Zagat will be rating Pittsburgh restaurants in 2013. According to the Pittsburgh Business Times, “Currently, the only reviews for the Pittsburgh-area on Zagat.com are for chain restaurants that were taken from their recent National Chain Restaurant Survey.” Why is Zagat so popular? I think it’s because people like to hear what others think is good, go… Read more »
Writing
Gilda’s Club Name Change?
How do you feel about the imminent change starting in the Madison Gilda’s Club organization to the Cancer Support Community? To me, it feels a little like someone not interested in explaining their brand and instead choosing a name that is more SEO-friendly. But I could be wrong. Language and word choice is very important… Read more »
Can You State Your Business Goals?
Early in conversations with potential clients, I ask them to state their goals for me. If they can’t state a measurable goal, I encourage them to work it out and then come back and continue the conversation with me. It’s not that I don’t want the business. I just don’t want a dissatisfied customer. And… Read more »
A Little Magic Helps Picky Eaters
Do you adore grocery shopping and cooking? Who doesn’t love making your way down the same old aisles of thestore, grabbing the few standard ingredients needed to tackle the next chore of cooking and then suffering the whines of our kids as they complain and push their plates away? Re-discover the magic of choosing and… Read more »
Adults like stories, too
In 2012 I published my first children’s book, The Bumpy Grumpy Road. It’s a metaphor intended to help children understand that they are in charge of their emotions, actions and reactions. As parents bought the book for their kids, I heard more than one time “This book helps me, too.” And when you read the story… Read more »
How can knitting improve your writing?
Knitting is an obvious metaphor for writing. Using your own two hands, you hold the needles and weave together a lovely fabric. You choose the yarn, you choose the pattern and you choose the end product. Along the way, you encounter problems. You miss a stitch. Holes appear. Something goes wrong. You have choices in… Read more »
Word Choice is Key
The language and words we choose show if we’re locals or tourists – and if we know what we’re talking about. When you visit New York City, you want to go to “the Hi Line” not “Hi Line Park.” And if you’re looking for good Cuban food you ask the taxi driver to take you… Read more »
Do you have trouble focusing?
In a two-hour delay at LaGuardia, I wrote up a 400-word interview, 2 blog posts for my business and one for my personal blog. I had a little trouble focusing because I was worried about my toddler who was rushed to the hospital earlier that morning due to an asthma flare-up. But if you have… Read more »
Bauhaus Advice for Writers
On a recent trip to Germany, I visited the Bauhaus Archive/Museum of Design in Berlin. I wasn’t expecting to find great writing advice while on holiday, but there it was, in a summary of the instructional style of weaving master Benita Koch-Otte. She advised students in her weaving workshop to work for “Utility and economy in… Read more »
How to Write Positively Without Sounding Fake
One of my favorite aspects of LinkedIn, besides Answers, is Recommendations. I’m not shy about asking for Recommendations, and all the pundits will tell that waiting patiently for someone to take the initiative to recommend you is fruitless. You must make the request. And if people are following that advice, chances are you’ll be asked to… Read more »