“Make New Friends, But Keep The Old”

The last year has been a very exciting and amazing time in my life. Before working at SHIFT, I sat at my desk as an Assistant Account Executive pouring over media lists. Every day was dark and the firm I was at made me feel like I didn’t understand PR. Any mention of Todd or SHIFT evoked claims that PR-Squared and the social media news release were just publicity stunts. I felt really dumb.

You know the scene in “Shawshank Redemption” when Andy plays Canzonetta sull’aria from Mozart’s Marriage of Figaro? I would experience similar moments of freedom reading Todd’s blog; for me, each post shined courageous innovation and breathed new life into a stale industry. His posts allowed me to dream of working at an agency where creativity was praised and not stifled. When I got the call from a recruiter looking to place AE’s at SHIFT, I couldn’t believe they were actually hiring.

During my tenure, the senior staff at SHIFT has coached and prepared me to take a stronger leadership role. They also gave me the support I needed to gain confidence in myself, helping me understand who I am and what motivates me. SHIFT truly is a talent agency, and I’ll be forever grateful for the support and guidance I received there. I couldn’t have asked for a better place to develop and grow.

My whole life I have considered myself an artist and teacher. I work with text, photography, video and audio-and I love helping other people learn how to create. With PR, I also fell in love with strategy as an art form.

As many of you may know, last Friday was my last day at SHIFT. I can’t tell you what I’m working on yet, but the opportunity plays to all my strengths and motivations. While I will miss all the friends I have made at SHIFT, the new role is an opportunity to face new challenges and new experiences that I can only find at a global firm.

There are a lot of people I want to thank:

• Dan, Jess, Jenn, Melissa and Virginia for being a great team full of support and understanding
• Cathy Summers for teaching me how to motivate people. Always full of analogies, she’s the mom that can make every situation better. I’ve learned more about life from her than from anyone besides my own mom and grandmother
• Mandy Mladenoff for teaching me what motivates me
• Julie and Carter for pushing me to be edgier while also helping refine how I present my ideas
• Marie, Margaret, Jany, Amanda, Becky, Bob, Chris and Matt for being my social media/blogging buds
• Danielle, Rachel and Emily for being my Boston girls
• All of my other friends at SHIFT who put up with my social media idealism and supported my craziness
• And of course, my bromance, Todd Defren. I will continue to read Todd’s blog and can’t wait to see the exciting things SHIFT has coming down the pike [UPDATE: See Todd’s post on my departure here.}

Also, thanks to all the SHIFTers and socialTNT readers who have sent me well wishes, support, wall posts or blog posts this week. Can’t wait to share the next chapter with all of y’all. Just know you will be seeing a lot more posts on socialTNT with some pretty slammin new features. 😉

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[The above photo, “Goodbyes Are Timeless” by *PaysImaginaire* on Flickr, used under Creative Commons]

“Our Modern Lives: Tune In or Turn Off?”

Today’s post was written by contributing writer Marie Williams.

With Blackberries and iPhones keeping us constantly connected to an online IV stream, it’s becoming increasingly more difficult to disconnect. As of late, discussion around the problems of our “always on” lifestyles seem to be popping up everywhere. Last month, the Churchill Club held a panel on the issue of information overload. And, even more alarming, The New York Times recently chronicled the health problems–and two deaths–resulting from the demands of round-the-clock blogging. While not as severe as those tragic cases, I recently came face-to-face with my own info-addiction.

A couple of weeks ago, I visited my sister for a week holiday in Seattle. The whole time I was there, I was either checking my Google reader or Twitter on my phone. I was so plugged in that I somehow managed to catch some major coverage of a client before my team even had a chance to see it. Yeah, I know: I was supposed to be on vacay. Don’t judge me!

The topic came up again a few nights ago when Chris and I met up with Twitter friends Paull Young and Christi Eubanks. After discussing some geeky, social media PR theory, the topic turned to being always plugged in. Neither Paull nor I could ever imagine completely unplugging from the Internet; Paull said (and I agree) that there are just too many important relationships that would be lost in the disconnect.

Chris and Christi weren’t as game to the idea, both affirming that they could see themselves easily wanting to escape their online life. Then, Chris asked a very interesting question: What if the Internet no longer existed? What if some major event happened and the Internet went kaput as a result? It’s almost a little too scary to think about.

No blogs? No Twitter? No Facebook? No way to always know any and all details about your friends? Is such an existence possible?! It must be; we’d all led an Internet-free life before, right?

What would I do if the internet no longer existed? I guess I’d probably just spend time doing more of the offline activities I already love, like reading books, hiking, sharing more one-on-one time with friends, and reconnecting with the earth (yes, I know it’s hokey, but its true). In fact, some of my most memorable times include patches with no phone reception or lack of access to a computer. Go figure.

This past Monday, Stacey Higginbotham over at GigaOm wrote a great post talking about her over-connected life. After discussing the stresses of being continually plugged in, she pointedly says: “I’m choosing to turn off my computer now.”

It’s a difficult balance, but I think Marshall Kirkpatrick from Read/Write Web says it best in a post discussing RSS feeds last week: “I don’t know why people feel obligated to read every item in every feed they’ve subscribed to. Get over that and you’ll already be a far happier person.” The same can be applied to our online existences. We shouldn’t feel obligated to be in the know all the time about everything that’s going on in the cyberworld. Maybe if we just dip in every now and then and we’ll be happier! I know it works for me. 🙂

What about you? Could you or do you ever completely disconnect? How do you prevent information overload?

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[The above photo, “Streeter Seidell, Comedian” by Zach Klein on flickr, is used under Creative Commons]

“EXCLUSIVE: socialTNT ‘Finds His Voice’ On Social Media Campaign Trail”

San Francisco – March 3, 2008 – On a recent stop on the social media campaign trail, new media PR/Marketing blogger Chris Lynn succumbed to the pressure of an industry full of Luddites and curmudgeons. In the following video, Lynn, editor of socialTNT, can be seen crying as he makes an emotional plea to the PR and Marketing industries to embrace change. Many are calling this a desperate attempt to appear more human, but sources close to Lynn say he was truly moved to tears after reading another puffy press release for an over-hyped product.

Launched six months ago, socialTNT educates the public relations and marketing communities about strategies and practices that use emerging technologies to engage audiences. The blog attracts a diverse readership that includes novices like college students and small business owners, as well as seasoned professionals and social media enthusiasts. Lynn and contributing writer Marie Williams evaluate social media campaigns, review the latest new media tools, and offer tips and tricks into social media strategy.

socialTNT recently announced iTunes distribution for their most popular feature, “3Q’s in 3Min,” a weekly video interview with top reporters, analysts, social media experts, industry leaders and anyone else using the new media tools to promote or market their business.

UPDATED: Mike Keliher over at Unjournalism recorded this response, entitled “Leave socialTNT alone!”

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“My name is Chris and I’m, um, a PR professional.”

Public Relations pros have one of the most misunderstood professions.

Unless you’re in LA, you’re probably a little ashamed to tell people you do PR. Reporters hate us cause we bombard them with calls and spam their Inboxes. Our clients aren’t satisfied with the New York Times; they should have also been in the Wall Street Journal, Forbes, and Fortune and what’s this TechCrunch? Hell, my family and friends are still confused as to whether I do marketing, advertising or journalism.

Well, to all of them, I’m coming out.