Forthcoming jive
Well, I’ve been more than a little lax about posting any original stuff here lately. That blog depression thing that’s been going around rings kinda true for me these days. As the first anniversary of Slacker Manager is coming up in October, I’ve toyed with the idea of shutting down the blog, or selling it, just to get rid of the constant internal nagging feeling that I’m not holding up my end of an implied promise to readers that this is a worthwhile place to stop by now and then.
No fear, though, I’m sure I won’t actually shut down the blog. It’s just a minor pity party. I’ve actually still got a decent amount of stuff to write about. The new job plays a pretty big part in that. Teamwork and team-building loom large in my mind these days though, as you can imagine, I don’t really go in for the standard approaches. In fact, I’ve hooked up with Matt Homann and I’m pretty sure he’ll be doing a LexThink-ish retreat for my department before too long. We’ve got a really interesting entrepreneurial culture in the department, which I love. But having a department full of entrepreneurs is not without drawbacks. I sense that’ll be a recurring theme in many future posts.
I’m also still picking away at the sample chapter of the Slacker@Work book. Matt-the-agent says that he wants something to show publishers in September, so I’ve been putting the hammer down and finishing it up. It’s (the sample chapter) 80%+ done, but I need to do some cleanup, write some sidebar thingys and include some quotes that I’ve accumulated. No matter what I write, book wise, I’m never quite satisfied with it. I guess there must be a point where you just say, "that’s enough" and move on. Also, I’ve gotten too used to writing in the short and pithy blog-style. It takes conscious effort to hold a train of thought for longer than a couple of paragraphs…
There are, of course, more book reviews coming up. Toward the end of next month I’ll be participating in the blog book tour for Darren Rovell’s First In Thirst, a very entertaining history of Gatorade. I’m not much of a sports guy (I didn’t even know the origins of Gatorade’s name until reading the book), but this is a really fun read. I’ll also be reading Scott Berkun’s The Art of Project Management which, if it’s as good as the sample chapter pdf and his other essays, ought to be a great addition to my management library. I have a copy of The Virtual Handshake as well which, from my cursory glances at it, looks like a very comprehensive review of the online social networking space.
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POSTED IN: writing
7 opinions for Forthcoming jive
Nathan
Aug 20, 2005 at 1:07 pm
This points out another reason why RSS is so nice. I have a few friends who blog infrequently, but I want to see what they write. With an RSS feed, I don’t miss anything, and I don’t deal with any frustration from visiting blogs that haven’t been updated in a while.
So, slow activity on your site doesn’t bother me. What bothers me are the sites that still don’t have RSS feeds.
Rosa Say
Aug 20, 2005 at 1:47 pm
Bren, Tom Ehrenfeld got me thinking about discernment the other day, and since then I’ve been so much more conscious about the quality versus quantity issue with blogging. There’s simply so much out in blogsville nowdays, it’s good to have a blog like yours where the home page can keep you reading for a while with a great deal of satisfaction, versus having to hunt through clutter. For what it’s worth, your “satisficing” pleases me greatly, for when I click in I always know I’ll find 100% Bren.
Jeff Lutz
Aug 20, 2005 at 5:36 pm
While I was at the national youth workers convention last year, they had an adapt verse from the bible that went, “The smallness you feel comes from inside you.” I think that there is a corollary when it comes to blogging and that is — the pressure you feel to blog comes from inside you. I feel that way from time to time with my own. Do I write for everyone else or myself? I think that for me it’s for me so that others can be let in on my thought processes. So the only pressure I put on myself is to have something on there enough so that my family and friends know what’s going on, and to keep myself listed on the Methodist blogroll, for those deep religious thoughts that I get from time to time.
It’s a matter of balance. For me its every two weeks or a whole bunch in a few days.
RockSun's English Notes
Aug 22, 2005 at 8:12 am
party: An orgy
Slacker Manager: Forthcoming jive No fear, though, I’m sure I won’t actually shut down the blog. It’s just a minor pity party. I’ve actually still got a decent amount of stuff to write about. The new job plays a pretty…
Jeff Hammond
Aug 23, 2005 at 5:58 pm
I have to agree with the other poster who talks about “quality” vs “quantity”. Although I’d love to see a post from you everyday, it would not be worth it if the quality isn’t there.
Sounds like there is lots going on in your life now. Go with the flow - when the time is right the volume may increase again. There is a season for everything.
RockSun's English Notes
Aug 27, 2005 at 7:39 pm
party: An orgy
Slacker Manager: Forthcoming jive No fear, though, I’m sure I won’t actually shut down the blog. It’s just a minor pity party. I’ve actually still got a decent amount of stuff to write about. The new job plays a pretty…
RockSun's English Notes
Aug 27, 2005 at 7:41 pm
party: An orgy
Slacker Manager: Forthcoming jive No fear, though, I’m sure I won’t actually shut down the blog. It’s just a minor pity party. I’ve actually still got a decent amount of stuff to write about. The new job plays a pretty…