I've Done it My Way

The advice is to pick a unique name, I came up with Conversation Agent - that was still when the term conversation had not tipped, and I knew it would. Thank you mom and dad for giving me a pretty rare name, it will come in handy. Conversation Agent is an accurate expression of my personal brand vs. an aspirational concept. It came after years of work with organizations and community filling that role.

This is who I am. It will evolve thanks to the connections and interaction. I welcome that evolution.

They say that writing short posts is much better and gets you more readers and comments. I know it's easier on the eyes and time for sure. Although I have gotten better at editing my content down, I am still writing long. My posts also tend to be more like articles, with subheads and development. That happens when I am thinking deeper as I spend time with an idea. It also happens as I connect different ideas. Yes, they do take time to write - 2-4 hours, depending on the research involved.

This has been a prequel to other projects. The time has come to recalibrate what I write here.

The third piece of advice I usually do not follow is thinking that the value of content I share depends on the number of comments I receive on that post. That's because on more than one occasion I presented ideas that were slightly or much ahead or from a Euro-global angle. There is also plenty of evidence that my posts grow over time - they are directional and at a slow release even for me. Many a time I've reread an old post and looked at the content from a fresh angle.

I measure myself by the number of comments I leave, not those I get.

Success to me means inspiring insight, helping others connect, learning, and failing, too - my way.

Thank you for risking conversations, exchanges here and elsewhere, incomplete thoughts, and amusement. Thank you for the contribution, the likable ways *you* have that are yours alone. Thank you for allowing me to glimpse into your world and for taking part in mine. Thank you for reading.

[unforgettable Frank Sinatra, My Way - listening time 4:38]

Comments

[Brian Clark]

Don't change a thing (unless you want to)!

[robert john ed]

Valeria-

I think it's good that you choose to do what you want. Everyone has to do things on their terms. Yet, I must be honest, that sometimes I've skipped over reading your posts due to time constraints (although not usually!).

Blogging is a great thing. I am honestly loving it, but it isn't to become a web celebrity. It's to meet cool people like yourself, to develop relationships and further the conversation. Those who try write simply to receive adulation are assured only failure. Good luck in the future.

[Matt Dickman]

Valeria -- I've told you before and I'll tell you again, you are the best writer in the blogosphere. I can tell that your posts take an extraordinary amount of time and the community is better because of it.

I agree with you on the topic of valuing posts based on comments received. Some of the posts that I've written with 1-2 comments are the ones that I hear people tell me they love or that they reference in their own posts. What really matters is if people incorporate what you say into what you do. There is no metric for that.

Keep writing what makes you happy Valeria and know we all appreciate it!

[Joanna Young]

Valeria, I'm none too keen on shoulds myself. Much better for us all to find our own way.

I love your way. I don't always comment but I do always read, and I know that every single thing you write here is thought out, well researched and written for a purpose.

It's also clear and easy to read. Length doesn't matter if you hit those two!

Best wishes

Joanna

PS Are your typepad woes fixed?

[Mark David Gerson]

"Success to me means inspiring insight, helping others connect, learning, and failing, too - my way."

Amen! I think it's important to consider conventional wisdom...then forge ahead wherever the muse calls us.

Mark David Gerson
author of The Voice of the Muse: Answering the Call to Write

[Luis Sandoval Jr.]

Valeria you've done an amazing job. Having found your blog some weeks ago, I've gone and read articles of interest through the archives, and I have no problem with long posts.

I find short posts to leave a lot unsaid, but longer posts give the writer time to unpack their ideas and communicate them effectively with examples.

Keep up the great work, I appreciate all of your work!

[Seni Thomas]

SEO starts from the womb. Like you, "Seni Thomas" is brilliant for search!

Check out this great little tool for looking at name trends: http://www.babynamewizard.com/voyager

Definitely a time waster.

Cheers

Seni

[NW Guy]

Valeria -

From an old American phrase.."Say it aint so", please?

I hope this is just comments on your approach and not your way of exiting the blogosphere. There is still much for me to learn, and time permitting, your blog has always been an excellent place to do that.

If you are exiting please let me know if you venture to the NorthWest.

[mvellandi]

Thank-you for writing!

[Joe Raasch]

Hi Valeria,

I am looking forward to your next chapter: in blog, in print, in life.

Cheers,

Joe

[RD Savage]

Valeria,

Yours is a full, joyful blog to read.

keep at it.
please
Russ

[Valeria Maltoni]

@Brian - music to my ears.

@Robert John - by now you probably know that I write because I want to - love to - and for no other reason. The learning and progress in my thinking alone have been reward enough. On top of that, I have such a wonderful team out here - all of you!

@Matt - your series on language was inspired. Ditto for me. My best posts, those I am most proud of sit there with one or two comments... the right conversations take place at the right time. No doubt about it.

@Joanna - I am sighing about TP, and keeping my fingers crossed. My thinking is towards the future and the possibility that awaits. How was your trip to Sardegna?

[Valeria Maltoni]

@Luis - I so like that image of unpacking ideas! It is how it happens. In some cases, it's a gentle unwrapping, in others, a big ta-da.

@Seni - how did I know you'd talk about SEO? I still remember our conversation at MoMA.

@Bruce - not an exit, I promise. Just a recalibration I do with diligence and anticipation when I feel it's time to stretch a little to the next level. There is much potential in my writing and this tool and the projects I will undertake in the coming weeks and months will allow me to experiment more. So stay tuned, as they say.

@Mario - ciao, hope all is well with you.

@Joe - writing it as we speak. Hope the work is keeping you agile and looking forward to hearing the news.

@Russ - gusto for life is one of my brand attributes. Once I read a character being described as "she scooped the sauce of life with bread" in a story. Yes, like that.

[Chris Baskind]

> I measure myself by the number of comments I leave, not those I get.

The take home of the day.

[Paul Chaney]

Valeria, keep doing it your way please. Your blog is one of the handful on my must read list, and I'm often challenged by your posts.

As to length, what was it T.S. Elliot said, "Had I more time I would have written a shorter letter." Blog posts these days often resemble full-blown articles.

As to whether or not you are a success. Well, the verdicts in on that one. You are! Keep doing what you're doing. (Is that Elvis or Sinatra I hear singing in my head?)

[Valeria Maltoni]

@Chris - thank you for reading. It is a hard balancing act, authoring just in one place, or choosing to give away content in others as way of comments and guest posts...

@Paul - I am in trouble, then, as I take a long time to come up with long form. I've enjoyed our exchanges and will look for an opportunity to leap off the screen and meet in real life. Thank you for your continued support and for enriching the conversation.

[Peter]

Dear Valeria,

Watch a river long enough and you come to realise that its path is directed by what stands in the way of its flow.

Noticing this doesn't change the direction of the river - but it may help to keep the course of life true.

A pleasure as always.

Peter

[paul isakson]

Every time I read one of the "how to" posts or articles on writing a blog, I just smile. From where I sit, most of those are written by people looking to get attention for themselves and are followed by people doing the same.

Similar to you (I think), I started writing my blog because of my passion for the industry I work in, a love of writing, and a natural desire to share everything I find, know, think and enjoy.

I've always done this in my career. Before my blog, I would put all of the things I write about in emails and send them out to my clients and agency. Now those things can be read by anyone who has interest in them. If nobody read them, that would be fine by me too. I didn't start writing to attract an audience and it's not what keeps me going. I won't lie, it wouldn't be quite as fun, but I'd still do it because it's just natural to me and has helped me become better at what I do.

My feelings regarding a blog, and most areas of social media actually, is that it/they should be an extension of yourself. Do them/use them how you want to - just be yourself. I think Peter's statement about the river is perfect. If you know where you're going/why your doing this, just do it. You'll find your way and that's the best way.

Anyway, I love what you share here and very much appreciate the "long" posts/articles. You're a very talented writer. Don't change a thing. Just be you. I think there's a good quote that applies here that goes somethign like, "Those that matter, don't mind and those that mind, don't matter."

There's another one that I like to recall when these things come up as well from one of my favorite movies, Little Miss Sunshine...

http://rurl.org/twy

:)

Keep doing what you're doing. I'm a huge fan.

[Valeria Maltoni]

You have many readers, I know. I am smiling too as I read your lines about writing "how to" posts. I've written many at The Blog Herald - not as popular as those written by others, though.

Peter is a brilliant conversation partner. We met a long time ago luckily in person at a Fast Company community @ work summit. When we talk, I am challenged to revisit many assumptions.

I challenge the rigid return to science and measurement - it's a symptom of fear broadcast by those who need to justify their existence. Marketing communications are about connection, not measurement. There is a post on this soon.

Thank you for reading and for your support.