It’s Gonna be one of those posts…..
As many of you know, I’ve been involved in local politics seriously since 2014. I became a local democratic zone leader in 2022. It’s been a big job, but it’s largely akin to running the PTO, but with more far-ranging consequences. You’ve got planning for events, wrangling volunteers, and keeping…
Guide to Gift Giving
It’s close to Christmas, and as we finish up our shopping, it’s worth reflecting on the purpose of gifts in the first place. I read an article this am about how millenial parents are frustrated that their Boomer parents are showering their kids with useless stuff that just ends up…
FFS
We’re living in interesting times. The lead candidate for the republican nomination for presidency just wants everyone to give up and anoint him their candidate now, despite finally starting to face the consequences of years of fraud and treating the legal system as a cudgel to use against anyone he…
AI is Going to Change Everything
Working in digital marketing, Artificial Intelligence (AI) and what it can and should be used for is all the rage right now. If you want to understand AI better, the best source is really Chris Penn– who has an excellent set of videos and regularly explains what’s happening in AI…
Podcamp 2023
A small group of us, die hards from Podcamp Philly and Podcamp East, came together this past weekend for Podcamp 2023 in Philadelphia. There were amazing sessions talking about how AI and Chat GPT will pose challenges to those of us who are involved in digital marketing, or looking to…
Glad to Leave Office? I get it.
Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney is getting into trouble because he spoke his truth, saying he’s looking forward to a time when he’s not mayor. As someone who was a Township Supervisor for 6 years, I understand this sentiment perhaps as much as anyone. Being a local elected official may look…
Almost 80 Best Movies of the 80’s
Rolling Stone just put out a post of the 100 best movies of the 1980’s- and there are a lot of obscure movies that as a teenager/college student during the 80’s I never heard of. As a child of divorced parents, I spent a ridiculous amount of time at the…
Losing but not Lost
I lost my bid for re-election as a Township Supervisor. Elections are like the world’s longest job interview. I knocked 946 doors, speaking with friends and neighbors; sending mail out to people about what I stood for, and what I believed. I chose not to attack my opponent, even though…
Running for Office
I am a local Township Supervisor in Pennsylvania, running for re-election this year. Supervisor is a part-time position, and comes with a statutory stipend of $2,500.00 a year. that equates to about $5.20 or less an hour of meeting time, and other work we put in to help guide the…
Dementia
My mother-in-law has dementia. She had been pretty good at hiding her slow cognitive decline for a long time, but gradually, not even those of us who would have preferred to be in denial could avoid the truth. We needed to move Nancy out of her home and into a…
Giving and Receiving
The Holiday season is gearing up, and the Season of Giving is upon us. After spending a week that involved both putting on the Web2Open and getting tons of support from friends for that event and on my first half marathon, it started me thinking a lot about giving...
Challenges and Victories
The Miracle is not that I finished, the miracle is that I had the courage to start. John Bingham This has been a big week for me. After organizing Podcamps - digital media community unconferences - for the past few years, we were asked to organize the Open sessions at...
Always Learning
I had the distinct pleasure of organizing the Web2Open at this year's Web 2.0 Expo in New York City. Over these past few days, I've met a new group of amazing people, with skills and passion in over-drive. People who have brilliant ideas, projects and powers to make...
Whose Idea Is It?
In reading Malcolm Gladwell's "What The Dog Saw", and watching his interview on WNYC talking about how someone lifted part of piece he wrote in the New Yorker as part of a larger Broadway play, I've been rethinking my approach to idea ownership. There are tons of...
The Difference Between Listening and Hearing
I have been a big fan of Malcolm Gladwell's work ever since reading The Tipping Point several years ago. About a week ago, I bought and started reading "What the Dog Saw and other adventures", a book that's largely a collection of his work in The New Yorker. It's a...
Why Should You Share?
I had someone ask me a question about sharing and linking at my recent presentation about Blogging for Business at AGS University. They said someone had told them they shouldn't link out to others because it was taking traffic away from your website and giving it to...
Why Social Media is Like a Veg-o-Matic
This could also be entitled "What I'm learning from Malcolm Gladwell and Ron Popeil". I picked up Malcolm Gladwell's new book,"What the Dog Saw"- a collection of some of his New Yorker pieces. Since I wasn't as blown away by his recent Outliers book as I had been by...
Blogging for Business
Today I'm giving a presentation at Associates Graphic Services, AGS, in Wilmington, DE. They have a great program called AGS University, where they provide classes for local businesses to help them learn about how to get the most from their marketing dollars. ...
Personal Branding
At the very first Podcamp Boston, CC Chapman and Mitch Joel did a great presentation on Personal Branding that altered the way I approached my web projects. Instead of always staying in the background, I learned how important it was to own your blog and podcast, add...
Digital Birthdays
Social media means I have many friends in many different places than every before. This makes it a bit trickier to find the appropriate Birthday greeting and celebration for your friends. If we lived in the ame town, we could easily get together for lunch or for an...
Whitney Hoffman
Hi There! I’m Whitney Hoffman. I currently work for Mingl Marketing and Comfort Media Group in Philadelphia, PA
