Monday, February 28, 2011

Movies I've Seen (2010 Releases)

(click on the link for my review)

1. VALENTINE'S DAY

2. SHUTTER ISLAND

3. ALICE IN WONDERLAND

4. GREEN ZONE

5. SHE'S OUT OF MY LEAGUE

6. HOT TUB TIME MACHINE

7. GREENBERG

8. THE GHOST WRITER

9. DATE NIGHT

10. IRON MAN 2

11. PLEASE GIVE

12. GET HIM TO THE GREEK

13. SOLITARY MAN

14. TOY STORY 3

15. KNIGHT AND DAY

16. GROWN UPS

17. JOAN RIVERS: A PIECE OF WORK

18. CYRUS

19. DESPICABLE ME

20. INCEPTION

21. SALT

22. THE KIDS ARE ALL RIGHT

23. WINNEBAGO MAN

24. DINNER FOR SCHMUCKS

25. THE OTHER GUYS

26. THE EXPENDABLES

27. EAT PRAY LOVE

28. PIRANHA 3D

29. THE AMERICAN

30. GOING THE DISTANCE

31. EASY A

32. THE TOWN

33. WALL STREET: MONEY NEVER SLEEPS

34. CATFISH

35. THE SOCIAL NETWORK (3x)

36. BURIED

37. WAITING FOR "SUPERMAN"

38. SECRETARIAT

39. IT'S KIND OF A FUNNY STORY

40. RED

41. JACKASS 3D

42. WELCOME TO THE RILEYS

43. DUE DATE

44. 127 HOURS

45. MORNING GLORY

46. LOVE AND OTHER DRUGS

47. BURLESQUE

48. THE FIGHTER

49. BLACK SWAN

50. I LOVE YOU PHILLIP MORRIS

51. TRON: LEGACY

52. THE KING'S SPEECH

53. LITTLE FOCKERS

54. THE TOURIST

55. SOMEWHERE

56. TRUE GRIT

57. RABBIT HOLE

58. HOW DO YOU KNOW

59. BLUE VALENTINE

60. THE COMPANY MEN

Saturday, February 26, 2011

Will Oscar Voters Get Social?

A little more than a month ago, this year's Oscar ceremony was looking like it'd be a big snooze. Again. Not including the unpredictability of hosts Anne Hathaway and James Franco, we knew what was going to happen awards-wise: The Social Network had taken all the major critics prizes and the Golden Globe award for Best Motion Picture (Drama). It, along with director David Fincher, screenwriter Aaron Sorkin, and composers Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, seemed assured of cruising to the Oscars knowing they'd be winners that night too. Same goes for Colin Firth and Natalie Portman, and David Seidler, screenwriter of The King's Speech.

But then The King's Speech received 12 Oscar nominations and started winning major guild prizes — including the SAG and DGA — and the tide was turned. But when Social Network won the editors' guild award, that may have turned the tide back; the editors are a reliable predictor of industry leanings for Best Picture. Now there are fewer sure things, even though pundits everywhere are predicting King's Speech to win Best Picture. Other races have gotten much closer as well, including Best Supporting Actor and Best Supporting Actress. That's going to make for what I hope is a fun and exciting ceremony.

If you still haven't cast votes in your own Oscar pool, Firth, Portman, Sorkin, Seidler, Toy Story 3 for Best Animated Feature, and Inception for Best Visual Effects are all good, smart bets. My money's still on Social Network (my favorite movie of 2010) to win Best Picture, and I'm still pulling for Fincher, Reznor, and Ross to win their categories too. Want to know what else I'm picking? Here's my ballot:

Yes, I'm really excited about this year's Oscar show. I saw 60 movies last year. My hopes are high. I wrote a blog post about the Oscars for work. I'm planning to sit in front of the TV starting at around 6 p.m. for all the pre-show coverage, and I'll likely stay up to catch some post-show action too. (Yes, I'm expecting to be tired on Monday.) Want to know my reactions to what's happening? I'll probably be tweeting my thoughts during the show. Oscar night is my Super Bowl, my Election Night, and I'm looking forward to a real prize fight — hoping that The Social Network comes out on top, of course.

Who are you rooting for?

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Monday, February 14, 2011

I Love Me

I want to like Valentine's Day — really, I do — but every year I find new reasons to dislike it. (Last year it was the movie Valentine's Day. This year it's the excessive amount of emails being sent by 1-800-FLOWERS and other related businesses.) Being single will do that to you. And yet, I think disliking Valentine's Day simply because you're single is sorta lame. After all, there's no shortage of things on which to shower your love today and every day.

That's why, over the years, I've learned to spend February 14 celebrating the things I love and doing things I love — even if they are by myself. It's like Crosby, Stills, and Nash said: "If you can't be with the one you love, love the one you're with." My thinking is, if everyone else is going to be happy on Valentine's Day, then why shouldn't I be happy, too, spending the day with the person I love: me. There's nothing unrequited there. I'm awesome!

So today, for starters, I might enjoy a good breakfast, I'll listen to my favorite tunes, perhaps I'll eat lunch at a favorite restaurant, I'll go out of my way to spend time with people whose company I enjoy, I'll definitely try to avoid conflict and negativity, I'll leave work at a decent hour, possibly I'll cook myself a nice dinner (or maybe I'll just skip to dessert from Crumbs, my favorite cupcake place), I'll likely talk to my niece at some point, I'm sure I'll watch a favorite television show or two that I enjoy ... and then, when I'm tired, I'll go to bed and sleep a good night's sleep. I love me some me, and today is as good a day as any to show it.

Whether you have somebody to love or you are in denial like I am don't, I wish you a very happy Valentine's Day.

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Wednesday, February 09, 2011

The Last Blog Post

I've learned many things from my dad over the years, but the one lesson that's stayed with me more than any other is this one: Don't go to bed angry. On more than one occasion, I've seen my dad get angry with someone, and then, almost without fail, before the day was up, he would apologize or clear the air. Or, at the very least, he compartmentalized those feelings and didn't let them affect his interactions with me or anyone else. I haven't always heeded that lesson, and too often I've actually done the opposite (with not so good results), but I've kept it in mind as the basis for what I should be doing.

The reason I'm bringing this up is because this is my last blog post. Not literally, but it's what I might write if that was actually the case. There's a minor meme going around the Interwebs right now that was started by Daniel Burstein, director of editorial content at MECLABS (parent company of MarketingExperiments and MarketingSherpa). Inspired by Randy Pausch's The Last Lecture, Dan challenged people to pen their last blog post: What parting words would they want to leave behind? What lessons have they learned? You can read the other posts by following the Twitter hashtag #LastBlog. I've read a handful and they've been quite interesting (here's one by Joe Chernov and one by Todd Lebo, for example), so I decided to join the fun.

It's not a stretch — although it's a bit morbid — to say I often think about my last words and how I'll be remembered. Especially when I travel, I often try to make sure my business at home and at work is in order, so that God forbid, if something were to happen, people's last impressions of me would be positive. When they look back on me and our relationship, would people have happy memories, or would our last interaction taint that recollection? What would the things I leave behind that people discover after the fact say about me?

And, in the reverse, what if something happened to someone I had been in an argument with? Would I want to live with the fact that my last interaction was a contentious one?

So that's why, in this context, I think of my dad. I know I get my even-keeled personality and my generally positive attitude from him. He's got the right idea when he implores me not to let my anger and frustrations get the better of me, and I wish I listened to him more often. I wouldn't want someone to remember me negatively, and I wouldn't want to live a life regretting that I could have mended fences and didn't.

So if this had to be my last blog post and I could only impart one lesson to you, my readers, I'd want it to be the same one my dad has tried to teach me over the years: It's not worth holding onto anger. Let it go, and go to sleep with a sound mind. You'll feel better in the morning. I know that when I listen to my dad, that's how I feel.

What would your last blog post be about? If you've got a blog, I challenge you to write it. Then add yours to the collection by tweeting a link to it with the hashtag #LastBlog.

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Monday, February 07, 2011

I Have 1,000 Twitter Followers. How Did That Happen?

Last week, I reached what I consider to be an impressive milestone: the 1,000th person decided to follow me on Twitter. Who'da thunk it when I first joined Twitter that I'd be so into it, that I'd stick with it this long, and that I'd ever reach this auspicious milestone. My followers did, and they kept flocking to me one after another. Now I've tweeted more than 8,220 times and yes, I have more than 1,000 followers. (BTW, if you don't already follow me, I'm @martinlieberman.) When Jeff Ginsberg clicked the Follow button on Wednesday, he did more than add to my list; he validated that I'm doing something right here.

I've made no secret of my love of Twitter and I continue to believe that if you don't like it, then you must not be using it. Like, really using it, not just listening and staying on the sidelines. Twitter is good for much more than wasting time. It's good for learning new things, meeting new people and building relationships, and yes, getting free ice cream.

There's a reason I have a Klout score of 63. Apparently, I'm a good Twitterer. (Or is it tweeter?) The 63 means I'm an "Activist," my activity is "consistent" and "focused," and as the site says, "You've got an idea or cause you want to share with the world and you've found the perfect medium for it. Your audience counts on you to champion your cause." Perhaps that's why, in the past year, a number of people have asked me to teach them about the site, how to use it, and how to grow their presence.

In that spirit, here are my 10 tips for getting more followers on Twitter:

1. Be active. You can't expect to get followers if you hardly ever tweet, and you can't expect to be taken seriously on social media if you don't tweet often. I tweet daily, and many, many times during the day. Actually, for a long time now, I've been tweeting every 15 or 30 minutes (a tactic I borrowed from Guy Kawasaki, who tweets about that often from his personal and his Alltop handles). That way, whenever people check their feed, they'll see a tweet or two from me. And I use HootSuite so I can pre-schedule those tweets and don't have to be sitting at the computer all day. (Note: I'm not saying you have to tweet as often as I do. I'm sure what I do is excessive.) In addition, over the past year I've been to more than a half dozen conferences, and I've live-tweeted all of them, giving my followers the chance to attend vicariously through me.

2. Be a resource. I may tweet often, but I don't post everything. Instead, I share the articles and content I find interesting and worthwhile — stuff I think my followers will benefit from reading too. People who follow me and who share my interests can count on me to keep them informed. They don't have to follow multiple people because they know I'll tell them what they need to know.

3. Tweet well. You can't just share a link or a fact on Twitter. You have to draw in your followers so they want to click on your link, or so they'll be interested in what you have to say. After all, if you believe the research, 71% of tweets are ignored. I don't care what anyone says, spelling and grammar count, and so does good, tight, pithy writing. There's a reason Jim Ducharme tweeted to me last week, "There are times when your tweets straddle the line between tweet and poetry."

4. Be authentic. Want credibility? Want people to believe, trust, and listen to what you're saying? Then you can't have someone tweet for you, and you can't tweet with your hands tied. There's no way for your personality to come through that way. Be honest, be authentic ... be you. I've been told I do this well, that people tend to know who I am based on what and how I tweet. Speaking of which ...

5. Screw the lines. Share what you want. There's a lot that's been written about keeping your personal and professional lives separate on social media. In some cases, that's good advice. But if you're tweeting for yourself and not for a corporate handle, then there's no need to stick to one subject matter. My tweets are about marketing, social media, email, TV shows, movies, sports, things that annoy me, restaurants I enjoy, and more. If it's true that people buy from people, and not from businesses, then simply being yourself will help you to forge connections with other people.

6. Tweet with people. I mentioned that I've been to a bunch of conferences this past year. That's just one way I've met people and started relationships. Other people I've simply replied to and started relationships that way. I don't know all of my followers and I don't know all of the people I follow, but I've used Twitter to get to know many of them. Now, when I see people I follow offline, there's already a basis for a relationship that we can continue IRL (in real life). No wonder I enjoy going to conferences now.

7. Engage. Speaking of which, if someone retweets something you've posted or includes you in a Follow Friday roundup, or replies to something you tweet, write back, and be sure to use that person's handle. Say thanks, or encourage people to follow this person, or retweet something that this person has posted. It'll show the person you're for real and will encourage future sharing. And for the record, even though I pre-schedule many of my tweets, I'm always checking to make sure I haven't missed a reply or a retweet, so I can reply if needed.

8. Let your followers bring you more followers. Building relationships with people on Twitter has allowed me to get exposure to my followers' followers. When someone who follows me retweets something I've posted, or mentions me in a tweet, then that person's followers see me and often follow me as well. The endorsement of my followers means a lot.

9. Get in the mix. Is there a hot topic you're interested in? Tweet away, and use the appropriate hashtags. For example, I was tweeting during the Lost finale and the Super Bowl last night, during various awards shows and other sporting events, and other peak times for Twitter activity. People saw my handle, enjoyed my comments, and clicked Follow as a result.

10. Don't try. I didn't try to get more followers. In fact, when I first started using the site, I blocked some people because I thought, "Why would they ever want to follow me?" The thing is, if you put enough good content out there, and you just be yourself, then people will find you, like they've done with me.

I'm not saying these tips are the 10 right ways to build a Twitter following, and I'm not saying they'll work for everyone. I'm just saying that's this is what's worked for me. Really, there are no social media experts yet, and anyone who tells you otherwise is full of it. The best advice anyone should give is simply to get on Twitter and just use it. No one knows exactly how to use it, so you need to find out for yourself.

Point is: I've got 1,000 followers and a Klout score of 63, and those numbers keep on growing. So I must know a little something about what I'm talking about.

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Sunday, February 06, 2011

Not So Sunny Days

I'll be honest ... At least on the surface, as far as any of you can tell, life is going pretty well for me these days. I have two new nephews, two weeks ago I got "stuck" and had to spend an extra day in Las Vegas thanks to a snow storm back east, and this past week it happened again, only this time I was in Key Biscayne, Florida. As I keep telling people: Don't hate the player, hate the game. But I have to say, I wish everything was as glamorous and fun as it seems.

I was in Key Biscayne for, yes, another conference; this one was about social media. And it was interesting, if not always entirely relevant to me. Still, I learned a bit and thought it was worthwhile being there. Of course, this isn't my work blog, so I can also admit that the conference also had its moments of fun. For example, I got to hang out with former Detroit Piston John Salley, an avid Twitter user, and talk about social media, how he always wanted to play for the Celtics, how Susan Sarandon has maintained her great looks, the benefits of coconut oil, sugar mamas, and more. Great guy, super nice.

So why did I get home Thursday night and find myself in such a bad mood?

Perhaps it was the back and forth about when I was going home. With the snow storm predicted for late Tuesday and all day Wednesday, the coworker I was traveling with decided to try and fly back a day early, on Tuesday, and I decided to do the same. After all, when you're not traveling alone and one person wants to fly back early, you'd be a jerk not to do it too. Otherwise, you come off as the guy who got to stay in Florida an extra day, while the other person was the more responsible one because she came home early.

So Tuesday morning I packed up and checked out of the hotel ... only to have our flight canceled. Luckily, I was able to check back in to the hotel, so I unpacked, and I went to day two of the conference. Then, at 3 a.m. Wednesday morning, American Airlines called to tell me I was now booked on an 11 a.m. flight home. So I woke up in the morning, packed again, and got ready to go ... only to find that my flight was Thursday morning, not Wednesday. So I unpacked again and went to day three of the conference. Then there was confusion about whether I'd be traveling with or without my coworker, and a miscommunication resulted in even more frustration. And all this back and forth distracted me from the whole reason I was in Florida in the first place. (There was other stuff too, but I'm not gonna get into that here.) Suffice it to say, I arrived home Thursday night not in the most pleasant of moods, and that stayed with me for a couple days.

If only I'd done what I did a week earlier when I traveled alone and simply planned to leave on Thursday, thus avoiding the confusion and allowing me to relax and to focus on the conference, not my travel.

Yes, like the week before, there were two silver linings to all this: When I re-checked in to the hotel, I was put in a room with a much nicer, oceanfront view. And, despite all the delays and cancelations of flights, my two on Thursday (first to LaGuardia in New York, and then to Boston) were on time, or early. Not everyone was so lucky.

My point is, even though things worked out in the end, the trip ended up being not as pleasant as it would seem to have been on the surface. I don't expect you to have sympathy for me given that I was in Florida while folks in Boston were covered in snow. Just know that I wasn't exactly enjoying myself at the time.

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