Each of the authors are experts in their subject matter; they’re great speakers. They’re people with a heart for others and for the Kingdom. And I consider them friends. Here’s the first one:

Platform: Get Noticed in a Noisy World

From Amazon’s description:
“To be successful in the market today, you must possess two strategic assets: a compelling product and a meaningful platform. In this step-by-step guide, Michael Hyatt, former CEO and current Chairman of Thomas Nelson Publishers, takes readers behind the scenes, into the new world of social media success. He shows you what best-selling authors, public speakers, entrepreneurs, musicians, and other creatives are doing differently to win customers in today’s crowded marketplace. Hyatt speaks from experience. He writes one of the top 800 blogs in the world and has more than 100,000 followers on Twitter. His large and growing platform serves as the foundation for his successful writing, speaking, and consulting practice.

“In Platform Hyatt will teach readers not only how to extend their influence, but also how to monetize it and build a sustainable career. The key? By building a platform. It has never been easier, less expensive, or more possible than right now.”

Platform is available for pre-order on Amazon for $15.51 in hardcover and $9.99 on Kindle. (You can use the widget below.) I’ll tell you about the other two books later this week but you can see and pre-order them as well, by using the widget below.

What about you? 
What books are on your Spring Reading List? 

Disclosure: At the time of this writing, I’ve paid very little attention to affiliate marketing. This post is an experiment to see how one “pins” items from Amazon onto Pinterest and whether or not any sales would reflect an increase. Just curious, but wanted to be upfront about me raking in the cash. :)

Source: merchegrosso.blogspot.com via Cheryl on Pinterest

Over the last six months or so, I’ve gone from:

“What’s Pinterest?” to
“Who has time for another social network?” to
“Thanks for the invite. I might try it sometime,” to,
“OK, I’m here. Now what?” to
“This makes no sense to me at all!”

But now, I’m completely addicted to enamored!

I’m not alone. ABC & CNN are calling Pinterest “the hottest social network” and TechCrunch just awarded the site “Best New Startup of  2011,” (though technically, they started in 2010).

In a weird way, Pinterest has reignited my passion for social media. The possibilities are huge! I’m working with an existing client, helping them incorporate Pinterest into their marketing mix and will work with another client on a similar project next month.

Over the last week, I’ve had friends ask me about Pinterest, what it is and how do you use it. I considered writing a ”Beginner’s Guide to Pinterest,” but why recreate the wheel when you can read Mashable’s version here.

What about you?
Are you on Pinterest? If so, give me a follow. I’d love to see what you’re pinning. Not on Pinterest and need an invite? Leave me a comment below.

And of course, if you like this post:
Pin It!

From the looks of it, more than five million people are subscribed because he converted his Facebook fans to subscribers. Zuckerberg may already have more subscribers than your favorite celebrity!

To see if you’re subscribed, go to your profile and click on the “Subscriptions” icon in the left sidebar.

Check out what Facebook says about Subscriptions or learn What it Means for Each Type of User.

I’m still trying to decide if I’ll allow subscriptions.

What about you?
Will you allow Facebook subscriptions? Why or why not? And who will you subscribe to?

Watch the video below to see why changing your settings could be important for your safety and for that of your family/children. (You may need to scroll down a bit. There’s something wonky with my spacing?)

Follow These Steps On the iPhone

• Go to Settings
• Click on “General”
• Click on “Location Services”
• Make sure the Location Services for the camera (and other applications that may use the camera or photos) is in the “Off” position

What about you?
What setting did you have on your camera? (Mine was already off and I’m headed into the kitchen to check the teenager’s phone.) Does this give you cause for concern?

So, I sent my first invite to Peter, because, what good is Google+ if the love of your life isn’t in?

Next I sent another invite to a friend IRL who is NOT an early adapter because maybe she’ll use it and it’d be cool to see her smiling face in my stream. And she helped me paint my dining room, without me even asking.

Now I’m ready to send a few more, but have no stinkin’ idea where those invites are!! I’ve looked here, there and yonder but still can’t find them.

They’re like my keys. I know they were here somewhere…just a few minutes ago, even. I swear, I just had them. Thankfully, at least once they’re gone, those suckers won’t cost more than the $200 replacement keys for the Honda Odyssey. But that’s another story.

Anyone??

Step 1

When you’re in the message that says between “Facebook Friend” and 500 others, look to the right and click on the “Actions” tab.  You’ll see a drop down menu.

Step 2

Select “Leave Conversation.” You’ll get a message like this:

Step 3

If you’re OK with everyone knowing you’ve left the conversation, click “Leave Conversation.” If you’re a dysfunctional people pleaser, click “Cancel.”

That’s it.

ELVIS HAS LEFT THE BUILDING!

And you have efficiently cleaned up at least a portion of your Facebook inbox (and maybe your email, if you haven’t adjusted your notifications settings).

Was this helpful?
If so, please share the link on your Facebook wall or on Twitter. Maybe some of your other friends and followers would appreciate this info as well.

PS. MB, I still love ya! Nothing personal. :)

Blah blah blah. Whatever. You don’t have to understand it to do it.

Bottom line, changing this setting makes your account secure (in theory, because apparently, even Zuckerburg himself isn’t immune to hacking) when you’re browsing in wifi areas like coffee shops, bookstores, etc.

Here’s the video. Take a minute and 49 seconds to watch it, then 10 seconds more to make the change. It’s a good use of two minutes.

One of our teens had several applications which needed to be deleted, but it took us forever to figure out where to do it. After several failed attempts, I finally searched the Facebook blog and found this:

I had a dozen or more applications that I’ve not used in six months or longer, so I deleted those. Here’s a list of all my current applications:

• Networked Blogs
• Posterous
• HootSuite
• Disqus
• MailChimp
• Foursquare
• Plaxo Sync
• Twitter
• You Tube
• The High Calling (no data access required)

On those apps, I’ve stripped down the permissions to the bare minimum by removing all permissions that aren’t required. But I have to tell you, I’m considering deleting some of those applications altogether. Here’s why.

When you’re on the “Apps You Use” page, hover your cursor over any of the applications. Once it’s highlighted, click on “Edit Settings.” This will show you each of the areas of data that application can access.

Why does Networked Blogs, for example, need access to my family and relationships? Why does You Tube need access to my friends’ information?

You can also see “Last data access.” Some of these applications are mining information more actively than others. Here’s the breakdown:

• Networked Blogs accessed my Groups information on my behalf on November 15. I think I shared one of my blog posts to all my groups for some reason on that day. That makes sense.
• Posterous was busy during November, accessing my basic information, news feed, likes-music, etc., online presence and relationships (family and other). Why? I’m guessing it has to do with increasing their reach and profitability.
• Hootsuite accessed my basic information in December. (I used my mobile app a few times before I messed something up. Haven’t used it since.)
• MailChimp accessed my basic info in December. (I sent an email newsletter for Aglow.)
• FourSquare accessed my basic info in October.
• Neither Disqus, Plaxo Sync, nor Twitter have accessed any info.
• You Tube accessed my basic info in December. (I uploaded a few videos last month that were shared on FB.)

Quid Pro Quo
I understand it’s a trade off. I use what Application Developers offer, in exchange for them being able to use what I have – data. Ultimately, each of us must determine whether or not the value of what we receive is worth the cost of sharing our information and in some cases, the information of our friends.

I’d like to say I’ll monitor this information closely over time and make sure I’m aware of what’s going on, but the truth is, I probably won’t. Neither will you. And neither will our kids.

What does that say about how we view social networking? What does that say about how comfortable we are with information accessibility? Or about our parenting styles?

Time will tell.

What about you?
How many apps do you have and how many did you delete? What about your teen? And do you know what information they’re accessing?

Stop the presses. Check your permissions and be sure you know what you’re agreeing to when you sign up for all those applications like Farmville and Scrabble.

Oh, and if you’re a parent of a teen, be sure to check their settings as well.

What about you?
When is the last time you’ve checked your Facebook settings? I’m going to do that right now.

I was slow to use the apps for a couple of reasons.

I’m a bit skiddish about Facebook apps in general. Especially after the Facebook Dating Ads fiasco and the “Change Your Facebook Settings or Else” post I wrote in July 2009. That post sparked interest around the world and continues to do so. (To date, there’s been more than 6500 unique visitors.)

The bigger issue for me, however, was fear. It’s the whole, “head in the sand” temptation again. I was afraid that the app would reveal I’d aimlessly spent the last year sharing mindless chatter and useless links.

At the end of a year, would I have used my words wisely? What story (-ies) would my words tell?

Ultimately, I needed to know the truth.

I decided on the “My Top Words” app. Would those words line up with my three words for 2010? For days I tried using the application, but it kept timing out. I wondered if I’d been too verbose, or was our Internet connection the problem. I kept checking periodically over the weekend. Finally, my persistence paid off. I present to you:

Reflecting on Reflections
Now I’m pondering what this all means. I mean, sure, it’s just an app on a social networking site. Yet it feels like there could be more significance. These words aren’t my three words for 2010. None of them.

Did I get my three words wrong? Did I focus on the wrong things?

I’ll be spending some time in the last days of 2010 thinking about my words. And those dashes — What’s up with that???

I’ll be praying for revelation from God about where I’ve been and where I’m headed. I’d appreciate your prayers as well. I want to make my words count. I want my words to tell the story.

How about you?
What were your words for 2010? Do you have words for 2011?