Monday, June 02, 2008

I Am an SOB!

by Karen D. Swim

SOBbutton2

Yes, you read the title right, I am an SOB, Liz Strauss said so! I was honored to be named by Liz as a Successful and Outstanding Blogger(SOB) last week.  How do you earn the right to call yourself a Successful Blog SOB? In Liz's words:

"They take the conversation to their readers, contribute great ideas, challenge us, make us better, and make our businesses stronger."

However, this post is not an excuse to toot my own horn (c'mon you know me better than that, right?). This morning before I sat down to write, I read Joanna Young's post on Gratitude.  It was the perfect complement to my thoughts today and for the month ahead.  Joanna writes:

"Gratitude shapes your language and your world.  Regular practice in writing with gratitude gets you writing about what's good, but also what's real.  It's a powerful form of affirmation.  The more you write this kind of stuff the more it becomes what's 'normal' to you; it influences your language and your beliefs.  It starts to shape and create your world."

I agree with Joanna. Life is never perfect, yet even in the midst of challenges we can walk in gratitude. Choosing to be thankful changes our perception. We are able to see beyond the problem or challenge to the potential and possibility.  Problems are only as big and consuming as we allow them to be.

The SOB honor is meaningful to me because at its essence it embraces gratitude and giving back. Liz Strauss is the blogger we all aspire to be.  She is one of the industry's leading blog writers but she generously extends a hand to bring others to the top too.  Liz has a passionate commitment to create connections online and offline.  She not only talks it but definitely walks it. Thank you Liz for lighting the way and modeling excellence.

Liz's nod is an affirmation of my own purpose and encourages me in my mission of creating connections. However, I could not do this without all of you dear readers.

I am so thankful for all of you taking time to participate in this community. I look forward to hearing from you and learning from you each day. You have made blogging a passion not a labor. I look forward to the second half of this year. It is my hope that our connections grow stronger and that we expand the circle of community. Again, I say thank you.

How important is community to you? What makes you feel part of a community?  Please share your thoughts in the comments.

15 comments:

Anonymous said...

Congratulations Karen... well deserved.

I can't wait to see what you have in store for us in the second half of the year.

Unknown said...

@ Yvonne, thanks! I also can't wait to see what's in store. LOL! I am just a vessel and I am often surprised what ends up on the page. :-) Looking forward to the ride!

Anonymous said...

Conngrats Karen! I think you are a SOB Too!
Yes, I also think of myself as a vessel. A cannolli tube to be exact!
It always amazes me how we can be right on the same page. I came home from California overflowing with the strongest sense of gratitude. For health, happiness, friends, love...it can't be appreciated enough.

I am especially grateful for the friendshops I have found here. Like-minded people. A gift.

Unknown said...

Karen petal, congratulations again. This is so well deserved. I'm hoping you will wake up soon to how much value you add to the blogosphere. Take a look at the comments and conversation here recently... You might also take a peek at the comments in Yvonne's Writing Cafe over the weekend (okay you're allowed to blush a bit when you get there).

I think I'm a vessel for my words too - and thanks to Wendi for making me laugh out loud with cannolli tube! - the words come out, they have a life of their own and I don't feel I can claim credit for them.

But I do have a choice (as we all do) about what I do with that skill, that gift and that's the bit that makes us more than vessels but creators, finding out how to make a positive difference in the world.

It's the choices we make about what we've been given, that's the bit that makes the difference

Lots of love

Joanna

Unknown said...

@Wendi, ROFL! I love the visual image of cannoli tube! I share your amazement and gratitude. I am so happy you're back and can't wait to hear about your adventures! Sending you hugs (((Wendi)))welcome home!!! :-)

@Joanna, your post like so much of what you've written to me will be printed and kept in the "encouragement file." My dear friend, I can never repay all that you've poured into my life from your cannoli tube. :-) Even in a comment your words are powerful and uplifting, coaching me to greater confidence in my writing. Yes, we do have a choice and I am so grateful for friends like you to remind me and inspire me to make the choices which are aligned with my purpose and my voice.

Lots of love right back!!!!

Karen
xx

Brett Legree said...

Karen - congratulations!

You deserve this very much, as you are both successful and outstanding. I think you hit it right on - you are here now because you make us feel welcome.

Thank you.

Brett

Steph said...

Karen: Hurray!! Congratulations! I must say, I'm relieved to find out the SOB designation is a good thing! :)

I'm all about the gratitude. I keep a journal of things I'm grateful for. Writing them vocalizes them in a way, and brings things I might otherwise take for granted to the forefront. I also totally believe in being thankful for what's to come: it opens the way for a stronger faith and even more things to be grateful for — if that made sense!

Melissa Donovan said...

Congratulations Karen! The SOB from Liz Strauss is quite and honor, and definitely well deserved for the contributions you make to the writing and blogging community.

Gratitude is incredibly powerful and writing about it daily can lift the spirit, change one's attitude (to positive), and even heal. I'm happy to see that so many people are embracing this practice, which I only discovered last year!

Melissa Donovan

Unknown said...

@Brett, thank you! *blushing* I have learned from the foot of the master (that would be the master with the funny running shoes). LOL! I actually feel like we've created a big traveling party that caravans from blog to blog, it really is great fun!

@Steph, you so rock! That made total sense! You're right writing it down is extremely powerful. I believe gratitude and hope go hand in hand. It's difficult to have hope for what lies ahead if you are not aware and appreciative of the blessings you've already been given, eh?

@Melissa thank you!!! Whenever I think of you now I think of you dancing around water. I know funny, but it makes me smile and it's a good image! A reflection of your joy and your ability to share it with others. Your writing is so powerful, so we would be wise to adopt the gratitude approach. Ha! Maybe I'll just follow you around and keep picking up these great tips - great notebook, great attitude,... :)

Anonymous said...

Hey, that's cool Karen! I'm not sure what an SOB award is yet. But I have heard it blogged around.

Anonymous said...

Loads of congrats, Karen! I vividly remember how happy I was when Liz called me an SOB :)

I am sure you'll keep creating great posts for all of us.

Anonymous said...

Karen, congratulations! You are so deserving. Your blog continues to be one of the bright spots in my day.

Unknown said...

Congratulations!

Yes, Gratitude is so important.

Learning to be grateful (from being an ungrateful teen) changed my life!

Truly appreciating people and things improves one's quality of life and brightens every day.

I have found that it is Expectations that are what drag us through the mud.

Unknown said...

Hi Jaden! I enjoy your comments over at Brett's and really appreciate you stopping by. I think all teens are ungrateful! LOL! When we're young we really just have not lived enough to understand how grateful we should be. I love what you said about Expectations. You are so very right and that is an interesting point to ponder and perhaps write about in the future. :-)

Anonymous said...

Congratulations Karen! Sorry it has taken me so long to get over here and say that. You truly are an SOB... totally deserving of the honour.

Karen x