Today, I’m asking you to do me a favor. Will you email me and tell me what you need?

I want to make sure that I’m still on track to help your 2010 live up to its fullest potential. See, I’ve got a bunch of irons in the fire:

Read more on Got a sec to do me a favor?…

Today I’m re-running an article I wrote just after Hurricane Katrina called Writing with Humanity During Difficult Times.

It’s below.

The reason that I decided to re-run it is because I got a lot of emails from readers wondering what the Haitian earthquake meant when it came to writing their newsletters–did they need to talk about the donation they’d made? If they did, did that look like marketing? If they didn’t, did that mean their readers would assume they were heartless and hadn’t made a donation at all?

Read more on Writing with Humanity During Difficult Times…

I resolutely believe more writing makes you a better writer–it’s a skill that must be practiced if you intend to communicate clearly and well. And, heck, last year, I wrote a post on how to write 20,000 words in a weekend.

But, when it comes to an individual piece of writing, it’s important not to fall too madly in love with your words and be entirely unwilling to give any of them up–or you risk sacrificing clarity for your “flourish.”

About a month ago, I became obsessed with finding a very particular tool. I was convinced this new tool would help me cull my writing and write *less* so that I was communicating more. Several broken nails later… I can confirm that yes, my new tool indeed made a huge difference in the quality of what I was writing. I tried it out on a sales letter and what usually would have taken me at least 8 pages to explain was whittled down to three and a half.

A few years ago, we started a new tradition around here (at Thrive Your Tribe, I mean). Instead of sending paper holiday cards, we take that money and make a big donation to an awesome charity. I figure you probably get a bunch of cards this month, and besides, I was having a lot of trouble getting them out on time! So, while this means our dear clients, friends, and readers don’t get something in their mailboxes signed by Izzy, this year, it means OxFam is getting a check instead.

Read more on Happy Holidays!…

Effective websites make good use of multimedia. Video, audio, and presentations all keep your visitors at your site longer, help them be more likely to buy, and make them more likely to share your site with others.

Read more on Your multimedia content strategy…

Long time, no see–I’ve missed you! I hurt my back right around the time of the last post and since then, typing or any sitting at the computer, has been cut to the bare minimum so that I could recover. Which meant giving up some of my very favorite things–like writing to you–so that I could make sure I kept my clients taken care of and projects on track while letting my body heal.

Read more on Why not throw in the towel…

Today I have a great piece for you about using your Spotlight Style to design a multimedia strategy that will get you clients… But it needs to be delivered as an audio and I have absolutely no voice. I’ve tried everything (teas, honey, etc, etc) and no-go.

I promise it’s well worth waiting for and to give you a tiny taste, if you’re the Edith Head type, you’ll be learning once and for all why blogging traditionally will never work for you…

Full size image, and a bit of back story on why the heck I picked this quote when you continue reading this story.

Two years ago, the 8 x 10 storage shed in my backyard was a problem. It blocked a window, wasn’t very convenient to use, and was taking up space that would have made a great patio.

Read more on Newsletter Stalled? Five Great Ways to Get it Moving…