Dorm Room Biz

I'm all for people trying to start a business for themselves -- one thing I have plans for in the future, working towards it!

So, a quick plug today for Dorm Room Biz. Check them out, I might win some stuff, it's a totally selfish act ;-)

Heard on Peter Shankman's HARO.

Coming Soon To A Website Near You

I am back in the entrepreneurial kick again, and purchased yet another domain name a month or so ago. A couple of my trusted friends are working with me on the idea, so hopefully it will pan out. Can't give much away, suffice to say that it will involve helping people.

Daniel Needs A Job!

I've never met the guy, but as my own blog proves, he is someone after my own heart -- so give him a job!

http://gottagetajobnow.blogspot.com/

Whyless Network

I bought a domain name last year with the aim of setting up a social network to help people. Ning offered that free option, so today I launched the Whyless Network.

If you work for a charity, need help, food, clothing, or just want to boost your good karma, then please consider joining the network. Give hope, not a poke!

http://www.whylessnetwork.com/

Please Send This To At Least 007 Friends

Triiibes Members LinkedIn Group

I signed up early for Seth Godin's Triiibes social network, and getting a lot of value from it. I took it a step further today and (with Seth's OK) started a Triiibes Members LinkedIn Group so people can connect on a more professional basis:

http://www.linkedin.com/e/gis/162640/5F6B721E6F1A

Book Details A Real Life Story Of The Kibbutz World

My friend Adam Segal interviewed me about my time in Israel spent on a kibbutz and the resulting book. Click the link below.

http://www.canadasisrael.ca/?p=243

Do Ya Feel Lucky, Punk? Well? Do Ya?

Easier to find me now.

1) Go to Google.
2) Type john carson blog or john james carson.
3) Hit "I'm Feeling Lucky."

My Website Got Dugg ... Sorta

A website called Matador Volunteer linked to my kibbutz volunteer website, and just by chance, it was listed next to the Digg box with 696 diggs, so my traffic has shot up today.

http://matador.org/10-volunteer-opportunities-for-free-travel/

World's First Twebinar

I attended the world's first Twebinar today. My thoughts?

You can read them on my company blog here:
http://blogs.gcigroup.com/fineprint/2008/06/26/twebinar-1/

Wordle

The above image is a tag cloud I made from my resume using Wordle. I like it a lot.

You can click here to see the full version.

New Media Douchebags Explained

Shouldn't laugh. But I did.

In Good Company

I haven't blogged for a while at Make Johnny Cash as I've been busy blogging here.

Hey, I'm A Social Media Maven!

In Muscat, the Sultanate of Oman.

http://arunrajagopal.com/2008/06/04/are-you-that-guy-or-that-gal/

Little Geeks

The PR agency I work for does pro bono work for a good cause called Little Geeks. It was set up by Canadian tech journalist Andy Walker: http://www.andywalker.com/.

Little Geeks is a philanthropic organization and registered Canadian charity that collects, refurbishes and re-distributes donated home computers to children in need. These computers are given free of charge, and are coupled with an Internet connection at the child’s home.

On June 12 from 3 p.m.-7 p.m., The Little Geeks Foundation will hold an event and give refurbished computers, complete with Windows 2000 and Microsoft Office, to 100 families of underprivileged children, free of charge. This event, the first of many to come, is one way the Foundation is reaching toward its 2008 goal of 1,000 PCs delivered to the homes of the families that need them.

The event will be held at:
St Andrew’s United Church, 117 Bloor Street East, Toronto, Ontario, M4W 1A9

People with a child in need of a computer, can visit http://www.littlegeeks.org/ to register. Once qualified, recipients will be contacted by a member of the Little Geeks staff to attend this event and pick up their free computer.

Twitter's Business Model

Brian Alvey thinks he has cracked Twitter's business model. Genius!

http://www.brianalvey.com/news/2008/05/25/twitters-business-model/

A Chance To Be On Seth Godin's Next Book Cover

Seems like a cool opportunity.

http://sethgodin.typepad.com/seths_blog/2008/05/a-chance-to-be.html

It Ain't What You Do It's The Way That You Tweet It

I've had some more thoughts on the way Web Who.0 is going since my last post on the subject.

My contact list is growing steadily, and I've found it very useful recently in finding experts in a given field as part of my work. People are very approachable if you treat them as a busy person, with respect, and be succinct in what you need from them. A link? Referral? Advice? Just ask -- the majority will get back to you in a reasonable time frame; sometimes immediately if they're monitoring their own and/or company's name.

I love the interaction of the Internet. Someone mentioned PR being chained to a desk all day. It's not, really. I am looking out the window on the world, but strolling around the Web Who.0 and talking to people, swapping ideas, giving help, soaking up knowledge, picking brains, offering intros to my network for others. It's addictive.

So, if anyone wants to get in touch fast, here's a recap:

Freelance: http://www.johnjamescarson.com/
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/johncarson
Twitter: http://twitter.com/johncarson
Microsoft Messenger: kibbutzvolunteer@hotmail.com
Good old e-mail: makejohnnycash@gmail.com

John,
Running around inside a server somewhere near you.

Mesh 08: Enterprise = My Customers Shared

Day two of mesh was better than the first for me, as more of the sessions I attended were relevant to my work. The overall theme that came across was that customer satisfaction is paramount, no matter what business you are in, or starting up.

I came up with a formula to summarize that: e=mc2. (Sorry, Einstein.)
That stands for: Enterprise = My Customers Shared.

The point being that everyone in a company is facing the customer now. Not just the people on the end of a call centre line, the marketing department or the sales clerk. We -- whatever business you are in -- all face the customer, and should have the leeway from the Big Corner Office With Windows to interact with them, and make sure they're happy, without checking if it's OK with 10 levels of management, and oh yeah, I'll get back to you about that next Wednesday.

Some great people I met or listened to at mesh day two included Lane Merrifield (Club Penguin co-founder, makes sure every single customer inquiry gets a personal response from a real human being), Ali Asaria (makes sure that a handwritten note goes out with every order) and Garrett Camp (co-founder of StumbleUpon, still follows the same values now as he did as a start-up in Calgary).

Companies to keep an eye on: Enomaly, Overlay.TV and GigPark (co-founder Noah Godfrey was the publisher of Dose back in the day).

All in all, mesh 08 was an excellent event and a great networking opportunity.

Mesh 08

Opening day of mesh was great. Sold out. I've never been surrounded by so many people Twittering at once, or checking e-mails -- it was like a BlackBerry convention.

Got to listen to and/or chat with a number of cool people, including Michael Geist, Colin McKay (aka Canuckflack), Rachel Sklar and AmberMac.

Day two tomorrow.