The Unofficial Microbusiness Guide to Good People
Crystal posted this on April 3, 2008
Image credit: striatic • courtesy of Flickr
Yesterday, I was Twittering when I should have been writing. Fortunately, my procrastination was rewarded by a tweet from @etherjammer about Good People Day.
Some deliciously over-the-top wine guy had put out a call to action to tweet, blog, and talk today about the good that people do. If you’re looking for the bad that people do, go Read. The. News. Here today, there’s nothing but good 
Finding Good People
From what’s usually in the news (which I avoid reading), it’s easy to believe the worst about the people around you. I don’t know the best places to find Good People in the offline world. Online, however, it’s easy to discover pockets of fun and helpful folks.
The key to finding Good People online is to go where the sharing is. Forums and listgroups and newsgroups and destination apps like Twitter are packed with people who love to answer questions, offer guidance, and give peeks into their world. To me, these are hallmarks of Good People.
I believe bloggers are, for the most part, Good People, based on their commitment to posting thoughts and ideas for the world to see. When I get a chance to interact with bloggers in real-time, it’s clear that they’re Good People in an everyday way, not only when it’s time to post.
Many thanks to the Good People who shared my blog, left the first comment, leave lots of comments, encourage me, and exemplify!
Good People in and around your business
Do you know where to find Good People for your business…those people you would like to partner with, hire, and serve? Equally important: Do you make it easy for Good People to find you?
Do you have criteria to assess the Goodness of the people you find? It can be super-simple, like my “Those Who Share”, or a detailed dossier, as long as it accurately and consistently determines which people are Good for YOU.
Being Good People
Surrounding yourself with Good People is only part of what it’s about. The other bit is being Good People. One way to become Gooder than you currently are is to behave like the Good People you know. Don’t be inauthentic, but do “try on” characteristics that are common to people you consider Good.
As an example, when reflecting on a post about managing my Twitter-verse, I realized that while I intently follow @doshdosh, @problogger, and @SHurleyHall because they share great links, I hadn’t often shared links in my own tweets. That bit of unintentional selfishness was easy to fix, and when I began adding value like the Twits I admire, I was rewarded with more Followers, blog visitors, and subscribers, an invitation or two, and some nifty conversations.
The get back from being Good
Being Good People is about giving, not getting, but we can’t ignore ROI when it comes to your business. Recommendations are the best advertising that money didn’t buy, and are the unmeasurable benefit to being Good People for your customers, employees, coworkers, and family.
When word gets out that you’re Good People, other Good People will find their way to you.
The bad news about Good People
Something I’ve noticed about being surrounded by Good People is Not-So-Good People stand out like poop in a field of poppies. I believe everyone has a seed of Good and it’s either nurtured or not. And while some people have a green thumb for their Good Seed, others seem to mow the little sucker down every time it sprouts into the light of day.
Does your business stand out in the right way?
So when it comes to your business, do you stand out as Good People when you stand among Good People? Or are you the fly in the pudding…someone who makes promises they don’t keep, writes checks they can’t cash (literally and figuratively), and otherwise takes more than they give?
Because if you’re not nurturing your business’ grain of Good with positive actions, words, policies, and products, then you’re probably standing out in a Bad Way to Good People.
Where it’s all Good, all the time
If this dedicated Good day is working for you, subscribe to Happy News and the Good News Network for a daily hearty helping of Good stuff. Also, use Google to find other Good People Day blog posts.
Et tu? From the lips of soul diva Chaka Khan, “Tell me something good!”. Take a mo’ to comment below on all the Good People that you know.
Tagged with: good business · good people day · marketing · promotion · word of mouth
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14 Responses to “The Unofficial Microbusiness Guide to Good People”
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Crystal, I think your comment about Bad People standing out like “poop in a field of poppies” is more apt than you might have realized: just like poppies can use poop as fertilizer, Good People can reflect on what the Bad People do and use the reflection to improve what they (the Good People) are doing.
Great post. I’m really glad we ran into each other.
Chris Anthony’s last blog post..GPD08
Hi Chris–I’m glad too! Though I don’t recall how our paths first crossed in Twitter?
And you’re totally right, I hadn’t thought of the poppies benefiting from the poop. Your clever thought reminds me of that Despair.com poster:
“It could be that the purpose of your life is only to serve as a warning to others”
Thanks for commenting
Hi Crystal,
I just realized I only knew you as Brightbulb from twitter. I had to go read your about page to find your name!I have enjoyed the twitter recommendations you give out and that is what brought me to your site.
I am trying to find and read all of the good people posts that everyone wrote today so I can read them all.
I enjoyed yours. I agree that everyone has a seed of good in them. I also think that the way we treat others can be like sunshine and water on that seed.
Wendi Kelly’s last blog post..Stop and Smell the Goodness
Crystal, thanks for the link and a really great post. I can’t help but encourage you, as you are a very inspiring person with a lot of insightful ideas that keep me pushing towards my own goals. We are all in this together, we will all get there, and we can help each other to do it.
Brett Legree’s last blog post..the power of one.
Thanks for the link, Crystal. You’re good people too. For those who don’t know, Crystal gave me a good tip that helped me recover some lost blog posts.
Sharon Hurley Hall’s last blog post..Six Steps To A Great Writing Career
@Wendi—Good to see you here! And you’re right, we can help grow the Good in other folks by offering the same care we give ourselves.
And thanks for busting me on a Secret Business Syndrome blindspot, I’ve added my name to my Twitter profile!
@Sharon—My pleasure and thanks! Your blogs and articles inspire me in dozens of ways, both big and small.
Glad I could help with the lost posts, too. That scared some good sense into me. That’s why I’m digitizing all my Post-Its. A strong wind and I’d be lost! There will be a post about the value of backups reallll soon.
Thanks for coming by
@Brett–See? You rock…That’s exactly what I was writing about…collaboration running amok all over the Web, but it seems like nothing but competition in the “real world”. My pleasure, and thanks!
@ Crystal
we rock together, all of us… and it’s a beautiful thing.
Brett Legree’s last blog post..the power of one.
Crystal, I learned from you in this post. I am definitely going to share more links. Anita
Anita Campbell’s last blog post..Create Your Own Business Cards in 15 Minutes
I understand what you mean by bad people standing out (giving them an advantage) but in the end if you’ve done good then you should have no regrets… and nothing on laying on your conscience.
KG Lew’s last blog post..Issue 39 : A Winning Design.
Hi KG, and thanks for your comment!
Ya know, I never thought about standing out as a Not-So-Good People advantage, but you’re right. The worst actions and behavior are front page news, while Good People are usually tucked away on page 6. But like you said, I believe being Good People is it’s own reward…businesses carry their owners’ karma
Hi Anita, and thanks for your comment! I’ll keep a lookout for your Twitter links…I know they’ll be as fun and useful as the resources on your blog.
I agree that most media outlets like to talk about bad people and bad things (or really their opinion about what and who is bad). However, my advice to you is examine all news media outlets and then watch and/or read the best ones. Despite misleading reporting, there is always something to learn. I am often freightened by how little people know about what is going on in the world because they remain uninformed.
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