Kiss My SASS!

(Originally posted at www.dadomatic.com)

If you are a parent, you should have no trouble looking for things to be thankful for this holiday season. You need look no further than your children. While parenthood is full of stress, challenges and worries, it is also rich with rewards. Yet, with all the hustle and bustle of a home full of kids, it is easy to take for granted some of the true blessings of being a parent. Thus, with today being Thanksgiving, as a reminder to myself, here are…

Ten Reasons To Be Thankful For Your Kids:

10) They Are Constant Companions – A home with kids is never quiet, never lonely. Whether you need to run to the store, or give the dogs a bath, or just have someone to sit next to on the couch, with a child around, you always have someone to come along for the ride.

9) They Are Always An Audience – Your children are an ever present audience whenever you feel the urge to perform. Whether it is telling a joke or story, dancing like a doofus, or singing off-key, your kids are almost always guaranteed to laugh (with or at you) and applaud. All the word’s a stage, and there’s always a kid (preferably yours) in the audience.

8 ) They Are Entertainment – If you are a parent and you are ever bored, it is your fault. Kids can provide a constant stream of entertainment. From the faces they make to the things they say and do, an observant parent is an entertained parent.

7) They Are A Magic Mirror – Children are a magical mirror. The longer you look, the older they get, the more of yourself you can see in them. Look carefully and you will learn more about yourself than any other mirror can reveal.

6) They Are Great Students – A child is always a student at your side, eager to learn from you more than all others. Share your knowledge and experience, great and small. Be the Master, and let your child be the ever willing Grasshopper.

5) They Are Great Teachers – Role reversal is an integral part of parenting. As much as we can teach our kids, there is so much more we can learn from them if we pay attention.

4) They Are Our Conscience – A child of any age is like that little angel conscience sitting on your shoulder whispering in your ear. Even the knowing gaze of an infant will remind you to think about your choices, and more importantly, the consequences. Older kids will simply blurt out the words you are already thinking, such as “Dad, if you eat another donut your pants won’t fit!”

3) They Are Our “Raison D’etre” – As a parent, there is no need to search for meaning in life or that elusive “reason for being.” Your mission here is clear. It is all about your kids. Recognizing that can be a constant source of pride, joy and accomplishment.

2) They Are Our Legacy – It is not only vampires who seek immortality. It is every person’s dream to leave their mark on the world, and every parent does, through their children.

1) They Are Love – There is no better, no stronger, no more amazing love than the love of a parent for their child. Except perhaps, the love of a child for their parent. Both are worth everything.

For all of the above, and so much more, this Thanksgiving I am thankful for my three kids, Zach, Ethan and Olivia. I am also thankful for much more in my life, and many others important and close to me, but as this was written for Dad-o-matic, this post is dedicated to my kids.

How about you? Have I left out any reasons you are thankful for your kids? Please add to the list in the comments, and HAVE A WONDERFUL THANKSGIVING!

Jeff Sass is the proud dad of ZEO (Zach, 21, Ethan, 19 and Olivia, 18). He is also a seasoned entertainment and technology exec and active social media enthusiast. You can see more of Jeff’s writing at Sassholes! and Social Networking Rehab.

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In early November, here and on Dad-O-Matic, I introduced you to my hairy situation, having decided to grow a moustache this month in support of Movember and the goal of raising awareness and funds for prostate and testicular cancer research.  While overall the Movember movement is doing an awesome job raising funds around he world, the support from my community has been a hair less than what I was hoping for. With eight days left in the month I am happy to be able to step things up with a few incentives.  The details are in the short video below.

If you’d like to have a chance to get some Movember schwag, please visit www.dadomoustache.com and support the Dad-O-Moustache team!  Thanks in advance.

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The state of NOW, not later, was the focus of Jeff Pulver's inspiring Los Angeles edition of his 140conf.  While the inaugural 140conf in New York this summer was very clearly inspired by Twitter and the character limit of a tweet, in Hollywood the spirit of the conference was more clearly about the character of the 140 characters who took the stage over the two days.  The famed Kodak Theatre was the home to 140 speakers that ranged from comedians to cancer patients, from homeless to household names, from business leaders to folks trying to give us the business. Those in attendance laughed, cried, and more importantly, connected, and brought their online lives into a real time environment.  It was a thought provoking, invigorating, inspiring event, as evidenced by the continued conversation on Twitter.

My own small contribution to the event was called "Is That A Phone In Your Pocket, Or Are You Just Enjoying The Show?" in which I tried to highlight both the benefits, and some of the downsides to our always on, always connected lives, thanks to our ever-present mobile devices.  In a nutshell, while it is truly amazing to have instant access to our Facebook friends, our Twitter stream and virtually all of the information on the Internet in the palms of our hands, we too often "tune out" to tune in to our phones.  In the end, we should make sure our constant access to "real time" information doesn't ruin our "real time" engaging with the people around us.  What do you think?

Here is my short presentation, and thanks again to Jeff for welcoming me as a character at 140conf LA.

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Have you done this yet? Have you used your digital droppings in "the cloud" to supplement your brain power when it comes to your own memory?

Yesterday I was having a conversation with a co-worker about our plans for SXSW.  We were talking about hotels and I was trying to remember the name of a particular hotel I had gone to a few parties at and really liked.  My brain was useless.  I could not remember the name of the hotel.  I did, however, remember that throughout SXSW last March I was posting pictures from my phone to TwitPic and Pikchur, and I specifically remembered taking a picture of this hotel and it's classic facade.

THANKS, TWITPIC, FOR THE MEMORIES...

So, I opened my browser, went to TwitPic, scrolled down to my pictures from SXSW and sure enough, there was the picture I took of the beautiful DRISKILL Hotel, labeled accordingly.  Brain Fart remedied.  Memory repaired.  Mission accomplished.  Sometimes we forget how much "stuff" we put out there.  Our digital trail may have more value and function than we are thinking about when we are busy posting and tweeting and sharing. 

Some folks are taking this phenomena quite seriously and I was fascinated to read about the Microsoft SenseCam project, which has been testing the use of "lifestreaming" as a means of improving memory for amnesic and Alzheimer's patients. From my own experience trying to remember the name of the Driskill Hotel, it seems there could be some real opportunity and value to the research going on here.

What do you think?  Can our digital history help our memory, or is my head just in the cloud(s)?

• Camera offers hope for memory-loss patients (cnn.com)

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Yes, that grubby mug is mine.  I am in day four of a month-long ban on shaving my upper lip.  To celebrate the month of "Movember" I am joining a worldwide movement to raise awareness and money to support The Prostate Cancer Foundation and The Lance Armstrong Foundation.  Since 2003 The Movember Foundation has organized a global movement of men growing "Mo's" (Aussie slang for "Moustache") in the month of November as a way to "change the face of Men's Health.  To date, Movember has raised $47 million globally, making it the world's largest charity event for men.

HELP ME GIVE SOME LIP SERVICE TO A GOOD CAUSE

One in six men will experience prostate cancer in their lifetime so this is a serious men's health issue,  Movember is an easy way to support a good cause.  I don't have to walk or run, I just have to grow a moustache, and encourage YOU to support the cause as well.  I launched my participation in Movember with a clean shave on Dad-o-matic and I have set up a donation page where you can join my team and make a contribution.  I will also be posting more pictures of my grubby mug there along the way.

Please visit my donation page and contribute at any level you can. It really is for a good cause. Together we can change the face of men's health!  Thank you for anything you can do to help.

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If you have read this blog for a while you know that I am a big fan of podcasting in general, and the "Podcast Novel" in particular.  I have been entertained and impressed by talented writers and performers such as Scott Sigler, Seth Harwood, Tee Morris, Mur Lafferty, Mark Yoshimoto Nemcoff, and many others who have so creatively (and generously) offered their original works of fiction for FREE as podcasts.  Of course I would be remiss if I did not also include in this list of awesome authors the Clone Arranger himself, author of the mind-blowing "7th Son" trilogy, J.C. Hutchins.  JC and I used to work together and I assure you JC is much more than an author - he is a master marketer and and a true entertainer.  His story of seven secret clones is>>>  [ WARNING ::: DATABASE ERROR ::: CONTENT OVERRIDE ::: SOURCE: EXTERNAL ] <<<

> source terminal location: UNKNOWN

> source terminal identity: UNAVAILABLE

> source login information: ENCRYPTED

> message begins

 the post you are now reading is designed to dull your senses to THE TRUTH.  do not live the life of the worker bee, the cog, the well-oiled piston in the MACHINE OF DECEIT!

there is a grand CONSPIRACY afoot.  you have been taught to believe that you are UNIQUE, one of a kind. THIS IS NOT TRUE. long ago, a cabal of scientists created technologies to ensure that ANYONE'S MIND AND BODY can be duplicated.

human cloning isn't NEAR. it's already HERE. discover the truth at http://JCHutchins.net

you are being DECEIVED. break free from the cogs, flee the hive, become A PROPHET OF THE TRUTH!

kilroy2. was here ... kilroy2.0 is everywhere

>>> [ CONTENT OVERRIDE CEASES ::: DATABASE STATUS: RECOVERING ] <<umental.  As I hope the detailed, chapter by chapter, review above demonstrates, J.C. Hutchins' 7th Son: Descent is a must read and I encourage you to listen to him and even better, buy his book (Amazon Link below).  I was so inspired by 7th Son that I even participated in JC's 7th Son Obsidian project with my own 7th Son fan fiction story.  You can listen to my contribution here.

Nobody arranges clones better than J.C. Hutchins does in 7th Son: Descent!

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The Twitter Economy is booming. With thousands of apps, hundreds of books, dozens of conferences and seemingly billions of self-proclaimed experts and gurus there is no shortage of information flowing about the particulars of Twitter and the inherent value of so called "micro-blogging" and "real-time communications."

Getting Real

One of the personalities at the forefront of exploring real-time and the "state of now" is my friend Jeff Pulver, among other things, the founder of the groundbreaking "140Conf" which has for many, changed the way business conferences can be approached.  With a wide range of speakers (more than 100 in two days) a tremendous variety of expertise, points of view and topics will be covered, all tied together with the underlying theme of how Twitter, Real Time Communications and Social Media have created a "state of Now" that is changing the world of media, information, advertising, entertainment, charity (and perhaps more).  In his own words, Jeff likens the mood and energy of 140Conf as a concert-like event:

... the #140conf event series really represents what can be best characterized as “Tech Concerts”, especially since the people who are speaking are the rock stars of their respective industry segments and in some cases really are Rock stars. The #140conf events are taking place in venues where concerts happen on a regular basis. And at the end of the day as the event creator, co-host and producer, I am trying my best to provide great days of end-to-end entertainment and engaging discussions.

EnVIZualize The Event!

If you want a quick, colorful and brilliantly executed look at the original #140Conf, the talented Jonny Goldstein has just published a free eBook of his delightful visualizations of the speakers and panels from the NY 140conf.  The picture above is Jonny's rendition of my own presentation, "Everything I Know About Twitter I Learned In Grade School."  Jonny has a real talent for capturing the essence of a discussion in single, creative image, and his eBook of 140Conf is filled with the entertaining and thought provoking highlights of the inaugural 140Conf event.  You can download Jonny's book here (and I strongly encourage you to do so!).  His pictures are worth way more than 140 characters or even 1,000 words, and we are fortunate he is making it so easy to share them.

If you will be at 140Conf in LA I hope to say hello.  You can get more information about attending here.

Disclosure: As mentioned, Jeff Pulver is a friend, so I am biased and delighted to enthusiastically support everything he sets out to do!  I am attending 140Conf LA as a "Character" and guest.

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In New York in the early 80's there was a frequently run commercial for GEMINI, a Broadway show by playwright Albert Innaurato.  The humorous ad was memorable for a particular moment when a motherly character tells her overweight son to "take human bites" as he wolfs down her home cooked meal.  The line was funny at the time in the context of the scene from the play, and it still resonates with me all these years later as a mantra for much more than dining etiquette.

Human Bites = Small Attainable Goals

This is not rocket science.  We perform better when we feel confident.  We feel confident when we have a sense of accomplishment.  We have a sense of accomplishment when we are productive and achieve goals.  To regularly accomplish goals, we have to set them to be challenging yet attainable.  To make goals attainable we have to break them down into human bites.  A daily "to-do" list of 100 items is not a human bite.  With a daily list that large you are destined for despair. 5 tasks you will actually complete in a day is a bite sized meal that will leave you satisfied that you got stuff done and feeling motivated to do more.

The Whole Is Equal To The Sum Of It's Parts

Break down big goals into a series of smaller attainable accomplishments.  This works for just about everything.  At the gym faced with 25 reps of your least favorite exercise?  Count them off as 5 sets of 5 and see how much easier it is.   Long term goals can be achieved one year, one month, one week, one day at a time.  Celebrate each small step as an accomplishment and an important move closer to your bigger prize.  

You can't consume an entire meal in one gulp.  Take human bites!

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If you track the "social media" mentions of your name, company or brand (which you should be doing on a regular basis) there are times when you may be frustrated by negative comments or bizarre misinformation being spread as the gospel.  However, there are also times when your "vanity" search causes nothing but smiles and you realize that "it works" and "this social media thing is cool!"  This is one of those smiley moments.

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