Holiday Card Etiquette For Digital And Analog

E-Card Maybe it’s the recession, or maybe it’s a sign of the digital age. I’ve been receiving a disproportionate share of holiday e-cards versus traditional paper cards sent via snail mail. I like e-cards because they’re friendlier to the environment, though I still like receiving paper greetings as well.… Read the rest

Avoid Being A Dork By Getting Your Headshot In Shape

I don’t attend many industry conferences, but there were a few this past July where I noticed something peculiar: the headshots of many of the speakers used in event publicity and promotions were years out of date. Compared to their current real-life appearance, many of the speakers’ headshots portrayed them with far fewer gray hairs and wrinkles, and an abundance of retro hairstyles and yesterday’s apparel.… Read the rest

Connecting With Ancestors Through Letters

I wrote an essay a few months back describing how the surge in digital communications has created a relative explosion in the impact of handwritten letters. My longtime friend Devin Marks left a comment that’s worthy of its own blog post, so here it is:

[A]bout a year ago, I returned to the family attic in Kentucky and pulled out some 1,700-odd letters from the 1880s, forward.

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Get Your iPad Out Of My Face

In the past few months, Web-technology pitches and demos have begun to change.

Formerly, live technology demos would require a consensual gathering around a laptop, or a computer monitor mounted on a desk, or a trade-show booth. There was a formality and a definitive commitment of attention involved with these rituals.… Read the rest

Reminder On Email Privacy And Etiquette

Email is not sexy, but it’s fundamental and thriving. Email is the root of our identities on the Web. It firmly remains the default social network. It is a simple and ubiquitous channel. We all grant our attention to email.

Which is why email is becoming more popular among among businesses that seek our attention, our engagement and our wallets.… Read the rest