Month: February 2025

GROWING WITH GROUPS

Talking about leaving social media lately has become less about the logistics and technology and more about the people. Just… PEOPLE.

Like, knowing every single answer to everyone’s situation of moving away from social media is impossible, but talking about the process. Figuring out what feels right. Talking about the flow and rhythm, the natural vibes of how you want to operate.

Less about tactics and more about the conversations we can have to figure these things out.

I did a workshop about ABOUT PAGES recently, and did it without trying to be the authority, or the instructor, the EXPERT. No PowerPoint, just vibes.

But people learned and figured things out from the group dynamic. We’re all in this together, learning together, sharing our collective knowledge and experiences for the better of the group.

LEAVING GOOGLE WORKSPACE

I’ve exported all my Google emails in .mbox format and threw them into my Apple Mail app, which I don’t ever use, but it’ll be there for safekeeping (and easy searching).

I’ve exported all my Google Drive docs as xls and doc files. Anything shared with clients and such, I told them to make a copy so they own it.

I’ve been changing a lot of emails I use for services away from this account, so if anything happens when I transfer my MX records, it won’t matter so much.

I think I’ll do that this weekend – copy all my existing MX records from my DNS host. Then update the new info from Fastmail, so all those emails go into my existing account. I don’t get a lot of emails at this “work” account, so it’ll be fine.

I have a Gmail account I can use if I need to view / share Google Docs or Sheets.

Email is taken care of.

Those are literally the two things I used Google Workspace for. Years ago I worked with some VAs, and they needed email accounts with my business, and that worked out well. But hey, Google Workspace is like $7/mo now, for something that I don’t really need. It’s going up to $8.40/mo for all this new AI bullshit that I really don’t need, so whatever.

The $100 I save per year can buy some groceries, which is lot more useful than the garbage AI that Google is pushing.

IMMEDIACY IS KING

I love the idea of having a blog that you update on occasion, more often than social media.

Those platforms made is so that every time you post something, something happens – usually a like. Then a comment.

When you post on your blog, the reaction isn’t quite so quick. Or sending a newsletter. The feedback loop is longer, and the social media platform makers knew this.

Make their product light up when you post something. Make it as simple as possible to post a video, go live, five photos. Try doing that with most apps for modern blogging platforms or website builders.

“If a marketer is smart about finding, courting and delighting the group most likely to spread the idea, it’s time well spent,” Seth Godin

Now replace “marketer” with musician, artist, poet…

Who is the group most likely to spread your idea? Your music? Your art?

Maybe you’ve got just 10 people on your email list. Start there.

Selling one album on Bandcamp (or at a show) will put actual money in your pocket, and usually an email address for your newsletter list.

“It’s not on Spotify and it never will be. The corporate music industry and the tech oligarchy have nothing to offer me or my music.”

SIGNALS

In school I could find the rockers because they had mullets, Bon Jovi and Motley Crue shirts. We obviously couldn’t carry around our guitars, but there were signals.

Growing up, I didn’t sit in the hallways and randomly yell things as everyone walked past.

“BMX! Dungons and Dragons! Guns N’ Roses!”

That’d just get me some weird looks, right?

Instead, I did what all of us shy nerds did – I carried around my BMX Plus magazines. Finally found an Anthrax shirt. Got some Airwalks from the JCPenny catalog.

Each of those things were a signal.

Once we found our tribe, we didn’t stay hanging out in the hallways at school, or the food court at the mall. We spent our evenings in our friend’s bedrooms and basements, learning Misfits’s covers and such.

This whole “hopping to different platforms to find out people” is a new thing that came about in the last decade, and it looks like it’s burning to the ground.

Start talking to the few people around you, getting a little deeper. Send a few emails. Plan a Zoom call. Meet in real life.

Boost your signals together, with other people.

SHELDON THE TURTLE

Recently took Sheldon, the 37 year old turtle, all around the Brandywine Community Library for some portraits.

I’ve been taking photos since high school, from film to digital and back again. Nearing 50, I picked up a Nikon ZFC just to get back in the groove of manual mode, and it’s led to some fun opportunities like this; a fun little time to volunteer my enthusiasm and skills so the local library would have some images to use online.

Saying yes to more opportunities to this, even if they’re out of my element.