Doug is one of the leaders of a networking group in Danville, California called Job Connections. The purpose of the group is to support and encourage people as they search for employment. The group has over 2,100 members and requires new members to attend one meeting in person.

Job Connections meets at the Community Presbyterian Church in Danville, from 9AM – 11:30AM every Saturday. Attendees are treated to a free selection of breakfast pastries and coffee and guest speakers provide guidance regarding some aspect of a job search.

I first visited Job Connections in 2004 and on Saturday November 15th at 10:30am I’m presenting a class on podcasting as a branding and career tool to the 150+ attendees. To prepare for the class, I asked Doug about the history of Job Connections and what changes he’s seen so far this year.

To hear what he had to tell me, click on the podcast icon below.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 6:54 — 1.6MB)

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I gave a 20-minute presentation on podcasting at the BiztechDay event held Saturday October 25th in San Francisco. I recorded the class on podcasting as a podcast (duh!) using my trusty Olympus DS330 digital recorder and a lapel mic.

The presentation covers the basics of recording, editing and publishing podcasts.

Here’s the step-by-step guide to podcasting handout.

Here’s the slides on podcasting 101.

To hear what I said, click on the podcast icon below. (Since this is a 20 minute podcast, you might prefer to choose the Download option and save it for later.)

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 19:38 — 4.5MB)

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BiztechDay attracted over 500 small business owners and entrepreneurs to the San Francisco Hilton on a sunny October Saturday.

Attendees heard from a wide range of keynote speakers, content experts and panelists about ways to grow their business using the power of the Internet & Web 2.0 tools.

The event opened with Tim Ferriss, lifestyle design author of The 4-Hour Workweek who was interviewed by event organizer Edith Yeung. The afternoon keynote was Blendtec marketing genius George Wright – the guy who invested $50 in a viral marketing campaign that created the Will It Blend? YouTube videos seem by millions. The closing keynote was Scott Helferman, founder of Meetup.com.

Break-out sessions covered everything from social networks to on-demand magazine publishing; viral marketing to email; video to podcasting.

I asked people what business they were in and what brought them to the event. To hear what some of the 500 had to say, click on the podcast icon below to hear the voices of BiztechDay.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 4:40 — 1.1MB)

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Paul is a member of the NSA/NC Pro-Track class who is fascinated by the idea that listening can became a societal phenomenon.

He has partnered with Stanford PhD Dr. Eran Magen to create a powerful system for connecting with others called Supportive Listening.

With Supportive Listening, a listener can help a friend, family member, client, or colleague relax, gain clarity, and find their own answers to challenges. Paul reports that workshop participants are often surprised at the effectiveness of the technique.

In the past year Paul and Eran have facilitated over a dozen Supportive Listening workshops in the Bay Area. Paul is currently working with a group at Stanford to develop a comprehensive listening skills program.

Going forward, Paul and Eran are looking to introduce Supportive Listening into Healthcare environments. They believe that it can help doctors and nurses work more effectively with patients, as well as helping them build trust with colleagues.

Would you like to be a better listener? Subscribe to the Supportive Listening Newsletter to get innovative listening tips and news of the latest workshops and products.

If you have ideas for Supportive Listening, Paul would love to hear from you. Contact him at paul@supportivelistening.org.

Listen supportively as Paul discusses his ideas by clicking on the podcast icon below.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 8:21 — 1.9MB)

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A nice quick overview of podcasting from Justin Allen at Ragan Communications. Check it out.

The Northern California Chapter of the National Speakers Association (NSA/NC) hosted our annual Open House this evening. Over 35 people turned up on the night when much of the rest of the nation was tuning in to the Palin/Biden debate.

The audience heard from a bevvy of professional speakers about what it takes to make a living in this profession.

Among the visitors, I met Nicole Bachelor, who was born in the UK, but now lives in the San Francisco Bay Area. She works for one of the big technology companies in Silicon Valley and has many years experience as a telecommuter.

Nicole has parlayed her expertise into a website and e-book which reveals essential advice and tools for negotiating a telecommuting arrangement in your existing or new job. Then helps make sure you telecommute successfully and keep your career at peak performance. She provides tips, tricks, and techniques for making telecommuting as simple, and easy as going into the office, without all the extra hassle.

Having enjoyed the benefits of telecommuting as an environmentally responsible, low-stress, productivity-enhancing option I was curious to ask Nicole some of the secrets she shares in her book.

To hear what she had to say, click on the podcast icon below.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 3:17 — 3.0MB)

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Lauren Mayer is a humorist and songwriter who started piano lessons at 3 and started writing song parodies and funny songs shortly thereafter. (She needed to do something – she was a liberal Jewish kid in Orange County!) A die-hard high school debater, she graduated from Yale intending to go into politics via law school, but after taking a year off to explore theater writing in New York, she found her calling in cabaret and comedy music. She eventually moved to San Francisco to meet straight men, got involved in the once-thriving cabaret scene here (where her biggest challenge was convincing audiences she was a real woman, not a minimalist drag queen), and began writing special material for other singers, then private parties and corporate events.

Lauren worked for over 15 years with a partner, writing, producing and performing corporate theater for clients including Hewlett Packard, Wells Fargo, the California Funeral Directors and a convention of gynecologists, among others. When 9-11 wiped out most of their travel incentive business and her partner left the industry, Lauren worked as a vocal/performance coach and songwriter, releasing a comedy album, until her album led to a couple of gigs as a solo humorist, and voila, another speaker was born.

Pro-Track Profile

Lauren signed up for the the Northern California National Speakers Association (NSA) Pro-Track training this year to learn about the marketing and business end of promoting herself as a humorist – last time she did any marketing was before the internet, so it’s definitely a new world.

When Lauren isn’t at Pro-Track or entertainin audiences, she is a frazzled, sleep-deprived mom of 3 boys, ages 12, 15 and 42 (okay, one is her husband), and she recently released her second comedy album, “Return Of Psycho Super Mom.”

You can reach Lauren (and hear her songs and read her comedy blog) at www.laurenmayer.com.

To hear her tips on how to be funny on the platform, and what not to say to a bald CEO, click on the podcast icon below.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 6:57 — 1.6MB)

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On Thursday evening I taught a class in podcasting at the San Francisco SBA office. I took the opportunity to ask the class members why they were interested in podcasting.

Click on the podcast icon below to hear what they had to say.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:59 — 463.9KB)

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On Thursday I taught a class on podcasting at the San Francisco SBA and Nicole volunteered to be interviewed.

She stood out in the class as the first one to raise her hand when I asked for a candidate who would like to be on a podcast. It’s not surprising when you read about her consulting business.

Nicole writes that her consulting business is all about:

Verdandi Consulting aims to be a unique, prominent provider of motivational and inspirational professional and personal achievement services to people worldwide. Its mission is “to be” in the business of helping people be their best, whether they are in corporate, small business, household, educational, retirement or other arenas.

Hear what she had to say about why podcasting is of interest to her by clicking on the podcast icon below.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 2:45 — 644.6KB)

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Wednesday evening I attended Edith Yeung’s SFentrepreneur networking session in San Francisco. I ran into Christina Poremski from the Technology Dojo.

A traditional dojo is a school for training in various arts of self-defense (such as Aikido or Karate). Christina and her partner created a Technology Dojo to train successful entrepreneurs and professionals in various arts of defense against wasted time and energy. Their philosophy is based on the ancient principles of simplicity, flexibility and maximization of strength.

The Dojo is a learning community where successful entrepreneurs and small business owners come to learn new skills and to master their tools. We host beginning and advanced classes, labs for hands-on practice, and a Mastermind group. Entrepreneurs and small business owners of all ability or skill levels can learn new ways to improve their businesses in an interactive and supportive environment.

To hear what Christina told me about this unique resource click on the podcast icon below.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 2:13 — 519.3KB)

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