It's all about the YOU baby!

No Ernest not "The U", but "The YOU".

Today I stumbled across a very interesting article that caught my attention and possible will change the face of this blog. Here's the link if any of YOU are interested after reading this of course ;)

http://www.problogger.net/archives/2009/02/28/8-tips-for-building-community-on-your-blog/

So what did I get from this article YOU may ask, well I'll tell you. As some of YOU still continue to read this and some even tell me they enjoy reading (imagine that), I feel it is getting dry and boring. So I've been thinking for months for ways to making this a website that YOU like, YOU enjoy, YOU can't wait to read in the afternoon when YOU get off work. I want this to be a place that a close net group of friends and family and a few stragglers that wound up clicking their way here, can come to get information that is pertinent to their lives. Just hearing me talk and feed YOU my opinions my be entertaining and have some relation to YOUr current situations. But how do I get YOU to take ownership in this site? Well... Give YOU ownership. Yeah YOU'd think a guy that was in school for 20 years would have come up with that on his own - but no - it took a "tiny url" on twitter (what is this world coming to?).

So here is what will change on this site:

I would guess a large majority of YOU have Facebook accounts (follow this blog, you can do it by going to the upper right of this page and clicking follow, hard right?). I'm not going to stop sending out the email to the several readers that are informed of a new post by that method, but rather send out a monthly email reminder (eventually eliminating it). I sometimes feel like I'm spamming YOU when I send the email so I want to phase that out. Eventually I'd like this to be a site YOU just check on a daily or weekly basis.

I'm going to start posting interactive surveys, polls, quizzes on here as well. Yeah that's right YOU scrolled right over one just a second ago (go back and look at the top of this page). So every now and again there will be a new something at the top of the page for YOU to participate in.

As most of YOU know I'm in the process of accomplishing 100 goals in 1000 days. I've figured out a way to keep YOU involved with that as well. I've only been able to come up with 80 things anyway. So why not open the other 20 spots to YOU the viewers/readers? That's right I want to know what YOU have set for a goal for YOUrself in the next 1000 days. Or if YOU want to finish YOUr goal list with me my 1000 days is up on June 16th 2011. But either way please get me a goal that YOU have set for YOUrself and the community of this blog will cheer YOU on and help motivate YOU to YOUr goal. What YOU think? Get me those goals ASAP!

The most important and I think vital change to ensure that YOU feel like this is a site YOU want to visit on a regular basis is, guest bloggers! That's right I want YOU to write on here. There are several people I'm going to reach out to and see if they are willing to put something together. I want the topics to continue to be along the same lines of the stuff I talk about here but from other points of view and in a different tone. If you want to be a guest blogger please let me know (if YOU don't have my contact information, I probably don't want YOU to be a guest blogger anyway).

Other changes will come shortly but that is what WE will start off with. YOU might say, this is kinda weird or why is he trying to build a "community blog"? Yeah YOU're right this idea might not work. But think of it this way, this may just be a smaller more relevant to YOU, version of Facebook, Myspace, Twitter, LinkedIn, tiddlywinks, basket-weaving or where ever else YOU are currently getting your information.

So frequent the site and enjoy the changes... It's now YOUrs!