Image: Francesco Marino / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Have you ever stopped doing something in business because it’s not the “right” way to do things? Have you ever stopped to think what the right way actually is? Is it what other’s say it is? Or is it what you feel is the right way? My guess is that most of us consider the “right” way, the way other people expect it to be, or what we think other people expect it to be.

So what makes them right? I know I’m asking all the questions here and not giving too much in way of answers. That’s because it’s something each of us has to ask and answer for ourselves. Our actions should be dictated by what our hearts tell us and not by how we think others will perceive us.

Perception is deceiving and largely dictated by the herd syndrome. It just takes a few brave souls to tell us something is cool and we buy into it. So I find a lot of people who are new to business asking if they should change the way they dress or brand themselves honestly or make up an identity. They want me to tell them what they should be, what others want. That’s not the way. Eventually, that facade wil crack and so will you.

So be cool. Be true to yourself. Run your business the way you think it should be run, even if it is a little nonconformist. If you think it’s right, if you believe in it, if you enjoy what you are doing, the money will follow.

Congratulations to the recent winners of John Chow’s BlogWorld ticket giveaway. None of them were me. Boo hoo. But I’m sure they are some good bloggers. Check them out. Adria Richards of But You’re a Girl won the grand prize full-access pass by offering to hug 500 people while at Blog World. Other winners included Coree Silvera of Market Like a Chick and Jami Gibbs of American Babble, Prudent & Practical, TGT Money and Blogger’s Workshop

Congrats to you all.

Well you probably know if you are a blogger or in the social media industry that the Blog World Expo in October is where you want to be. I’ve been envisioning a Hunter S. Thompson drive out the expo, minus the man-eating lizards and giant bats, for weeks now. Er, let’s just take Thompson out of the picture and say I’ve been looking forward to a road trip to Vegas to attend BlogWorld.

So I’ve got to bite the bullet and, gulp, buy the $895 ticket. Which means I’ll have to pimp out my husband, which contrary to what you guys are thinking, won’t be fun for him, because it will likely be some elderly rich lady with a fruffy yapper dog permanently affixed to her lap and she’ll probably make my husband rub her toes. And her dog’s toes. Or I can just dust off the check book ….

The following was supposed to be a very inspired post. Full of information that would turn your business around, give you new perspective on social media, add fire to your blah public relations campaign and generally make you a better person. But in the end it turned out not to be any of that. Probably because it’s way too late to be awake, and far too late to be thinking in any logical form.

Sometimes I can’t help it though, my brain gets hungry and I need to feed it or maybe it’s that my brain gets restless and I need to exercise it, whatever the diagnosis, the fact is I’ve been up for hours reading and commenting on blogs and websites. I love to find a new site that is bright and funny and informative. I followed the recommendations of bloggers I really like and found some other bloggers I really like but I also found some that really stink so bad it made me rethink the original blogger I liked who suggested the stinker site.

Still it got me craving some more. So tonight I’ll put it to rest but I’m inviting you to tell me who you read. Give me some suggestions. Where do you spend your time on the web and why?