I recently attended the 2008 Internet Summit in close by Chapel Hill, NC. The line-up for the event was somewhat impressive for the Southeast- bringing in Gian Fulgoni Executive Chairman and Co-Founder, comScore, Tim Schiegel CEO of ShareThis & Mike Doernberg CEO of Reverb Nation. One of the speakers that really struck a chord, and delivered such a compelling speech was Bob Young.  Bob originally co-founded Red Hat and then moved on to build one of the most successful self publishing companies in the world. One of the best attributes I think Bob Young posses is the ability to be REAL.  What I mean by real is that there is no false facade when he speaks... heck, he doesn't even really get dressed up to speak in front hundreds of professionals!  and with that, he speaks humbly and gives great sound advice. Here is some bullet points I learned: -Bob Young explains, "I am lazy. I must have a coping mechanism to get out of bed. So I figured I would  only do the things I love." Define and concentrate in on your coping mechanisms. Never waste time doing things you don't want to do. -There is not one way to do ...

Am I going to the LeWeb Conference in Paris, France on December 9th and 10th of this year? Watch the video to find out... I think one thing that I failed to capture in this video is the amount of excitement I have for receiving this opportunity. Also, I want to further highlight how thankful I am for having iContact sponsor my trip. I have such enormous respect for my employer and truly want to extend a true "thank you" for this wonderful opportunity (special thanks to Ryan Allis and Chuck Hester for all their help). I will be working as a representative for iContact while I am there- so if any of you have questions regarding email marketing, be sure to hit me up! I would also like to take time out to thank Seesmic- Loic and Geraldine, for all their help with logistics. You have made a tremendous impact on my life in the last few months, and I would like to thank you for your kindness. I can't wait to go to LeWeb and report back to the lovely Seesmic Community! As I mentioned in my introductory post about LeWeb, I am overwhelmed with passion for changing the world. Please ...

I recently took a trip up to Washington D.C. to visit a few friends while celebrating Halloween and overall, basking in the beautiful weather. On Friday the 31st, We ventured downtown to take part in the riff-raff. Someone managed to snap a picture of me in my Hugh Hefner outfit, right as we were about to board the metro at 2:30am. Classy, right? Amidst the holiday weekend, I wanted to share a few thoughts with my kind readers. 1) I found that spending time with ones you love, friends old and new, makes life truly inspiring. This year alone I have had the great privilege to enjoy my free time with good friends and colleagues (despite how busy life has been). 2) Complain only when it is necessary. When I was younger, I made a mess of complaining to my parents, teachers, etc. about how difficult life can be.  I now know to take life as it comes and embrace going with the flow. 3) Everyone should travel. Whether it is 30 miles down the road or 3,000 miles cross country. Getting the chance to see our great nation (as well as other fascinating countries in the world) allows great knowledge to be shared, ...

Last week we re-debuted the Social Media Club-RDU chapter and hosted our first meeting back- at iContact. With help from my colleagues Chuck Hester, Wayne Sutton, James Wong, and Lisa Braziel- we held a panel discussion on, "Who owns Social Media?" There was a good showing, great conversation, and a hope to keep the buzz surrounding Social Media alive in North Carolina. The meeting brought together several different viewpoints on social media and how it should be used in the workplace. I believe we came to a consensus on the fact that social media isn't owned or managed by one specific department, but the focus should lie on how it is carried out by members of any specific organization. Other topics associated with the conversation include: Brand Reputation and Management, SEM/SEO, and the use of various media outlets. Below is a picture of yours truly making a presentation about Seesmic/TechCrunch 50 and how I have used it to meet great people and get to do amazing things . Be sure to check me and other attendees of the SMC-RDU, in the video on 30Threads' "Who and what is Social Media?" Apparently someone commented with, "Taylor is the best" in the video comments. ...