Today I had the pleasure of meeting and speaking with a pretty smart bunch here in Dallas.  The New Media Training Institute asked me to speak at a local event and discuss how companies are using Social Media and engaging customers through the seemingly limitless channels.  One of the items that I was asked to really dig into was how teams can make the most of their time and avoid the Social Media Time Suck we're all afraid of.

My approach? I created ~15 high to mid-level slides and took an un-conference approach to presenting with a focus on Twitter and Facebook.  My instict was that this audience would be savvy enough to appreciate an avoidance of basic "how-to" items and the freedom to chime in and share both successes and failures along the way - as opposed to my dictating opinion and reciting a presentation.  Was I right?  Yeah - I was dead on.

The dialogue was good and the information was great.  What follows is simply the ppt deck that I used to spark the conversation with this sharp group of activists. (normally I don't post presentations that I've done on behalf of my employer but this deck will be available publicly on the event website soon anyhow.)

It's been studied and reported on over the years that employees engaged in moderate exercise have higher work quality and/or better job performance than those that just sit around all day.  Some experts have even gone so far as to say that employees that are physically fit get along much better with coworkers - and without digging up surveys and journal entries to support or contradict this I'll be honest with you and say I agree with the claims -  because quite frankly, they apply to me.  I know that I'm more productive, clear-headed, and fired-up at work when I'm not carrying around that extra 10-15lbs or when I'm in my rhythm related to my trips to the gym.  So before my "HR Type" or desk-bound "Geeky friends" stop reading this give me just a few minutes to explain and offer up what I think is both a little crazy and that could change things for each of you - and then follow up with a challenge to, after following along, tell me it doesn't apply to you or that I'm just full of crap.

It's the end of another week and that means another quick list of blog postings that were worth checking out.  It was a great 2nd week of being actively reading and authoring blog posts this year and I was excited to see some pretty solid topics posted throughout the blogosphere as well as some great comments and dialogue found on RecruiterGuy.net.  So as I give you a list of my top items to reference for this week past, I leave you with a quote to absorb that was a favorite of mine in college [with a minor adjustment]:

"Some [blogs] books are to be tasted, others to be swallowed, and some few to be chewed and digested." - FRANCIS BACON

I'm honestly one of the busiest people I've ever met.  So when a conversation comes up with my peers and colleagues in the industry about trying to stay healthy while juggling massive recruiting strategies, insanely large implementations, family time, professional networking and the rest of what has to get done it always comes down to the same thing...  How each of us are either successfully or unsuccessfully making the time for our health.

This got me to thinking...  If I can squeeze in just 1-2 workouts or fitness driven activities a week then almost anyone can.  I've even verified this with a few of my favorite bloggers and HR Techies and we've decided to do a little something about it - both to keep us honest with each other and hopefully motivate our friends, family, and peers to do the same.  A prime example?  I'm blogging this entry after a terrific upper body workout from my gym this morning - pic included here.