-by John Paul Young

Love is in the air
Everywhere I look around
Love is in the air
Every sight and every sound

And I don’t know if I’m being foolish
Don’t know if I’m being wise
But it’s something that I must believe in
And it’s there when I look in your eyes

Love is in the air
In the whisper of the trees
Love is in the air
In the thunder of the sea

And I don’t know if I’m just dreaming
Don’t know if I feel sane
But it’s something that I must believe in
And it’s there when you call out my name

(Chorus)
Love is in the air
Love is in the air
Oh oh oh
Oh oh oh

Love is in the air
In the rising of the sun
Love is in the air
When the day is nearly done

And I don’t know if you’re an illusion
Don’t know if I see it true
But you’re something that I must believe in
And you’re there when I reach out for you

Love is in the air
Every sight and every sound
And I don’t know if I’m being foolish
Don’t know if I’m being wise

But it’s something that I must believe in
And it’s there when I look in your eyes

HAPPY VALENTINES DAY!

I was speaking recently at a conference and as I stepped down from the podium…a well-dressed man was waiting to tell me he recognized me from Twitter. “I have a question for you”…why do you follow so many people on Twitter?”

Apparently he hadn’t read my Twitter Watchdog post about My Twitter Philosophy

He went on to tell me he only follows a few very select people who he “is nurturing” because he wants them as clients. Well, I thought…focus is good, and then I remembered…

Many years ago I was doing the marketing for Ford Motor Co. I was feeling pretty great about how well we were doing, getting prospects to go to their local dealerships and test drive new cars. But, as soon as I get “puffed up”, something always happens to set me right again. This time it was an irate dealer-owner in Quebec.

He called the agency and screamed at me that my foolish mailing had brought in a blind man who requested a test drive of a new car, a big Explorer. His salesman wasted an hour driving the guy around…and it was all my fault, because my list selection was stupid. Then he called the Chairman of our agency to tell him to kick me to the curb.

I apologized profusely. Not sure how a blind man even read my direct mail letter…and then went back to work, humbled.

Next morning at 11:00 AM I get a call from that same dealer. This time his voice was filled with gratitude. The blind guy had brought his brother in that morning and just signed the papers to buy a fully loaded Explorer. Imagine!

So if one blind man can buy a big old car…who might be the person who buys your service, your product…your next great idea?

I think (for what it’s worth):

1. Follow people back, if they’re real people. I followed @aviationartlife because she had a weird logo. Turns out, she’s Cecilia Karr and her husband is an Aviation Artist. I own an agency..never know when I might need him. Meanwhile, we’re friends.

2. @Ms_effective tweeted me about contributing a section of her new book. I gave her some of my secrets of feeling great before presentations and she wrote about them in her new book, 101 Quick Tips Effective Communications by Debbie Mayo-Smith. She’s in New Zealand and month she sent me a half dozen copies of the new book…with my secrets in it. Love that!

3. Then there’s @kansasauthor who writes directly to me often. He didn’t like the fact, I kept calling him Kansas, so I looked up his name, Tom Mach. Found out he wrote a great book entitled, Sissy. I ordered it last night from Barnes and Noble.

So, I’ve made dozens of new friends. Maybe I’m not as focused as the guy with the Armani suit..but Twitter is definitely making me happier.

Lois Geller Follow me on Twitter

I found a great post by Biz Stone from Twitter that I thought everyone will appreciate today and beyond. Here it is..

“Life’s most persistent and urgent question is: What are you doing for others?” This quote made famous by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. strikes at the heart of what it means to be a mindful participant in any community. On an international level this week, people are joining forces to heal Haiti. Together, we’re proving that we’re wired to help.

On Monday, the Twitter offices will be closed for Martin Luther King Jr. Day. People all over the United States are urged to honor Dr. King’s legacy by making this holiday a national day of service. The Corporation for National Community Service has set up a web site to help us find a volunteer opportunity in our local community.

The folks behind the @ServeDotGov Twitter account and serve.gov site want to hear about your efforts. If you find a volunteer opportunity that interests you, go for it! Tweet about your experience as you learn about different ways to get involved, volunteer in your neighborhood or town, and be sure to add #MLKDay to spread the word.

Please leave us your comments and suggestions regarding “What are you doing for others”?

Happy Martin Luther King Day~

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Christmas Day I was over my head with company and a 30 pound bird, potatoes, desserts…etc. My family wanted to help and they went scrambling looking for cheese cutters, carving knives, salad servers, etc.
Sadly, all of those implements reside in two “junk drawers” in my kitchen. They opened them and rummaged through the mess to find what they needed.
I was so embarrassed, and I’d been meaning to clean them up and empty the extra screws in there, the nutcracker that had begun to rust, etc.

So, as soon as I was done with the all that food preparing, I measured those two errant drawers and went to Bed, Bath & Beyond to buy drawer organizers and all shiney new cutlery. It felt great, just looking there…not for company…but for myself. I even threw away the spatula that had lost the handle.

Somehow it brought to mind Twitter, and maybe it was time to clean up my followers too (I often get on these cleaning jags).

So, I sat down yesterday, and decided to clean out my followers by “unfollowing” people who don’t follow me, haven’t tweeted in months, have some old account.

I went up to: http://friendorfollow.com and typed in my name. It showed a hand patting a rabbit and said that if I was popular it might take a while to find all the people I follow, that don’t follow me back. So, I left it running and went out to a party.

When I returned I found that there were over 1400 people I followed like that. I even found that Al Ferretti (I’m President of his fan club) had an old account I had there. One by one, I went through the tedious task of unfollowing people who hadn’t tweeted in months.

I also found people I thought liked me, but weren’t following me (maybe my red pictures popping up got on their nerves). Made it through about 340 and felt great.

I’d made a dent in cleaning up my Twitter followers.

I like to do this, because it gives me room to start picking people of quality, ones I can learn from, talk business with and enjoy.
So, maybe you might want to give it a try. It feels great…and let me know what you think about the process by leaving a comment below or sending me a tweet
Out with the old. In with the new. Happy 2010!

Follow me (Lois Geller) on Twitter

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Let us take just a moment to begin this new year and decade by saying, thank you.
Thank you for allowing us the opportunity to serve you. It’s truly an honor and privilege to have this opportunity. For that, we are truly grateful.

Here are 15 gems (that we gathered) to not only live by but to live better on and off of Twitter in 2010 and beyond..

1. No one ever chocked swallowing his or her pride.

2. Don’t just mark time; use time to make your mark.

3. Technology should improve your life, not become your life.

4. The best ways to be somebody is just to be yourself.

5. People have a way of becoming what you encourage them to be — not what you nag them to be.

6. You can win more friends with your ears than with your mouth.

7. Education is an investment and never an expense.

8. Your smile is more important than anything else you wear.

9. Gratitude shouldn’t be an occasional incident but a continuous attitude.

10. Helping someone up won’t pull you down.

11. If you don’t learn from your mistakes, there’s no sense in making them.

12. When is the last time you did something for the first time?

13. One thing I can give and still keep is my word.

14. Happiness can be thought, taught and caught — not bought.

15. Failure is no more fatal than success is permanent.

All the best to you in 2010 and beyond….

What words do you live by?
(please share by leaving a comment below..)

Watching out for you, one tweet at a time -TwitterWatchDog

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Follow me on Twitter @skeeterhansen

Follow Your Pal Al Ferretti @alferretti

I received this quote the other day and thought I would share it with you as we bring another year to a close. This quote was sent to me by @C_Morgan_NH

Learn from the past, watch the present and create the future

Wishing you all a happy and blessed 2010,

Your Pal Al Ferretti and Skeeter Hansen

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May the spirit of Christmas bring you peace, the gladness of Christmas give you hope, and the warmth of Christmas grant you love.

Merry Christmas!

-Al and Skeeter