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Alejandra S. Owens

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Alejandra S. Owens

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2014-07-26 12.11.34.jpg

On Work

#GSD - A real-talk advice column about achieving success in your work and career.

#GSD: WordPress MeetUp

April 8, 2013 Alejandra Owens
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This blog, and every blog I've ever worked on, is run on WordPress. That said, I like to attend the local DC WordPress meetups when I can. Usually, I learn a nugget here or there for my personal blog. Sometimes I learn enough to be dangerous at work: "Something something widget something something plugin something something give me what I want!" :)

Tomorrow (Tuesday, April 9th, at 7pm) is a bit special though because I'm actually presenting. (Oh snap!) I'm not a WordPress developer so don't expect anything about developing plugins or back end anything. However, you should come if you are/want to know:

  • How I increased traffic to the AARP blog 500% in one year. 
  • Run a blog - large/small, corporate/personal.
  • Are interested in integrated content strategy.
  • Want to be a better blogger, period.
  • Need some #RealTalk to whip your blogging strategy into shape.
  • Need your boss to hear some #RealTalk to whip your blogging strategy into shape.

So basically, instead of hiring an agency to say all that shit you say constantly but your boss or team won't be hearin' from you - bring them tomorrow night. I'll say it. You can owe me a glass of wine.

Also instead of being all, "Oh hey Alejandra can I pick your brain about blogging sometime?" You can come to this! There's even beer. And if I'm feeling cool, I'll bring bourbon.

Oh, and did I mention, the event is FREE? Yeah - no budget proposals and worrying about getting reimbursed. Free!

Either way, these shindigs are fun! And you always learn - like, owww! My brain hurts! learn.

Special Note For The Ladies: There's always women in the room for these meetups (read: it's not a big ol' sausage fest) - and I want tomorrow to be no different. Come with a friend, or, I'll be your friend for the night! Either way, if you're worried about not knowing anyone, looking stupid or just generally skittish about coming to stuff like this - this is your night! Get yo' booty up off that chair and come on down!

In #GSD Tags #gsd, social workflow, WordPress
4 Comments

#GSD: Pomodoro

April 3, 2013 Alejandra Owens
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Me: *Checks personal email* 140 emails with way too many unread.

Me: *Checks work email* 200 emails that all require some sort of response or action.

Me: *Goes to get coffee.*

That happens to me at least a couple times a week. I check my email or my to-do list and, when faced with a tidal wave of work, I cave and do something else all together. It's the opposite of productive and usually by the end of the week I've created an even bigger mess that requires even more time to clean up.

Enter: The Pomodoro Technique. I'm not certified, I haven't taken any classes, but I have done 6 pomodoros this week already and damnit I feel good! Basically, The Pomodoro Technique is a time management method...and it's going to help you get some major shit done!

Prepare For Ultimate To-Do List Take Down

Just like the image above indicates, using The Pomodoro Technique is really quite simple. Starting with your to-do list, you pick a task or set of tasks to complete. I use the free pomodoro app (there are quite a few versions on iTunes) to set a 25 minute timer, and hunker down on those tasks.

#ProTip: I close every window on my computer that isn't related to completing my task, including my email. Eliminating distractions is key to focusing during your pomodoro.

You'll learn over time what kind of tasks take less time or more time, grouping them together or separating them out. For example, I do a weekly email cleanse on Fridays. At first I thought I could do that in one pomodoro, realistically it takes two. I now budget my time accordingly. Responding to emails, writing plans or drafting presentations are all going to take multiple sessions, but you can break them into chunks like research, outlining, finding images, etc. that can each be focused on in one pomodoro.

Once you've completed your task and crossed it off your to-do list, you get a five minute break! Yay! Dance around the office, talk to a friend, check your Twitter! Once your five minutes is up, you're back at it. Once you do four pomodoro sessions (that's two hours worth of focused work), you get a longer break - an hour...or maybe a long lunch...with a glass of wine...but maybe that's just me.

Putting Pomodoro To Use

I like to think of pomodoro sessions like interval workouts...you know the ones where you run like a bat shit crazy banshee for 30 seconds and then walk for one minute, over and over for 30 minutes? The idea, neigh, the motto, for those sessions is always "I can do anything for 30 seconds! This is horrid and I hate it, but I can do anything for 30 seconds!" Same at work with pomodoro. I might hate email or writing plans or filing expense reports, but I can do anything for just 25 minutes! Right!

#ProTip: Schedule Pomodoro time into you day. That awkward 30 minutes between meetings where you never get anything done? Schedule a pomodoro into that time and identify a few, easy tasks to complete so you're maximizing your time.

I habitually avoid the same kinds of tasks every week, so I now just use a few pomodoros to get them done and out of the way. Here are tasks that I find are best done using pomodoro sessions:

    • cleaning out email inboxes
    • updating to-do lists based on those email cleanses
    • writing blog posts, searching for images
    • filing expense reports
    • listening to voicemail (oh I hate voicemail so much!) and responding to it
    • issuing contracts, filling out time cards
    • checking my Feedly/RSS reader (let's get real, sometimes I just fall into the internet and an hour later I'm looking at pretty pictures on Pinterest! Best to confine these sorts of things to a pomodoro session.)
    • cleaning my house (it becomes a bit of a competition with myself to get everything done in one session)

I have to admit, not only do I feel so much better about my workload or to-do list after I do a few sessions, my brain actually hurts a little from focusing so hard on the task(s) at hand! Not only have I done my work, but I know I've done my best work because I am so focused on it.

Everyone has things they don't like doing, or projects that seem insurmountable - but when you break it up into little bite-sized work sessions, nothing is as bad as it seems. So, what have you been avoiding that could get done in a pomodoro? Got any other #protips for using The Pomodoro Technique? Share it all down there in the comments!

Photo credit: The Pomodoro Technique.

In #GSD Tags #gsd, The Pomodoro Technique
3 Comments

#GSD: Find Your Swagger

March 13, 2013 Alejandra Owens
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You know that song? That song that makes you swing your hips a little extra or makes you walk a little taller, head up high? You probably only listen to it when you're getting ready to go out on the town.

Yeah, we need to fix that.

Everyday Is A Hustle

The (somewhat sucky) truth is that everyday, even on our not A-game days, we're making impressions on people. The day I don't dress up all professional like, or am in a bad mood or I got into a fight with my mom before work - that's still a day I have to hustle at work. Shit needs to get done, meetings go on and I have to be, like, competent and with it. Well crap, what's a girl to do?

Find Your Swagger

I loved this quote I saw on Megan Greenwell's Tumblr: "Portray Kanye-type swagger (because we’re #1), but in a Will Smith way (approachable)." It's the social media philosophy for a major brand - but how brilliant is that!? It describes exactly how I want to feel when I walk through those doors at work every morning. I want to be the most confident person possible, no doubt, but I still want to be someone people want to work for or with. So how do you find your swagger?

Step 1: Open Pandora, Spotify, YouTube, iTunes - wherever you can listen to music.

Step 2: Rock. Out.

I often joke that all I listen to is dirty, Spanish rap music - and that's mostly true - but the reason has more to do with the beat than it does the words. Music can 100% set the tone of any situation, I mean, think of a dinner party. Music can amp your group up, chill them out or even indicate it's time to leave. (Cue the music turning off.) So why wouldn't we use music to instill a sense of confidence?!

Every morning I jam to dance, pop, rap, rock - whatever puts some pep in my step and encourages an "I got this" vibe. By the time I get to work I'm feeling pretty good, maybe even a little sassy. (Sorry work folks! Please don't hijack my playlists!)

So I asked folks on Twitter what their favorite songs to get amped to were, with an eye for non-Spanish rap music (I realize this isn't for everyone), and put together a Spotify playlist for us. There's 137 tracks, or about 8 hours of music, and arguably something for everyone. (There are some explicit lyrics in there, so best to put on your headphones before pressing play at work.)

[spotify id="spotify:user:frijolita23:playlist:03W17l1ZMzQHg1MqPeziJs" width="300" height="380" /]

But this is just the beginning! It's time for you to make a #GDS Swagger playlist for yourself and share it. (I know you can do it, you spent all that time making a break-up playlist...) If you have a link, share it in the comments, or tell me what your favorite song is and I'll add it to mine. In the meantime...

School Of Rock

Photo credit: Alejandra Owens (me!).

In #GSD Tags #gsd, music, swagger
1 Comment

#GSD: Social Workflow, Part 2

February 28, 2013 Alejandra Owens
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Once you've done the homework from Part 1, you need a new routine to start using it. It's just like making a resolution to work out, buying great new gear and getting a gym membership. At some point you have to start making time to work out or all that stuff is just going to sit around.

I'd suggest either front or back loading your day - meaning you set aside time either in the morning or the evening to do your social media workout. You can try to keep up with it throughout the day - and there's homework in here for that, too - but having dedicated time to focus on the bulk of the work really helps. You don't have to do my routine, obviously, but here's how I do things to give you some ideas.

Rise & Shine - The Internet Kept Going While You Slept!

My days start at 6am now. I force myself to roll out of bed and stumble into the kitchen where I get coffee started. For the next hour and a half I spend time catching up on news in three buckets: national news, professional news and news related to my personal interests (food, duh). Here's my method for absorbing and disseminating information:

  1. Turn on Morning Joe. Pick a morning news show, any morning news show, so long as it isn't the equivalent of a glossy magazine. If you don't like any TV morning shows, I'd recommend listening to NPR's Morning Edition. The idea here is that I'll hear nuggets of info and get a broad idea of what's trending in the national news scene. It also allows me to give some context to all the other information I'm absorbing. After all, content is nothing without context
  2. Clear out the Google Reader. This is where taping off that room starts to come in handy! I skim headlines for some feeds, read entire posts/stories from others - but always with a mind for sharing. I like to share a mix of food articles and work-related information on both Twitter and Facebook, and the majority of it comes from my Google Reader. Interesting factoid? Witty headline? Sassy opinion? Beautiful images? All these make for shareable content.
  3. Check Twitter lists. Remember those lists you're curating based on topical interests? This is when you'll be using them. You could skim your whole feed, but if you're following more than 100 people, it's a lost cause. Curating lists of people like "food bloggers," "social influencers," "reporters and politicos" allow me to hone in on individual topics and dedicate myself to getting caught up on things that are most important to me.
  4. Skim Facebook/Facebook Lists. I love when brands do Facebook right, but it's still a largely personal platform. I don't use lists on Facebook, but probably should. Do as I say, not as I do in this case.
  5. Skim Pinterest. Looking at Pinterest in the morning is really more about inspiration. Beautiful photos of places, spaces and typography make me happy.
  6. Secrets Don't Make Friends. If you know a ton of information but don't share it, that's not cool! The point here is to share and become, dare I say, an expert (!) in your chosen topic areas. Sharing puts you at the epicenter of a topic or issue and lets people know, "Hey! I'm plugged in! If you want to know what's up with XYZ, follow me!" Based on all that skimming, reading and perusing I:
    • Use Hootsuite to share what I found on Twitter in both real-time and scheduled posts throughout the day. (You can start off just using Twitter.com, but a tool like Hootsuite/Tweetdeck is nice because you can schedule things to go out at a later time.)
    • Keep an Evernote note of links for potential Facebook posts throughout the day or week. (You can use a Word doc, but Evernote is great on the web and the iPhone app. It's a gateway drug for being the most organized person ever.)
    • Keep an Evernote note for links that I want to share in my weekly roundup posts here on my blog.
    • Send links to articles and posts to people at work with insights, ideas or a heads up. (This is where you show social media isn't just a recreational activity.)
    • Pin photos and articles to my various boards on Pinterest.

By 7:30am I've already caught up on the news via my Google Reader, Twitter lists and Morning Joe and read, saved or shared a ton of links! (No joke, check out my Google Reader stats below.) Maybe you do this at your desk in the morning instead of chatting over coffee with your coworkers, or maybe you do it at night when you get home and are winding down. Like reading the paper or working out, you'll find your sweet spot, so play around with it!

Alejandra's Google Reader Stats

The Rest Of The Day

Assuming you don't have the freedom to just stare at blogs and Twitter all day (the horror!), you need a system for a) setting aside time to check in, and b) flagging things to read or go back to later.

Tools:

    • Twitter's "Favorite" function
    • Instapaper (or another read-it-later app)
    • Outlook/Google Calendar

Homework:Schedule 15 minute blocks three times a day on your calendar to check in on Facebook, Twitter and your Google Reader. If it's scheduled, you'll get a reminder, people won't try to book you during that time and if your boss or co-workers ever does say anything to you about it, you can show that by setting aside time during the day to look at your feeds, it's not bleeding into the rest of your work.

Method:I was getting thrown off track by interesting blog posts, losing time by "falling into the internet" as I call it. Now, when I see something I want to read, I send it to Instapaper and save it for later. Similarly, if I see a tweet I want to revisit or an account I want to make sure I follow, I use the "favoriting" option as a bookmark.

If you have time to talk to folks, share a link or read something during your allotted time - great! That 15 minutes is set aside for social media time, just make sure you stick to the time limit.

Maximize Your Commute

Tools You'll Need: Mobile apps for all the platforms you're using. Since Google Reader doesn't have an app, FeeddlerRSS is a good substitute for iPhone/iPad.

If you take public transportation: check in on Twitter and your Twitter lists. Talk to people, RT interesting stuff - this all helps establish you as an "expert" and builds your internet street cred.

If you drive: listen to a podcast. (Oh yeah, remember those? You downloaded a few of 'em during your homework!)

You're Not Done Yet

Since I take public transportation, my commute home is spent revisiting those "favorited" tweets and reading what I sent to Instapaper during the day. I share links, or save it for tomorrow (by using Evernote or scheduling tweets on Hootsuite). Inevitably though, as much as I try to set aside quiet time sans social media, I do one last check in on everything before I go to bed. You folks who drive will want to set aside some time in the evening (or in the morning when you're catching up on all your feeds) to clear out Instapaper and favorited tweets, otherwise it gets to be so much stuff to read you end up avoiding it.

I realize that setting up a somewhat rigid system for using social media feels counterintuitive or even restrictive - but the point is to establish a habit. Maybe you enjoy it all so much it takes over your life (like it practically has mine!) or maybe not. Maybe you end up being that girl in the meeting who knows all the right information!

When people say they're overwhelmed, putting a system in place makes it manageable. When people say they don't have time, it's just patently false, and this is how I show them they can integrate social media into their lives. Now, I'd love to hear about your favorite tools and ways to manage social media. Dump it all down there, in the comments! Because!?...sharing is caring! (I'm so cheesy today, but whatever.)

In #GSD Tags #gsd, social media, social workflow
8 Comments

#GSD: Social Workflow, Part 1

February 28, 2013 Alejandra Owens
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There's been a lot of discussion at work and on the web lately about how best to manage the deluge of information coming our way every day. How to organize that information, make it less overwhelming and get the most relevant pieces of information out of all that noise.

Disagree w Cosmo Editor @joannacoles on @morning_joe that social media dilutes ability to do job. It enhances it for smart women.

— Jenna Golden (@jigolden) February 15, 2013

Two weeks ago, Cosmopolitan Magazine editor Joanna Coles took some swings at social media - insinuating it was a distraction at work, and was something that largely constituted play, not professional development. My friend Jenna, said it best, above. If you're smart, you will use social media to make you better at your job (no matter what that job is) and a more valuable member of any team you're on.

I think many of you know, I'm on AARP's Social Communications team, more specifically, I run the AARP Blog. It's my "job" to be on the internet all day. I have to know what's what in online publishing, digital advertising and content marketing. I also have to be reading and watching the news of the day to figure out what we might want to be covering on the blog, and see what information would be interesting to our readers. Then I have to take all that information and boil it down to strategy recommendations or bite size pieces of absorbable information to be shared with my team or folks throughout AARP. That...is a lot. And what if your job isn't about being on the internet all day? How do you get all the info you need to step it up, bring your A-game at work and be a rock star in life?

Everyone has their system for organizing what goes where, but since many have asked, I thought I'd share my workflow and system for organizing. You could call this "a day in the life of a blogger" or "social media workflow" but really - it just how I get my shit done. I split this up into two parts, the first being the set up and the second how I actually use the set up. Part 2 will come later today, so be on the look out!

Like A Child

The only real prerequisite to getting organized on social media is curiosity. At work, on Twitter and among my friends I've been asked multiple times, "How do you know all this stuff?" or "Where do you find all this stuff?" and really it's all about being curious. I'm not in a competition with anyone, I just want to know a lot of stuff. And the more information I began absorbing, the more I needed to make sure it was organized in a way that made sense (I'm slightly Type A) so I had to find tools that would organize it for me.

So! If you see something mentioned that you don't understand and you start to go, "Oh man, this is just way too much work!" Remember: you're curious! You're curious about getting all the information and you're curious about how to get there. Plus, you don't have to do it all at once.

Tape Off The Room

My colleague, Jen Lee Reeves, advises taking time to "tape off the room" when it comes to organizing your social media. You know when you paint a room, she says, you can tape it off - which feels like a huge hassle but gives you beautiful results? Or you can go rogue and try to be careful, painting around baseboards and windows? A little pre-work to get yourself organized, or "taped off" is going to feel like a pain in the ass but you're going to hug yourself for it later.

Tools You'll Need:

    • Google Reader
    • Twitter Lists
    • Facebook Lists
    • YouTube account
    • iTunes account
    • Bonus: Pinterest and G+ (Google Plus) accounts.

Homework: Mark off 30 minutes a day for two weeks dedicated to news, blog and social media discovery. Each day can focus on a different platform: Twitter, Facebook, news outlets or blogs. Or each day could focus on a topic: gadgets, social media, blogging, wine, DC restaurants, national food blogs. Ideally, the more specific the better. Social media and blogging is built on niche expertise - so you could be interested in tech, but are you interested in tech gadgets, trends, VC funding or startups? Catch my drift?

You're looking for: RSS feeds to subscribe to, Twitter accounts to follow (create and assign each to a list, this will help for later), Facebook pages to like (also creating lists), YouTube channels to subscribe to and podcasts to download, etc.

Method: Example: start with the New York Times blogs. Find the topics you're most interested in and add the RSS to your Google Reader.

Now follow the Twitter accounts for the blog and the contributors if they have one and assign each to a list based on topic/focus (i.e.; Tech Writers, Tech Info, Tech Media).

Now go to Facebook and like the New York Times, the blog/section (if it has its own page) and subscribe to the contributors if they have that function turned on. (Don't friend the contributors, subscribe to them. It's way less creepy. If there's no subscribe button, move on.)

Bonus points: check for the New York Times/contributors on YouTube and subscribe to any channels/content you like; follow the New York Times/contributors on Pinterest; follow the New York Times/contributors on G+ and assign them to a circle.

Lather, rinse, repeat with other news sites, blogs and bloggers/individuals. The idea is that for any blog, media outlet or person, you're following them on all other possible sites - you can edit and unfollow later if you need to.

The only thing that stands between you and being the most interesting person all your friends know or that woman at work who is on the cutting edge of her field is a healthy dose of curiosity. If you set up a strong foundation for learning, your propensity to discover even more increases exponentially!

Later today I'll go through how I use all the tools above to not only take in all this information, but also share it. Because sharing is caring.

Once you're all set up, it's time to hit up Part 2 - in which you learn how to build a workflow for actually using everything you just set up! 

In #GSD Tags #gsd, social media, social workflow
12 Comments
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