Clinton Skakun

“We live in the age where text is one of the most common methods of communication. The people who know how to communicate the best are the ones who put into practice each technique in proportion to their effectiveness.” – Clinton Skakun

As a Gen-Y, I can text and use computer chats pretty fluently…and almost always get my point across. And as a Gen-Y I wish I could say the same about my verbal communication skills. Why is it that I can write fairly good blog posts but I find myself stumbling over words when trying to explain the same topic? One word…practice. What we don’t practice we loose.

I’ve been writing this blog for about 2 1/2 years and within that time period my writing communication skills improved by 40-70%. This is good considering I used to leave much to be desired in the writing department. And even if my writing isn’t still that great, I could give two flipping bricks what a English teacher would say about my writing now days. I can be the judge of that. These days I can spit out 3-4 posts without barely any effort, just pure inspiration. Once I get going I just keep going. But let’s take a closer look at other mediums, for example PodCasts and Vlogging, two methods of blogging that I’ve never delved deeply into.

Not only can using other forms of blogging, such as podcasting and video blogging, allow you to reach larger audiences but it can also develop some of your personal and professional skills if you’re still a relatively new blogger like me.

How can this help you out personally. Let’s take a closer look at some of these observations:

• Videos create curiosity and allow you to get a clearer point across by using tone and body language.
• People will fall in love with your videos before your text. Video, being a medium that reveals a lot of personal traits that people are curious about.
• A lot more people are using YouTube to find subjects of interests instead of blog articles. Videos are quick and to the point.
• People like to know you’re human, and even if you’re not a great speaker, many people prefer seeing you in a video instead of text.
• Most of our human relations skills depend on us expressing ourselves verbally and physically. We spend too much time already texting, e-mailing, chatting, blogging etc.

I’m seriously considering adopting a video blogging project onto my plate and posting less on this blog. Why don’t you consider doing the same thing? If the idea of 1000’s of people seeing you in video strikes fear into you, just view it as a way to expand your comfort zone. Also, it will improve your verbal skills therefor making you a better speaker giving you the basics to deliver powerful speeches.

I’m sure we’d all agree that the purpose of business is to make money. Hopefully lots of it. Business owners want to get rich and serve lots of people. (if you don’t want to serve people, you have no business being rich)

One of the great myths of our time is that to start a business you need a killer novel idea. You need to be an inventor and “create” something no one has ever created before. The sad truth is that there are millions of brilliant BROKE inventors that are still waiting for someone to find their idea and make them millions of dollars.

I’m here to tell you that being creative and coming up with your own ideas is not necessary. I’d even go so far as to say, it can hinder your chances. Now as this may be bad news to creative people, it’s good news for the rest of us.

IDEAS, as valuable as we like to think they are, really, are a dime a dozen!

I agree there are lots of great ideas out there. The million dollar question is, DOES IT SELL? Do people see the value in it and will they buy it? Is essence, is it marketable?

PROS and CONS of being a pioneer

One of the pros to being the original inventor is that, in the years to come you may see your invention impact a lot of people. A con could be, you may never make a red cent from it. Another con, if you do eventually find a demand for it, was it worth all of the work AND will someone come along, copy your idea and make a fortune off it?

The Entrepreneur vs. the Inventor

I like to use many of the famous and extremely successful company founders as examples. And I believe they are valid examples as they are major ideas that have shaped our world. Mozart said, “I have never made the slightest effort to compose anything original.” Take some of the greatest company founders of all time, Henry Ford. He didn’t invent anything besides the Ford company and he sure didn’t know how to build a Model-T, but he saw an idea money making potential and he profited from it. The inventor of the computer is no house hold name. But when we think of computer GIANTS, we think Linux, Microsoft, Macintosh, etc, etc. Entrepreneurs see opportunities and they take it, they aren’t concerned with what’s original.

It works, GREAT!

Here’s a new idea! Take an OLD idea and USE IT! Take an idea that is tried and proven and work it! You might not win the “Creativity Award of the Year” but you might end up riding Ferrari’s and have a retirement fund for your kids before they’re even born!

But it’s not MY idea…

This might be a response you get from yourself when you want to re-use an idea. But it’s not my idea, I wont feel like I was a part of it…blah blah blah. One question: WHO CARES? Are you interested in making money or are you more interested in the gratification you get when someone points to you as the “inventor” of the JizzyFkucHeoDooHicky? Maybe the ego-stroke is more important. Maybe you are a inventor by calling. That’s ok. Just realize that, as an inventor, you’ll need to focus on inventing, not business. In business you need to be very flexible. Inventors tend to get very attached to their ideas. As an entrepreneur, you should never get too attached to one idea. Because, as an entrepreneur, you depend on ideas that make money to bring home the bacon. If your idea ends up not being marketable, but you’re attached to it and love it unconditionally, there’s a conflict–sounds more like an inventor than an entrepreneur.

You don’t need a creative bone in your body to get rich.

For me, this is the greatest news in the world. This makes multiple income streams a greater possibility. (I can get away without inventing more ideas) This means that I can focus on buying and investing in already-made businesses. You can create a business that uses a product that already has made a mark in the market. That way, you can model its success instead of trying to create a new blueprint.

The people who are rewarded in this economy are the ones who put out the most value. You can make a decent amount of coin in this economy within 6-7 years by recognizing what the market values. Often times, it isn’t a new idea. But an old idea dressed up differently to serve a slightly changed demand.

Courtesy of Philanthro Media

Can the web allow your local business reach the greatest number of potential clients?

Just a few years ago when we needed to find a phone number of a business, where did we turn? You guessed it! The Yellow Pages. And as well as that worked five or ten years ago, it’s not working as well in the information age we live in today. While traditional advertising is still a great solution, new statistics prove that consumer local online search usage is growing more and more rapidly each year.

A few quick facts about online search…

• The recession is forcing business owners to find new, more cost effective solutions for advertising and marketing. Many of them are turning to the web!
• According to Internet World Stats, Internet user growth has climbed 140% from 2000 to 2009 in North America!
• comScore data shows from February of 2007 to February of 2008 local business searches increased by 76% and Kelsey Group estimates that 20% of all online web searches have local intent.
• Forrester Research estimates $917 billion worth of retail sales in 2009 were “Web-influenced” in contrast to $155 billion of consumer goods sold online in the same year.
• Matt Ackerson, from CenterNetworks, in early 2009 said: “The future of the internet will become more locally focused.”

What should these facts mean to you? Right now it’s easier than ever to launch and promote your own website! The opportunity the web has to offer is skyrocketing! The number of people using the web is greater than ever before. More and more people are using online search engines to find local businesses, and most exciting news is that…nearly half of these searches have a buying intent!

“Our company is currently expanding and looking for business in the local communities of Southern Alberta. We believe that there are many business owners out there that, when enlightened to the facts, would be willing to say YES to the web and its benefits. While the web isn’t a new idea, it’s obvious that there are still many businesses owners that need to hear about the benefits we offer. We serve Calgary, High River, Okotoks, Strathmore, Black Diamond, Nanton, the Foot Hills and Southern Alberta!” – Learn More Here!

I was curious today about how many people liked the new RT feature Twitter built into the site just recently as opposed to the old RT method of copying and pasting. Personally, I prefer the old one, it’s more personal and it doesn’t clutter your time line with avatars and tweets that I don’t follow. I suppose someone could argue over this all day but I decided to see what my followers had to say about it people.

Here’s the outcome:

• Lots of people don’t care either way. As long as they can still re-tweet.
• Some people don’t like it because it’s not as personal(and cannot be personalized) as the previous RTs
• Someone suggested that current Twitter Apps will get messed up because they were coded with the old RTs in mind.

Replies to @ClintonSkakun. Those who responded to “Do you like the new RT or old RT better?”

@jawar I like it and don’t… There’s a number of sites that have search tools using the RT and now that’s out of wack.
@thinkBIG_blog I prefer the original RT method. It allows for adding comment & it is more “social”. The new function is a little “cold”.
@Gloson I think the old way is better because it is more social
@jshe To be honest, its not a lot of difference except for the 2 avatars which tell u who has RT that tweet! … its just the same! Could be more social cuz of the 2 avatars which I quite like!
@michaeldunlop I use Tweetdeck so it doesn’t concern me.
@PatrickTulskie I’ll use whatever the desktop clients are supporting.
@DavidBeKing I’m cool with either or! As long as I can still retweet!

So what do you think about the new RT feature? Is it better, worse? Please share your opinion.