Just a note to begin: at the end of this blog post I’m going to ask you to consider buying something – but not from me or for me.

It doesn’t involve me at all.

While the shock for most of us following the February 2009 crash of Flight 3407 in Clarence, NY has subsided into sort of a regular part of our subconscious (life must go on but quick, snap your fingers….51 people dead, just that fast, wow) for those directly affected…I can only guess life will never be the same.

I don’t know how other communities deal with such events as I’ve never studied it. Yet I’m assuming that many of the same things that have gone on in Western New York following this event have happened elsewhere.

So maybe the story I am about to tell you isn’t necessarily unique but – as we’ve never had such a catastrophic tragedy like this before – it’s new to us. But more important, I think, than the story of community this tale will tell (because that is very much what this area is all about) is the story of simply doing the right thing. It’s so simple it seems almost effortless.

A t-shirt.

That’s all it is. A silk-screened T-shirt sold by a locally owned and operated retail operation called Tony Walker & Company which is owned locally by its parent company, The Advantage Company. They sell lots of nice stuff including high quality t-shirts. They do this every day.

When the crash happened, like everyone else the owners and employees evidently wanted to do something. We were really all so helpless doing nothing more than staying out of the way, letting the professionals do their jobs and praying a lot. That never seems like enough…at heart we all seem to be workers, doers, action-takers. For a while, though, it felt like all we could to was sit and stare.

But we shook that off and got to work. Tony Walker & Company did too. They did what they knew how to do. They designed a t-shirt (the logo is the picture in the blog post) the proceeds of which will go directly to help the Wielinski family into whose home the plane crashed and whose husband/father died as a result. He and the passengers and crew were the only fatalities of a plane crashing into a completely residential neighborhood.

I keep thinking that’s the oddest combination of a tragedy and a miracle all at the same time.

You can buy the t-shirts here (many styles and colors) and if you do, I would like to thank you also for doing the right thing.

Tags: commentary, community by peter k. o'connell, your friendly, neighborhood voice-over talent
6 Comments »

Podcamp Toronto was another great experience for me on Sunday although clearly Saturday was the day to go. The content was much stronger then, the turnout was much higher and I think the vibe would have been much less tired. Folks who attended on day 1 were beat by day 2 and you could tell.

Look, Sunday wasn’t all bad…there was some weird territorial drama unleashed at the wrap up session that clearly showed some folks were a bit frayed but these volunteers had worked very selflessly…so those involved get a pass on that. As surprising as it was to watch, it was also intriguing.

And yes I will go again next year.

Podcamp is a unique event…by now you’ve heard of its unconference structure…that has its pluses and minuses…mostly pluses. My overall challenge with Sunday’s content was that much of it was stuff I already knew. There wasn’t much take away I could say was a real “light bulb” moment for me. That’s the risk one takes in attending and I am cool with that.

The reward is the “law of two feet” which allowed me (and everyone else) to walk into another session if I wasn’t happy with what I was learning at present. And to be fair, when I went to go to another session, that’s where enjoyed myself the most: the hallway conversations. So there were at least two sessions I never actually got to because of these great social media hallway hookups….which sounds a lot more prurient than was the case.

Peter O'Connell (center) with Erica Bontje and Stephanie Ciccarelli from Voices.com

Meeting old friends like Leesa Barnes, Stephanie and David Ciccarelli and Julien Smith as I walked the halls at Ryerson was great fun. Making new friends like Bernard Hellen of Traffic Marketing + Design, Dave Delaney (whose company – Griffin Technology – donated a couple of prizes that I was awarded for a Podcamp Toronto audio promo that I voiced and produced), Steve Saylor – the Albino Podcaster, a woman named Ninja who was both nice and very well versed in Martial Arts….and many more.

The three standout IRL meetings for me were catching up with Dave Fleet, whose PR blog I have subscribed to for a long time – he was very gracious to introduce himself to me, thanks Dave. Sean McGaughey who has coordinated the audio promos among many of his Podcamp Toronto duties was also so kind to seek me out and I was so pleased to get to spend some time with him- Sean, thank you very much.

Finally, the individual who impressed me so much whom I had never met before was the gentleman who organized the Mentor’s Lounge. This was a place where people with expertise in a wide variety of areas….podcasting, web design, etc…would sit with those folks who had questions and a connection would be made. Sunday I volunteered to Mentor anyone on the topic of audio production and podcasting as it had been requested.

Connie Crosby (seated) and Tommy Vallier at Podcamp Toronto 2009

The guy who coordinated all this was named Tommy Vallier who is a WordPress Developer and New Media Strategist. He is also, in my opinion a pretty sharp leader and connector. As you might expect at an unconference, connection in a setting like the Mentor Lounge never ends up being as clear cut as you might think/hope.

As a result, people could have just stood around uncomfortably, not knowing what to do. Tommy connected everybody and then stepped back and let the magic happen. He did it with a great attitude and a positive team spirit. He made the Mentor Lounge.

This was a highlight of Podcamp Toronto for me and I am thankful to Tommy and all the event organizers for their efforts in making Podcamp Toronto another wonderful experience for me.

Tags: commentary, community, pcto09, podcamptoronto, podcamptoronto2009, social media, voice actors by peter k. o'connell, your friendly, neighborhood voice-over talent
3 Comments »

I hope, if you’re going to be within 2-3 hours of Toronto on February 21-22, you’ll stop by Rogers Communications Centre at Ryerson University for Podcamp Toronto 2009.

To learn about social media at any level (newbie, intermediate, pro) and maybe even more importantly to actually meet the people who make up the community, this event is unparalleled.

The event is free. The people are smart and friendly. Go there.

It looks like this event will conflict with my son’s birthday party on Saturday (discussions are on going though I do prioritize birthday cake over podcamps) but I fully intend to be there on Sunday.

Tags: blogs, community, internet, pcto09, podcamptoronto, podcamptoronto2009, podcasting, social media, social networking, technology by peter k. o'connell, your friendly, neighborhood voice-over talent
2 Comments »

My thanks to my fellow voice over talent Doc Phillips who has taken his Speak Easy blog one step further by publishing his favorite motivational and education blog posts from other voice over blogs, including voxmarketising.

Check out his post here to also read great blog posts from Dave Courvoisier, Bob Souer, Liz de Nesnera, Bobbin Beam, Willie Edwards, Elaine Singer and Bryan Cox.

It’s an honor for this blog to be recognized in such a way and especially to be included with such great voice and writing talents. Thank you for your efforts Doc!

Tags: blogs, commentary, community, social media, voice talent, voiceover advice by peter k. o'connell, your friendly, neighborhood voice-over talent
3 Comments »

Likely you’ve not heard of Gary Vaynerchuk or Wine TV. Go to his website if you’d like to learn more. He is a passionate and successful guy. Those who have met him in person truly enjoy his company.

The reason I am posting this video is to provide you with a pep talk. You may need one or you may not need one which I think is a pretty good time for a pep talk as you’re not combating negative feelings and can more easily build on the positive vibe you’re working off of at present.

Gary’s message is about passion and people and how we all need to do what we love. Easily said, right?

But sometimes we need a kick in the pants to remember it’s not a “slogan”, it is an action but for it to be an “action” we need to take action! This video from Web Expo 2.0 (which contain some HBO-like NSFW language) is a hyper reminder that passion, hard work and caring for people will result in success. There are no quick solutions. Social media has tools we can all use to build our brands but we have to make it work. It takes time.

However if you love what you do…time goes by pretty fast.

I hope this helps you. Go kill it!

Tags: commentary, community, social media by peter k. o'connell, your friendly, neighborhood voice-over talent
4 Comments »

You’ll remember my request for your participation and this blog’s participation in Blog Action Day 2007.

Over 20,000 people participated and it moved the message of the environment forward within the social media sphere and within mainstream media as well. Thanks for helping!

On October 15, 2008, we’ll talk about poverty and more than 20,000 people (I think) will again move the message to the fore.

If you blog, you need to participate by clicking here.

If you just read (and that’s cool too) tell your friends about it.

If you’re willing to promote it on your web site, grab some graphics here.

Here’s why:

Blog Action Day 2008 Poverty from Blog Action Day on Vimeo.

Thanks for reading.

If you really like this post (of course we hope you do), please feel free to bookmark and or promote it by clicking the buttons below on your preferred services.

Tags: blog action day, blogs, commentary, community, public service announcement, social media by peter k. o'connell, your friendly, neighborhood voice-over talent
4 Comments »