Had a bit of a tough day yesterday. Just messed up. Can’t and won’t go into too much detail, but it doesn’t matter what happened but rather what I learned from the situation.
No matter how hard you are working, how focused you think you are, or how well you think you are doing at something, there is always room to improve and to work harder. We can all get better at what we do. And we will all make mistakes.
The difference is, that some of us will focus on mistakes and cry over spilled milk. Others learn from our mistakes, make adjustments, and move along.
A true test of character is seeing how you act and respond to failure. It’s when you’re a little bit down or shooken up by something that you find what you’re really made of.
I take a great amount of pride in everything I do, and I’ve always been incredibly hard on myself. I don’t like messing up, and I get upset when I don’t come through for other people.
Have to remember there is always room to improve. Always room to work harder. Just striving to be the best I can be at what I do. That is all.
And now: this.
An article I wrote about Super Bowl commercials. With 30 second spots costing a reported $2.5 million this year, some brands are deciding to spend the money elsewhere. Others are simply getting creative. I still think Super Bowl commercials are relevant and can be highly effective, but for how much longer will that be true?
Last week, Revision3 VP of Programming/Production Ryan Vance wrote an open letter to Conan O’Brien, inviting him to take his show online and join the Revision3 network. Later that day, Revision3 CEO Jim Louderback confirmed that the letter was serious, so serious that Louderback is willing to give O’brien a nice stake in the company if he decides to come over. Do I think he will? No. Do I think he should? Without a doubt.
In case you didn’t get the memo, the Internet is pretty freaking big. Not only is it big, but it’s far less restrictive than television. Plus, Conan has found a lot of support in the recent weeks from fans on the Internet, and if decided to make the leap, he could capitalize on that wave of support.
In my opinion, it makes perfect sense for Conan to take his show online. Sure, the money wouldn’t be as great, but he just got paid a crapton from NBC to leave. He would have the chance to revolutionize online television, and to go down in history for something truly amazing. Remember, like Gary V. says, legacy is greater than currency.
That being said, should Conan go with Rev3? Probably not. Should he make the leap to online television, it makes more sense to go solo. He will have the chance to sell his own sponsorship, and in the end, answer to no one without Rev3. I love what Rev3 is doing for online television, but Conan would be better off on his own.
But what do you think? Should Conan make the leap to Internet television? If Conan decides to go online, is it the right choice to go with Rev3? Or does he go solo?
An article I wrote yesterday about the NFL playoffs, the four Super Bowl scenarios, and the stories involved.
01.14.10. Sports & Social Media.
As a USC alum, I was sad to see Pete Carroll go to the Seattle Seahawks. I understand his reasons. He and the USC football program have been under a lot of fire for years, and this season was less than impressive. No Rose Bowl… What’s up with that?! Also, he’s more than proved himself at the college level.
Some of Carroll’s achievements: A 97-19 record (28-1 in the month of November), seven consecutive years as Pac-10 champions or co-champions, 53 players selected in the NFL Draft (14 in the first round), and two National Titles. Not bad.
Carroll wants to prove he can coach in the NFL. So, I get it. The USC football program has moved on, hiring former offensive coordinator Lane Kiffin. I’m happy to see Lane back, and I think he will be great for USC football.
What’s interesting, is that Pete Carroll has a social media presence (Twitter, specifically). He has over 350,000 followers on Twitter, and he has traditionally been pretty active. I wonder how entering the No Fun League will affect his presence, and if he will try to get the Seahawks’ players and organization more involved. We’ll see!
My latest article for SportsNetworker.com, focusing on Steve Nash’s social media presence. Enjoy!
01.13.10. Sports & Social Media.
I’m convinced, when it comes to ‘going viral’ on Youtube, weird is your best shot. Have you seen this video featuring the San Diego Chargers’ Running Back, Ladanian Tomlinson? Ridiculous. Insane. Brilliant. More athletes need to embrace their goofy side and produce content like this!
I’ve been a fan of LT2 for a long time, and while I’ll always remember him for his dominance on the field, I’ll never again be able to hear his name without thinking about this video.
01.12.10. Sports.
Yesterday, Mark McGwire finally came clean. The man who once hit a ball (511 feet) out of Dodger Stadium and awed us with his home run power, finally admitted to taking performance enhancing drugs on and off for ten years throughout his career. What does it mean? For me, not much. Had Big Mac admitted to his ‘secret’ years ago, maybe I would feel differently.
The timing is interesting. Yesterday, a friend pointed out that he broke the news immediately after the 2010 Hall of Fame announcement, giving voters the longest amount of time possible to have it sink in before next year’s ballot. Mark, I wouldn’t hold your breath, I don’t think you’re going to make it to Cooperstown in 2011 (or any other year for that matter).
How does Mark’s disclosure affect your opinion of him & what he did for the game?
To be completely transparent, VaynerMedia, the company I work for, is an investor in DailyBooth.
First, if you don’t know about the social network DailyBooth, here’s a brief description:
You can also follow and be followed, as well as comment (text or picture) on other users’ photos and even @reply them. Twitter with photos, some might say.
I took my first photo on September 16th. For the first few months, I had fun with it, but sometimes struggled with ideas and consistency. There was nothing ‘daily’ about my boothing. However, lately, I’ve become more active (thanks in part to a little competition with my friend, Ben Rabicoff), and I’m quite obsessed.
DailyBooth can be an unbelievable tool for brands, personal and consumer. First, it’s about as transparent & authentic a platform as any. You produce content by taking photos; that’s tough to fake/have someone else do for you. Second, the platform is built around interaction. The idea isn’t that you simply take photos, but that you take photos that inspire others to take photos in response.
——-
Quick story : Yesterday, I uploaded a photo featuring one of my favorite new shirts:
The caption read, “S is for…” At first, I got a few fun comments, mainly people throwing out fun words that start with ‘S.’ Then, a user named OHAICALLUM responded with a picture of his own:
And another:
Then NemmyNoo added this:
And then, TreesHaveFeelings asked where he could find one of those shirts.
So, I posted a photo of my American Apparel t-shirt, two other people replied with shirts of their own, and another person even asked where he could find the shirt! Why did I not get paid for this?!
——-
See where this is headed? Brands - personal and consumer - have an insane opportunity to get involved with DailyBooth, and this is just one example of how.
Follow me on DB!
…But you know what, we’re still breathing.
