Mutt Media | The Daily Bone 5.14.09 10 Tips For Marketing Yourself Online – Tip #2: Create a New Email Account

Mutt Media Tip #2

Another Tip from Mutt Media NY

2. Create a new email address specifically for your job search. Do away with addresses like Sexygirl222@xxx.com or anything too cutesy or infantile. This is a professional contact address and your email address may reveal a side of you that is not appropriate. This will only work to your disadvantage. Stick to your name, which is unique and will assist in people remembering who you are. If you have a common name like Smith, you may consider selecting something catchy and smart that reflects the business you are in or that will make an impression (consider perfectassistant@xxx.com or greathire@xxx.com).

You can get a new email account for free in a wide variety of places, such as gmail or aol, so what are you waiting for? Start reshaping your online image and put forth the best YOU possible!

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Mutt Media | Daily Bone 5.13.09 Ten Tips for marketing yourself online. Tip #1 Clean Up Your Act!

Another Tip from Mutt Media NY

Several months ago I published a document for a lecture I gave at an event that circulated and got some attention (radio, Twitter, etc). This document is called 10 Tips for Marketing Yourself Online. This list was conceived as a tool to help those in search of a new job, whether they are currently unemployed or just looking to do something new.

I thought I would use this forum to share these tips. Hope you find them helpful.

Mutt Media Tip #1

1. Clean up your online act! Take a moment and “Google” yourself. You may be surprised at what you find. You should be aware that potential employers can and will do this as an extension of their due diligence on a prospective employee.

This guideline does not only apply to those in search of work. Anyone who is looking to make a move of any significance – whether professionally, personally or scholastically needs to know that these searches are now standard operating procedure when checking out any applicant. This includes College Admission staff, so to all of you high school students who have social networking accounts, this applies to you, too….maybe even moreso.

Ask yourself if the images posted by you or your “friends” are really ones that you want on the Internet for all to see. I cannot stress this enough! Your pages may look fine but what about your contacts that may have tagged you in a photo that paints you in an unprofessional light? For the time being, take the account down or go through and make appropriate edits – often. Consider YouTube. Your favorites?? Are they videos you are proud to affiliate yourself with or do they “dumb” you down?

Leave no stone unturned and treat your image like a valuable marketing tool because guess what? It is.

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Mutt Media | Daily Bone 5.12.09 Health Information Managment – Invasion of privacy or career opportunity? The answer is, well…both.

The government has long been pushing for the computerization of patient health care records in a centralized system. Like anything that is government-mandated, our tendency is to question how this will affect us and our privacy.

We, as Americans are acutely aware when we feel our rights are being violated in any way, shape or form. The Bill of Rights and the Constitution allows us to pose these questions and challenge when we feel the need.

But that’s someone else’s blog topic. Today, I’d like to talk about the growth opportunities that you may find when you look under the hood of this seemingly “Big Brother-esque” move toward the globalization of our personal health care informaton.

Doctors have already begun using EMR (Electronic Medical Records) software as the government’s efforts become more of a glaring reality. Pretty soon all physicians will be required to comply and will even be entitled to receive monetary incentives for their timely compliance.

What does this mean for us as patients? Well, more cohesive and comprehensive communication between all of our providers. I know from my many years as Practice Administrator in a medical practice that sometimes patients can be forgetful about informing their physicians or omit certain facts when providing their health history. Something as simple as taking a baby aspirin every day can have real relevance if you need to book a surgery, but not everyone may think of this as being on a “medication” when asked to provide this informaton during a pre-operative visit.

One of the advantages of an electronic healthcare system that can be accessed by all of our health care providers is that they will all be working from the same information pool. Ideally, we wouldn’t have to carry our films (x-rays, MRI results etc) from visit to visit; nor would we have to “request” that our medical records be mailed from office to office.

Efficiency, going “green” and seamless healthcare aside, EMR is also paving the way for new job opportunities where they haven’t existed. So, although change can be difficult, it always brings growth and, if you’re optimistic, opportunity. Our healthcare records should never be released without our explicit consent. That goes without say, but I think the cynic in all of us has to wonder if confidenitality will trump governement and their need to know.

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Mutt Media | Daily Bone 5.11.09 | Craigslist – Does this online community really come in peace?

Mutt Media NY asks, "Craigslist: Symbol of Peace?"

Recently, we have heard about some unsavory news stemming from the ‘connections’ people are making on the popular site Craigslist.org. The most visible has been the case of Philip Markoff, a medical student attending Boston University who has been accused of killing a masseuse when she showed up to render her advertised services. Markoff has also been charged in the assault and robbery of a woman in a different incident that occured in Rhode Island, as well as robbing another just days before the murder. (source: Metro.us click here)

In Newsday on May 9th, I read about a woman named Margary Tannenbaum from Hauppauge, NY who was arrested and charged with aggravated harrassment for her attempt to exact revenge on her 9 year old neighbor. In this case, the neighbor was in a conflict with Tannenbaum’s daughter (also 9). It’s unclear what this conflict was, but this mother somehow convinced herself that it was appropriate to place an ad on Craigslist that advertised, “Looking for a good time? w4m 21″. For the uninitiated, that’s shorthand for women for men – 21 years old. When men responded to the email address contained in the ad, they were directed to call the 9 year old victim’s house. The ad supposedly netted 22 calls. Tannenbaum has been released on bail and will be arraigned this summer.

George Weber photographer: Dan Brinzac

In March of this year, news radio reporter George Weber was killed in Brooklyn by John Katehis, a 16 year old he solicited on Craigslist, supposedly for rough sex.

In 2007, a Minnesota man was sentenced to life in prision when he was found guilty of murdering Katherine Ann Olson who responded to his ad on Craigslist for a babysitter.

I went on Craigslist this morning (as I’ve done countless times before) and, in the interest of full disclosure, I have used the service in the past. I’ve sold a car and done some hiring – all with great success. This morning I went in search of something entirely different…..I wanted to take a closer look at their “About Us”. This led me to their FAQ page (click here) which, to my surprise – contains a purple peace sign within their tab container.

This strikes me as ironic, given the recent press and the call to action by several states and their Attorney Generals. The following quote first appeared in an article in the LA Times Business section just today….”This is the world’s oldest profession using the world’s newest technology,” South Carolina Atty. Gen. Henry McMaster said in an interview. Last week, he warned Craigslist that it would be “subject to criminal investigation and prosecution” if the erotic services section wasn’t removed by May 15.

There is a recurring theme here and the words of every parent, grandparent and caretaker are ringing in my head. “Don’t take candy from/talk to strangers”….remember that one? Given the world we live in today and the fact that we make many legitimate online connections that result in mutually-beneficial, sometimes profitable relationships, provides a counter-point to the “Don’t take candy” admonishment. Common sense must rule here….don’t put yourself into a potentially dangerous situation from which you cannot escape.

What do you think? Is it the responsibility of Craigslist to protect it’s visitors and screen it’s advertisers? I think this is a tricky question. It could be the buyer or the seller who becomes dangerous. How can anyone predict who will be the victim? Please share your thoughts.

Just so you don’t think I am picking on Craigslist…I am posting a story I just read a moment ago on a terrible story out of England. Click here to read about a couple whose online life resulted in real life tragedy.

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Mutt Media NY | Daily Bone 5.8.09 Taking Social Networking to a new level. What's on your mind?

I woke up this morning and had my tea, looked through the newspapers and began to check my online accounts – same routine as usual. Mixed in with the typical status updates was a glaring remark from a teenager who is one of my “friends” on Facebook who proclaimed, “_____________(insert name) just found out his dad is moving out”. This was followed by a barrage of comments from other friends telling this teen how sorry they are to hear this sad news.

I am dumbfounded…by this news, by the manner in which it was delivered and by the public responses to such a personal upset in his life. Clearly he needed to talk this out and this just happened to be his communication tool of choice, but what does this say about our evolving society and how our children cope?

Unfortunately, separation and divorce have become almost commonplace. But status updates on such a personal level seem disturbing to me and are shedding light on a trend. Never has the question, “What’s on your mind?” felt so loaded as it does for me today.

Mutt Media discusses taking Facebook Status Updates to a whole new level

On a personal level, this is upsetting, but in this situation in particular, I know the family will be ok…they are all good people. It furthers my thinking on this subject though. Don’t know how many reading this read the book or saw the movie, “He’s Just Not That Into You” but Drew Barrymore delivers one of the most funny and telling dialogue in the film when she tells her friend that she is (and I am paraphrasing) “exhausted” from chasing the different modalities of messaging.

We can video chat, instant message, BBM, text, leave a voicemail, use a pager (very retro, it seems), tweet, report our status and the list goes on. We can communicate instantly without ever really connecting and to take it one step further, people are really doing a lot of their living – totally online.

I personally feel lucky to have grown up in a different time while still being an active participant in this constantly-evolving technological boom we find ourselves in the midst of. There is an expanding gap for our children but they don’t even feel it because that’s all they know. I already find myself sounding like my parents when I tell my kids “when I was your age, we didn’t even have cell phones” in response to my daughter’s request to upgrade to a Blackberry. She tells me she needs it and that a bunch of her friends have one. She’s 11. I feel like I’m living in upside-down world but then again, I am the most guilty enabler. After all, wasn’t it me that text her to come down and set the table?

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Mutt Media | Daily Bone 5.7.09 | LEET or 1337 The language your kids may be speaking – are you fluent?

The following definition was copied (with some edits by me) from http://www.wikihow.com.

LEET (1337) is a written language used in online gaming, e-mails, text messaging, and other electronic communication. The root of the term “leet” is the word “elite”–translated as 31337. 1337 was initially developed as an exclusionary language: a way to encode text so that messages could only be read by the initiated. The defining characteristic of 1337 is substitution of symbols and numbers for letters (for example, in the term “1337,” 1=L, 3=E and 7=T), but the language has also developed to include intentional misspellings, phonetic spelling, and new words.

H4XORZ | Translation: HACKERS Licence Plate

I’ve taken some time to try to become familiar with this cryptic language, but, truthfully I find that it’s more trouble than it’s worth. However, if my children were frequently using it, I would make it my business to become fluent!

From what I can tell, LEET has been around for a really long time and has been widely used in certain chat rooms and alot on various gaming sites.

Rather than try to give you a primer on the language (there are many sites that you can find with a simple Google search) I thought I’d just provide a little social commentary on this phenomenon.

Its of course, remarkable that some of our children would go to great lengths to communicate with one another cloaked in a different language but not at all surprising. Does anyone remember Pig Latin? Ubby Dubby Language? You had to be a fan of the original ZOOM back in the 70′s for that one. So my point here is that we needn’t be shocked. We have all adopted some form of LEET into our texting and emailing. The symbol online for a heart is <3, which kind of looks like a heart turned on it’s side. LOL, ROFL, BRG, G2G are all little pieces taken from the LEET handbook.

I am hopeful that your kids are not discussing anything too crazy, but you probably already know the answer to that question. If you suspect that some topics (underage drinking, drugs, sex) are being discussed that you haven’t yet covered at home, now may be a good time to start speaking their language. Barring any international espionage or other illegal activities, I say let the kids have their fun. We did! Feedback? Comments? Just click on the link below.

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Leet Translation courtesy of Albinoblacksheep.com | Mutt Media NY

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Mutt Media | The Daily Bone 5.6.09 | Teen Sexting

Click here for Katie Couric CBS piece on Sexting from YouTube

Last night’s episode of Law & Order SVU shed some light on a rapidly-growing occurance and one that I don’t think is going away anytime soon….teens and text messaging or as it has been coined, “Sexting”.

Sexting has received a lot of press in the last couple of months. I’m attaching here a short clip of Katie Couric covering it on CBS. Loosely defined, it is the transmission of nude or semi-nude photos using the text message or MMS feature on your cell phone or PDA. There are laws on the books that specifically prohibit the dissemination of pictures of this kind of children who are underage and authorities all over our country are using these Child Pornography laws to prosecute teenagers. The laws do not distinguish whether or not these photos are consentual in nature and currently, by the letter of these laws, teenagers can and will be prosecuted.

If convicted, they can be branded as Sex Offenders under Megan’s Law which would require these teens to register with local authorities. Information about their whereabouts can and is published for all of their community to see. This is a stigma that can follow them for the rest of their lives.

I think we can all agree that the laws in place haven’t caught up to technology. Poor judgment and decision-making are a natural part of growing up. Our children are in the (un?)fortunate position of acting as the “crash test dummies” in our new age of technology. Like it or not, they are paving the way for their children, who will, in all likelihood – be much more aware of their online image and more adept at controlling their personal information.

We are all learning that that our momentary lapses in judgment can often come back to bite us and we should really be guiding our children to guard their images carefully. No small task, to be sure. It’s a lesson in personal responsibility.

Here’s an interesting footnote – two teens in Pennsylvania have turned the tables with the help of their parents. At a slumber party they took pictures of each other in their underwear. Pennsylvania District Attorney George Skumanic Jr. offererd them a deal to help them avoid prosecution. Before agreeing to this deal, they filed suit alleging that their civil rights were being violated.

Please share your thoughts – I welcome them. Just click on the link below where it says “Leave a Comment”or send me an email (which I may publish here – full disclosure!) feedback@muttmedia.net

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Mutt Media | The Daily Bone 5.5.09 | New Kindle announced tomorrow – Does this further advance the demise of the newspaper & other printed periodicals?

Image Courtesy of Amazon.com

Click here for demo of the recently released Kindle 2 courtesy of Amazon

The Wall Street Journal has announced that the new Kindle will be introduced to the market tomorrow. Tomorrow there will be a full-court-press demonstration of the product and marks it’s formal debut.

We’ve been witnessing the decline and deterioration of certain businesses with the onslaught of increased internet use and our collective desire to “go green”. This, along with the recent economic downturn and loss of print advertising revenue has precipitated many magazine closings.

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When consumers can get content online, why pick up a printed publication? There are many reasons to support these new technologies and concerns about our environment shouldn’t be discounted. I wholeheartedly support the reduction of our carbon footprint and minimizing waste, fuel consumption and the like, however there is something to be said for the tactile enjoyment we get out of our daily routine of drinking a cup of coffee or tea while reading our favorite newspaper. I get that, even though I’ve long thought that the New York Times is way too big and cumbersome, especially on a crowded train.

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Consider this. By the time you read your newspaper, the news it delivers is already hours-old. On your electronic device of choice, you have access to news items that specifically interest you – as outlined in your preferences and is as current as possible. As a result of this new-found, real-time news reporting, I wonder if the integrity of what is being reported is the same. How can news items be as effectively sourced and verified? This is an important consideration. In their haste to disseminate the news and beat all competition to the so-called punch, public figure privacy has suffered and yes, I think some jounalistic editorial liberties have been taken.

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My apologies for going off on a rant (thanks, Dennis Miller) but I think it’s a legitimate debate. But back to the Kindle…I’m interested to hear if any of you own one and what you think – about the product itself or any of the issues I’ve raised here. Leave a comment or send me an email at feedback@muttmedia.net

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Mutt Media's Daily Bone asks, "How connected are we and to what?" David Horsey comic sheds some light.

Do you think we have become too "connected" or too disconnected?