Category Archives: Welcome / site mission

2010 reflections: “I now know why I blog”

When I launched this blog on Jan. 7, 2010, I will admit I was flying blind.  But, oh, what places I’ve been!   As a 2010 wrap-up post, here are key things I’ve appreciated and learned through this experience.

 

This is my book.  This blog began as a book outline.  The working title was “Crisis Management in the Culture of NOW!”  Within a week of typing “CHAPTER ONE,” I realized I was racing to catch the sun.  I rationalized that by the time I sought a publisher, there’d likely be a half-dozen books on my topic.  I also found myself reading more crisis-expert blogs to bolster points I wanted to make in the book.  I quickly began calculating the benefits of blog vs. book.

A blog has no shelf-life – it’s a living, breathing thing.  A blog would allow me to explore multiple facets of crisis management and communications coaching, not just the angle tethered to a book title.  A blog doesn’t require “new editions” to be updated.  And – perhaps most enticing – a blog encourages interaction through comments and “likes” and retweets. 

Thus, after a maddening month trying to learn web hosting and WordPress (it’s not nearly as easy as advertised), this blog was born.  If I may be immodest, it’s a lot better than my book would have been.

 

This is my database.  Here’s an admission – I have a terrible memory.  If I don’t write something down, it’s very likely that I’ll forget something useful I’ve created for a client.  (Clients who know me well joke that I’m the perfect crisis counselor – unintended disclosures are unlikely because most details of their ordeal are completely forgotten “within a month.”  Har, har.) 

Continue reading 2010 reflections: “I now know why I blog”

Welcome — Site Mission and Rules

Welcome to my blog on crisis management and communications (media) coaching. 

My mission:  

  • On the blog — share my expertise, offer opinions, elicit dialogue and encourage constructive debate on both subjects.
  • On subsequent pages of the Web site — provide a repository of helpful tools on both subjects. 

RulesI am going to try to live within a few self-imposed rules for this site:

Brevity —  I will attempt to keep blog posts brief and impactful.  “Articles” and “white papers” of relevance may be posted elsewhere on this Web site, but not on this blog.

Discipline — I have no intention of “armchair quarterbacking” on a specific crisis currently happening to a company or brand.  If I’m not working on the crisis, I cannot offer a reasonable judgment — there is too much unavailable information that must be considered.  (I remain amazed at how many crisis professionals have no such discretion.)  However, if a current crisis raises industry-wide or general questions or insights, so be it.

Values — I have been very fortunate in my career to support  “bad things happening to good companies” and my viewpoints will likely reflect that experience.   I believe that good crisis communications should offer persuasion, never illusion.  “Spin” should never be considered by an experienced crisis manager.

Comment Relevance — I’ll err on the side of transparency with visitor comments.  However, I’ll reserve the right to delete if:

—  Comments are off-topic or derogatory

—  Comments (inadvertently or pointedly) could raise a conflict-of-interest for me or my agency

I may modify this mission and these rules along the way.  If so, I’ll post reasons why elsewhere, and I will edit this first “sticky” post to keep things organized.

Enjoy and let me know if you have any feedback.  You can use the form through the Contact / Ask tab  above or click “comments” below.