Cover via Amazon

In 2006, both a contact I knew online and a friend from college both recommended Keith Ferrazzi‘s book “Never Eat Alone.” I didn’t need any further prodding; I bought it and read it. Then I read it again, much more slowly and deliberately. It transformed the way I look at building relationships.

Building Relationships for Fun and Profit – 12 Tips

Each week we find ourselves in different situations where we’re meeting people, opportunities to develop relationships. These situations require different approaches, depending on whether you’re in a large or small setting. Tomorrow the New Media Cincinnati community is meeting together to do just that. So, as your power tip for August, here are 12 principles from Never Eat Alone.

Mindset – Preparation

Don’t go into an opportunity to meet others cold. To help you get the right mindset:

1. First, stop networking and resolve to make friends instead. The chance encounter can turn into a blossoming friendship.
2. Don’t keep score. Give BEFORE you receive. Approach building relationships with a generosity mindset and determine to be helpful.
3. Have a mission and purpose in mind, both for yourself and your strategy. Why are you attending this event? What do you hope to get out of it?
4. Build it before you need it – whom do you already know that can help you reach your goals? Start building now for the future.
5. Do your homework! Since 2008 I’ve been using Eventbrite to organize New Media Cincinnati events. Those who’ve registered get a place to put their information, what they’re looking for help with, etc. Use this list to learn more about who you’ll be meeting, and it will help you in your conversations with them. Maybe someone is having a problem that you can help them with. Here’s the link to the August 2011 event.

During the encounter

You’ve made it to the event. You see a number of people walking around. It’s time to engage in conversations. What do you do?

1. Find shared interests. This is key to being able to “click” with one another. If it’s not obvious, you and the person you’re talking to have an interest in the event you’re attending. That is always a great starting point. Doing your homework will also provide conversations starters.
2. Be sincere. Pay attention. Remember names. Capture details about what you learn from those you talk to. Ferrazzi mentions that Bill Clinton would often step away after talking to people and make notes in a small notebook. I like to use the back of a business card to write down date, place, and any other information that will help provide context when I refer to it later.
3. Never eat alone. This is the title of the book for a good reason. Look for ways to connect in-person, not just online. Meeting together at a New Media Cincinnati event is just one of these ways. Everyone has to eat; share that time with someone you’re getting to know.
4. Master what Keith calls the “Deep Bump”. In a large group with many people, you might not have an opportunity have a long conversation with someone. So quickly make contact, establish the connection for a future meeting, and move on. New Media Cincinnati may or may not be such an occasion to use the “Deep Bump”.

Afterward and Beyond

After meeting someone, you’re not done. To be successful going forward:

1. Follow-up or die. Seriously – within 12-24 hours. Use the phone, email, LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, Google Plus, etc. to continue to establish the connection and provide a means for continuing the conversation.
2. Keep it personal but not too efficient. While technology enables us to efficiently connect and communicate, be careful not to overdo it. Automated, mass-messaging may be efficient but might not be effective. Go for the personal message.
3. Never stop. Keep this mindset. Keith says we need to “ping constantly.” That means staying in touch often. Holidays are great occasions, but greetings are usually sent to everyone at this time. The birthday, on the other hand, is the most important day to someone. Make time to say something special for a friend’s birthday. You might be one of the few to do so.

So there you have it. Twelve tips for building better relationships for fun and profit. I’ve purposely left out the many more tips included in Never Eat Alone. If you haven’t read it, I can’t recommend it enough.

Now it’s your turn. What has worked for you in building and fostering your relationships with others?

Image by whizchickenonabun via Flickr

Registration for this month’s Second Saturday event, “Build It And They Will Come!”, is now open.

This Saturday, Debba Haupert from Girlfriendology.com will be on hand to talk about how she’s built a thriving community, and we’ll learn what we can do to build communities of our own.

Just like last month, we’ll share a short power tip that you can use in your efforts, some social media news, and another book giveaway.

And, of course, there will be some great opportunities for us to (re)connect in-person! Please come up and say hi!

Go grab your spot before they all are taken … and remember to invite your friends!

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via SocialPint

Over the years, many other networking groups have sprung up around the Greater Cincinnati area, but it’s been a challenge to find a single place that shows all of their events.

(By the way, if you have any announcements for the February Second Saturday event, please email them to news AT newmediacincinnati.com by Thursday, February 10, 2011 at 5 PM Cincinnati time.)

It looks like Steve, Joe, and the rest of our friends at the Social Pint Network are looking to meet this need. If you want to keep your personal and professional networking card full, check out the Networking Events Calendar at their website that’s being updated all the time. In fact, if you know of an event they do not have on their calendar, you can submit it yourself via their website!

By the way, as many of us in the New Media Cincinnati community can attest, the Social Pint Network events, which are held during the week in Northern Kentucky each month, are definitely worth attending! Check out their Picasa Web Album to see the activity from previous events.

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Get your e-mail invitation? Good. Then you know about what we’re doing this Saturday.

If not, get on over and register for Saturday’s event. You want to be there. Yes, definitely.

Want to get an email invitation next month? Add yourself to the list here.

Let there be no doubt: new media is alive and well in Cincinnati, Ohio.

Approximately 70 people packed into the patio at The Pub at Rookwood Mews this afternoon for the first New Media Cincinnati Second Saturday event of 2010.  As I was planning this out, I and others wondered if people would show up, given that the AFC Wildcard Playoff game between the Cincinnati Bengals and the New York Jets was happening about the same time.

With the game muted in the background, several social media practitioners and enthusiasts gathered together in the heated, paneled patio of the Pub to network with one another and learn about some of the changes to the tax laws in 2009 from Chad Middleton from Outerwoven, who sponsored the event.

Opening Remarks

In my opening remarks I reminded us when we last met in November 2009 and learned of people who had started blogs, podcasts, Twitter accounts, Facebook accounts, businesses because of their involvement in the new media community. I encouraged the community to try hard in 2010, to try hard enough to fail, to make their involvement in this space worth their lives. Social media is ripe for experimentation, and we need to learn from one another.

Here’s the link to the intro video. For some reason the sound on my microphone kept going in and out.

Announcements a-plenty!

A quick recap of some of the many announcements made is below. I’ll let those who made them provide further details in the comments.

• Check out Breanna Gaddie‘s Networking with Passion blog and the corresponding local networking calendar for information about other events going on in the Greater Cincinnati area.
• Justin Rains holds a monthly networking lunch at the Hofbrauhaus in Newport on the third Friday of the month from 11:30 AM to approximately 2 PM. He organizes it via Twitter. The next event is next Friday, January 15th.
• Mary Beth Dunn Wilson mentioned a mentorship event next Wednesday, January 13th, put on via the Authentic Leadership group. Get in touch with Mary Beth or Michelle Beckham for more information.
• Also next Wednesday, in the early morning, from 6:30 to 9:30 AM, Brian Monahan‘s group Meeting Point Cincinnati has a Pecha Kucha Over Easy event. The cost is $10. Pecha Kucha is a presentation style that is 20 slides, 20 seconds per slides. I will be giving a talk entitled “5 Qualities of Successful Job Seekers.”Brian has given me 3 passes to give away. If you’re interested, please leave a comment below as to why you think you should get the passes. If only three people leave a comment, then those three people get the passes. It’s that simple! (these have been picked up already).
• Debba Haupert mentioned the Maximizing Your Job Search series going on at Crossroads Community Church on January 12, 19, and 26 from 7-8:30 PM. Experts in the HR field will be on-hand to help job seekers better prepare for the job search process. For more information, get in touch with Debba.
• Debba also said to check out the Cincinnati Women Bloggers website for information about upcoming events they are doing. They typically meet on the fourth Saturday of the month.
• Broom ball on Fountain Square, next Saturday, January 16, 2009 at 1 PM with mascots.
• Today, January 9, 2010, is the eighth anniversary of my very first blog post. (Correction: the 7th was.) Who among those who attended their first New Media Cincinnati Second Saturday will start up a blog in 2010?
• Julie Bogart mentioned she celebrated her 10-year anniversary of her Bravewriter business this week. Who among us will start a business this year?
• Be sure to check out the Twitterstream from the event. Look for the hashtag #newmediacincy.
• Become a fan of New Media Cincinnati on Facebook.

• Anne Castleberry reminded everyone of the Social Media Holiday Happy Hour held in December. There will be another event every quarter, the next one to be in March.
• George Williams announced a new experiment in hyperlocal citizen journalism and community-building entitled Cincy Voices, launching next week. Be sure to connect with George to get involved in this project.

Here’s a corresponding video of these last two announcements:

2009 Tax Changes – Featured Speaker

It was really great to have Chad Middleton from Outerwoven give us a low-down on some of the many changes to the tax laws that went into effect within the past year. New and updated tax credits and deductions are available. Some serious caveats as well.

For some reason the UStream feed was a bit flaky and it caused the video stream to break up. Here’s the first video of Chad’s talk:

Here’s the second video of Chad’s talk:

Chad’s other website for Blackberries is Themes4BB.

Final thoughts

Thanks again to everyone who came out and has followed the group online. If the first Second Saturday is any indication, this is going to be a great year for the community. I can’t wait to see what we come up with together.

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2009 in Review

It is hard to believe this is the last Second Saturday we’ll be having in 2009! How have you changed over the past year? In what ways has your involvement in this space made you different? Come prepared to share your individual stories with the group.

We will also be simulcasting our meetup with New Media Dayton, so this looks to be interesting.

Missed the Planning Call?

We had a great time chatting last week about the event this Saturday. It’s worth listening to the call, even just to hear the interaction among the group. Find all the details at the New Media Cincinnati website

Donations

As in previous months, since some have asked how they can support me in the group, I have set up a donation ticket on the Eventbrite page.

With the holidays coming up, I would like to see if we can help support a local food drive I’m participating in.  To that end, this time around, half of what you donate between now and Saturday will go to support that effort. If you would prefer, please consider bringing in a non-perishable food item to donate. Thank you for your support!

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(Cross-posted to danieljohnsonjr.com)

Chances are, if you were following Twitter on Saturday, August 8, 2009,  between 4 and 7 PM Cincinnati time, you saw updates from this month’s New Media Cincinnati Second Saturday.

The format once again was Questions from a Hat, similar to the “Scenes from a Hat” party game on Drew Carey‘s “Whose Line Is It Anyway?”. I can tell you emphatically that this format WORKS with this group! Not only does it appeal to our social natures, but it also helps spread a lot of information around in a relatively short amount of time. I’d like to say special thanks to Amybeth Hale, who live-tweeted the questions and answers on Twitter. We’re going to miss you, Amybeth, as you move to Washington state. You’re always welcome back whenever you visit!

This first video is 38:39 long.

I am SO thankful for Don and Vickie Sceifers and Tom Rockhold, who have taken over the UStream channel during the Second Saturday events. They’ve done a fantastic job managing this aspect of the event so that I don’t have to. This second video is 14:16 long.

New Media Cincinnati logo

New Media Cincinnati began in October 2007 as a simple meetup group of people in the Cincinnati, Dayton, and Northern Kentucky areas who were passionate about new and social media technologies like blogging, podcasting, Twitter, etc.

The group consists of people who are using new and social media for a living, but also includes people who are simply involved as a hobby.  Anyone interested in learning more about these technologies and in connecting with others is welcome to attend.  New Media Cincinnati has become, as one attendee remarked, “the premiere social networking event in the Greater Cincinnati area.”

People who come to New Media Cincinnati Second Saturdays

• make and foster business and personal connections with at least one other person,
• have face-to-face time with social media connections made online,
• learn from one another about social media technologies as we share best practices and other tips
• have the chance to talk about their own online presence
• have opportunities to share something they know with the rest of the group
• partake of food and drink and in general have a great time!

Connecting at New Media Cincinnati Second Saturdays has led to new business and employment for some.

Details

Join us for the August 8th New Media Cincinnati Second Saturday from 4 pm until 7 pm at The Pub Rookwood Mews:

• Event Tags
  • Twitter: #newmediacincy
  • Elsewhere: newmediacincy
• Registration
  • Event registration is required and limited to 60 attendees. Once the event is sold out, please use the Contact page to be added to the waiting list.
  • Please complete the registration form so that we can know a bit more about who’s coming.
• Date: Saturday, August 8th from 4 pm until 7 pm
• Location: The Pub Rookwood Mews at 2692 Madison Rd, Cincinnati, OH 45208 (map)
  
• Cost:
  • Free, but you are responsible for your own check at The Pub.
  • Some have expressed an interest in donating to the group to cover expenses, etc., so a separate ticket type has been created for that purpose. Thank you!
    
• Questions? Contact Daniel Johnson, Jr. via the Contact page or see below.

Planning Conference Call

If you haven’t already, you may want to listen to the recent planning conference call we had on July 30th. Thanks again to all who participated and shared their thoughts. It was a great discussion!

Create and Share Content

The strength of this group comes from everyone’s participation.  The more you share about the group online and in-person with others, the wider reach this group will have.

To that end, unless otherwise specified, New Media Cincinnati events and content therein are licensed under Creative Commons to promote the sharing and distribution of new media content.

In other words, please

• take pictures and add them to the Flickr group and elsewhere,
• record audio and video,
• blog,
• tweet,
• record audio and video,
  
• live-stream, and
• otherwise create and share content to document and promote this event on the internet

Participating in the event means that you understand that your image and voice may be captured and used for non-commercial use.

Twitter for Late-Breaking News

Speaking of Twitter, for all last-minute updates on the day of the event, please follow us on Twitter:http://twitter.com/newmediacincy . In addition, you can also follow me on Twitter:http://twitter.com/danieljohnsonjr

Alternatively, you can contact
Daniel Johnson, Jr.
Founder, New Media Cincinnati
513-373-4442

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