TED Talk: We are all Cyborgs now

The always great Amber Case talking about how we’re all cyborgs now:

I got to meet Amber at a Boulder event back in the day. She’s much smarter than I will ever be. Also of note, at 5:25 mark – some Boulder/Denverites are in the presentation: Danny Newman and Heather Capri Buna.

George’s Check Ins Across America

The great thing about the Internet is that you can revisit your past. Like a time capsule, it contains nuggets of information long forgotten, only to be uncovered.

I recently stumbled upon Weeplaces – a Foursquare visualization tool. It shows your entire timeline of places that you have checked in. Here’s a visualization of my travel throughout the US.

As you can see, my check ins are focused on the two places I have lived – Boulder, Co and New York, NY. I’ve traveled to Dallas, Chicago, Austin, Bentonville, and Upstate NY a bit as well. Pretty cool to see the distances traveled come and the random airports that I’ve passed through.

It’s even cooler when you go down to the closer views. Here’s my check in’s on Pearl Street in Boulder, Co:

It’s funny to see the places I went to the most. I’m definitely the kind of person that becomes a “regular” somewhere. All the bar hopping and check in’s in Boulder also makes me remember why I was a lot more broke back then.

Geolocation is big these days. And it can be useful. Last night, I needed to reach my girlfriend and she wasn’t answering her phone. She was staying in Atlanta, but I wasn’t sure where. Using Google Latitude, I was able to locate her. I could have also found her via Foursquare. I was able to call the hotel and get connected to her room. While it still didn’t help me in my endeavor, it at least proved effective in locating where she was staying.

Best of 2009: Best Conference/Workshop #best09

It was a year of conferences and workshops for me. From nearby places like Boulder and Fort Collins to faraway destinations like Austin, Chicago, San Jose, and New York – my world was a whirlwind tour of conferences that stimulated the mind (sometimes) and inspired the heart (all the time).

Like most stories, I can’t help but start at the beginning. The first conference I went to – on the first weekend of 2009 – was Chicks who Click. It was my first public appearance as the Crocs social media guy and it started with a bang. I didn’t know too many people in person there – I think just Gwen Bell – but instantly I connected with online friends. The list of IRL friendships that started at CWC is amazing: Wayne Sutton, Lucretia Pruitt, Jen Fowler, Barbara Jones, Doyle Albee, Denise Smith, Amy Turn Sharpe, Kit Seeborg, Aimee Giese, Zena Weist…ahh, the list is so long, I know I’m forgetting people so I’ll just stop and apologize to those that I forgot. Heck, I even kind of dated someone I met at the conference – so that should show how amazing it was. Needless to say, these personal friendships that were cultivated from the online world have powered so much of the great things that have happened to me over the past year. It was amazing and has to instantly top the best conference of the year for me.

Best of 2009: Best Night Out #best09

I have repeatedly tried to write the opening sentence of this blog post chronicling the “best night out of ‘09” and ultimately end up erasing each aborted attempt. 2009 was a year filled with night outs – drunken camaraderie, serious life altering conversations, voyeuristic voyages in and around Boulder – whatever the night entailed, I enjoyed each and every one of them in such different ways that, to put them in any sort of hierarchy would not do the other night’s justice.

Instead, I’ll write about all the night’s combined. In the ethereal bliss that is memory, all those special nights of last year have melded together as one. The rising and setting of the sun, the changing of seasons, the trespass of time play no role in them. Whether it was that snowy night at the end of last winter where I soldiered around with a group of mostly strangers looking for the next party. Strangers like Matt and Monika who would come to be a part of so many night’s out over the passing months. Then there was Keg’s and Kites – put on by Stepan, Ef and myself – that brought James Baber into our collective lives. There were night’s where I wasn’t around yet are etched into my memory – like when Stepan got sick at the lazy dog after a few to many. There were quiet nights with Vanessa at home – making G & V show episodes, laughing, and making memories that I will cherish forever. Even now, here in New York, I’ve had nights where I just enjoyed the company I was with. Hanging out with Pete and watching Chris’s band perform at Arlene’s basement; meeting the mayor of San Antonio with Julia, Josh introducing me to $.10 wing night at Croxley’s, building our apartment’s table with Ariel. When it comes to the adventures I’ve had this year, time is no longer linear – but merely a symphony that continuously harmonizes with the notes that came before it. Thank you to all my friends that made this year so amazing.

Ignite Boulder: How to Master Debate

Here’s the video of me from the last Ignite Boulder – where I gave a presentation on How to Master Debate:

My Final Love Note to Boulder

I’m sitting in Terminal C, Gate 48 of the Denver International Airport. There’s a hint of emotion as I type this – my swan song of a blog post as a Colorado resident. I woke up this morning to find my mercurial friend Meghann sleeping on one couch and the omnipresent QuasiJames on the other. As I woke them up to get ready for the morning of goodbyes, I felt that the imagery of those two being the first and last people I saw in Boulder somewhat fitting.

A lot has happened in the last two and a half years in Colorado. I’ve grown and matured. I’ve found a career I truly love (and I’m pretty good at it too). I made some amazing friends. A lot of these things may have happened in any other city in the country – I was in a ripening stage of maturity and locale was not the sole factor to success – yet, that can’t take away from the fact that it did happen here in Boulder, Colorado.

Boulder is an exceptional town full of exceptional people. From the fitness buffs to the tech scene, I have never felt people that continuously stimulated me to improve like I did in this front range city. The friendships that I’ve procured through the years are ones that will stick with me – even when the inevitable gravity of time pulls those relationships apart. The mentors I acquired, the peers that inspired – so much credit in my life is owed to Boulder that I can’t even begin to encapsulate the time here with words. I even will refrain from naming names because I don’t want to leave anyone out – because there was so many people whose friendships never blossomed completely yet still effected my development. So take this as a universal thank you to everyone who I engaged with in this mountain town. I’m taking a piece of you to New York. My success is, ultimately, your success. I will always remember that.

When I first arrived in Boulder, I emailed my mailing list and expressed myself as “speechless” – so it’s only fitting that I feel the same emotional tug as I leave this town. In that email, I talked about how before I ventured out west the palette of colors I used to describe my world was a Crayola 8 pack – and the green grasses of Kentucky, rolling hills of Kansas, and the imposing figure of the Rockies turned that 8 pack into a 64 and then 120 pack of crayons. I take that palette of colors back to New York with me – hoping that my experiences here will color new shades in the often gray shadows of those concrete canyons. I return east transformed by the west – at peace with many personal demons, at ease with the timbre of my life. I have never been more excited for the career opportunities before me and have very little fear to what lies ahead. I know, in the end, that it will work out – powered by my talent and the people out there that read this blog, that call me with words of encouragement, that wish kind thoughts my way. I will color my world and live outside the lines with the reckless abandon of an imaginative child – thinking about only that which is possible; not the things that are not.

This is all because of Boulder. This is all because of you. Thank all of you for reading my blog. I hope you stay along for the ride.

What’s Next for Me: Empire State of Mind

Last week, I announced on Twitter that I was leaving Crocs to pursue other opportunities.  Today, I’m proud to announce what my actual plans are.  I am leaving Boulder and the great state of Colorado to return back East to work for R/GA in New York City.  This was a move that happened quickly, but when the opportunity came to join a firm with the reputation and status of R/GA – I couldn’t pass it up.

My time at Crocs was an eventful one.  The last two and a half years of my life were perhaps the happiest I have ever had.  I enjoyed the sun and fresh air of Colorado.  I met some amazing friends.  And I was able to create something I am very proud of for a company that I will always hold dear to my heart.  I finally was able to work in Social Media and use my passion for this form of communication to build a true community around a very well known brand.  It was something that I received great kudos for – whether through official channels or pats on the back at conferences – and for that, I am forever indebted.  The opportunity I have at R/GA would probably not be here if it wasn’t for Crocs.

Photo by @greeblemonkey

Crocs, however, is bigger than I am and I leave behind a social media program that will be in very capable hands.  It’s bittersweet to have to walk away from something I built – knowing that I will no longer have a say in how things are handled – but I feel that the passionate consumer base that I helped organize will be there for whomever takes the reigns.  I’m excited to watch things from the sidelines, to simply be a member of the Crocs community, and to watch the brand, my colleagues and my friends grow.

The personal and professional pressures that I felt really made this decision an easy one.  I simply felt the tug of the city – watching the Yankees win the World Series, listening to Jay-Z and Alicia Keys belt out ballads to the boroughs – I couldn’t help but want to return back to the only place that felt right for me.  Professionally, I loved my time at Crocs but wanted new challenges – I wanted to apply my skill sets in new ways and R/GA provides a greater stage for me to shine.  Agency life will be vastly different.  It will test me in so many different ways.  Yet, in this crucible, I feel I will become a better professional.  I’m excited and I’m glad all of you will be around for the ride.

In the end, like with all social media, I couldn’t have done it without the crowd.  With out all of you out there who read my tweets, my blog posts, who followed my every move on the social web – thank you so much.  It was all of you that made the 12 hour days easy.  It was all the smiles we made together that made this job fun.  You were there for me through everything.  It was your enthusiasm to listen to me that made me who I am.  There is an African proverb that says that the path to greatness is paved by giving thanks to the great that came before you.  You, all those readers and people that follow me, are the greatness that has come before me.  Whether you’re a friend I made in Boulder, contacts I made through the industry, or random pixels of an avatar of someone I never met – I am truly thankful.  Leave a comment below so I know who is out there and who made this past two and a half years the greatest of my short lifetime.

Three Questions on Soci@lbyte

My good friend Elaine Ellis sat down with me and asked me a few questions about social media.  You can find my answers on Socialbyte.net – a new site started by a bunch of great local (Denver area) social media people.  I felt honored that Elaine thought of me and glad that I could be a part of the new site.

That brings me to the main crux of my answers on to the three questions: relationships.  While I know Elaine in the real world – social media allows people to be brought together to form a collaborative atmosphere.  Seeing how people who, in many other businesses, would be deemed competitors help each other out is why I love to be involved in social media.  If I make any mark in my career, I want it to be that I helped everyone I could as much as I could.  That’s how the best relationships are built…

Ignite Boulder 6

Voting started and tickets went on sale for Ignite Boulder 6 today. I’ve submitted a presentation entitled, “How to master debate.” I have some great ideas for the presentation and I don’t want to spoil them; so I won’t reveal them here. Someone always video tapes the event – so make sure to tune in.

#Hyatt4Good Mashable Tweetup

Tonight, I’m heading to the #Hyatt4Good Mashable Tweetup in Denver.  I’ll be posting pictures and whatnot on my Whrrl account – you can check it out here: GeorgeGSmithJr’s Whrrl Account.