I spent the day at Freelance Camp PRO at NextSpace in San Francisco yesterday. It’s 24 hours later and I still have the buzz.

For those that don’t know:

Freelance Camp is a place to discuss and explore the different approaches to running a successful freelance business / service company. We have based our events on the Barcamp format, which is a network of user generated participatory events whose content is fully provided by the participants. Anyone with something to contribute or with the desire to learn is welcome and invited to join.

Was it worth the time? Yes. Why?

• It felt like an historic event — first <something> at NextSpace SF — and we were there!
• I enjoyed getting to know my NextSpace Santa Cruz comrades more than I already did, in a relaxed atmosphere, both in the carpool and in the camp. During a typical workday, I’m usually rushing or optimizing or focused. It was fun to be at this event without my laptop (I left that at home on purpose) and without my work so I could focus on people, topics, and reflect on work, not do work.
• I enjoyed that there were two kinds of people in the room: those I recognized and those I didn’t. I felt like I belonged — to my Santa Cruz NextSpace tribe, that is, those I recognized. Thanks for being there Eric, Jorie, Mike, Iris, Jermy (new name from Mike), other Sara, Shane, Peter, Chris, Chris, Vania, Pat, Paul, and others. I’m forgetting some names.
• It was great to meet the BarCamp newbies and see their eyes light up seeing the whole camp in process. These were strangers from SF and I recalled how pivotal the first Freelance Camp in Santa Cruz was for our community. Actually, that was historic.
• It was interesting to hear about other freelancers’ struggles and successes, tips and hints, wisdom. I’m sure I learned something, or several things, but mostly I felt inspired and grateful and entertained.
• Great freebies. That’s S.W.A.G. Not, Schwag.
• Yummy lunch in the restaurant downstairs.

Looking forward to Freelance Camp Santa Cruz on October 2, 2010!

One of my favorite lecture series continues in June…

What’s Next’s June 24, 2010 lecture will be about “The Future of Work.”

Panelists include best-selling author Rom Brafman, Joyce Shimizu, VP of Innovation at Plantronics, and Fabio Rosati, CEO of Elance (invited). Sandy Skees, CEO of Communications4Good will moderate.

For more info, go to http://whatsnextlectures.com/

To get your ticket go to http://whatsnextlectures-work.eventbrite.com/

See you there!

[One big bummer is that this event conflicts with Nina K. Simon's Santa Cruz workshop and lecture on design for participation which also takes place on the evening of June 24. So, some of you, go there. For more on that, see http://museumtwo.tumblr.com/post/56982357/presentations-and-conferences. To learn more about Nina, go to http://www.museumtwo.blogspot.com/]

My recent presentation at the Chamber of Commerce’s Women in Business Caffeineighted Series (November 5, 2009) is all about getting started on WordPress, specifically for the newbie blogger, or the person who wants to switch to WordPress.  The actual presentation is a live demo showing how to configure and start using your new blog, here are some related URLs.

Resources

WordPress Support:
http://en.support.wordpress.com/

WordPress.com vs. WordPress.org:
http://en.support.wordpress.com/com-vs-org/

Resources for beginners:
http://saraisenberg.com/2009/08/13/wordpress-for-beginners/
http://saraisenberg.com/2008/08/13/wordpress-for-dummies/

How to make a non-post (non-blog-looking) WordPress home page:
http://bloggingexperiment.com/archives/wordpress-page-as-home-page.php

How to Redirect a WordPress.com Blog [PDF]:
http://blog-well.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/01/how-to-redirect-a-wordpresscom-blog.pdf

Notes from Chris’s September 2009 presentation at NextSpace:
http://saraisenberg.com/2009/09/15/wordpress-resources-from-todays-nextspace-brownbag/

How to have a non-post home page [PDF]:
http://blog-well.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/01/how-to-redirect-a-wordpresscom-blog.pdf

Examples of some WordPress blogs:

http://bestblog.wordpress.com/ (review)
http://thisisindexed.com/ (humor site)
http://thisisindexed.com/2007/05/calling-in-sick/

Examples of some WordPress websites (as CMS, not blog per se):
http://saraisenberg.com/2009/09/25/30-great-websites-using-wordpress-as-a-cms/
http://wordpress.org/showcase
http://publisherblog.automattic.com/2008/09/16/10-examples-of-wordpress-as-a-cms/

WP Remix:
http://wpremix.com/

=====

THANKS for attending!

Sara Isenberg Web Consulting & Project Management

email: sara@saraisenberg.com
twitter: @saraisenberg
website: http://www.saraisenberg.com
blog: http://www.saraisenberg.com/blog
linkedin: http://www.linkedin.com/in/saraisenberg
facebook: http://www.facebook.com/SaraIsenbergConsulting

The location has been set and this event is a go!

The Santa Cruz Chamber of Commerce has a very popular new speaking series for Women in Business called Caffeineighted.

On Nov 5, 7:30-9 AM, I’ll be giving a presentation called Create a Free WordPress Blog in 1 Hour at the Santa Cruz Chamber of Commerce, Women in Business, Caffeineighted Series.

[Click here to Register]

Full Details:

Women in Business will host its small-meeting networking series, Caffeineighted, Thursday, November 5, 7:30-9 AM

Location: New Leaf Community Markets
1101 Fair Ave
Santa Cruz, CA 95060

“Create a Free WordPress Blog in 1 Hour”

We continue with Web 2.0 Marketing tools with Sara Isenberg who will show us how to create a blog.

Sara Isenberg, principal consultant at Sara Isenberg Web Consulting & Project Management, has extensive experience in the corporate software industry, much of that as a technical account manager where she managed technical relationships between software engineering teams and strategic partners and clients.

Sara began working as an independent project manager in 2005, serving web producers and small businesses.In addition to working as a web consultant and project manager, Sara is a Technology Advisor with the Silicon Valley Small Business Development Center’s Technology Advisory Program.

Sara has a B.A. in Computer Science from University of California Santa Cruz and a B.S. in Sociology from the University of Oregon. She is listed by We Magazine for Women in “101 Women Bloggers to Watch for 2009″.

For more about Sara:
twitter: @saraisenberg

website: http://www.saraisenberg.com

blog: http://www.saraisenberg.com/blog

linkedin: http://www.linkedin.com/in/saraisenberg

facebook: http://www.facebook.com/saraisenbergconsulting

Limited to 30 participants, the session will also include introductions and conversation. A light breakfast will be served. The cost is $15 for SC Chamber members and $25 for non-members.

Caffeineighted is held the first Thursday of each month. Caffeineighted is an outgrowth of the Chamber’s Women in Business programs, designed to create a more intimate atmosphere and an opportunity for teaching and learning.

The following URLS are resources we shared and discussed in my presentation about Social Media at the October 6, 2009 Santa Cruz Marketing Roundtable Meetup:

General:

http://twitter.com

http://facebook.com

http://linkedin.com

My blog posts about…

Twitter: http://saraisenberg.com/category/twitter/

Facebook: http://saraisenberg.com/category/facebook/

Social Media: http://saraisenberg.com/category/social-media/

Social Media: http://saraisenberg.com/2009/07/02/social-media-quickstart-guide-6-tools-you-need/

My Contact Info:

email: sara@saraisenberg.com

twitter: @saraisenberg

website: http://www.saraisenberg.com

blog: http://www.saraisenberg.com/blog

linkedin: http://www.linkedin.com/in/saraisenberg

facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Santa-Cruz-CA/Sara-Isenberg-Web-Consulting-Project-Management/178382971118

Example eNewsletters:

http://tinyurl.com/yb4xx2u

http://saraisenberg.com/services/enewsletter-and-email-marketing-production/enewsletter-examples/

a. Example 1: Promoting today’s event:

Meetup:

http://www.meetup.com/marketingroundtable/calendar/11288293/

Blog:

http://saraisenberg.com/2009/09/06/october-6-marketing-roundtable-meetup/

Facebook:

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Santa-Cruz-CA/Sara-Isenberg-Web-Consulting-Project-Management/178382971118

Twitter: (live tweet)

Maggie’s LinkedIn Discussion:

http://tinyurl.com/qbewws

Email Marketing:

http://tinyurl.com/yb4xx2u

a. Example 2: Santa Cruz Sentinel:

Website:

http://www.santacruzsentinel.com/

Facebook:

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Scotts-Valley-CA/Santa-Cruz-Sentinel/72832472996

Blogs:

http://www.santacruzsentinel.com/blogs

Twitter:

http://www.twitter.com/scsentinel

LinkedIn:

http://www.linkedin.com/companies/santa-cruz-sentinel

http://www.linkedin.com/pub/shmuel-thaler/7/324/989

c. Example 3: Stone Soup Magazine:

Website:

http://stonesoup.com/

Facebook:

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Stone-Soup-Magazine/43559462699

LinkedIn:

http://www.linkedin.com/pub/gerry-mandel/12/5a0/a06

CafePress:

http://www.cafepress.com/shopstonesoup

Flickr:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/stonesoupmagazine

d. Additional ways to share your expertise and/or promote your business:

http://santacruzwire.com/

http://ezinearticles.com/

Cruzio’s Guide: http://tinyurl.com/create.php

EGs:

http://tinyurl.com/ydtsqa5

http://tinyurl.com/y8lq5jw

http://tinyurl.com/ybqoe4w

What a great day ~150 of us had at the 7th Annual Women’s Leadership Forum on the top floor of the Rittenhouse Building in downtown Santa Cruz.  ALL of the speakers were GREAT.  I would call this the best Chamber of Commerce event I’ve been to (and I’ve been to many).

Speakers were:

Linda Gold (M3iworks, CEO)
Kim Walesh (City of San Jose, Director of Strategic Planning)
Seana Norvell (Technology Public Relations)
Donna Murphy (Vice Chancellor – University Relations, UCSC)
Dolores Carr (Santa Clara District Attorney)

Nina Simon, founder of Museum 2.0, lead us in three participatory “exhibits” that felt much more relevant that the usual stuff that leaders do with large groups.

From the Chamber website:

what Museum 2.0 is about

Nina Simon talks about her creation of Museum 2.0 as if she woke up one morning astounded to discover herself transformed from electrical engineer (which she is) into the guru of museum social interactivity. Not true, of course, but what is true is that the world of information, networks, and communication changed just about that fast and she was entrepreneur enough to grab a hold. And, she has proven herself in the world of museums as a guide in the dawn of museum interactivity, engagement, and social networking. A passionate activist for the integration of social, dynamic, participatory experiences, Nina has built Museum 2.0 to be a design firm helping museums worldwide use social technology to create dynamic, audience‐driven exhibitions and programs. Nina’s work encourages museums to allow their constituents to “muck about” in the stimuli of the space, to create environments that encourage each participants unique experience, and to allow even the exhibit to be designed by the public. She has had some extraordinary experience prior to Museum 2.0 that led her to this role. She was hired by the International Spy Museum in Washington D.C. where she was charged with making Operation Spy an immersive experience. Nina then became curator at The Tech Museum of Innovation in San Jose, where she worked at the cutting edge of exhibition design, using “crowd‐sourcing” and prototyping exhibits through a wiki and Second Life. She also led the design of a multi‐platform game that accompanied season 3 of the CBS television show CSI:NY. This all led to Museum 2.0 and a remarkable list of consulting and teaching roles with museums and museum organizations around the world. To see a list of and links to her most recent projects with links to her work:

http://www.museumtwo.com

]]> http://saraisenberg.com/2009/10/01/how-to-do-a-conference/feed/ 0 http://saraisenberg.com/2009/09/25/santa-cruz-new-tech-meetup-oct-7-2009/ http://saraisenberg.com/2009/09/25/santa-cruz-new-tech-meetup-oct-7-2009/#comments Fri, 25 Sep 2009 19:28:44 +0000 Sara Isenberg http://saraisenberg.com/?p=2761

This meetup will be held at the Dream Inn.

Doors open at 6:30pm for networking and appetizers. We will set up networking tables for sponsors.

And please welcome our new program segment: Kids in Tech. You will be impressed by these teens, their enthusiasm for technology, and their projects!

Presentations will start at 7:15pm. Our line up of presenters for October are:

New Tech Presenters

• Joby Energy – serial entrepreneur and Santa Cruz resident JoeBen Bevirt will talk about his startup which tethers high altitude kites to create energy. JoeBen Bevirt.
• GeoGad – Learn how to create user guided tours on your mobile device. Georgi Dagnall
• PypeLyne – the best way to manage your project pipelines. Vikram Subramaniam
• LiveOps - learn how Cloud Computing, Call Centers, and freelance opportunities to work from home come together in an impressive solution. Michael LaGuardia

RSVP now for this event. We will close attendance at 300 persons. Entry fee is $5.

For more info: http://www.meetup.com/newtech-86/calendar/11287983/

This is where I’ll be on Oct 15, 2009… Hooray to SCDIC for another great event in Santa Cruz!

The Santa Cruz Design+Innovation Center presents

A Panel Discussion on Sustainable Design

Thursday, October 15, 2009, 6:30pm

The Dream Inn, Aquarius Meeting Room
175 West Cliff Drive
Santa Cruz, CA 95060

[Click Here to RSVP]

Schedule:

6:30 – 7:15 networking

7:15 – 8:15 presentations

8:15 – 8:30 questions from moderator

8:30 – 8:45 questions from floor

8:45  - 10:00 networking

Speakers:

•••► Nathan Shedroff

Author of “Design is the Problem”

www.nathan.com

Chair of the Design MBA program at California College of the Arts

www.designmba.org

•••►James Barsimantov, PhD

Principal at Ecoshift Consulting

www.ecoshiftconsulting.com

•••► Elizabeth Thompson

Local Government Liaison at Unimodal Systems/SkyTran

www.unimodal.com

•••► Neal Saiki

CEO of Zero Motorcycles

www.zeromotorcycles.com

•••► Moderator: Merc Martinelli

CEO of Verdafero

www.verdafero.com

]]> http://saraisenberg.com/2009/09/20/santa-cruz-design-innovation-sustainable-design-oct-15-2009/feed/ 0 http://saraisenberg.com/2009/09/12/funding-your-startup-presentation-by-bill-hunt/ http://saraisenberg.com/2009/09/12/funding-your-startup-presentation-by-bill-hunt/#comments Sat, 12 Sep 2009 17:33:43 +0000 Sara Isenberg http://saraisenberg.com/?p=2739

This is one of the best and most concise presentations I’ve seen on funding a startup!

Bill Hunt presents Funding Your Startup to the Silicon Valley New Tech Meetup. Bill Hunt has been a founder and/or senior executive in five start-ups in the application management, network security and email deliverability sectors with four of those companies being acquired, the top two for $180 million+ each.

According to Doug Erikson, founder of the Santa Cruz New Tech Meetup: “Bill gave this blazing fast presentation on key points for getting a startup funded. This is the best snapshot I have seen, and a great refresher course.”

Come to the Marketing Roundtable MeetUp on Oct 6, 2009, 6pm at NextSpace.

I’ll be giving a presentation on Social Media Basics. Come learn how you can use LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, and blogging to bring more visitors to your business website.

Learn more and RSVP here:
http://www.meetup.com/marketingroundtable/calendar/11288293/

For a jumpstart on Social Media, feel free to read some of my past blogs on the topic:
http://saraisenberg.com/category/social-media/

Hope to see you there!