OUR NEW FORUM (not that we had an old one)

Hi Guys.

Well, it’s a big day here at medotcom and the Bald Man and I are very excited. Okay, I’m excited and he’s just a bit less grumpy than usual. But hey, that’s a start!

After working night and day for nearly two weeks to develop our new forum, the Bald Man and his trusty team of cyber-geeks from tailored.com.au have delivered. That’s right, our forum is active and functional as of right now! Let’s give Baldy and his team a cyber-pat on the back. Now, if you’re like me and relatively new to the Blogosphere (I stepped off Terra Firma and into the blogoshpere for the first time eighteen months ago), then you might be wondering what the heck a forum (of this kind) is all about, how you might use it and why you might use it. All good questions. I asked Baldy the same questions two weeks ago.

Here’s what the dictionary (American Heritage) told me a forum is:

A. A public meeting place for open discussion (yep, that makes sense for what we want to create).

B. A medium for open discussion or voicing of ideas, such as a newspaper, a radio or television program, or a website (a website; what a good idea – that makes sense too!).

So, why a forum?

Well, a few reasons:

1. Originally, we decided to create a forum in order to be able to facilitate our Accountability Partners project.

2. Because this is such a high-traffic site, with such a great interactive community (that’s you) who all seem to be roughly on the same page (a desire to learn, grow, be challenged, help others, network with like-minded people, do better, be better, create better), we felt that an interactive on-line forum would provide our community with an appropriate vehicle to be able to share with each other in a range of ways.

3. We see the forum as a natural progression of what we have created so far with our posts (articles), guest posts, book reviews and reader comments. Without trying, it seems that together (you and I) we have created a cyber-place where people enjoy hanging out.

4. The feedback we have had to this point in time suggests that a reasonable percentage of you would like the opportunity to share your thoughts and ideas in a more significant way than merely leaving comments to specific articles. The forum means that anyone can jump on-line at any time and pose a question, respond to a question, start a discussion or simply encourage and support someone else on their journey.

The Practical Stuff.

1. Teething problems. Sure, we’re probably gonna have a few teething problems but the first few weeks should sort those out.

2. Not a soap box. This forum is not a soap box for religious zealots, political wannabees, people trying to sell stuff or idiots who want to use obscene language, create problems or criticise others; it is for people who are all about creating their best life and engaging in meaningful productive dialogue.

3. Moderators. Forums like this need moderators. A moderator is someone who ensures that the people I spoke about in point two don’t have a voice on this site. A moderator will remove inappropriate material from the forum. If you like what we’re trying to create here and know that you have the skills, the time, the dedication and the desire to be one of our moderators, let me know via email. I would be most appreciative. I realise it’s not a glamour job, but hey, it’s gotta be done – call it quality control. I will interview potential moderators by phone. Thanks.

4. Content. Having said all of that, feel free to discuss anything and everything as long as it relates in some way to personal development and the human experience.

5. What if it doesn’t work? What if we have three people visit the forum over the next six months? Well, then we’ll pull the pin. Simple. No biggie. If you want it and use it and it meets some needs and adds value to what we’re already doing, then we’ll continue to invest time and energy into it. If not, Johnnie and I will go surfing. Things are as hard as we make them.

6. Anonymity. Because from to time some of you will be divulging information of a personal and sensitive nature, you may (or may not) want to post your thoughts on the forum anonymously. This will mean that when you register, you will need to use an alias or part of your name only. So if you see a regular on the forum called Craig H. who has a whole bunch of issues and is seeking advice… it’s not me. No, really!

So there we have it Guys; our new forum. Let us know what you think. I’m excited, I hope you are too. We would love your (constructive) feedback, thoughts and ideas and hopefully between us we can create something spectacular and valuable. Keep in mind that it’s gonna look a little like a bare cupboard for a little while until we have some traffic…

Group Hug ( )

Click on the following link to access the Renovate Your Life Forum.