Learn from Lifehacker: Connectivity and Blogging

Marshall K posted an interview with the editor of super-blog Lifehacker over at Net Squared. It's titled “On the care and feeding of a techno-garden: an interview with Lifehacker's Gina Trapani.”

Here are some great quotes I think everyone need to glean from this interview. For a transcript of the whole thing, visit NetSquared. Marshall K is a must-read!

Gina on constant connectivity

  • The other lesson that many for-profits haven't learned yet is to avoid drowning your employees in gadgets and tech – like Blackberries, laptops, and weekend email sessions – because constant connectivity and an interrupt-driven existence can really degrade people's morale and productivity levels.

Amen! Sometimes it is great to get away. No telephone. No TV. No E-mail. Bloggers who go for years without missing a post any day are missing life! I believe in taking a break!

Gina on building an audience

  • On the editorial side, to build an audience, you need to post often. .. definitely update every day, if not twice a day. Your posts don't have to be long and thoughtful – though some should be – just summarize and point to a news item of the moment that's related to your nonprofit's area of interest. You want to establish a constant conversation about particular themes, and show that you're an authority on those themes, able to discuss them intelligently on an ongoing basis.

Gina on freebies

Technically, take advantage of every single free resource out there on the web to reduce costs and technical issues. Use Creative Commons licensed or public domain images (we like http://everystockphoto.com). Host video at YouTube or the Internet Archive to avoid bandwidth costs. Odeo is perfect for podcasts. Use an open source CMS (like WordPress, or ask a hosting company like TypePad or WordPress.com to host your site for free in exchange for an ad.

Marshall K, you've done the blogosphere a favor with this incredible interview! You've simply got to go read the whole thing!

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Vicki Davis

Vicki Davis

Vicki Davis is a full-time classroom teacher and IT Director in Georgia, USA. She is Mom of three, wife of one, and loves talking about the wise, transformational use of technology for teaching and doing good in the world. She hosts the 10 Minute Teacher Podcast which interviews teachers around the world about remarkable classroom practices to inspire and help teachers. Vicki focuses on what unites us -- a quest for truly remarkable life-changing teaching and learning. The goal of her work is to provide actionable, encouraging, relevant ideas for teachers that are grounded in the truth and shared with love. Vicki has been teaching since 2002 and blogging since 2005. Vicki has spoken around the world to inspire and help teachers reach their students. She is passionate about helping every child find purpose, passion, and meaning in life with a lifelong commitment to the joy and responsibility of learning. If you talk to Vicki for very long, she will encourage you to "Relate to Educate" or "innovate like a turtle" or to be "a remarkable teacher." She loves to talk to teachers who love their students and are trying to do their best. Twitter is her favorite place to share and she loves to make homemade sourdough bread and cinnamon rolls and enjoys running half marathons with her sisters. You can usually find her laughing with her students or digging into a book.

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2 comments

Karyn Romeis April 26, 2006 - 9:44 am

Thanks for this steer, Vicki. See my reaction here: http://karynromeis.blogspot.com/2006/04/ict-use-by-school-children.html

brittany may April 26, 2006 - 8:48 pm

Thank you so much for sharing these tips, Vicki! I’m new to the blogging world, and I felt so lost, but this really helped me! Feel free to check out my response:

http://fromstudent2teacher.blogspot.com

Comments are closed.

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Vicki Davis writes The Cool Cat Teacher Blog for classroom teachers everywhere
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