Monthly Archives: March 2011

From the Archives: How to Ace Your Next Media Interview.

Posted on March 31, 2011 | 1 Comment

How to Ace Your Next Media Interview. I’ve given countless interviews for both local and national media outlets. What I’ve learned, I’ve condensed into these handy tips that I hope will be of some help. (Please note that the radio and TV tips assume that you’ll be doing a studio interview. Even if you’re not, the rules still hold for an “on location” interview.) General tips for all media interviews… Read More


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Posted in How to, Marketing, Personal historian, Promotion & Publicity, Self-employed, Tips

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How to Start and Run a Personal History Business.

Posted on March 30, 2011 | 4 Comments

Disclosure. I’ve contributed one small item to this book but I will not be receiving any renumeration from its sale.

I’ve just finished Jennifer Campbell’s recent book  Start and Run a Personal History Business published by Self-Counsel Press. If you’re thinking of making personal histories a business, you owe it to yourself to get this book. Jennifer knows her stuff. She’s been a professional personal historian since 2002 and prior to that had a 25 year career as an editor, writer, and interviewer.

This 180 page book is packed with the kind of information I wish I had when I was starting out. The 16 Chapters cover:

  • the world of personal history
  • the business of personal history
  • getting started
  • business foundations
  • pricing
  • producing a sample
  • a guide to producing a personal history
  • interviewing
  • marketing
  • an online presence
  • publicity and promotion
  • sales
  • client relations and customer service
  • time management and project management
  • growing your business
  • accelerating your success and managing growth

In addition, the book comes with a CD-ROM which includes all of the sample templates used in the book as well as resources to help you in your business.

If you buy Personal History Business for nothing else than the chapter on pricing, it’s well worth the investment. For personal historians who are starting out, determining what to charge clients is a challenge. Jennifer’s detailed step-by-step approach will give you the help you need to ensure that you keep your business profitable.

What struck me about the book is that Jennifer makes it clear that running a personal history business takes more than just a love of people and their stories. Her book is like a splash of cold water.  After reading it, if you’re still enthusiastic about establishing a personal history business, you’ll  go into it with your eyes wide open. A word of caution. Don’t become overwhelmed by the content. There’s a lot to digest. Read it through once for an overview and then come back to chew on smaller portions.

I like Jennifer’s candor. For example, on business plans she says, “Like a lot of small business owners, I resisted doing a business plan for a long time. I think it was a psychological block…I finally got some serious business coaching…”  In my eyes, her honesty makes her more credible because I know that she’s writing from personal experience.

The book is also sprinkled with useful tips. They’re terrific. And I wish she’d included more of them and highlighted them so they stood out from the surrounding copy. This brings me to my only real concern and that’s the overall layout and design of the book.

My personal preference is for some breathing space around blocks of text. I found the information on the pages visually congested. I longed for more white space, bolder titles, and little sidebars with tidbits of information, like her “tips”.  I would have found it easier to absorb the wealth of material with more visual help. Having said this, I’m aware that there are production costs to consider when designing a book. And Self-Counsel Press, the publishers,  probably have a standard layout from which there can be  little deviation.

Layout and design aside, this is an excellent book. If you’re serious about establishing a personal history business, you need to do two things -  buy a copy of  Start & Run A Personal History Business and join the Association of Personal Historians.

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Posted in Home Office, How to, Interviewing, Life stories, Marketing, Memoirs, Personal historian, Publishing, Resources, Self-employed, Tips, Writing

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Monday’s Link Roundup.

Posted on March 28, 2011 | Leave a comment

In this Monday’s Link Roundup, if you’re a videographer, you’ll definitely want to read Three remarkable films shot on a Digital SLR. Is this the beginning of the end for video cameras?  And if you’re just looking for something entertaining, don’t miss Corpus Libris. It’s very cool.

  • 4 Top Book Formatting Mistakes to Avoid. “Looking at the actual files we print books from, like the Adobe InDesign files I produce, can be quite revealing … here’s a list of the most common formatting mistakes I’ve come across, and why you should avoid them.”
  • Three remarkable films shot on a Digital SLR. “… you might have overheard some buzz about the potential of digital SLR’s for shooting video. In particular I’m talking about the Canon 5D Mk II and the Canon 7D: both capable of shooting High Definition video as well as taking photographs.”
  • Comparisons of Genealogy Software. “Wikipedia has great, although abbreviated, comparisons of nearly all the current genealogy software. The list of software is impressive. I thought I knew about all the programs available today but must admit I have not previously heard of HuMo-gen.”
  • Corpus Libris.“…began as a fun little photo essay. As we kept going and going, I realized that many, many more people could enjoy and create similar photographs. The possibilities are practically endless! So, send me your Corpus Libris (body/book) photos …”
  • What Really Makes People Buy? “It’s the ultimate sales and marketing question, isn’t it? You work hard at marketing to make contact with potential clients for your professional services. Then you work even harder to get a chance to speak with them about what you have to offer. But how do you actually get them to hire you? The answer may not be what you think.”
  • EBook Conversion Services Directory. “The Ebook Conversion Services Directory is the place to find someone to convert your books into ebook formats. For books in Microsoft Word, Adobe InDesign, PDF or other formats, you’ll find people who can convert one book or many books at a time. Conversions are provided into ePub, Mobi, and many other formats for use in every eBook reader available today. When you need to get your products onto the shelves of the Kindle Store, Apple’s iBookstore, or BarnesandNoble.com, you’ll need one of these ebook conversion services.” [Thanks to Nancy Barnes of StoriesToTellBooks.com for alerting me to this item.]

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From the Archives: Avoid These Three Interviewing Pitfalls.

Posted on March 24, 2011 | Leave a comment

Avoid These Three Interviewing Pitfalls. A good interview is at the heart of any personal history. I train and mentor Hospice volunteers  in Victoria on the art of life story interviewing. It’s part of a program being offered by Victoria Hospice. I’ve found  several interviewing  pitfalls that I suspect are universal to those new to the craft.  Here’s a look at three: … Read More


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Posted in How to, Interviewing, Life stories, Personal historian, Tips

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When Should You Quit Being a Personal Historian and Move On?

Posted on March 23, 2011 | 7 Comments

I spend time here encouraging and supporting full-time professional personal historians.

But what about those of you who may be wondering if it’s time to give up being a personal historian all together? Remember there’s nothing wrong with quitting.  I wrote about giving up in a previous post Stop With The Productivity Pitches!

I’ve changed careers at least four times in my life. From my experience here are the clues that tell you enough is enough.

Lack of Passion

This is a big one. To establish and run a successful personal history business requires an ongoing belief that what you’re doing is vital. You must absolutely love your work. If you find that the passion has gone and your days are a grind, then it’s time  to move on.

Lack of Income

We all need to make enough money to pay the bills and have a little extra left over. For everyone that amount will vary. But if you’ve been working hard for a couple of years and you’re still having trouble making ends meet, you might want to reconsider being a personal historian. Nothing can kill your passion quicker than a dwindling bank account.

Lack of Energy

Keeping a business flourishing requires energy. There are ongoing marketing, networking, client projects, and administrative tasks.  If you find that you don’t have the energy because of poor health, age, or caregiving responsibilities, you might want to call it quits.

lack of time

A successful personal history business is a full-time job. If you’re trying to run it  while juggling other part-time jobs, you could face a crisis. While you may need extra income to keep yourself afloat, it makes it difficult to grow your personal history business. If you’re in this situation,  consider giving it up and  making personal history a hobby not a business.

Conclusion

Quitting is okay.  I would caution though not to quit too early. Collective wisdom says that it takes at least two years to get a new business up and running. So give it time.

Some of the challenges I’ve mentioned above might be overcome by altering your approach. For example,  a lack of passion may be a result of exhaustion rather than a lack of interest. Finding a way to bring some balance into your life might bring back the passion.

Before making your final decision to move on, weigh all the factors, look for possible solutions, and talk with trusted colleagues and friends. If it still looks like quitting is the answer, go for it!

Photo by Abe Kleinfeld

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Posted in How to, Personal Care, Personal historian, Self-employed, Tips

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Monday’s Link Roundup.

Posted on March 21, 2011 | 2 Comments

This week’s Monday’s Link Roundup includes 5 video presentations. I don’t know how that happened but they’re all terrific! My favorite is Words of the World: The Secret Stories of Words. And for a clever and creative way to document personal artifacts, you’ll want to take a look at The Things We Keep. For optimum viewing go to full screen and use the pause button to make it easier to read the text.

  • Words of the World: The Secret Stories of Words. “We love words. So we’re all over Words of the World — a fantastic collection of short videos about words, presented by experts from the University of Nottingham’s School of Modern Languages and Cultures.”
  • Reading my parents’ wartime letters. “When I was a child, my mother would sometimes look off into the distance and tell me, “Your father and I were separated for almost three years during World War II, and we wrote to each other every other day.” [Thanks to Philip Sherwood of Lifewriters for alerting me to this item.]
  • The Best Way to Archive Anything: L.O.C.K.S.S. “In recent years, dozens of articles have appeared in this newsletter and in all sorts of other genealogy publications claiming to tell how to preserve documents, family photographs, and other information. I don’t think that any of the articles are “wrong,” but it strikes me that very few of them ever described the most effective storage method of all.”
  • The Things We Keep. A video by christian svanes olding. “I wanted to know what it would look and feel like to walk into someone’s home and discover that the objects inside are able to express themselves through the lens of an augmented reality, with a particular focus on memory and personal relationships.”
  • 1967 Documentary Romanticizes Bookbinding. “The 1967 documentary Bookbinders, part of the America at Work series by the AFL-CIO, which frames the book production process with enough romanticism to make today’s most notorious “better-nevers” nod along like the bobblehead dogs on the dashboard of a New York cabbie.”
  • Video: The Flip-Pal Portable Scanner. “At the recent RootsTech conference in Salt Lake City, the busiest booth in the exhibits hall usually was at the company selling a one-and-a-half-pound battery-operated scanner called the Flip-Pal.”

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From the Archives: The Introvert’s 12 Step Plan for Painless Networking.

Posted on March 17, 2011 | Leave a comment

The Introvert's 12 Step Plan for Painless Networking.

I am an introvert. The idea of attending a function with a crush of chattering people is about  as much fun as sticking needles in my eyes. Now don’t get me wrong. I’m not shy. It’s just that I get my strength from quiet times away from people. So how do I deal with the inevitable challenge of attending networking events?  While it’s still not my favorite thing to do, it’s become easier over the years. Here are a few tricks  I’ve learned.  Read More

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How Much Should You Charge for a Speaking Engagement?

Posted on March 16, 2011 | 2 Comments

One of the questions  I get asked when someone has been invited to give a presentation on personal histories is “How much should I charge?”

Unfortunately, there is no easy answer or formula, but there are some useful guidelines. A colleague of mine and fellow Association of Personal Historians member is Pattie Whitehouse. She has some good suggestions which I’ve summarized below.

  • If it’s  a general 30-45 minute presentation on personal history  and the event is free, don’t charge. Consider it part of your marketing. But if you’re  asked for a full-scale seminar of 2-3 hours, charge for that. How much,  though, will depend on the following:

0 How long will it take you to prepare the presentation?  You should make preparation time a part of your overall charges.

0 Can you market the presentation to other groups? And is this  something you’d want to do? If it is, you won’t need to put in as much preparation time for future groups.  Would this  group help you secure other bookings? If the answer is yes to all of these questions, you might consider reducing your presentation fee.

0 How likely is it that you will get business, either
directly or indirectly, from your presentation? If  likely, you might be willing to charge  less; if not likely,  you might want to charge what you think you’re worth.

0 Do you know the group’s budget? What have they paid
for other presentations? Ask! If their budget is  unrealistically low or if they are used to paying a nominal  honorarium, you’ll need to reconsider. How do you feel, say, about charging a  church group less than you might charge a for profit corporation?

Ultimately, what you charge will come down to  a balancing act. You’ll need to weigh the  experience, the exposure, the raising of awareness about  personal history, the opportunity to present yourself as a  knowledgeable professional against the cost to you in time and  effort of putting together and making the presentation.

I would add a few other suggestions to Pattie’s excellent list:

  • When discussing your presentation fee with a non-profit organization, consider quoting your regular fee with a 15%  to 25% “non-profit” discount. Doing this  honors your professionalism, informs the organization what your actual fee is, and shows your appreciation for its limited funding.
  • Factor in your “star” quality when quoting a fee. You won’t  be in the  Bill Gates or Tony Blair league but your years of experience, visibility in your local community, and previous “gigs” all give you some clout when negotiating with an organization.
  • Don’t forget to factor audience size into your presentation fee.  Is this a conference where you’re a keynote speaker in front of hundreds or is this a local service club with 50 members? The larger size demands a higher fee.
  • A negotiating line that I like to use sometimes is “My usual fee is____ but if it’s is a deal breaker, I’m flexible.”
  • Consider whether speaking engagements are going to be a major thrust of your personal history  work or just an occasional activity. The answer to that will determine how you market yourself and what you charge.

A final word. Appreciate the  experience and the value you bring to potential audiences.  And never, never, let yourself agree to a deal that doesn’t recognize your worth.

Photo by flickr

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Posted in How to, Marketing, Personal historian, Presentations, Tips

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Monday’s Link Roundup.

Posted on March 14, 2011 | 2 Comments

This weeks Monday’s Link Roundup has the usual smorgasbord of fascinating and informative links. If I was in striking distance of Boston, I’d make a beeline in April for Boston University’s conference on The Power of Narrative: The Rebirth of Storytelling. And don’t miss the documentary, Ahead of Time: The Life & Times of Ruth Gruber.

  • eBook Formatting. “I can’t think of a better person to talk about e-book formatting (in multiple formats) than industry-renowned, Joshua Tallent of eBookArchitects. Joshua’s appeared on many ebook industry-related sites including The Kindle Chronicles, and as a speaker at top industry conferences like O’Reilly Books’ Tools of Change.”
  • Beyond the Business Card. “…we’ve curated three handy digital tools to help unload the fossils and bring your networking up to speed with the digital age. The Rolodex is dead (we don’t even know anyone who owns one, let alone uses it), long live LinkedIn.”
  • Ahead of Time: The Life & Times of Ruth Gruber. “Ahead of Time, a new documentary, tells the remarkable true story of Ruth Gruber. Born in Brooklyn in 1911, Gruber became the youngest person in the world (let alone woman) to earn a Ph.D degree; she did so at the age of 20 from the University of Cologne, where she majored in German Philosophy, Modern English Literature, and Art History.”
  • The Power of Narrative: The Rebirth of Storytelling. “Pulitzer Prize winners and best-selling authors convene at Boston University for the Journalism Department’s annual conference. Hear some of the nation’s most celebrated writers discuss the art and future of narrative nonfiction. Registration is open. Save 20% if you register on or before March 31 (regular registration is $125).”
  • The Morgan Library & Museum.The Diary: Three Centuries of Private Lives.“For centuries, people have turned to private journals to document their days, sort out creative problems, help them through crises, comfort them in solitude or pain, or preserve their stories for the future. As more and more diarists turn away from the traditional notebook and seek a broader audience through web journals, blogs, and social media, this exhibition explores how and why we document our everyday lives. “
  • Email Etiquette II: Why Emoticons (And Emotional Cues) Work. “Technology creates a vacuum that we humans fill with negative emotions by default, and digital emotions can escalate quickly (see: flame wars). The barrage of email can certainly fan the flames. In an effort to be productive and succinct, our communication may be perceived as clipped, sarcastic, or rude. Imagine the repercussions for creative collaboration.”
  • More Videos on Personal Archiving. “If #RootsTech has left you hungry for more video presentations on digitizing personal collections, check out the 2010 Personal Archiving Conference videos available at the Personal Archiving website.”

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From the Archives: Caution: End-of-Life Interviews May Unlock Traumatic Stories.

Posted on March 10, 2011 | Leave a comment

Caution: End-of-Life Interviews May Unlock Traumatic Stories. Previously I have written here about interviewing people who are living with a terminal illness.  There are benefits for patients  in capturing the stories of their lives and conveying special messages to loved ones, but a word of caution. It can also be a time when traumatic incidents from a person’s past can resurface. These could involve physical or sexual abuse, loss of a child, and so on. You’re not likely to encounter such stories  but it … Read More

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Posted in End of life, How to, Interviewing, Life stories, Palliative care, Personal historian, Tips

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