I love what you've written here, Greekgeek.

As corny as it sounds, I love helping others. I get lots of feedback from moms thanking me for compiling resources, sharing ideas, and offering freebies. I'm like you in that I make lenses about things I love or that I've personally experienced. Any topic that my daughter is studying or anything she creates is fodder for a lens. And since we've done it, I do have a bit of "101" (as you call it) expertise to pass on.  It's sort of laughable. I'm hardly an expert, but when you make a lens on something, readers do consider you one!

And, sure, there's definitely the show-off factor. I admit I love it when folks gush about our homeschool projects being so creative.

The way I see it is that I'm going to do these things--my lens topics-- in real life anyway. Why not document it and do a little additional research so I can pass on this information to others who could use a little boost?  Why should we all have to re-invent the wheel?  I get a rush thinking that I just saved another mom an hour of internet research looking for good resources or that I just gave some kid a really fun math lesson because her mom saw my latest lens on Tangrams.

The lensrank and traffic and quantifiable factors are pats on the back, but it's not WHY I do Squidoo.

Greekgeek wrote:

But also, I really honestly like to know I'm useful to people, or I've entertained them, or they've learned something they didn't know before. That's what makes me feel like I've done something worthwhile.

That's my take on lenses, in a nutshell.  I love the idea that someone can come to one of mine and find something to enjoy, whether it's a bit of the history on a favorite song or a new artist that makes music they can love.  Between my blog and my lenses, I've so enjoyed feedback from people that tell me they like or can use what I have to say.  That's an ego-boost, indeed, cheesy or not! 

Just like others have said it does sound corny but I do want to help people.  I started out wanting to promote my vacation homes near Disney but discovered how much I enjoyed writing about it too. It is so good to hear from either fellow Disney fans that they enjoy my stuff, or from people who have never been that they got some benefit out of reading my lenses.  I want them to enjoy their Disney vacations as much as I do!

By the way Jimmie I want to say that you most definitely have helped me! You introduced our family to lapbooking and I appreciate your work very much - I refer to it a lot and have given me lots of new ideas.

Jimmie wrote:

And, sure, there's definitely the show-off factor. I admit I love it when folks gush about our homeschool projects being so creative.

LOL!!! *snicker, snicker*  Now I know the truth about you Jimmie!!! Just kidding, of course!!!


Well, I was doing similar type postings on my blogs for a couple years for free, so needless to say, I love sharing with other homeschool moms.  When money started getting really tight at our home due to tons of medical bills, I started checking into places I could make money.  Squidoo is a great fit for me.  Thanks Jimmie!!! I may not have found this place if it wasn't you.

Thank you for starting this thread, Greek. Love reading all the posts here and learning what makes people happy doing Squidoo. For me, Squidoo is the perfect place to organize the research I am doing for my blog, The Village of Ordinary, and maybe make a few bucks while I'm at it. I started a second blog, but it didn't give me the flexibility I wanted to organize the links and stories I found. Once I discovered Squidoo, I became a Squid addict very quickly and, never having been on a social site before, had a fairly long learning curve. Still learning, truth be told. Then a whole lot of life intervened and I was mostly away from Squidoo and my blogs for the better part of two and a half years. I'm trying to fold it back into my life now, a bit at a time, cleaning up the lenses I built in the beginning and slowly working on my WIPs. As slow a writer as I am, it is unlikely I'll hit giant squid status any time soon, but I hope that the lenses I build are useful to others who, like me, may be moving toward a greener, more wholistic lifestyle.

Thanks Greekgeek for the question.  I was just thinking this the other day that it's not money itself that we're all wanting to earn it's how we spend our time.  My answer is simple.  I'm lazy. I want to do the least possible amount of work everyday.  For the last two years, I've found a way to take at least 4 months off a year and this year, I'm working on taking another 16 weeks vacation.  Plus, my parents are 72 and 77 years old.  I don't want to have to quit my job one day and spend time with them because one of them is sick or needs hospice care.  I want to enjoy them now. But I'm on the East Coast and they're on the West Coast. So I decided to find work that will support this.   

Saving For My Retirement Apartment in Vancouver, Canada
Squidoo is something I can do from anywhere in the world.  It's also my "I want to live in Vancouver one day mortage downpayment savings fund".  I made $80 writing online last month.  But I wonder, can I keep steady at it to make $300/month by the end of the year?  If that's possible, then that's $3,600/year and in twelve years, that's $43,200 and I'm on my way to a downpayment for an apartment by the time I'm 55.

P.S. Jimmie-thanks for being you and about helping people along, drifter0658 and your sentiment which your lensography definitely reflects about being able to paint here. I feel Squidoo is like writing, collaging and scrapbooking and I didn't know how to define its creative component until you described it as painting.  grannysage, I know what you mean, I used to write a monthly newspaper column and I prefer not being on deadline. Not-pop, not cheesy at all, I'm surprised at how rewarding the comments are to get. Everything Mouse, isn't that the truth, you start out with one intention and end up writing for another. I intended to write about Twilight because it's highly searchable on Google Trends then I discovered there are all these anxious tweens who are just looking for answers and support and I'm able to help them out. Graceonline, good luck with your giant squid status one day and best of luck eclectic education with your time here on Squidoo.

Wanting to use Squidoo to make a living is PERFECTLY fine and probably helps keep Squidoo afloat -- I have the greatest admiration for the small but real segment of lensmasters who do this -- but I think if more people realized this alternative, "Make a little money while talking about stuff you love," the quality of Squidoo overall would improve as it attracts people doing that instead of hopping on the Get Rich Quick bandwagon. Especially because Squidoo is a playful, quirky, and creative-looking interface. I used to hate that -- I wanted my pages to look professional, and there was this silly SQUID up in the corner, and these annoying Glam ads! -- but now I've adjusted and work with the creative, loose style it encourages.

Jimmie -- Yeah, the show-off factor is one most of us won't "own," but it's definitely there! And you hit the nail on the head that many of us are going to do this kind of stuff anyway, so why not do it in an arena where it will get seen and used?  Also, as a SquidAngel (Thank you!) you gave me a boost, literal and psychological, just the other day, when I was in the glow of having made a chewy (yet lighthearted) lens.

drifter -- I love the way you describe the researching process as art. That's just it. My Dad likes to solve Suduko puzzles. I like to "solve" making a lens on a topic. It's like clearing a board on Tetris when I get one done.
Your summary of the "instant gratification recipe" is also so true! I confess I sometimes post fanfiction under a pseudonym for the same reason, but the "sugar high" isn't as good when the majority of your fans are young enough to be your children, and you're not teaching/helping people.

Not-Pop -- in the high-powered moneymaking world of blogging, many people don't admit they like to hear, "Wow, interesting,"  "Thanks, I learned something!" or "Thanks, I can use that!"

Granny-sage -- That's a lovely story. I wonder how many of those little local columns are moving online now? That's the good and bad of the web; it takes us away from traditional venues and sources of interaction, and lets us share and connect with a lot more people... but in a more limited way.

EverythingMouse --heh, you must be doing your outreach and connection very well, because you've got a big chunk o' Disney-related lenses in the Top 100 for Travel.  It's nice to know some of the lenses there aren't just well-marketed lenses from big travel agencies, but passionate travelers.

thrivingmom -- isn't it amazing how Squidoo lets us be helpful to others while helping ourselves? I hope that two-step dance continues to work for you and your family.

eclecticeducation -- looks like we're all show-offs! *laugh* I read long ago that Groucho Marx was actually incredibly shy. Getting up on stage or in front of a camera, he could share the creative side of himself without the "fear factor" of personal interaction, and reach people in a different way than otherwise. I suspect a lot of the best webmasters have a little Groucho Marx in them. Although you and Jimmie also have the "teaching" bug, which seems to be common to many people in this thread.  It's fun to help people learn!

Graceonline -- wow, the Village of the Ordinary blog really lives up to your name! I just took my first look at it. I love the fact that the web lets us be creative in ways that defy categorization. I was gone from Squidoo for a while too, feeding my other creative projects as well as bowing to real life pressures and priorities. It sits there quietly and percolates while we're gone, unlike other passions and interests!

AdrienneJenkins -- time is a big thing with the internet. You can give your WHOLE LIFE to it... ack! And also, I think it's important to realize that Squidoo is not the most effective way to make tons of cash, as you note in your other post. There are a few who do support themselves completely with Squidoo, but there are more efficient ways to earn that much money. On the other hand, what you do along the way is a question... is it rewarding? Do you connect with people? Do you get a chance to engross yourself in something you love... maybe a passion, interest or hobby that you otherwise don't have an arena to share? Yet at the same time, we are practical -- like you, setting monetary goals for yourself and your family. Juggling Squidoo time helps us do both.

AmandaBB -- Oddly, I also came to Squidoo from a list of suggestions on a CafePress forum post on how to promote one's online stores. But I'm not a seller as much as I am a teacher and entertainer (show-offer Groucho Marx) so Squidoo suits me better, and I put more effort into it than CafePress now.  

Graceonline -- I agree; thanks Adrienne! I feel a little guilty about shoehorning and doing the same thing following her graceful (and far more succinct) way of doing it. I often mean to reply to everyone in a thread I started, then get swamped and am bad about getting back to everybody.  (Partly because I am so longwinded... in my next life, I will learn to be brief.)

It's telling that some of my lenses come from the "Goodie Bag" on my very first webpage started in 1993, before dot coms were something we'd heard of, when most public websites were .edu. Gregory Crane, the boss of the project I was working for, The Perseus Digital Library, used to get all worked up about "power to the people... information to the masses!" while distributing tools for studying and leaning ancient Greek, which had traditionally only been done in the Ivory Tower. I was inspired by his motto plus all the free information, graphics, and tools being posted online at the time. So I made sure to include "goodies" -- including my "how to build a kite" tutorial, now converted into a lens with 1993 graphics still intact! -- for the "good of the web." Squidoo is like a modern version of the very early web, in some ways!

drifter0658 wrote:

Seems that I got to chime in just in the nick of time; I get the exalted position of First Echo!

Sure, I came to Squidoo in an effort to market my store, but it has turned into so much more. Watching the rankings is an ego boost or a motivator, depends on which way the crow flies. As for the money, well....so far I haven't generated enough to make me feel anything but indifferent. The real treat here for me is that it has turned out to be the greatest vessel to broadcast my self expression.

I thoroughly enjoy the research, design, and construction of a lens. I get a charge out of digging into nooks and crannies and walking away with a little more knowledge. Not that it makes me feel any more superior, I just like thinking. There is so much power in thought and twisting and turning thought until maybe a facet is upturned and glistens brightly into a resounding, "AH HA!" And to take that new knowledge, combine it with my vision and express it ; divine.

This is art.

To make it supreme, you throw in the ingredients that are the makings of a superb instant gratification recipe; 5 pinches of star ratings, 2 heaping scoops of lens ranking, 1 Tablespoon of Angel Blessing (to sweeten it up), 2lbs. of pure community and 1-1/2 cups of unadulterated Twitterbuzz.

All this means I enjoy the ability to paint here. What's more, I love being able to share my vision.



Alex

What a rare case of  DECENT  lyrics in this forum ....Supreme

Last edited by EditionH (03/03/2009 11:30 am)

WOW. I'm sure you all are aware of how truly powerful this thread is. This absolutely transcends any landscape of 0 and 1 bits we are strolling. Because I know that each and every one of you, as well as myself, sat and wrote without giving so much of a second thought as to where your loving fingers were taking you. All you knew was that you trusted them.

Thank you all for such kind and heartfelt words.

You all truly rock!