I'm a big fan of Seth Godin's pithy wisdom, and I follow his blog/Tweets daily: http://sethgodin.typepad.com/ (of course, I would like to switch him from Typepad to LiveCloud, but that's another topic).  Today he posted an interesting eBook about what's going to matter in the coming year, and it contains some great nuggets...I recommend the book to everyone:

http://www.squidoo.com/Whatmattersnowfreeebook

I would also like to add my own nugget.


Be You.

Even if it means you're weird.  Weirdness translates into originality, surprise, and great ideas.  Be the same "you" in cyberspace as you are in real life.  That means you say "please" and "thank you," answer people when they ask you questions, and offer help to people who need it.  It also means using your full, real name whenever possible, and offering your actual photo as your avatar.  The more authentic you are, the more people will gravitate toward your message and ideas.

Being you also means not being afraid to share your real life with the world (without compromising your security).  Somehow, knowing that someone has kids, or loves dark chocolate, or (in my case) is a reality TV junkie, makes their voice that much more true and immediate.

So let your light shine!  Be you!