Nathan Hangen

Saturday Project Update – New Design Coming

I must say that I’m a tad excited for this update because I have so many things to, well…update! For starters, and probably the most important announcement, I’ve finally decided on a designer for my new website upgrade. I admit, a site re-design is long overdue and although I love my current theme, it just feels like I’ve outgrown it. Awesome Photoshop banner aside (my own work, thank you very much), this time I’ve decided to put my site in the hands of a professional, which brings me to an important point:
Your Website Says a LOT about You

In the beginning, having a generic blog theme was a good choice because I wasn’t sure how long I would be blogging. Well, over a year later I’ve written several hundred posts, have had thousands of visitors, and have managed a few guest posts on other blogs. My blog is growing in readership and activity, but it is sending a stale message to new visitors. It doesn’t capture what I’m trying to say, and as a result, an entire re-branding is in order.

I’ve surveyed several popular bloggers regarding their thoughts on personal branding and website design and all of them have said that upgrading their blog with a professional design is one of the best moves they ever made. Not only did it freshen things up a bit, but it no longer sent mixed messages to new readers. I want you to know what myself and this blog are about within seconds of arriving here. This is the precious task of my new designer…and I look forward to sharing it with you soon.

We’re in the process of branding and design at the moment, but as soon as we have a mockup and something tangible to show you, I’ll be sure to post it here. So with that being said, stay tuned for a new Webrepreneur Blog.
Go Beyond Blogging

As I mentioned a few weeks ago, I’ve teamed up with Mike Cliffe Jones to flesh out a book idea that we like to call, Think and Grow Rich for bloggers. To date, we’ve interviewed a handful of A-List bloggers, prepared several case studies, and have written our own intros for the book opening. I don’t want to drop names, but let’s just say that him and I have a few great interviews lined up for this week as well.

The prospect of writing this book is exciting, because we’re not only creating a blueprint for blogging success, but we are also using this as a case study of its own. We’ll be getting this book printed and published on Amazon.com, but long-term we want to see it at your local bookstore. We’re going to be writing a book proposal and launching a series of published interviews, which we plan on chronicling here and at Mike’sLife.org.

I want to show you how to take an idea from concept, to execution, without having a lot of help from book publishers or media managers. Honestly, I can’t wait to share it with you.
The Webrepreneur’s Guide to Twitter

I’m also getting ready to release a new Webrepreneur’s Guide, called the Webrepreneur’s Guide to Twitter (working title). I’ve finished the manuscript, which runs about 55-60 pages, and am currently negotiating with a designer to set the layout and graphics for the final product. I’m hoping to have it ready by 1 October, but I’ll be sure to keep you updated via my newsletter.

I know you might be wondering what makes this book different from my Twitter Rockstar course, to which I reply…plenty! This guide is completely different in scope and focus, as it spends more time talking about how to become a Twitter maven than how to work behind the scenes to sell products. It is a great read on its own, but will also be a great supplement to my TwitterRockstar course.
Editorial Calendar

If you haven’t noticed already, I’m currently testing a variety of new editorial schedules for the Webrepreneur Blog. For the next few weeks, you can probably expect a new post every Monday and Thursday, with the Saturday Project Update and Ideas that Change the World columns being posted Saturday afternoon. I’ll make a final announcement when the new design is released…in fact, we’ll make a launch out of it.

Coming this Monday, I’ve got a video for you in which I talk about one of my favorite subjects…money. I think you’ll enjoy it.

Why I Love Blogging – The Velocity of Ideas

Every day that I spend online engaging and interacting with other bloggers is another day in which I’m humbled by the amount of knowledge I touch on a daily basis. The wonderful thing about bloggers is that they keep their fingers on the pulse of technology and the rhythm of life. On every one of my favorite blogs, I can learn an incredible amount of information without ever leaving my chair. Not only can I get in touch with new memes and ideas, but there are new startups being formed every day.

For instance, today I received a variety of emails or Tweets that provided me with tremendous value. Mashable is always keeping me on top of the social media scene, but there are other blogs like Outspoken Media that spice it up with a little attitude and insight. People like Jonathan Fields create fantastic resources for learning how to self-publish books, while my Twitter friends shared some of their best ideas for managing digital content.

This is why I love being a part of the blogging scene and another reason why I’m super excited to be attending Blogworld Expo. I’m going to link up with some of the best minds since the digital age began, and I’ll have a chance to listen to some of my inspirational heroes.

The velocity of new ideas is astounding. Thanks to technology, a great idea can go from inception to creation within hours, not years. Once these ideas are created, they are honed in the fires of social media until they either make the grade or fail out.They spread like wildfire as they catch on and go viral…million dollar businesses can be hatched overnight!

Startups are creating new realities…they’re bringing the future to the present, while the bloggers keep us informed by the minute. As someone that is fascinated with new technology and innovation, I’ve got goosebumps thinking about the future of the web and of business. There has never been a better time to get in on the action…there is more than enough room for all of us. Are you in?

The Power of Positioning

This is a video post, click the link below to watch.

Saturday Project Update – Now Becomes “Ideas that Change the World”

I admit, I’m a bit of an act first apologize later type of guy. When I started the project update, I wanted to share behind the scenes info with you to help you understand how I’ve built my business in my spare time and created a wealth of opportunity for when I leave the Army. However…I’m starting to realize that doing this every Saturday might get a bit redundant for both of us. I’ve also had a few new ideas that I’d like to throw at you so I can continue to work on bringing you interesting, yet useful content on a weekly basis.

As a result, I’ll be changing the Saturday updates to a bi-weekly session. In fact, I still might add a bit at the end of the normal Saturday post, but for the most part, you’ll find that the bulk of project stuff will be released on the 1st and 15th’ish of every month. In between those updates, I’ll be adding a new segment that I’ll call “Ideas that Change the World.”

I thought about this while I was cutting my grass tonight with scissors to a length of 2 inches per blade. I realized that there are so many cool technologies and ideas spreading across the world that I’d be doing you a disservice (just kidding about the grass by the way, at least the by hand part!) by not sharing them. One of the things I am most passionate about is future technology and how it will integrate with human spirit. Robots excite me, social media excites me, great design excites me, and good books and music excite me. This new series will share all of this and more.

Like everything, it is a test to see if it sticks (mostly if I find it useful for longer than a month), but we’ll start off by sharing our very first idea, which comes courtesy of one of my favorite Game Changers, @garyvee

Changing the World of Email Updates

Email updates you say? Sounds boring right? Well guess what…normal email updates are. Sure, you get my blog posts delivered to your inbox on a weekly basis, you get to hear my behind the scenes action, and you get to join the Webrepreneur Community, but that’s so passe. Today, we’re stepping it up a notch and changing the way that email is used for blogs.

On Gary Vaynerchuk’s blog, you’ll find an opt-in box…but this is no ordinary opt-in box. It takes a 2nd look, in fact I didn’t even notice it until I’d been on the site for the 4th time today, but when you click on the (learn more) link, you’ll see something very cool.

Rather than bore you with regular updates, Gary is integrating his blog, with Twitter, with his behind the scenes newsletter, and a mix of other cool stuff he finds. Although I just subscribed and cannot tell you exactly how he’ll use it, I can tell you how I will. I’ll combine the following feeds into a simple feed for you:

1. My blog posts
2. My newsletter
3. My Twitter feed
4. My Posterous
5. Facebook Updates
6. Other blogs or interesting content

To me, this is the start of lifestreaming on a higher level. This is business gone lifestreaming and I think it is beautiful. Thanks Gary for continuing to innovate. What do you think?

Why I Love the Social Web

The world is connected. Thanks to blogging, Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube, we’ve got a million different ways to connect with each other. There is no better time for sharing ideas, spreading innovation, and changing the game than ever before. Thanks to Google, I can find a million different blogs about any subject within a matter of seconds. I can learn everything I need to know about any topic without leaving my home. I’m connected with thousands directly, and millions indirectly.

The 8 degrees of separation rule is slowly turning into less than a few. We can all reach out and touch each other at any time. We can chat across the city, across the nation, and across the globe. They say that the 22nd century will be one in which human awareness is increased. We’ll be more loving, more inspired, and more positive. We’ll do good to each other, and to the earth. Can you feel it happening already?

Sure, we’ve got a boatload of evil doers and other no-good ruffians, but for the most part we all seek to inspire and be inspired. I find that extremely wonderful and I can’t believe that I am so lucky as to be able to take part in this grand experiment. The beautiful thing is that we are just at the brink of it all…we’ve seen nothing yet!

We are all game changers, but we need ideas to feed us. I could look at my Twitterfeed right now and be inspired by no less than a dozen or more people. I can reach out to last.fm or Pandora and listen to breathtaking music that I’ve never heard of before. I can search for artists and find stunning photography and amazing graphic design. There is so much potential within us all…don’t let it be stifled by trying to earn a buck.

If you’ve got a passion, release it to the world. Share it with everyone you can. Shout it from the mountaintops. I’ve heard that information wants to be free, but I’d say that ideas deserve it more. Share ideas, improve the world, and continue to spread the love. If we all do our part to make it easier on the next person, we won’t have to worry about dead end jobs and working 9-5. No one wants to be trapped in a job they hate, but we are because we’re afraid to step out. Take an idea and run with it. Worry about the monetization later. When you’ve built an energetic and motivated fanbase, then you can have as much money as you need. In fact, they’ll hand it to you without question.

When you’ve truly mastered the art of giving without expectation, then you’ll know what it is to be free. Your mind tells you that you should charge something, that you need to make a buck, but I can’t help but be reminded by the following phrase:

Give a man a fish; you have fed him for today. Teach a man to fish; and you have fed him for a lifetime

Feed mankind, and I promise that you’ll be fed in time.