Wrapping paper! Huzzah. My spoonflower name is susangainen

SusanGainen is my spoonflower name. I am really excited about this book.

Thank you, Sue. Doing something new -- with new materials -- or re-using old materials or ideas in new ways is always energizing because you learn something. It is, after all, all about the learning.

While I agree that in and of itself, blogging cannot make someone an expert, blogging is a portal to knowledge. Done correctly, it can create an opportunity for career advancement. In the same way that a brand-new journalism degree doesn't give a reporter the years of experience needed to go head to head with a nuclear physicist on the nuances of physics, it should give her some tools to begin to have a conversation that might yield useful information that could be blogged. (Not a bad idea, actually, inasmuch as it is tough to find entry-level journalism gigs.) Job seeking bloggers can use their platform to connect with professionals in their fields -- not to portray themselves as experts -- but they can interview the experts and write. They can blog about those interviews and the knowledge that the experts are willing to share. Pre-requisites: You have to have a blog that is intelligent, sensible, and professional. Before granting an interview, any smart source will look at the blog and make a judgement about the platform. If it has even a whiff of unprofessionalism, the source should smartly decline.

Two things to note about this excellent post: (1) lawyers are paid to help their clients make decisions. No one will pay a lawyer for dithering. (2) If your mantra is "I want to keep my options open," find another path. Your client has a problem today, and needs to take action today.

Every suggestion is excellent, and it applies to CLE presenters, and anyone else who needs to get and keep the attention of an audience. Teachers who remain tied to yellowing notes on long legal pads should take note.

Great advice...One more reason to worry about client control or clients-out-of-control. And, for employers, one more reason to have strong and enforced social media policies.