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Comments

[Joanna Young]

Good morning Rosa. I was here all along, but would have followed you anyway :-)

You, arrogant? I can't imagine there's a single person who reads your work who could entertain such a thought.

I am interested in your decision as it comes at a time when I'm wondering if I should go in precisely the opposite direction! I want to have a mechanism to talk to people about services and coaching opportunities and I still find it awkward to do that on the blog.

As for what content I'd enjoy here... honestly I enjoy your shorter posts, blended with photos. I can then follow your links to the think pieces in other places.

I hope you enjoy a lovely weekend with your nerves un-wracked :-)

[Rosa Say]

Aloha Joanna, and mahalo nui.
I understand what you mean about using a newsletter for the email marketing of your products and services, however while I mixed it in at times, Ho‘ohana ‘Ōlelo did not really serve that purpose for me because it pre-dated the blog: My newsletter started as my blogging before there were blogs, but without the comment conversation mechanisms which continue discussions in such a rich way inclusively and collaboratively (and yes publicly) versus exclusively (and privately or for one-on-one coaching). If I bring my newsletter back it will likely be in the format you are considering instead, whereas before it could feel like unnecessary duplication; nagging almost (“hey! Come read my blogs!”)

Our decisions as publishers (as we both are) must ultimately be focused on knowing who our customer is, so we can then serve them best. That is the challenge with blogging and with a newsletter when the opt-in request is too open or vague: You end up with a subscription base expecting a variety of things from you. So my advice to you would be to make it clear that your newsletter is for business marketing and you’re looking for potential customers, buyers and affiliate helpers; put the opt-in box on your business site but not on the blog.

Your advice for me on shorter versus longer is helpful, thank you, and you’ll be pleased to know that the kind of posts you liked having me experiment with earlier this month will be more frequent, with the longer ones now showing up elsewhere – a current reinvention I have in the works and will be announcing soon!

[Phil Gerbyshak]

Aloha Rosa! I applaud you for your decision. I had a similarly difficult decision in moving from TypePad to my own domain. I've found it EXTREMELY liberating, both for me and my readers. No doubt you will find the same.

Nice to see you here. I'm not going anywhere, and I'd follow you to the ends of the earth.

If you happen to have any best/worst practices that you learned from your e-mail newsletters, I'd love to read about them.

Mahalo,
Phil

[Rosa Say]

Oh, mahalo nui Phil! You have supported me in every new idea and experiment I have tried in my publishing, and I am so thankful. I do know how loyal and supportive you are, and how consistent you are with giving me your attention, and I never want to take it for granted: You challenge me to be sure I remain relevant and useful to you. So absolutely YES, I’m happy to share more about my best/worst practices with you. However let’s chat about it on the telephone so we can have the real-time back and forth dialog about it; we can catch up with some other things too!

[Karen Wallace]

Aloha Rosa.

One of the things I love about you is your generosity and capacity for sharing yourself. I can understand the gut-wrenching this decision caused you, for it almost goes against everything we're told to do to build an internet based business. That said, I applaud you for going against expectations and against the established wisdom - you're a maverick and you're blazing the path (and sharing it!) for us all... bravo!

I'll follow you - as Phil said - to the ends of the earth...

[Rosa Say]

Thank you so much Karen. Your comment just now has triggered more memories for me with how extraordinary a gift Talking Story has been over the years. My Ho‘ohana newsletter was a foundational building block, but Talking Story became, and continues to be so vital as the home base I always get pulled back to, for this is where you, Joanna, Phil and others became *our* Ho‘ohana Community, and not simply *my* newsletter. I realize that online transparency takes a lot of bravery (and it took way more back before we all knew what social media would be today), and what a joy that you have been here, and one of the most courageous of them all!

[Karen Wallace]

My pleasure Rosa. It does take a lot of bravery, doesn't it - to put ourselves out there, exposed, for the world to see? I admit a few times lately I've had an attack of doubts and butterflies at the thought of exposure and leaving myself vulnerable.

It's always my absolute joy to visit with you, Rosa - real time or out of time. It's never as often as I'd like, but I always get back eventually.

xxx

[Julie Yost]

Aloha Rosa

The discomfort your decision caused you is not surprising. You are so generous with your time, your knowledge and your expertise! Much of the time we, the recipients, of your generosity do not take the time to say thanks. I want to take this opportunity to send many mahalos for all that you have done and continue to do. You are a precious gift and way too valuable to let get away! Thanks for giving us many ways to follow you on your journey. Warmest regards from Colorado..

[Paul]

Hi Rosa,

As a recipient of your newsletter announcing these changes it is really interesting to see the story of the decisions behind these changes from your perspective. As Karen said in her comment above, your willingness and instinct to share is a gift that is instructive and inspirational to many.

I can really empathise with your decision to make this change. To me it signifies a couple of things: The first is your ability to exhibit leadership not just as a coach but in the way you live & lead your own work & life. The second is your willingness to embrace the new, new media that many of us are still feeling our way with and take the kind of steps that confirm the closeness and interaction you want with this community.

As someone I know might say, that is Ho'ohana in action! ;)

With Best Regards,

Paul

[Karen Swim]

Rosa, I applaud your decision and your openness with the struggle. Your willingness to share helps me in my own tough decisions. I share your love-hate of email and the email newsletter has also been a personal struggle of mine. I do not feel like something has been lost but that you have given us more opportunities and platforms in which to connect with you. I love having choices to interact on platforms where I might be more comfortable than email. As for what I love here, it is you! So please don't stop being who you are, living, laughing, learning out loud. :-)

[Rosa Say]

Julie, how like you! You have voiced your appreciation to me on a couple of occasions, and it has definitely made a difference, keeping me going, and helping me be more tenacious and resilient in those times when I can wonder if what I do really amounts to much at all (times which we all have, and I am no different). And on top of that gift of gratitude you do write to me, both privately and on the blogs, I know you continue to buy my book and give it as your gift of choice! Mahalo nui my friend, for being here for me too: Julie, you truly seem to find the perfect days to reach out to me!

It’s funny Paul, I pride myself on my independence (rebellion at times!) and on my quick decision-making, but I also know my growth has come during those times I open myself up to being wrong. I am still not there with everyone I encounter, but being wrong when someone in our Ho‘ohana Community is willing to tell me so? Wrong doesn’t get any better than that! So I open up and go with the learning that sometimes, keeping the can-be-ugly process all to yourself is foolish. This is one, very smart community.
As for embracing the new media, that is actually the easy part, for I really, truly love it, and I think we should all have a) free medical care and b) free internet access! When I think of what we human beings could achieve by being fully healthy and fully connected... wow.

Karen, your words mean so much to me, both as someone in our Ho‘ohana Community and because of the admiration I have for you in the work you do - I have so much to learn from you and the marketing expertise you so freely offer to all of us! Thank you.

All of your comments are helping me so much this weekend as I make this shift - and it IS happening! My apprehension has given way to the excitement about the plans I’ve been thinking about with Talking Story and in the other places we communicate and learn! What a splendidly beautiful feeling.

As Paul says, we Ho‘ohana :) Mahalo nui everyone, for I will readily admit that this was a post with which I needed the bracing, uplifting joy of your comments.
~ Rosa