Please Talk Among Yourselves

Hello, today, I have another topic about trolling.  You know the word.  You are watching a video and make a mean remark about how the mother is dressed.  I am not talking about the self-talk you make

Candle Nestled Among Flowers
By Pegleess Barrios from Burst.

as you are watching the video (also called talking to the screen).  We have all done that. I am talking specifically about the trifling comment you added in the comments section.  Yes, that troll comment.

There are other forms of trolling and I have mentioned them before, but making rude and hateful comments on another site is becoming more common, and frankly, I do not like it.  Here is why.

YouTube or Bust.

I have mentioned that I watch videos on YouTube and I also make them.  Two of the families that I watch on a regular basis recently had comments that popped up on my Google news feed, and frankly, I did not like what was said about them.  I know what you are going to say, “Tricia, why do you care what is said on these YouTube channels?”  Well, I do care because these two families, who by the way, are friends with each other, and are Christian families, really care about their families.  I also know what some of you are about to say, “well, they asked for it, putting their lives out there for all to see”.  Well, yes, they do, and only God knows why they are making videos, but, I also believe that it is only in God’s plan that they do continue. 

The first family, an interracial couple, with a boy and girl, started vlogging before the boy was born.  The comment I read on Lipstick Valley.com was things like: “why are they (the husband and wife) are so “Vegan” and “Micro” manage their diet while they feed their children crap food”.  By the way, crap, meaning McDonalds, pizza, Mac & Cheese, you name it.  My question to these people is why do you watch?  No, seriously, why do you watch the channel if you are going to criticize the family? I have seen the latest videos and the children are eating the same thing that the parents are eating.  Not only that, the mom did feed baby girl the same thing that she was eating for lunch.  They very seldom eat the “crappy” stuff, as this troll called it.

The second family, an African American husband and wife, with 3 boys and a girl, started vlogging when the oldest boy was a baby.  The comment I read on the same site was from 2013, and the comment was on the next oldest child’s hair, and why his hair was not cut.  This was during the time when the two oldest was born and she was pregnant with the youngest boy.  Baby girl was born last year and will be 1 next month.  Anyway, the comment was on things like, “is she hoping to have a girl so bad that she refuses to cut this child’s hair?  Again, my question is, why do you watch this channel?

I know as a vlogger myself, I am supposed to have “thick skin”, but my question is, why be so mean?  My mom gave me this insight when we were talking about my business the other day.  As business people, it is hard to talk about the business with family and friends, and here is what I believe is the answer to my question:  People are jealous.  They are jealous because:

·         You accomplished what they are trying to do. 

Many people say that they are going into business or start a vlogging channel or a blog, but cannot because of time, money, and/or the backlash from family and friends until they are afraid of starting. 

·         You are making a success out of the very thing they want to do.

These families are making a nice size chunk of change from vlogging. They are being savvy about the brand deals they are working with and who they are working with.  I will not mention some of the brands, but they are some of the ones I want to work with in the future, but it takes time to build a relationship with these brands.  Some YouTubers have been at it longer than me, but I cannot let that stop me from trying.

So, I did a little research into Lipstick Valley.com….

Caution: I am using a little slang here.  I will explain myself along the way.

Three Women Discuss over Coffee and Laptops
By Sarah Pflug from Burst

So, I pulled up Lipstick Valley.com, and this stuff is lit.  For those of you who do not know what “Lit” means, “lit” means it is hot, a trend, or popular.  If you are a black person, this is the place to be (although I have seen other topics on other races).  As a black person, I beg to differ.  I did not like what I read from these posts, and I would have to say that these people are mean, jealous, and have no life goals.  I mean, people, do you even work?  Are you so jealous of these families to the point of talking about how they dress, how they feel about their children, and so forth?  How would you like it if someone pointed out your stuff on social media?  You would not like it, huh?  You are lucky that these families do not care about your catty mouth.  They only care about what their “true” fans think.  I did not nor I will not sign up for this site.  On second thought, I should not have said that these people who frequent this site do not have life goals.  Everyone has life goals, and these life goals may not line up with mines and yours.  This might be a way for some people to unwind from the day, like a glass of wine and a good book, only they choose to gossip about people.  See, that was a form of trolling and I am sorry for having written that.

I am not that type of person who is here for the gossip.  God and my mother taught me better than that.  That does not mean I listen.  I have no choice.  I have chatty church members, social media is always chatty, and my family and friends are chatty.  The only difference is I try not to start something.  If it is something I do not want to hear (like the opinions of people I watch on YouTube) I walk away, turn it off, or mouth off, which is something I started to do to these people.  Good thing you have to sign up to give your .02 (two cents). I probably would have blasted out these catty women out of the water.

So what if I find myself in this situation?

If you find yourself in the situation of giving an opinion that is troll-like:

·         Go to the person who is the subject of the talk. 

You might want to give you an opportunity to air your difference to them. Now, it may be a little difficult if it is social media.  Sometimes, you do not know these people personally, you never met them in person, and you do not know their home life, except what they are willing to share. 

·         Do you know what is really going on in their life?

On my channel, my social media accounts, and on my blogs, there are a lot of things I personally do not share and do not want to share with the public.  Some of it has to do with the people in my family who do not want their life being put on blast, and some of it has to do with the situation I am in, and the public does not be on a “needs to know” basis.  Besides that, people are nosey, and people get jealous and want to see you fail at something.   

·         Commenting with mean, evil things does not help the situation. 

What does trolling do?  For one, it makes a person who is miserable, have no love for life, nor care about people feel better about themselves while making the person being trolled feel worse about themselves.  One of the worse trolling methods is when the troll tells the one being trolled to go kill themselves.  In that case, it becomes cyberbullying.  This is common in teens and young adults.  This must be stopped. 

What if you find yourself being trolled or cyberbullied?

·         First, you need to develop a thick skin. 

Yes, it is not easy to ignore the comments.  YouTube and other sites have a way for you to report the person doing the trolling, but you may not be in a position to do so.

·         If you cannot handle it, find someone who can. 

If you have a business, you can hire a virtual assistant to screen your accounts, especially comments.  In fact, virtual assistants are good for a lot of tasks, which is something I will tackle in a later post.  If you cannot afford to hires someone or if you do not have a business, get a friend to screen your social media account.

·         If it is cyberbullying, contact an authority, contact your local police, your company’s security, IT, or if you are a student, contact a teacher, principal, or guidance counselor, and most importantly, your parents.  These are your first responders, and they do not take lightly the threats, the trolling, and meaningful suggestions.  They know what to do, and how to contact the next person in this sort of situation to the right people.

Finally, do not take matters into your own hands.  You could end up losing your life over this.  If you have to, walk away from social media.  It is not that important that you have to document every detail of your life on social media.  In fact, this is the reason for me not sharing everything.  It is not that I do not want to because I love helping people, but sometimes, helping people can cost.  There are the judgments, the funny looks and stares, and the comments.  I always welcome comments if I am wrong on something, but when it comes to my life and my well-being, I have to decipher what is best for me and my life.  I will listen because introverts are good listeners, but then I have to choose from what I want or need versus what you are telling me.  We all make choices in life, and my comment to you today is:

“Choose to be happy, and make the right choice in your life and the life of others.  You never know who you may touch the right way or the wrong way.”

Related Articles:

Attention all Trolls (This means Me Too).

Related YouTube Channels to this Article:

GabeBabeTV

The Daily Davidsons

Check out my Channel while you are there:

Patricia L. Logan

Goals For June 2019

Last month was a very trying month for me.  There are some things that I did not expect (like the electric going out in two of the rooms and leaving me without wifi for 3 days on Mother’s Day weekend).  I am humbled that in this country, power is a freely given, even though we must pay for it.  There are some luxuries that we as Americans do to order to afford them, and sadly this administration does not get it.  OK, that is it for my rant.  I am supposed to be talking about my goals for the month of June and that is what we are going to talk about.

What did I get done in May?

In May, on the social media side, the following happened:

Instagram:  Last month: 750 This month: 557

I have no doubt it is the photos I publish, but I have one slight problem.  While people like my photos, and it seems that I keep posting the same type of photos, I have received maybe one or two comments on them.  So, if you comment, it helps me a lot.  I am also commenting more on other people’s photos.  Generally, I am a shy, quiet person, so introverted, but as my pastor says, I have extrovert tendencies.  Interaction is the key.  Also, a tip:  to constantly get followers to interact with you, Kittens and puppies work.  I am just kidding.  My last photo of the boss cat got a lot of likes because she was sitting in her usual spot overseeing her “parents” making dinner.  No, the real tip is to follow the person who follows you.  You may not be interested in what they do, but it helps to support them.  It also does help to turn your personal account into a business account. You can see insights and see what works for your IG account.

Facebook: I am not tackling that as of yet.  I did get a chance to look at it from a non-grabbing traffic aspect (is Non-Grabbing a term?) and I will admit that if I want to grab a follower’s attention, I need to:

·         Get rid of the drama.  In other words, curb my issues, don’t react too much to Trump’s and other political antics, and get rid of my gaming (although that has been restricted to my Ipad).

·         Promote more of my business, but not too much.  Remember, Facebook execs do not want you to spam your readers, and I am on of those people who do not want to see an ad for ½ of Paparazzi Jewelry. I love the pieces (who can beat $5 jewelry), but I do not want the same ad popping up every 5 minutes or more.  Even Jesus took a rest, and you should too.  If I know how I feel about the same ad, then I need to rest about my business as well.

o   Tip: Talk about something related to your business that can be a takeaway tip.  For instance, talk about what types of jewelry goes with each other.  In my case, I would be talking about types of invitations to help when inviting guests to the wedding or a good size number of guest to invite when your venue is small.  This may turn viewers into buyers.  Do not always offer a product.  Let the post bring in the buyers.

This is something that I want to tackle starting next month.  This does not mean I am friending anyone it means I am adding followers.

Pinterest

I can always use more followers, but what I have notice is what I am not posting enough of, my blogs.  Just like Instagram, this is something that I need to work on, and this case, it brings more people to my blog posts and my Etsy site.  I have been mostly repining other people’s pins.  While that is a good thing for them, it is not good for me.  I am finding better photos by taking some of my own or using the ones that I purchased with a commercial license or free and the original photographer said I can use them.

Twitter: 1,679 (May) added 2 more for June (1,680).  I am going to work on posting my blog posts on Twitter and hopefully I have the same results as I did with Instagram.  At one time, Twitter was my go to, until the a few years ago, mojo when “No Go”.  Now that I am building up traffic again, I do need to work on all of them in some compacity and Twitter is no exception

YouTube:  I gained 5 new followers, with no new videos for the whole month of May.  I did put out a video on Instagram stories to see how I liked it.  It is good for short bursts of video, but for long ones, it is YouTube. I have a Vimeo account, but I have not made any videos on it in the 5+ years I had the account.

In June, the goal is at least two videos. 

Finally LinkedIn:

LinkedIn is the business Facebook, even though Facebook now has a legitimate Facebook business area, this is the first social media made for business people.  I do not talk about it much because it is supposed to be more professional than Facebook.  I have 363 connections.  LinkedIn does not call them followers or friends. Each connection is supposed to allow you to ask for business, sell your product, or apply for a job.  If that connection does not have a need for you business or product, or hiring in your expertise, they may know of someone who does or have a need.  LinkedIn is supposed to be a place to network.

I have been mostly lurking on LinkedIn.  When I first got the account, I was engaging so much.  Now I barely get on because the way I have this account setup, anything I do not Twitter or Facebook, reflects back on LinkedIn.  Lately, I have noticed that the dynamics have changed.  It seems that LinkedIn does not allow it anymore. So, I am looking into my account and changing things up a bit. 

OK, I am off of social media for now.

Other Goals

You may think that this is all I talk about.  No Sir/Madame.  These are my other goals:

1. P. Lynne Designs Website.  For some reason, I took a month off.  Not my usual depressive state, but I had things to do, people to see.  Also, I have been getting house stuff done.  When you only have so many hours of the day, and/or people and things give you limitations beyond your control, you have to take them. So, the website was put on the backburner for a bit.  So, the new goal is to have things running by the new year. (new fiscal year, that is, which starts in July).
2. Bedroom organization:  I am almost finished clearing my bedroom.  I cleared out my 3-tier long shelf for something that only holds my router/modem, my long basket with my rolls of vinyl, and my planner supplies, which are temporary until I get my craftroom set up. The new goal for this area:
1. Change out the final phase of Fall/winter/spring bed clothing (sheets and spread/comforter/blanket) for summer stuff. I have not decided what I want on my bed, but I want the ugly green comforter to get out of here.  I had it for 3 years, so it is bye-bye.
2. Clear off my dresser.
3. Get rid of the shoe rack and basket table.
4. Start hunting for bedroom furniture.  This is a purchase planned for 2020, and I need to start looking now, even though I am looking to move in the next 1-2 years.  Why?  I had this furniture since I moved out of my parent’s house in 1998, and this furniture was built in 1968 (at least that was what the previous owners of the furniture said). I want something that is a little more up-to-date.  Heck I have changed computers since this furniture was bought.  I need a budget for this purchase.
3. Product creation.  I think I have a handle on my Etsy store.  I had 2 sales in the month of May, but June needs to double the amount.  This means 4 sales.  I also need to renew one of the listings, the “Smile” in white lettering composition notebook.  I need to make some products for my website that may or may not be a product on my website who is to tell on that until I create it.  I need to do pricing for some product as well.  This means the introduction to change some placement products and finish my website.

Well, that is it for right now.  I had great response to the May 2019 goals.  My reason is not to brag that I can do this.  I am not perfect.  There are some goals that I did not meet in the month of May that I am not happy with, but you move on, you do what you can to meet and exceed those goals.  If you do not meet them, do not beat yourself up over it.  Things happen and life happens.  I am very proud of things such as meeting some social media goals, mad that I did not complete my craftroom and master bedroom, but things have not fallen around me, and if not, I will pray, ask for forgiveness, and move on.  This is the takeaway I want to give to you.

Sharing is caring-the Facebook Edition

This is a Facebook post that I finished writing, and the beginning of my many changes for this blog, Sometimes, I may not feel like writing a whole blog post to get my point across. Sometimes it is those little nuggets of time that concludes a topic and the points made to drive it home. Overall, these changes I am making for my blogs are a long time coming, based on the fact that I have been blogging for 10 years and 4 months (but who is counting: Oh I am, LOL).

So does that mean you will see me posting more? Yes, it does, but I do not have a new schedule to publish yet. right now, as I get ready to switch this blog over to WordPress, the schedule is the current schedule, and I apologize for that. My website for P. Lynne Designs is almost finished, and so far, the launch date is still May 1st, not in time for Mother's day, but in time for me to become busier. Anyway, enjoy today's post, and if you are not following me on Facebook, please do. The page is the same as this blog, which is My Ambience Life.

I am trying to engage with my social media accounts more. I cannot say it is the easiest thing I have done. It takes work, dedication, and sheer will to do this, but I feel like it can be done.

Instagram and Facebook are today’s candidates. For Instagram, I signed up for platforms that will help me get this account from the current stats of 727 followers to 1000 follows. I have 273 more to go. I want them to be authentic and natural and no fakers. If you like what you see from my phone, wait there are more to come.

The major problem I am having is my phone. It is old, 2015 old. Now for some, it is the old, “so, what’s the problem?” Nothing, except companies who sponsor want the clearest, crisp photos from an influencer. The “dot all “I” s and cross all “T” s syndrome”. This is my term, not anyone else. Oh, it’s okay, I do not mind this type of requirement, it keeps me fresh on my equipment, and helps me look out for the latest thing without breaking the bank. For the moment while I'm a greenhorn at being an influencer, it is hard when you have a 4-year-old phone and money is tight, and you are on the family account. I am not saying that I am not grateful, I am only saying it is hard when there are limitations. A newer Samsung Galaxy would be nice, an Iphone would be even nicer. I currently have a Galaxy Note 4 and an Ipad Mini 3.

Facebook is getting better. I engage every day, but on Instagram, I do not. Would you believe I only have 240 posts? With Facebook, there are a ton of things I can do on this account as it is half business/half personal. I can turn off the business part at any time and Vice Versa. (Only in my head). I finally learned two months ago that engaging does not mean complaining about what your family, friends, and the government does on a daily basis.

I can go to my groups and observe rather than off my take on that person’s situation. I can ask a question and if no one answers it, I can move it to another group without making a big stink about it in the first group I asked the question in. I am trying the be a social influencer and if companies find my posts to be not to their liking, they will move on. This is the difference between being a troll and not being a troll.

So, this is it, a small take in my world and as one YouTuber named ShannaB puts it best, “as I grow my family”.

I never said that becoming an influencer is easy. Sometimes it takes a little research into your own little world to see what you are lacking, and that is everything in life. You may have people who point it out to you, but you are the only one who can change that aspect of your life, and if you are a Christian, you let God do most of that change for you.

Take care and God Bless you. Have a great weekend and Happy Easter.

April 2019 Goals for Social Media

I want to increase my goals on my social media accounts.  It is almost every blogger and vlogger’s dreams.  The truth is goals are something I rarely share with my readers.  The reason is quite simple, really (in my broken British accent, which is slightly Americanized). Note:  Ah, the things that go on inside one’s head, LOL.

No, but seriously, let me give you a backstory. (per usual, short, but sweet)

I have been blogging for ten glorious but trying years.  I slowed down in 2015 but now I am picking back up.  I now want to make money from blogging.  For the sake of my family, I have to make money from this.  I was thinking about this a few years ago when I refused to play into the hype of disclosing how much money bloggers made in a month/year since becoming bloggers.

Lesson learned, and while I would never disclose my complete income, which is no one’s business but mine and my CPA when she does my taxes (just got them back today), I felt that I might offer a little inspiration on what programs I used in order to get to that point, where I can brag talk about it.  Someone may be struggling in that area.  So, without further ado, here are my goals for this month.  As you will see, I have listed the current total of viewers who follow me and what I want to increase the number by.

 

Instagram

Current Followers: 714

The goal for the month: 200 Needed (making it 914 followers by 4/30)

Instagram is a struggle for me.  The reason is I have a Samsung Note 4 smartphone, and a Mini IPad 3.  While that worked well in the past, I am finding that I need more memory to store pictures for the phone.  I also need a camera. Many experts say that you do not need a camera.  I can (with cooperation from Google Chrome-hate the other one) turn my desktop into a simulated phone for sharing photos from Google and my desktop on Instagram.  If you are not squeamish about diving into the back end of Google Chrome, here are the instructions:

1. On the toolbar (it says Instagram, search, a little compass symbol, etc..) right click with your mouse button.
2. Go to “inspect”. You will see HTML stuff.  Trust me, you do not need to touch it at all (Thank God)
3. Right next to Icon with the screen and arrow, you will see an icon with a big screen/little screen.  Click on it.
4. What this does is toggle it between from a full screen to looking similar to your phone screen.  It should have the plus sign (+) on it so you can add photos from your internal drive.  Keep the dialog box open while doing this.  I closed mine out, and now, either Instagram figured out what I was doing, or I have to watch the video I got it from again.

What do I place on my account:  So far, family and project pictures I am currently engaged into.

 Facebook

Current Friend/followers:  1,129 (1,063 friends and 63 followers)

Current My Ambiance Life Page: 52

Current P. Lynne Designs Page: 208

Current At Home with Tricia's Baskets page: 0

Current Simply Organized Crafts: 322

Total amount: 1,711 friends and followers

Goal:  500 no matter what they follow.

I am not so worried about my Facebook account.  It is nice and comfy, and almost just right, BUT, if I want Amazon or any other sponsor to look my way for an influencer’s account, that amount needs to be higher, much higher.  I do not have any tricks or tips on Facebook except, let go of the drama, mama. Whatever is going on in your home/work/school/church, needs to stay there. It used to be a time when the only time a person posted as to when something bad is happening in your location.  People thrived on drama.  They still do.  Do not contribute to it.

I am also confused by what Facebook considers friends vs. followers.  If you look at followers along, not too many people are following me, but when you factor in my friends and people who follow my business pages, I have a lot more than needed.  So my question that I need to find out is, “What are potential sponsors looking at, and what do I need to concentrate on.  More research needs to be conducted before I can give you the answer.

If you created your account to promote your business (and by all means, please do), note that Facebook does not take too kindly on the likes of too much promotion, or you may find yourself in Facebook jail. Yes, that is a real term.

What do I place on my account:  I post on each of my pages the current post from each blog, except P. Lynne Designs.  For that page, I post on how I am coming with the website.  Once I am finished with that, I will do the same for each blog.  By the way, each blog has a new domain name, but I will not reveal until it is time to launch it.

Twitter

Current followers: 1,683

Goal: 500

My Twitter is in the same boat as my Facebook account.  I can always use some work on it.  The truth of the matter is whenever I post to Facebook or I post to Twitter, the opposite get the post as well. I set it up like that when I first got both accounts, even though they are not owned by the same company.  I wish it was like that for Facebook and Instagram. I can post something from Instagram to Facebook, but I cannot post from Facebook to Instagram, and they are from the same company.

I treat my Twitter account like my Facebook account with a little more caution:  I still think in 140 characters.  I write the most important stuff on the post and cut out the fluff.  I was glad when Twitter stopped counting the URL as part of the post.  It makes posting better and faster. Here is another tip:  not too many Millennials have a Twitter or Facebook account. So, if you want to reach them, Try Instagram.

Linked-In

Current followers: 358

Goal: 500

The goal here is different.  Why?  Because as you see by the numbers, it is lower than Instagram.  I am not on LinkedIn as much as I should.  LinkedIn is more of a business network social media platform than the others.  When it first started, it was made for business-minded people.  You are not going to get your friends and relatives to subscribe to LinkedIn because that is not where the gossip is at unless you like hearing about Amazon and Apple’s business practices.

So, if you are looking to network with LinkedIn, keep in mind that you are dealing with business people.

Blogs

My Ambiance Life

Current Follows:  9

Goal: 500

P. Lynne Designs

Current Follows: 158

Goal: 500

At Home with Tricia's Baskets

Current Follows: 9

Goal: 500

Even though all 3 have different audiences, I lumped them together, just because they are all blogs, and they belong to me.  All the goals are the same.  I am having problems with consistency at the moment, which I am having the same problem with my YouTube channel.  More on that when I get to it.

Consistency

When you have blogs, it is important that you tell your audience when they expect to have a new post.  This usually comes in the form of a newsletter.  So now you are asking yourself, “Why is she telling me this when she has a hard time keeping up with consistency?”  Consistency with blogging is different than consistency with having a YouTube or Venmo Channel, but they are one and the same.  Both blogging and vlogging take up the same time which involves planning, editing, and publishing.

What do I publish:  For P. Lynne Designs, it is about my handmade products, reviews, and tutorials.  Every once in a while, it is about my experiences as a crafter and freelance person.  At Home with Tricia's Baskets, it is about family, home life, and travel.  Sometimes it is about organizing your home, places to visit, reviews on those same places and products. Lastly, for My Ambiance Life, It is about writing, working from home, journaling, learning how to blog, and social media. 

Vlogging (Video publishing)- YouTube

Patricia L. Logan

Current Subscribers:  170

Goal: Working up to 1,000

P. Lynne Designs (no videos)

Current Subscribers: 0

Goal:  working up to 1,000

I have been vlogging for about 7 years.  At first, I did not care if a video went up or not.  That was not my goal.  Then, I started seeing what video could do for your business, and I was hooked.  I think it was a family vlog I was watching, and I was thinking to myself, “hey if they can stay consistent, so can I.” OK, different lifestyles different goals, but it does work if you let it.

I must admit that I have 2 videos waiting for me to edit and publish.  Editing is not hard, but it is time-consuming.  You have to listen to what your tone should be towards your audience, cut out the crap, separate the audio, add music, upload to YouTube (or Venmo), edit some more, including adding the description, and you are done. 

One tip I do need to add when editing:  find yourself a good editing software.  Be willing to pay for it.  For a couple of years, I wanted the editing software that was sweeping the nation, but it is only for the Mac.  I cannot think of it at the moment.  Someone told me there was a Windows version of the software, but the site only pointed to my software that had some features as the version for the Mac.  I tried Premiere Pro, Photoshop, and a couple of software that were not to my liking. Yes, in a pinch, you can edit videos in Adobe Photoshop and Lightroom, programs I already had on my computer.  I also had Windows Movie Maker, which also sucked.  I tried Filmore9 (not Sponsored) and loved it, but when I uploaded my first video using the software, it put this big ad in the middle of my face and covered my mouth so if a deaf person were to listen to my video, they could not.  I want to make my videos friendly to all. Yes, they could CC on the video, but If they do not have to, it should come to that.

So, now, I paid an annual fee of $39 to remove the ad from my videos, and I am happier now, then when I was editing my videos with WMM.  I still get the same features as before, so for now, I am sticking to the software.

So, these are my goals for April.  I do have affiliates, which I did not mention in this post, but maybe I will mention in my next blog post for next Friday.  

For today, I sprinkled little takeaways throughout the blog, so I hope you caught them.  Be sure to subscribe to one or all of the places you can find me.  Also, If you have any questions or comments, please list them below, as well as on some of my social media profiles.  You can also reach me at plogan721@att.net.

Until then, have a great week, and God bless you.

Facebook, day 1: How to conduct Yourself

(c) 2018 Facebook.com

I love doing a type of posting called Serial Posting.  Serial posting is writing a series of posts covering the same subject for a short period.  Serial posting gives the reader little bits of information that may not get covered in a normal blog.  The writer may want to introduce the new subject as a way of telling

the reader that the blog may be changing sometime shortly.  My backstory of starting serial posting is (1) I have so much to say on a regular blog post, until it has to become a serial, or you will miss all of my cute little nuggets of information on the subject.  (2) I do not want to spend a lot of time doing them because there are tons of information that you can find on the interwebs (Internet) until you can literally spend a whole month researching, just my take on the subject, and (3) You have a one-stop introduction to a series.  I started doing some serial posting about two years ago, I did an overall series on organizing your closet on my now closed Simply Organized Crafts (which is now a Facebook-only page).  The first serial posting on this blog was an intense look into social media and the basic principles on how to get started.  I had the basic points of the series, and if you want to know more about the series, I will post some links below.  The other back story is for the video series I finished in August, it is aimed towards those people who already have an account, already sharing content, but not quite sure on what is the next step, or how to maximize their time and money with social media.

I started to turn this into a serial posting for a week, and I was going through my thought process, I decided to turn this into a Friday weekly post.  So, just like the journaling weekly series on Wednesdays, you will get an introduction to each social media platform, then when that part is over, I will have some weekly tips each Friday (hopefully) on the subject. 

For this round, I will focus on Facebook.  Humm, what to do on Facebook?  Well, you can post events, respond to other people’s posts, play games, post, including pictures, conduct business, and congratulate people. Even create or join a group.  That is about the size of it.  I will hit on each one of these topics as we go along.

What you cannot do (my opinion) is to curse (people do), belittle people (It happens), Spam (a big no-no for me and Facebook), and my personal favorite, trolling and threaten people.  Today’s topic will may hit someone in the gut, including mine.

Why go there?

Back in August, I found out on messenger, while looking at a friend’s message, that I was unsubbed from a blogging group without warning.  Maybe, it was I had not contacted anyone through Messenger that I was still part of the group.   I had so many things to do that week, such as find out when the funeral of a beloved church member and learning how to work the business end of P. Lynne Designs.  She had started group convos, which I could not keep up, as well as many other members, who were also booted from the group.  Was she being a little too snobbish?  Maybe, but my way of thinking was how in the heck am I supposed to do all the things that I am supposed to do for my business, not to mention, my family and friends when I am always answering group questions in messenger?  I started to write this nastygram about this group, and I stopped to think about what would happen if she read the message from my regular newsfeed, and told me to back the F---- off, I was not getting back in, and that was that?  I always have to keep my temper in check, and this is what I mean about trolls.  More about trolls in a minute.

Anyway, I erased what I was to say about this group, and I thought, “when I have the time, I can always ask to rejoin the group”.  Both tempers in check and she gets her way by removing the non-participates.  After all, it was her group, not mine.  I had one, and believe me, it is not easy to run one.

So, what is the proper way to deal with Facebook?

Simply answer:  be yourself, but not in such a way that if you have a nasty attitude, it comes off on your posts, your responses to your friend’s post and other things on Facebook.  You may share, and share often, but not in a way that lands you in Facebook Jail or having people unfriend you.  I might mumble and grumble while I am posting something that I may disagree with (not clicking the like button), but nicely put things, so that your friends see your POV (Point of View), and not come back with something nasty as well.   I will address this on Twitter, Instagram, and even LinkedIn.

So, now that we got of that out of the way, let’s talk about the elephant in the room, Trolls

I have talked about trolls until I am blue in the face, but it bears repeating:  If you disagree with something, do not like it and do not make a comment, in fact, just don’t.  Actually, I am now seeing more trolls on YouTube than any other social media platform. People are getting better about it, but I am still seeing some posts on Facebook, where people are posting (or reposting) cursing and basically belittling a post.  I usually exercise this basic rule:  If I do not like what is being said, delete it, shut the person up for 30 days (meaning you do not see their posts for a while), or unfriend them.  You do not have to explain, just get them off your newsfeed.  They do not have to unfriend you, and if they find out through a mutual friend, they do have the right to ask you (In-person) why?  Simply tell them.  Do not berate them, give a simple explanation.  If they explain that they are in a bad place in their life, tell them that you can be supportive outside of Facebook and that you are willing to listen.  At that time, you can simply explain to them your friend's situation, like why you unfriended them in the first place.  For me personally, I am a sensitive person and my father reads what I put on Facebook, and often questions my posts.  I am also friends with several former pastors.  Besides, you have to break away from Facebook (and any other media) because face to face contact is better anyway.

How would you like to play a game? (a quote from War Games (1983))

As a general rule, I do not play games until all of my work for the day is done.  Every once in a while, I may play one during the day, if I am waiting on something.  I do not allow people to invite me to a game, and I don’t invite my friends.  It is not important to play a game.  I also do not spend money on games.  If I run out of a move, need more virtual coins or points, the credit or debit card does not come out.  Why?  Because it is a waste of your money.  If you are on a budget (and most people should be raising their hand on this comment), or you need to pay for a bill, which is the last thing you need to run out of real money for because you need virtual money to build a building on SimCity BuildIt.  Not worth it.  Games are a time-waster as well.  So why do I play a game?  To blow off steam or to wind down.  I do not have any games promoting violence.  Why?  Because it can get into my psyche and make me think bad thoughts.  This is just me.  I do have to warn you, I do play a lot of eating games (Candy Crush, Cookie Jam Blast, or kitchen games where you have customers you need to feed and make money from).  Maybe this is the reason why I am always hungry, LOL.

Invites and Force Joins

Sometimes, when one of my friends has a new group, I do not mind receiving an invite.  It is to help out a friend or more importantly to support them.  I received two recently.  One from a close friend and a friend I barely know.  Both made me a member of their group.  As a general rule, I do not want to get an invite, and before I have a chance to look at your group, I am a member.  I decided to stay in both groups, but the one that I am not friends with in person, it was not supported for her, it was a support for all things business, and I was not very happy.  I may drop it at some point, especially since she is spamming my newsfeed all over the place.  Now, the other friend sort of did the same thing, but the difference is I know her in person, I know what her struggles have been through in the last few months with her health, and we talk a lot.  It makes a big difference to me.

Until we meet again….

So, with that being said, please do not force a person to join your group.  Yes, after you send the invite, it might sound good to that person to join, but let them join on their own.  I realize that I have 10 groups where the invite was sent, but I never joined. 

I will speak more on this and other topics while I am focusing on Facebook and other social media platforms.  In the meantime, I hope you have learned something a little more about Facebook in this post.   I will also cover Facebook Live, which for some reason morphed into Facebook Watch, sending messages through Messenger, and Facebook for Business, which is something I am learning myself since I recently joined it.  I will also touch on pages, personal and business, and spamming (the hacking and posting a post over and over again about a topic-trust me it is not pretty for neither one).  These are little nuggets of advice I want to give to you each Friday.

Next Friday, God bless you.

Hire an Entrepreneur

As she decides on what to do next on her life’s journey, she contemplates on if this is the correct path that she has for herself.  After all, she is an entrepreneur.  She was trained to go beyond the job she spent years working on. 

By P.Lynne Designs

My work story

I was asked like most little girls about marriage and career.  I aspired to be an actress, teacher, nurse, and mommy.  By the time I was 16, the acting bug, as well as the dancing bug was in me, I hated to the sight of blood and guts, and I wanted to teach little children BEFORE Kindergarten.  (although I would have settled for any child who was shorter than my 5’ frame).

I graduated from high school, and even when I wanted to go to UCLA, I settled on going to Ohio State, only to be close to my parents.  I came home every other weekend because I had home tickets and was in the Block O cheering team.  I left Ohio State due to bad grades.

In January of the following year, I transferred to Columbus Technical Institute, now Columbus State Community College, studying Social Work, a major I was not happy with, but I turned that into the major I loved, with was Early Childhood Education, and a few years later, I returned back to Columbus State for a business major.

In between all of that, I learned about finance through a couple of jobs, I was a customer service rep for a computer company (CompuServe), and did more customer service call center calls for Bank One (now Chase), Chase Financial, and a couple of other call centers.  I was never good at it to make a full career out of it.  Finally, I graduated from Franklin University with a bachelor’s degree in Marketing.  Along the way, I also picked up the crafting bug (from years of being creative in music, dance, and drama), and I started making cards, scrapbooks, albums, you name it in the crafting world, which some I held onto and others I let go of.  It was when I was working for a craft store (Archiver’s, a Memories store) that I finally realized that I need to make good of something that makes me happy.

You see, I would never be happy in a government type of job.  Sure, some do pay good money, and I am not against anyone getting a job with the government (state, city, county, or military), I felt that I was meant for more than getting a paycheck, which is what I would be doing.  The truth of the matter is I have tried to apply several times over the years, and never go one single interview.

So, what does that have to do with the title?

Good question.  Just joking.  Seriously, I wanted to give you a little hint of my background in what I think is a great little company, P. Lynne Designs I am building.  I have explained in a previous post (in fact several posts) of what my company is about.  First, it is a paper crafting company, specializing in cards, scrapbooks, and mini books.  I have an Etsy shop and a blog.  A shop is forthcoming by Autumn. 

Next, P. Lynne Designs is a stationery company, specializing in invitations, cards (yes, I meant to say that twice), and business products (business cards, resumes, and letterheads).  They are being designed in Photoshop and Illustrator (I finished a background of old paper 5 minutes ago).

Last, there’s freelancing in both graphic design and writing.  The graphic designs are the stationery and specialized products, while in writing, I also do some ghostwriting and guest writing for blog posts and research articles, as well as SEO writing.  I also do Virtual Assistance and social media for short and long-term projects.  My specializations in software are Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator and Microsoft Office.  If there is a program you have, but you want me to work with that program, let me know ahead of time so I can prepare.  I also work with Paypal, Square, Wix, Webbly, YouTube,

and many others.

So, you see, I have quite a list of tasks I can help you within both personal and business. 

Takeaway moments

Do not be afraid to ask for someone to hire you.  After all, you need the work.  Preparing to make that happen takes work, and to some family members, like mine, it takes guts to tell a person to back off. It is no disrespect to that person and you may feel rotten about speaking up, but at the end of the day, you have to live with yourself.

Welcome, February

Photo by Google images (note:  I do not own the rights
To this photo)

Today is February 1, 2018.  I have a lot of feelings for this month.  Why?  For one, it is Black History month.  Second, it is the month of love, Valentine’s day.  Even though I feel like I am left out of the equation (single person, not currently dating), I look for other ways to get through February 14.  Third, it is my eldest nephew’s birthday, which is February 22.  Ironic this year, he will be 22.  I think it is weird but cute when you turn the same age as the day you were born.  Mine was when I turned 21 on July 21 (I will not give away the year).  Too bad it stops when a month hits 31, and you just so happen to be 31on that day.

Today, I also want to continue talking about me getting serious with my social media.  I decided to work on my Twitter page first.  Funny how this is the most misuse platform used by our current administration, yet I want to improve my account.  I really do not go on this account much except it is linked to my Facebook account.  So, anything that I say on the account comes directly to the Twitter account, and anything said on Twitter goes to the Facebook account.

I did not like Twitter at first.  Why?  It was not about what I said on Twitter, it was just I had in 120 characters.  Then Twitter got the idea and raised it…. 140 characters.  Gee, thanks, Twitter for the love.  This year, they do not count any links at the end of the post as part of the count.  OK, I can live with that.  I still think they should raise it to 200 characters or switch the social media to word count. (I know, it does not work out for Millennials).

Fast forward to the present day….

February 5, 2018

So, how was the Superbowl for you?  I did not watch, except for the halftime show.  It was good.  I like JT (Justin Timberlake for those who do not know).  For a white guy, his music is the most soulful.  Two things I do want to address about halftime (well three, but I will address the last point at another time).  To me, the best thing for JT to do in regards to the whole “Nipplegate” incident, was to let Janet Jackson appear briefly on stage with him in this year’s show.  With the whole sex scandal blowing up all over “Hollyweird” and the Jackson family still have not forgiven him for it, a written apology is not enough these days.  A statement is not enough.  This is coming from me, who is both a Janet fan and a JT fan (It sucks when stuff like this is coming from two of your favorite singers).  It was a mistake, but JT never said it was.  Janet is the only person who suffered from it.  She was blackballed from performing, and JT was given a slap on the wrist for behaving badly.  He should have been blackballed too.  Performance #3 should never have been offered.   It was as if CBS and the NFL said, “Good job for being a man, now we do not have to deal with her (Janet).” (I should have a blog in 2004, I would have ripped that halftime to sheds).

The next “boo-boo” had Prince Fans all up in a roar.   Prince said in a statement in 1998, that holograms were “demonic”, and he did not want to be part of it.  He also mentioned that if he was meant to live in Duke Ellington’s time to sing with him, he would have been born to do it.  Not his exact quote, but you get the picture. It will be two years Prince died this year, and this is the thanks he gets from JT, a projection of him singing with Prince.  To his fans, it is the same thing.  JT even promised Sheila E, Prince’s closest friend that he will not have a hologram of the singer.  Well, I guess the money spoke louder than the fans.  A nice tribute would have been just JT, a piano, and his Tennessee band singing a Prince song.  That how it was done in other tributes the late, great Purple One.  Again, as a JT fan and a Prince Fan, I would have been happy.

Video planning

Now, I can fully give advice to those who want to start their own videos on YouTube.  I have gotten over my fear of being in front of the camera.  Now, my fear is running out of subjects.  Before I give you advice on how to become a beginner vlogger, these are the videos I am planning to create in the next few days or weeks (subject to change):

1.      Unboxing my Erin Condren planner.  I was in the middle of making this video when I realized that I ordered the wrong layout.  No worries.  I called customer service to see how the process could be done, and sending it back is not a good option for me.  So, I am ordering the correct layout, and using the incorrect version to plan out videos, blog posts, and projects. I will shoot a video on the two when I get the other one.  Problem solved.

2.      January Favs.  If you watch these, I am doing my first one.  I am doing it in two parts:  a favs video, and a not so favs video.  Within each of these videos, I am going to cover, crafts, home, travel, and personal for both.  I believe and giving you the full coverage of what works and what is not working for me.

3.      2017 Craft favs.  This is different from the January in that it only covers crafts that may or may not be in the January one.  It is a year-end video.

4.      Talking videos.  What are those?  They are chat video where I sit a chat with you.  I have lots on my mind.  Some advice, no political firestorm stuff.  I deal with enough of that on the evening news and CNN.  My thoughts are my own, lol. It is really to help me get used to talking in front of the camera more.  I have seen some things in the editing, and frankly, I do not like them.  Lots of umms and awkward silent moments that I need to correct, and that comes with practice.

5.      Swap videos.  Those have been well received and I have another one coming in a few days when I get my swap package from Tmika, AKA Scrapdaworld, and I reveal what I made for the coming swap I am currently in. 

6.      Haul Videos, these are ongoing, as I shop at the different places I go to.  This month, I will try to sneak in a come with me video.  I will not do one for Tuesday Morning because I accidentally asked about how they felt about people videotaping their shopping trips, and the manager (who was working the register at the time) did not like them and prefers that no one does a video in here. So, I set myself up for that answer

I hope that is enough to get people to subscribe to my channel.  As of the 20^th, I will not be able to monetize my account and channel, due to the new requirements.  I must have 1000 subs (I have 125) and over 4,000 views in the last 12 months.  There are other ways of doing it, but so far, I have not found them.  In fact, some have higher counts.  I wish these companies and sites would give a small Youtuber a break.  PLEASE!!!!

Comment below any ideas you would like to see me write or vlog about.  It helps out a lot.