world has not yet come to an end. Now, how do you turn this thing on again?