I tend to give people the benefit of the doubt when it comes to subscribing to their RSS feed, following on Twitter, etc. It’s usually about a 2 week trial period, after which I reevaluate my choice. I also occasionally reevaluate long standing connections to see if it still makes sense for me to be connected to that person through whatever tool I’m using.

My main reason for cutting people is mostly due to a lack of relevance to me at that time. Just because one of your posts caught my attention doesn’t necessarily mean I’m going to be interested in the rest. If someone has ceased being relevant to me, why would I continue to skip over their posts in search of relevant content? (That’s a key indicator for me: I begin skipping over people’s blog posts, tweets, etc. That’s when I know it’s time to move on…)

Negative people seem to have an effect on my mood, so I choose to remove the negativity. You may have heard the phrase “negativity is contagious.” Well, I’ve found this to be true in online interactions as well. Occasional outbursts I can live with, it’s the constant negativity that gets to me…

I also try to cut people who are rude, racist, bigoted or arrogant. I’d really rather focus my attention elsewhere; it’s not worth devoting any energy to these people. Besides, it seems like many of these people are so vocal because they’re eager for responses; it’s fuel for the fire they’re stoking.

Remember, you don’t need to follow everyone; it’s your choice. Be picky. This will allow you more time to establish better relationships with the people you choose to maintain a connection with.

Try taking some time to evaluate the people you follow, read, etc. and make a few cuts. Start with me if you’d like You might be surprised at how easy it actually is.

This came up in a conversation I had with local Phoenix artist and photographer, Tyson Crosbie a few weeks ago. He posited that, while getting together in larger groups was fine for many things, it didn’t foster the same type of relationships that smaller groups did. Further, he stated that some of the best conversations he’d had were in very small groups. It shouldn’t be news to anyone that it’s easier for people to bond in smaller groups, right? I tended to agree and started thinking about it more.

New online tools make it easier for us to find people with which we share similar interests and they allow us to communicate with them. Having online friends is becoming the norm… there are many people I’ve talked with online that I’ve never met in real life. However, the communication mediums that currently exist online are flawed. For instance, we’ve probably all experienced how easily the subtleties of human interaction are lost when communicating online. After all, these are just tools; they’re not an end, they’re a means to an end!

When I do, occasionally, visit meatspace I’m either attending a networking event or some other social gathering. I think there’s a desire to be a part of something large because that’s often used as a measure of “success”. Much like many bureaucracies, the larger things get, the harder it is to accomplish something meaningful. I think making a more personal connection with a small group of people is far more valuable than being one of many in a semi-anonymous crowd.

So, why not challenge yourself this month? Use your tools to gather 3-4 people you don’t know well from amongst your diverse network of people and invite them for coffee, sit down for dinner or have a drink at a local bar. Hell, invite them over and cook them dinner, but whatever you do, start creating better relationships. Oh, and if you go out, please go to a local place and not a chain

Let us know your experience in the comments!

50% friend-finder, 30% social cityguide, 20% nightlife game. We wanted to build something that not only helps you keep up with your friends, but exposes you to new things and challenges you to explore cities in different ways.

They do this through awarding points for checkins and badges for interesting things you do. So for instance, you might check in after 3am on Thursday night to get the “School Night” badge. You can also become mayor if you have the most checkins at a venue. Additionally, you can leave tips for other people at a location or create a to-do list of things you want to do. They’re also thinking about how to get more people to make new friends and discover new places by adjusting the scoring mechanism:

We’ve been playing with awarding points for checking off the things on your To-Do list and for when people do the things you’ve recommended. We were playing with points for adding new places to our database and taking away points (!!) for always going to the same places (boo!) with the same people (wah!) or trying to game the system (even worse!).

What interests me the most, is how it’s affected my attitude toward Phoenix. You see, Phoenix used to be the city I passed through to get from my home in West Phoenix to my employer in Chandler. Now, I look forward to heading into Phoenix to discover new places and meet new people. I’ve also noticed that I have a tendency to look for local small businesses instead of going to well-known chains. Especially if they’re not already in the Foursquare database… I mean, come on, that’s 5 extra points for a new venue! Additionally, TechCrunch recently had an article about how Foursquare is showing the potential of location based services as venues take it upon themselves to offer incentives to Foursquare players and mayors. Very interesting indeed!

Now get out there and have fun discovering Phoenix! Oh, and add me as a friend on Foursquare.

With the release of his first self-published book, Phoenix 20, I was blown away. I ordered a copy of the book and even got it signed by Tyson. Since then we’ve become friends, and when he released his second book in the series, Phoenix 21, I’m happy to say I was one of the first to order.

These two books, and hopefully more to come, comprise a collection of fine art photography that I’m proud to have in my sparse collection of art. But what if you had a chance to have one of his rare, signed, 1 of 1 edition pieces hanging in your home? Well now you can.

Simply leave a comment on lying to tell the truth or tweet about it using the #L4t hashtag.

You only have until Friday, July 17th for a chance to win!

Photo by Tyson Crosbie

To that end, we’ve initiated a few events, and promoted others, to help coalesce the community. The first two events we’ve helped organize in Phoenix are not new; instead, they build upon existing initiatives by other communities of entrepreneurs around the world. They are proven ideas that have helped entrepreneurial communities to come together and grow.

Phoenix Startup Drinks

This event is intended to bring Phoenix startups together over drinks to discuss what they’re working on, what they need help with and what they can do for each other.

Read more about Phoenix Startup Drinks

Phoenix OpenCoffee Club

This event is much like Startup Drinks, but is for the early risers and coffee drinkers amongst us. It is intended to bring Phoenix entrepreneurs and investors together in an informal setting to discuss ideas and collaborate.

Read more about Phoenix OpenCoffee Club

I have more initiatives in the works, so stay tuned for those. In the meantime, what would you like to see done to help foster entrepreneurship in Phoenix?

Also, check out these other events for entrepreneurs:

• Arizona Entrepreneurship Conference
• TiE Arizona
• Refresh Phoenix

Mike Montalvo, the CEO of automotive electronics company Digital Tuning is opening up two of the four rooms in Digital Tuning’s office suite as shared space for creative collaboration. Mike’s vision for CollabLab is to provide a space in North Phoenix where people can escape from the isolation of working from home.

I see CollabLab as place for people in north Phoenix to connect. It’s a medium to connect thinkers with…doers so they can accomplish the unthinkable. Together they can work towards a common goal, be it a better recipe or the next web startup. – Mike Montalvo

And CollabLab isn’t just technology oriented. Mike wants to foster an environment in which entrepreneurs of all kinds can meet, collaborate and thrive.

While there is no doubt tech will be a hot topic, I don’t want to limit CollabLab to just technology. If a chef wants to collaborate with taste testers to improve the recipe, why not? There is no reason coworking spaces have to be tech oriented. – Mike Montalvo

It appears that CollabLab already has several full-time members, but they need the support of the Phoenix community to make this a successful endeavor. Here are some things you can do:

• Follow CollabLab on Twitter
• Visit the CollabLab coworking website
• Attend the CollabLab grand opening on Wednesday, February 18th
• Tell your friends, retweet, write a blog post… share the love Phoenix!

Please spread the word about this space and if you know someone interested in sharing a creative, collaborative environment with some great people, direct them to CollabLab. When entrepreneurs like Mike and great ideas like CollabLab succeed, Phoenix and it’s inhabitants benefit!

CollabLab Information and Hours

23021 N 15th Ave, Suite #205
Phoenix, AZ 85027
623.444.2409
info [at] collablab [dot] net

Hours
8:30am to 6:00pm Mon-Fri

As a software engineer, I appreciate your focus on technology and how it has helped shaped your campaign (and hopefully your administration). I believe that focus on technology combined with your America Serves initiative could provide a great opportunity for Americans to give back to their country.

Specifically, I would like to see a national challenge of volunteerism communicated through a variety of mediums including a website, social networks, mass messaging (e.g., Twitter), blogs, etc. This message would be constantly and consistently communicated and the website would allow Americans to track their individual, local, city, state and nationwide participation metrics (e.g., # of hours volunteered, $ saved, people helped, jobs created).

Of course, this could be broken into individual and corporate programs. There might also be incentives/rewards to encourage participation (e.g., national recognition award, visit to the white house).

If you ask Americans to volunteer in the same way you asked them to vote for you they will listen and act because they believe in you. I believe in you. Thank you.

Now, it’s time to submit your input to the Obama transition team!

Check out this hacknight video

Hack Night from Integrum Technologies on Vimeo.

Also check out the people and projects at hacknight, on the new site devoted to everyone who makes these wonderful events happen! If you’re interested in what hacknights are doing for the Phoenix community, be sure to come by the office located at

325 E. Elliot Rd., Suite 34, Chandler, AZ 85225

We’re there every Wednesday night, hacking away; you should be too!

Leave your suggestions in the comments, I’ll post my purchases here afterward.

The Purchase

So after much time spent listening to samples from the recommendations I received, I settled on five albums. Three came from suggestions, one I’ve been wanting for a long time and one is the soundtrack of a movie my wife and I saw recently and loved. For better or worse, here they are:

• Arcade Fire: Funeral
• The Decemberists: Picaresque
• Feist: The Reminder
• Okkervil River: Black Sheep Boy
• Once: Soundtrack

Recommendations

Here is the list of all recommendations (that I didn’t purchase, but maybe you will?):

• Atmosphere
• Page France
• The Mountain Goats
• Bowerbirds
• The National
• The Hold Steady
• Sufjan Stevens
• Rodrigo y Gabriela: Rodrigo y Gabriela
• José González: Veneer
• Kimya Dawson
• Mirah
• Brooke Fraser
• Portishead
• Abandoned Pools
• The Spill Canvas
• SoftLightes
• Leslie Hall

A big thank you to everyone who gave their 2¢ and feel free to keep the suggestions coming… I may buy more soon!