Thursday, March 25, 2010

There's more going on than you can imagine!

There's some truly incredible things happening here in Delaware!

  • yes, it's kind of centered around social media - but it's more 
  • yes, it involves the success of our businesses - but it's more
  • yes, it involves arts organizations - but it's more
  • yes, it involves the building of community - but it's more

OK, I'm going to touch on these things further down in this message - but before I do, I urge you to click here and sign up for this Friday's Network Delaware Happy Hour at Scratch MaGoo's in Wilmington - I don't care if you've never used social media, I don't care if you're planning on getting together with other friends (bring them along), I don't care if you don't like me, I don't care where you are or what you do for a living - you should come to Scratch MaGoo's this Friday AND you should mark your calendar now to prepare for the next gathering on Friday, April 9 (which will also be Art Loop night - you won't want to miss it)!

OK, now that you've signed up for Friday's event, let me touch on the great things happening here in Delaware - then give you the compelling reasons why you want to come out on Friday.

Last Thursday was an absolutely incredible, awesome, unbelievable day for Delaware - I'm just going to quote from Dave Burris here:
I drove to Wilmington to attend the first Trust Summit presented by the Archer Group with bestselling authors Chris Brogan, Julien Smith (authors of Trust Agents) and Mitch Joel (author of Six Pixels of Separation). First of all, the magnitude of these people coming to Delaware, together, for an appearance is greater than most people realize. I took to telling people that if there was a Mount Rushmore for social media, they'd all be on it.
What amazed me most of all is that three people who have emerged as leaders in this space, when each given 40 minutes or so to speak, brought three different perspectives - Joel's passion, Smith's depth & Brogan's showmanship. I learned a massive amount from each, and I'm not exactly new to this stuff.

Click here to read the full post - Dave captures so much here!


Governor Markell and Chris Brogan on the Social Media Initiative

Thanks to the Lee Mikles of the Archer Group, Whitney Hoffman, Ken Anderson with the Delaware Economic Development Office, and Governor Jack Markell and his people (I'm looking at you, Felicia) - Chris Brogan not only came to Delaware, but also agreed to spend some time with key government, business, non-profit, arts, and media representatives to explore how we in Delaware can use the tools available to us to connect every part of our society and take things to a whole new level.

This time I'll quote from Governor Markell's blog:

Last week, I had the pleasure of speaking with a few social media thought leaders, including Chris Brogan.  Chris graciously spent time meeting with many of our online innovators to discuss how we can make Delaware the "First State of Social Media."  The feedback I've heard so far-and read through Twitter-has been overwhelmingly enthusiastic.
...
There are so many amazing things happening in our state, and we need to get the word out. Join the grassroots discussion through Twitter, using #NetDE, or at this Facebook page.

Click Here to read the full post and view an incredible 4 minute discussion between Governor Jack Markell and Chris Brogan

AND

Click Here to see Chris Brogan's take on his visit to Delaware



Ignite Sussex Videos!

Thanks again to the Archer Group, we've enjoyed a couple of great Ignite Wilmington events. A couple of weeks ago, an incredible line up of speakers came together for Ignite Sussex - and they posted videos!

Watch host Dave Burris, publisher of Coastal Sussex Weekly magazine, and presenters like Cassandra Tororian of Bell Rock Capital, Bill Sammons of Watermark Productions, Matthew Peterson of Element Design Group, Audra Marotta of Dogfish Head, Andrew Mason of Bayshore Community Church, and more by clicking here.



Where In Delaware?

Have you ever wondered where to go for specific home repairs in Delaware? What about looking for fun activities near where you live? Well, Phil Woods has created an incredible tool called "Where In DE" - you can ask any question, and you can answer questions from others. Seriously, check this out by clicking here.


Co-Working in Delaware

Steve Roettger and Wes Garnett are out to change the state of Delaware. They are in the process of putting the finishing touches on their Co-Working space (first of many) called COin Loft - trust me on this one, if you have a dream, a business plan, an idea - you want to meet with Steve and Wes! Click Here to find out more about the coIN Loft


Community Matters Networking Group on WHYY

Laurie Bick, Volunteer Director of Community Matters Networking Group, was the featured guest on WHYY's Radio Times - the topic: "What are the jobless doing to take back their employment?"
Click Here to check out the show!
If you want to know more about the incredible work being done by this volunteer organization, please check out the web site here and come on out to Hockessin Baptist Church on Friday mornings at 9:30 to see for yourself what's happening!


Be a part of the Action!

OK, back to the reason you want to come out this Friday.

As you can see throughout this message, there's a world of potential that's starting to form into tangible things (new businesses, new relationships, new jobs, etc.). And believe me, I haven't even scratched the surface here - there's Unite Sussex and Family Promise and our chambers of commerce and exciting things happening in mentoring and so much more happening here!

This thing, this movement, is happening here in Delaware - you should be a part of it - your participation, your help, your voice is valuable - please come, meet the men and women who are making things happen here, ask questions, add your insights, help create new opportunities!

This is more than a social organization
This is more than a business group
This is more than a discussion

This is our future!

Click Here to sign up for Friday's event

Click Here to find out more about Network Delaware