I’m a pretty frugal guy.  OK, who am I kidding?  At times I’ve been known to make Ebenezer Scrooge look like a spendthrift.  But even I know that cracking open the wallet for the right items can be immensely valuable in the long run.

As you build a personal brand and prepare for your future, the same principle holds true.  Don’t spend recklessly, but do drop a few pennies now and again on the most important items.

Here are 7 ways to wisely invest in your future:

1.  A Smartphone

This item is the most expensive one on the list, especially when you factor in long-term data charges.  No matter.  I simply can’t imagine operating without a smartphone today.  With an iPhone or Droid in your pocket, you are never more than two clicks away from news, email, social networks, to-do lists, banking information, live traffic and weather…the list is never ending.

If you dream to be a well-informed machine of productivity and connectivity, you can’t afford to go another day without a smartphone.

2.  Your Domain Name

If you only make one purchase out of these 7 items listed, let it be this one.  Buy the dot com for your firstlastname.com right this second if still happens to be available.  Or if taken, choose one of these alternates that Jorgen Sundberg suggests.  Even if the thought of writing your own blog or posting a bio on the web scares you to death today – take the plunge and buy your domain name anyway.  Twenty years from now, will you really have missed that $7.99 a year?

3.  Web Hosting

Deciding to self-host your own blog can be a tough choice.  Why pay money for something that WordPress and Blogger offer for free?  Oh, let me count the ways.  By self-hosting your own blog, you…

• Get to use that awesome domain you purchased in #2 above.
• Can design your website to look exactly how you envision.
• Become less dependent on your blog platform provider.
• Can implement the most robust tools and plug-ins.

The list goes on and on, including one hidden reason that is uber-valuable.  Hosting your own site forces you to learn how the web works in a way that would otherwise be impossible.  Painful at times, but well worth it in the long run.

4.  Premium WordPress Theme

This blog is “powered by Thesis WordPress Theme”, and thank goodness that it is.  Without the aid of a premium WordPress blog theme, I’m quite certain I would have gone crazy by now.  The user-friendly interface and enhanced customizability opens your current or future blog up to a world of new possibilities.  And the support forum is literally priceless – ask any question on almost any topic and you’ll have an answer quicker than you can say “What’s CSS?”.

5.  Business Cards

Haven’t business cards gone the way of the dinosaur?  Absolutely not!  To those contacts you meet who might not be as web-savvy as you, a business card is the best method for delivering your contact information.

And today, business cards are totally flexible – you can include as much or as little info as you desire.  Those Web 2.0 sites you know and love, like your website URL or Twitter and Linkedin profiles?  Include them all on your business card.  Looking to get hired?  You can even insert a QR Code linking to your resume.

6.  Flip Cam or Web Cam

We are living in a truly visual world today.  YouTube exceeds 2 billion video views every single day.  Heck, YouTube is the world’s second largest search engine.  How can you capitalize on these painfully obvious trends?  It is pretty tough to do so without some method of capturing video and audio.

A Flip Cam lets you record video from wherever you are, whenever you choose.  A web cam allows you to stream live on the web – which might sound like a crazy thought today, but will soon be far more commonplace.

7.  Books

Twenty years ago, your book choices were: paperback or hard cover.  Today, your choices are: Kindle, iPad, hard copy, audio version, eBook, Google Books, etc.

No matter how you choose to read them, you simply must read books – and read them often.  The brilliance put forth by authors such as Malcolm Gladwell and Seth Godin far outweighs the measly $10 it might cost to purchase the book in whichever form you choose.

These 7 ways to invest in your future are the tops I could come up with.  Have I missed any other brilliant buys that warrant cracking open the wallet?

Photo Credit, AlanCleaver and SeeMingLee.

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The Stone Age…The Industrial Revolution…The Information Age…we’ve come a long way in the last several thousand years.  Where exactly are we today?  We’ve entered The Era of Social Sharing. Today’s generation is one that salivates to share anything and everything.  Articles, images, videos, location, status updates, etc.

In this web-driven world, sharing and networking go hand in hand.  Give folks the information they want, when they want it – and you become indispensable.  If you need a little help finding ways to share content online, try one of these 11 methods.

11.  Google Buzz

When Google Buzz first launched, there was an amazing amount of, well…buzz.  The buzz has since died down to a bit of a low hum, due to initial privacy concerns and a tendency towards information overload.  But, the fact remains – via its’ GMail integration, Google Buzz has an enormous user base built in.  And it works via mobile.

10.  Digg

Digg.com is a way to share articles and videos that you find particularly compelling.  If enough of your fellow Digg’ers do the same, the content finds its way into a featured position.  Not the most efficient way to share every piece of relevant content you come across – but a good spot for the best of the very best.

9.  Flickr

For the artistically inclined, Flickr represents a fantastic way to share images across the web.  Even for the utterly un-artistic like myself, Flickr is a unique place to store and link to relevant graphic images.

8.  Stumbleupon

Stumbleupon is an often forgotten way to share content online.  The main premise is simple – add links to articles you like, and they enter the stream of randomly served pages that users see.  If other users also like the article, it is served to more and more people.

How do I know that Stumbleupon is still a relevant mode of content sharing?  Roughly 40% of this blog’s traffic is referred by the site.

7.  Google Reader

I can’t explain how much I love Google Reader as a content absorption tool – I simply couldn’t live without it.  But, it is also a fantastic method for sharing content.  By clicking the “share” button after reading an article, it instantly enters the streams of those who follow me.  My RSS feed delivers work from my favorite authors, and my shared items list serves as a repository for the best of the best.

6.  Delicious

Delicious.com is a tasty way to bookmark favorite articles and websites for both storage and sharing.  Firefox and Chrome add-ons make it a one-click process to bookmark any site on the web.  The simple tagging feature allows you to organize bookmarks by category for future reference – at the same time allowing your network to easily sort through your favorite articles.

5.  Linkedin

To some, Linkedin is a static Rolodex of contacts.  To others, it is a dynamic place to share and view content of all sorts with your immediate network and relevant groups.  I highly recommend the latter!  Linkedin is constantly updating their interface to allow for super-simple sharing of status updates, profile changes, and interesting web content.

Who better to share relevant info with than your closest network of professional contacts?

4.  Facebook

Like it or not, Facebook is the 800 pound gorilla of social networking today.  Yet, many forget that the site represents a way to share so much more than mundane daily updates.  By sharing compelling articles in your news feed, you just might surprise a few friends and family.  Similarly, by “Liking” pages or links, you are sharing your approval of that content with your network – a very powerful way to spread content around.

3.  Twitter

Ah, yes – Twitter, the golden child of the social sharing era.  Over 20 billion tweets have been sent to date.  And yes, 40% of them contain pointless babble…but so many other tweets represent a concise way to deliver insights and/or link to long-form content.

Most of the content I share or absorb in a given day comes from my Twitter network.  The most trusted form of shared content is that which is retweeted – signaling that multiple people find it to be compelling (a good sign you will too).

2.  E-Mail

You might not view your old Yahoo! Mail account last used in 1999 to be the ideal form of content delivery.  Yet, behind Facebook, e-mail still represented the 2nd most common way to share information as of 2009.

For the quick and direct delivery of content (one-to-one or one-to-many) e-mail simply can’t be beat.  Tweet an article to 5,000 followers and 10 might read it.  E-mail the same article to 10 colleagues and all 10 just might click the link within minutes.

1.  Your Blog

As usual, there is no better way to communicate than via your very own blog.  For example…when I collect and broadcast the best personal branding articles of the month, I’m able to accomplish several things at once.  I efficiently distribute the info to a wide group, I show the authors my appreciation for their work, and I store the list to be viewed by anyone at a later date.  Triple whammy.

What about you?  Do you use these tools regularly, or are there any other super modes of content delivery that I’ve missed?

Share the Love by gr3m.

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If you are reading this article, chances are strong that you are technologically savvy.  Either you’ve bought an iPad, are thinking about it, or are dreaming of the possibility.  In any case, you are likely wondering if the iPad is just a fancy toy, or if it is a powerful personal branding tool like we’ve never seen before.  I’m leaning towards the latter – check out these ten iPad apps and decide for yourself.

[Note to you: Check out this similar article on Personal Branding Blog that beat me to the punch by a few hours. Note to self: Publish your posts immediately!]

1.  WordPress (free)

Admittedly, blogging from the iPhone version of WordPress was a tall task due to the small size of the keyboard.  Now, the experience is not unlike blogging from a desktop or laptop.  Check out Ben Parr’s Mashable article detailing one of the first blog posts written via the iPad.

2.  Tweetdeck (free)

Tweetdeck has always been my favorite desktop Twitter app.  Given that the folks at Tweetdeck are always one step ahead of the curve, it comes as no surprise that their iPad app was ready immediately, and launched without a hitch.  If your motto is “Give me Twitter or give me death”, this app is for you.

3.  Sketchnotes ($2.99)

When I first heard of the iPad, I wondered how long it would take to create an app that allowed for both typing and manual “writing” of notes.  The answer?  It took no time at all, as Sketchnotes was available immediately.  Here is a video of Sketchnotes in action.

4.  Kindle (free)

In 2010, books aren’t dead – they are just “different”.  In fact, technology like the iPad may actually help the book industry long-term, not hurt it.  Going on a beach vacation?  Bring one iPad, not a suitcase full of books.  Which leads me to #5…

5.  iBooks (free)

At the outset, many will stick with the Kindle app they know and love – but eventually, Apple’s own iBooks will likely rule the digital book scene.  Incorporating with iTunes, your music, movie, and book libraries will all become one.  Efficient, cheaper, and better for the environment.  Can’t argue with that!

6.  Box.net (free)

Today’s version of  “the dog ate my homework” is “I can’t access the file”.  And you know what?  Box.net pretty much blows that excuse out of the water.  With the web-based service of box.net, you can store all your content and access it via desktop, mobile, and yes…even iPad.  Saving to desktop is out, storing “in the clouds” is in.

7.  Evernote (free)

All the cool kids today are in love with Evernote, and the iPad version is only going to take that love to a new level.  Evernote is a cloud-based application that allows you to take notes, pictures, and audio recordings, and store them by date, category, or location.  Never let another brilliant idea slip into oblivion – capture it with Evernote.

8.  Dragon Dication (free)

Dragon Dictation is a simple, yet brilliant, application that is truly the wave of the future.  You speak, it types, you use the text however you like – text message, e-mail, blog post, whatever.  With Dragon Dication, “write” your next blog article while laying on the couch.  How is that for productivity!

My only caveat is that the speech-to-text function is not perfect.  But, with the iPad’s larger keyboard, editing is now a breeze. Check it out in action.

9.  Feeddler RSS (free)

My Google Reader feed has replaced any traditional outlet as my #1 source for news.  Completely customizable, I cut through the clutter and read only what I want to read.  Why use Feeddler RSS for iPad instead of simply accessing Google Reader directly?  Because it stores and syncs your feeds for offline use while you are away from wifi or 3G.  Brilliant!

10. iWork ($10 per app)

The iWork suite combines Keynote, Numbers, and Pages – roughly equivalent to PowerPoint, Excel, and Word.  In a world where we demand everything be free, $30 seems like a steep price for the lot.  But, the ability to create powerful documents and presentations from a park bench is priceless, so let’s not squabble.

Given the fluid and ever-changing nature of technology today, this list of top iPad apps might be outdated by the time you read this.  Picture and video related apps are noticeably absent, as the iPad has no camera.  Facebook and Linkedin do not presently offer official iPad apps.  Expect that to change.

What do you think?  Does owning an iPad offer a competitive advantage, or is it just another shiny toy that serves as a distraction?

Photo credit, www.Apple.com.

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Poor e-mail.  Remember when it was the darling of the communications world?  1998…admit it, when you heard those words “You’ve Got Mail” you tingled with anticipation.  Fast forward to today, and you likely dread the thought of opening your laptop to reveal the inevitable flood of nonsensical e-mail.

But, the undeniable fact is this: e-mail is not going away.  You don’t have to love it, but to communicate well today, you simply must learn how to manage it properly.  Here are 7 ways to make your e-mail experience far less miserable.

1.  Check your inbox less.  A lot less.

In 4-Hour Workweek, Tim Ferriss suggests immediately reducing your e-mail checking habit to a max of twice per day.  Admittedly, I can’t yet take this extreme step.  But I’m getting there, and can see major benefits to working uninterrupted.  Tasks that used to take an hour (with sneaky little interruptions every 5 minutes) can be completed in 20 minutes of laser focus.

2.  Unsubscribe from every mailing list (or close to it).

There is no activity more cleansing for your soul than hitting that “unsubscribe” button.  After years of daily e-mails I’ve finally figured out that Old Navy is always having a sale.  E-mail is for important communication, not for unrelenting spamvertising.

3.  Use GMail.

GMail. So easy a baby can use it.

At first, I was a resistor to GMail.  But, as often is the case, I was dead wrong.  Automatic filters, unparalleled search capabilities, conversation tracking, and nearly unlimited free storage make GMail a slam dunk.  Add in unbeatable spam blocking, and the decision is a no-brainer.  You don’t want to give up the AOL account you’ve had since 1998?  Keep reading…

4.  Forward all e-mail accounts to GMail.

I have a “friend” who used to check 4 separate e-mail accounts multiple times per day (hint: me).  Forwarding all e-mails to GMail is an absolute snap, and will save you precious time every single day.  Worried that you’ll get all the accounts mixed up?  Don’t be.  You can pre-set labels so that e-mail from unique accounts is marked as such.  Brilliantly, from within GMail, you can also send mail from any outside account.

5.  Use your e-mail signature to the fullest.

The e-mail signature is one of the most under-utilized tools out there.  Without saying a word, you can instantly provide your e-mail counterpart everything they need to know about you.  Include links or icons to your social media accounts.  Include a link to your blog.  Heck, even include a F.A.Q. link so that you can avoid a back and forth e-mail chain discussing your capabilities.

I use the Wisestamp plugin for Firefox, which is the best signature tool I’ve seen.  Check out this great e-mail signature example from friend and fellow branding blogger Hajj Flemings:

Hajj E. Flemings_Brand Strategist
Phone: 734-468-0854
Author: ‘The Brand YU Life’
Blog: www.HajjFlemings.com/blog
Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lU55BXks2XU
Twitter: www.twitter.com/hajjflemings
Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/HajjFleming

6.  Utilize temporary e-mail addresses.

So you took my advice and unsubscribed from every mailing list?  Great!  But now Ben & Jerry’s is asking for your e-mail address before they’ll dish out a Chunky Monkey coupon code?  Problem solved.  Go to Mailinator.com and pick out a shiny new e-mail address that will only last a few hours.  By the time your ice cream melts your e-mail address will have disappeared.

7.  Create e-mail templates for recurring situations.

Tired of getting asked the same questions every day via e-mail?  Reduce your stress by creating templates with pre-loaded answers.  Swap out the name and a detail or two, and you are good to go.  Or even better, as Tim Ferriss suggests, are auto-responders that fire off templated e-mails without even the click of a mouse.  Here are a few great examples.

What do you think?  Have I missed any tips that are certain to make e-mail less miserable for everyone?  If so, send me an e-mail let me know in the comments section below, or find me on Twitter @RyanRancatore.

Fire computer by cibomahto.  Baby e-mailer by Kiifu.

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In 2010, building your personal brand via mobile will no longer be a competitive advantage, it will become a necessity.  The ability to respond in real-time to that e-mail, job opening or blog comment will be more important than ever before.  Here are the 33 best iPhone apps for building a personal brand on-the-go.

Note: Links below go straight to iTunes, apologies to the non-iPhone users out there.  My guess is that most of these apps are available via other platforms as well.

Publishing

WordPress 2 (free, pictured)
Did you ever think of an awesome topic for a blog post at the most inconvenient of times?  Now, no matter the time or place, you can start a draft or fully publish your WordPress blog post from your phone.  Also, view and respond to comments, or update pages.

Flickr (free)
Most of your best photos occur while you are away from home.  Why not share them right away?  Or, search for photos from the community to use on your blog.

Photoshop.com Mobile (free)
What makes this one of the best iPhone apps out there?  It is even easier to use than the desktop version of Photoshop!  Really, it couldn’t be simpler.

Dragon Dictation (free)
Say you’re stuck in traffic, you think of the next big idea, and you simply have to get it down on “paper”.  Instead of trying to write and drive, have Dragon Dictation convert your speech to text.  From within the app you can initiate and populate a text or email.

Your Own App (free-ish, pictured)
As Chris Brogan and Dan Schawbel have mentioned recently, via MotherApp you can create your own iPhone app that displays your blog posts and tweets.  The service is free if you allow ads and share revenue 50/50, or you can pay a one-time fee of $99 to avoid ads.

UStream Live Broadcaster (free)
UStream allows you to broadcast yourself in real-time to anyone and everyone.  How cool (and scary) is that?

GoDaddy.com Mobile (free)
Great domain names are hard to come by.  In a “you snooze, you lose” marketplace, the ability to secure a domain name from anywhere is priceless.

Speller – Free Spell Checker (free)
A single typo or misspelled word can kill any email, presentation, or blog post.  Wouldn’t you argee?

Networking

Tweetie 2 ($2.99, pictured)
Are there free Twitter applications out there that are pretty damn good? Yes.  Are there free apps that can match the power of Tweetie 2?  No.  Tweetie 2 is the best iPhone app for Twitter in existence, making tweeting from the road an absolute snap.  Twitter list integration and the ability to view saved searches pushes this app over the top.

Facebook (free)
Admittedly, the app I use the most day in and day out.  Needs no explanation.

Bump (free)
Bump allows you to exchange contact information with other iPhone users by literally “bumping” your phones together.  It makes for a pretty cool ice-breaker with a business contact you’ve just met too.

Skype (free)
Personal branding is a global activity these days.  Maybe your next consulting offer will come from a distant country.  Skype is a way to stay connected to anyone and everyone.

Linkedin (free, pictured)
This well-designed app lets you check your Linkedin inbox, send connection requests, update your profile and status, and more.  A must.

Cisco WebEx Meeting (free)
The next time you have 3 companies fighting over your services, why not schedule a WebEx meeting and have them bid for you in a live auction?  OK, maybe I’m dreaming…but there are lots of real reasons why a quick conference on-the-go might be necessary.  This app can help.

Business Card Reader ($1.99)
To me, business cards are like socks – you can never find the right one when you need it.  This app eliminates that problem.  Simply scan a business card and add the information straight to your contacts.

Job Search/Interviewing

Jobs by Career Builder (free, pictured)
In this market, good jobs go fast.  Real fast.  Don’t miss out on the latest job openings just because you are away from your computer.

Indeed.com Job Search (free)

Did I mention that good jobs are hard to come by in this job market?  It never hurts to have a backup source – and this app is a good one.

Resume PRO ($2.99)

The ability to update and send different versions of resumes from the road make this app an absolute must for job seekers.  If it helps land you a job, it just might be the best $2.99 you’ll ever spend.

vTie Necktie Guide (free)

Mainly for the male Gen Y-ers out there…let’s be honest, we have no idea how to tie a tie.  Until they outlaw this ridiculous piece of business attire, we can rely on this app to get us through.

Reference

Bing (free, pictured)

Sorry Google, for once you’ve been trumped.  The best iPhone app for web search is Bing – it includes voice search, business listings, directions and more.  Plus, you get those cool photos that Bing uses as its background.

Wikipedia Mobile (free)

A world of information at your fingertips.  And as you know, 60% of the time, Wikipedia is right 100% of the time.

Kindle for iPhone (free)

Why spend a few hundred dollars on an actual Kindle, when this app is free?  Provides instant access to literally millions of books.  Amazing, when you think about it.

Quickmark QR Code Reader ($0.99)

QR Codes are becoming more prevalent, thanks in part to Google distributing codes to thousands of small businesses.  Maybe you’ll even include one within your resume?  Either way, this is the best iPhone app for decoding any QR Code you come across.

Any Website You Want (free)

Did you know you can turn any website you visit into an “app”?  Just click the “+” and select “Add to Home Screen”.  If you are viewing this via your iPhone, give it a shot. (Overly sneaky tactic to get you to come back to Personal Branding 101?)

Organization

Google Calendar (free, pictured)
Available via the Google Mobile app – a simple, free way to keep track of appointments and to-do’s.

Google Docs (free, pictured)
Also available via the Google Mobile app.  You might be on the road, but all your documents are stored “in the cloud”.

Evernote (free)
Because fleeting moments of brilliance are just that – fleeting.  Record your every thought via Evernote in a variety of ways, and don’t let those great ideas escape.

Personal Assistant (free)
Let’s face it, who can afford a real personal assistant these days?  Keep track of travel, finances, subscriptions and more.

On The Road

Yelp (free, pictured)
If you’ve yet to explore “Monocle” mode, prepare to be amazed.  Never take your clients to a terrible restaurant again, put the power of peer review to work wherever you are.

Mint.com Personal Finance (free)
If you’re putting in late hours at work and blogging the night away, chances are your personal finances could use a little help.  Let Mint.com pick up the slack.

Kayak Flight and Hotel Search (free)
Whether you are traveling for business, or just getting away, this app will ensure you get the best possible deal.

OpenTable (free)
Your presentation ran long, and you forgot to book reservations for your anniversary dinner?  Never fear, OpenTable will book your table at almost any restaurant you can think of, right on the spot.

That is my list of the 33 best iPhone apps for personal branding.  But, given that there are over 100,000 apps out there, I’m sure I’ve missed a few.  Know of a great app that is absent from the list above?  Let me know in the comments section below – thanks!

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