Planet Gold Coast

It's 2009 already! My how the time flies. I started blogging in February 08 and after a few months of experimenting, changed things round in July 08 and settled on a new approach. My goals from then until the end of 2008 were:

• Establish and maintain a clear focus and purpose
• Build a loyal base of subscribers
• Raise my profile and reputation

How'd I do?

Establish and maintain a clear focus and purpose

Although both the topics and tone on my blog vary wildly, there are some common threads that tie everything together. I've discovered I have four styles of writing - playful, objective, personal and soapbox.

I write playfully when I want to say 'gee, the world is a huge mixed-up place and isn't it fun to be here'. I write objectively when I tackle a serious issue and try to help people understand it from all sides. I write personally when I'm going through a new experience myself and want to share it as I go. I get on my soapbox when I'm feeling idealistic about something I think is important.

The underlying theme of my blog is a sense of learning and discovery about life. I love to learn new things and new ways of thinking about old things. I love to share what I know and what I've discovered, and give people opportunities to think in new ways about what they know.

So far, everything has been mixed in and thrown together. The clear focus and purpose isn't something I planned, it's something that has emerged. I started out writing the blog just for myself, as a way to get things off my chest, but since then I've discovered there is actually an audience who's interested in what I have to say about things.

The next step is to restructure the blog to better communicate what it's about and make it easier for people to find what they want. Expect some changes to the layout in the coming weeks and months.

Build a loyal base of subscribers

By subscribers, I meant regular readers, rather than feed subscribers in the technical sense. Looking at the numbers, I'm calling this one a success: (click on an image to enlarge)

Look at the graph of visits for the year - it's been on an upward trajectory since July when I made the changes and set these goals. The split between new visitors and returning visitors is about 50/50, which suggests a fair amount of the traffic growth is being converted into regular visitors.

What's especially interesting to me is who these people are. I am an Apple user, but this is not an Apple-themed blog. In fact, I hardly ever mention Apple. But while Apple users make up less than 10% of traffic on the internet overall, on my site they make up over 40% of visitors. More interesting still, Safari is the most popular browser for people visiting my site, and these people spend longer browsing my site than anyone else!

What does it mean? The simplest conclusion to draw is that people who are interested in the things I write about are most likely to be Apple users. This is something for me to bear in mind in future.

Raise my profile and reputation

Looking at this now, it seems like a silly goal. Raise profile and reputation with who? Just in general, would've been my reply. Sounds like attention-seeking to me. I guess that's exactly what it was. I think we can probably translate this goal as 'is anyone out there really interested in what I have to say? Really? REALLY?!' The answer, apparently, is yes.

By far the most popular post on my blog for 2008 was How to Defeat Internet Censorship, which I'm surprised to note was written only around six weeks ago. This was one of my soapbox posts, and not really what I would consider an example of my best work. But it got me noticed.

Since then I've written a follow-up piece on the internet censorship issue as well as two articles for other publications. All of these follow-ups have been better written (I believe), two of them in the objective style and one playful. This has driven more people back to my original post and had something of a circular effect.

What this means is that in six weeks I've become someone who's name is, if not talked about, then at least recognised, in certain circles - specifically, professional geeks with an interest or involvement in politics. Since I've been wanting more contact with politically-minded geeks for some time, this is a good outcome.

Every time I write something on the topic of internet censorship, my traffic surges, I get a burst of new followers on Twitter and a flurry of comments and emails. Nevertheless, I've resisted the urge to exploit that. It's far too easy to get swept away in a tide of popularity and find yourself somewhere you don't necessarily want to be.

I've become more thoughtful about with whom I want to raise my profile and reputation. To be honest I'm not sure. I would like to become known for my writing, but I don't have a specific audience or a specific field in mind just yet. I consider my blog as an experiment and a way to practice while I find better answers to these questions.

Goals for 2009

Well, the first six months anyway. Setting goals for the entire year seems a bit too far, so I'll go for the six months until the end of June and then see where I'm at. They're really more 'areas of focus' rather than goals in the true sense anyway.

Here's my three areas of focus from now until the end of June 2009:

• Improve my writing technique and skill
• Find opportunities to write for other publications
• Finish my book and get it published

I'll also be continuing my blogging experiment of course, but my focus is now on making better material rather than building a bigger blog.

Stay tuned - I'll be posting more updates as I go.

You can tell a lot about someone from the books they read. Looking back over the books I've read in 2008 I'm surprised at the trajectory that emerges and how accurately it maps my focus and state of mind throughout the year. I'm also surprised by how much I have read - 13 books in total. And here was I thinking I hadn't done much reading this year.

Here they are, in order of when I read them - click on the cover pictures to find the books on Amazon.

The Appeal John Grisham

A return to the classic legal thriller for John Grisham, where he seems much more at home. I read this while in San Francisco.

Against All Enemies: Inside America's War on Terror Richard A. Clarke

A fascinating inside account of US national security over the last 30 years, leading up to and including the Iraq war, from the first of the Bush Administration whistleblowers.

Ronan the Barbarian James Bibby

A fun, fictional fantasy tale with plenty of bad puns. It was good, but I couldn't escape the feeling that Bibby is living in the shadow of Terry Pratchett, Douglas Adams and others.

The Commitment: Love, Sex, Marriage, and My Family Dan Savage

I've been reading Dan's sex advice column - Savage Love - for years now. This is his book about gay marriage. It's entertaining, insightful and, surprisingly, far more compromising than his column.

The Search: How Google and Its Rivals Rewrote the Rules of Business and Transformed Our Culture John Battelle

An engaging look at the history and development of search technology, with particular focus on Google. Battelle is a master of this subject and makes a good case for why search is pivotal to the future of technology.

Animal Farm George Orwell

Heard lots about it, never read it until now. I had no idea it was so short - finished it in an afternoon! It has definite themes in common with Nineteen Eighty-Four, most notably how people's minds are exploited and manipulated by a controlling class.

ProBlogger: Secrets for Blogging Your Way to a Six-Figure Income Darren Rowse & Chris Garrett

Can't say I thought much of this. It was short, written in big type and was like reading a bunch of blog posts rather than a book. The different writing styles of the two authors were jarring and disjointed and they spent a lot of time repeating themselves. The information provided was good, but for the most part fairly obvious and lacking in depth.

Stylin' with CSS: A Designer's Guide Charles Wyke-Smith

I'm a professional geek, but not a professional web designer or developer. I searched long and hard for a good introduction to CSS with the right mix of theory and practice. After reading this book I have a much greater understanding. Highly recommended.

The Economic Naturalist: Why Economics Explains Almost Everything Robert H. Frank

In an attempt to make economics more interesting, university lecturer Robert Frank likes to get his students to think of real-life questions such as 'why do the keypad buttons of drive-up cash machines have Braille dots?' and then use economic theory to find answers. It's a fun, practical approach, and it works. I learnt more about economics by reading this book than all the textbooks I've read combined.

Predictably Irrational: The hidden forces that shape our decisions Dan Ariely

One of the big flaws in economic theory is that it assumes people behave rationally when they make choices. They don't. Dan Ariely, a leading researcher in the relatively new field of behavioural economics, conducts a series of real-life experiments to try to discover if there are patterns that can predict people's irrational behaviour. This book is the result of those experiments, and it's amazing.

The God Delusion Richard Dawkins

Dawkins is what many people regard as a fundamentalist athiest. In his uncompromising book, he tackles the tenets of religion using science and logic, and makes the case that religion is not only nonsense but also a deeply harmful influence on society. It's entertaining and well-written, but I'm ambivalent about some of his conclusions. I'm a contented athiest, but Dawkins' militant attitude towards religions seems a step too far to me, even if his reasoning is perfectly valid.

Personal Development for Smart People: The Conscious Pursuit of Personal Growth Steve Pavlina

I'm a long-time reader of Steve's website, which has hundreds of great articles on many different aspects of personal growth and development. Steve is an ex-programmer, so his approach is very structured and practical - either it works or it doesn't. So much self-development stuff is inconsistent waffle, but Steve digs deep to find consistent principles that underpin all personal growth and then applies them to different aspects of life. Challenging, uncompromising and brilliant.

The Happiness Hypothesis: Finding Modern Truth in Ancient Wisdom Jonathan Haidt

Haidt is a social psychologist who researches morality for a living. After watching his captivating TED Talk on the difference in morals between liberals and conservatives, I was inspired to order his book, which explores the concept of happiness as a social science. In each chapter, Haidt tackles a different aspect of human emotion and experience and looks at how it has been treated by scientists, philosophers and religions throughout the ages. He then blends his own research and offers his opinion of where truth might lie. Some of his conclusions challenge society's traditional views on such matters, and I can't help but feels he's onto something. A great read.

"I always pass on good advice. It is the only thing to do with it. It is never of any use to oneself."
- Oscar Wilde

New Years Resolutions are coming up...

When I see the loggerhead turtle crawling up the beach to lay her eggs, my first thought is it looks like she is crying. It was over 30 years ago since she herself had emerged from an egg on this very strip of sand and made her way scampering down the beach among dozens of her siblings to the water's edge and into the open sea. Now she is returning for the first time since that day, and she is lucky to be here at all. Only 1 in every 1000 loggerhead turtles survives long enough to breed.

Shuffling slowly over the sand, she finally finds a spot in the dunes, uses her flippers to dig a hole of surprisingly precise dimensions and, in a trance-like state, settles in to lay her eggs. For a moment it seems like time has stood still as they emerge slowly, one or two at a time, in a steady stream. Over a hundred tiny lives.

Suddenly she is done and, wasting no time, she uses her flippers again to fill in the hole with sand and smooth over the nesting site. She won't be there to watch when her babies are born, and she surely knows the dangers that await them. Without looking back, she shuffles her way back to the ocean, the moonlight glinting off the salty crystals around her eyes that look for all the world like tears.

Turtles have a special gland around their eyes that secretes excess salt. It's a miracle of evolution, as is their amazing ability to return to the same beach on they were born, a sense of the earth's magnetism that is imprinted on each young turtle as it scampers down the beach moments after being born.

These are beautiful and majestic creatures, yet somewhat mysterious too. For decades scientists have studied their habits, but still little is known about the life of a turtle for the 30 years between birth and breeding. Nevertheless, for the dedicated researchers at Mon Repos on the Central Queensland coast, studying these animals is clearly a lifelong love affair.

The lead researcher, Col Limpus, has been studying loggerhead turtles at Mon Repos for over 40 years. He has fought long and hard for their protection and been instrumental in increasing awareness and understanding of turtles worldwide. Mon Repos is the central research station for all of Australia, collating and processing turtle data from around the country.

Though Mon Repos is famous worldwide for its unique turtle-watching experience, in no way does it feel like a typical tourist attraction. It's all about the turtles, and from the moment you arrive, it's clear that you are a guest - a privileged observer, but that this beach belongs to the turtles. The researchers and an army of starry-eyed volunteers won't hesitate in kicking anyone out who doesn't know their place.

The experience begins at 7pm. It's explained to the waiting guests that during the summer mating season, turtles come ashore to lay eggs anytime between dusk and dawn. There may be many turtles tonight, or there may be none at all. There is no way of knowing when or how many. Guests will just have to wait and hope they're lucky enough to see one.

For the moment however, we are free to look around the information centre, which is well designed and has lots of interesting things on display. We are about 100 metres from the beach, separated by a forest of specially-planted trees. Even this far away the lights are very low, as artificial light disorients the turtles and may cause them to turn around and leave without laying their eggs.

The guests are divided into groups based on who booked first. Researchers are already down at the water's edge looking for telltale signs of any turtles that have come ashore. When they find one, they will quickly notify the staff at the information centre who will call the first group down to watch. They will get to watch the whole experience, which lasts about an hour. The other groups will have to wait for their own turtle. It could be minutes, it could be hours. John, the jovial researcher, reassures the huddled guests that he has enough videos and things to talk about to keep us through until dawn if need be. Tonight there are three groups. We are in group two.

There is an air of excitement as the first group is called down at around 7.30pm. By 8pm, the rest of us have finished looking around the information centre and the gift shop and are sitting around in restless anticipation. John calls us over to the ampitheatre to listen to a talk and watch a slideshow. He tells the story of Mon Repos and its long history with turtles. He talks about the turtles themselves, their characteristics and behaviours.

It strikes me that John has been giving this same talk every night for years, yet it feels like he's telling it for the first time, such is his enthusiasm. It takes a certain kind of devotion to work from dusk until dawn in and out for decades, but John and his team make it sound effortless. Most of the staff are volunteers, giving up their nights to be a part of something. I can't help but feel the turtles are in safe hands.

8.30pm and we're still listening to John. The first group have been gone for more than an hour. People are starting to fidget.

At 8.45, our moment comes. A turtle has been spotted making her way up the beach, apparently in a hurry. Group 2 is quickly mustered and given stern instructions about keeping a respectful distance, staying out of the turtle's field of vision and not using torches or cameras. Then we're rushed down to the beach, the way lit only by dull, periodic flashes from the strobe lights that line the boardwalk.

It's dark on the beach, but it's a clear night with a dazzling array of stars and a nearly full moon. We're led up the beach a little way until we come across two thick lines in the sand, the unmistakable sign that a turtle has been this way. We follow the tracks up the bank and into the dunes and suddenly there she is - a real life turtle. She's huge, and beautiful. For a moment, no-one speaks.

The turtle - now in some way our turtle - has dug her hole and is settling in to lay her eggs. The researchers have set up a torch behind her so we can see. Now they are taking measurements and doing an ultrasound. A ranger explains what is happening but I'm only barely aware of her words, captivated instead by the turtle and the magic of the moment.

After about 20 minutes, she lays her last egg and begins filling in the hole. At this point there's a short window in which we are allowed to use cameras, which we're told do not bother the turtle. I took a few photos and some video which you can see below. The quality isn't very good and certainly doesn't do the moment justice, but you can use your imagination.

As she finishes smoothing things over, we're told to turn off the cameras and get out of the way so she can make her way back to sea. For me, this is the most amazing part of the evening. Her job done, she shuffles slowly back down the beach, followed by a small awestruck crowd who have just witnessed a natural miracle. She is our turtle now. We only met her moments ago and already we must part. Yet every one of us is silently cheering her on, and when she finally makes it to the water and slips away into the night, we send her off with as much love as we can muster.

It's now past 10pm and the strange ritual we've just been a part of has come to an end. We turn our backs and make our way back to the information centre, where Group 3 are still sitting around, waiting. Some appear to be asleep. I look at them with a strange mixture of sympathy and smugness, a huge goofy grin on my face. I wait in line for a certificate to honour the event, and then it's time to go home.

As I walk to the carpark, giddy with childlike wonder, I look at my certificate, where I learn that my turtle's name is K92574. It occurs to me that the good people at Mon Repos see this every night, every year, thousands of times. Thinking back to John's face, it's comforting to know that even after 40 years, the childlike wonder hasn't worn off.

If you get a chance to visit Mon Repos during the mating season, do it. It's an amazing experience. The turtles lay their eggs from November to January and the hatchlings are born from January to March. If you're lucky, on a night in January you might see both. I'm planning on go back to see the babies next month.

Not everyone spends as many hours on the internet as I do, which means not everyone gets to see the vast swath of stuff it spews forth from day to day. From time to time, I post a selection of my favourite bits - in case you missed it...

Sydney Harbour in a bathtub

A time-lapse movie made from photos using tilt-shift photography. It makes everything look tiny!

TV Weather man keeps cool in a crisis

A piece of the set falls on him in the middle of his presentation. Watch how he reacts.

Does This Vote Count?

Over six weeks after the US election, there is still no result in the Minnesota Senate race between incumbent Norm Coleman and Democratic challenger and comedy writer Al Franken. A recount is underway where Al Franken is currently leading by around 30-50 votes.

Why does it take so long? Because so many votes are ambiguous, with both sides challenging over the tiniest details. But you be the judge - take a look at some of these challenged ballots, decide for yourself who voted for who and see what others thought. It's a side of democracy you don't see much.

See the challenged ballots here.

Proposition 8: The Musical

After California voters passed Proposition 8 in November, banning previously legal same-sex marriage, the issue has been making headlines again. Prop 8: The Musical is a hilariously well done three minute send-up of the issue. Featuring Jack Black, Allison Janney, Neil Patrick Harris and others.

Climbing the World's Biggest Trees

The giant trees of the Pacific Northwest are some of the largest living things on the planet, yet still little is known about them. Science writer Richard Preston gives a beautiful and captivating talk on his experience climbing among their magnificent canopies.

Click here for previous editions of In Case You Missed It

In August 2007 I opened an account on Facebook. It was my first experience with using social media and I really enjoyed it. I've always been a fairly reserved person socially, but I found Facebook comfortable and immediately took to the idea of catching up with friends and keeping up with what they were all doing, especially those who I don't see that often or people I haven't seen in years.

However, just under 18 months later, I'm giving Facebook the poke. Here's why.

It's No Longer Useful To Me

To be honest, I just don't find Facebook that useful any more. Since my first foray into social media, I've also started a blog (January 2008) and started using Twitter (June 2008). My blog has become my main public profile and communication outlet, while Twitter has quickly become my medium of choice for keeping in touch with people passively.

While Facebook is addictive and I still check it several times a day, I've realised it's more of a habit than a meaningful use of my time. The only things I use it for are status updates, photos and messages, and these are all things I feel are handled better by other services (ie Twitter, Flickr and instant messaging/email respectively).

It's a Closed System

The internet is an open, connected environment. Facebook is a walled garden. The only people who can see what I do on Facebook are my Friends. To some people this might be part of the appeal, but to me it just seems pointless. I can see the convenience of having everything in one place, but in practice the effect just isn't the same.

To me, the biggest appeal of social media is its ability to help people find ideas and ideas find people. On Twitter and through my blog I've come into contact with dozens of interesting new people and ideas. Some I've met and become friends with offline, others I will never meet. The point is the public web is an exciting world charged with thought-provoking people and peppered with new and meaningful experiences.

You don't meet many new people on Facebook, or at least I haven't. It seems to be more about maintaining the social circle you've already got.

People Come and People Go

I get a temporary buzz from making contact with people I haven't seen in years, but the novelty soon wears off. It's not about being a snob, it's just that life changes and so does the network of people we stay in touch with. Friendships can be for a reason, a season or a lifetime, and although it's nice to hear how someone from your past is doing, I don't need to keep up with their every move and I'm sure they feel the same way about me.

Looking through my list of Facebook 'Friends', there's only a small group I'm in regular contact with, and it's usually not through Facebook. There's a lot of people from school, including some I don't even remember, some from old jobs and a few old flames. They're all nice people, but I find it hard to escape the feeling I'm just collecting 'Friends' like trading cards - "I've got that weird dude from Chemistry class - who have you got?"

The point is - the people I want to keep in regular contact with, I do, just not through Facebook. It can be fun to spy on people and see what they're doing, and I'm sure that's why some people have friended me, but on the whole it's not really a productive use of my time.

If anyone from a past life wants to get in touch with me, it's not hard to find my contact details. A simple Google search for my name returns my website as the first result, and from there it's easy to instigate an email exchange, which seems much more natural than maintaining a list on Facebook of everyone you've ever known in your life.

Why get rid of it altogether?

Why not just keep a basic profile? After all, Facebook is hugely popular, and it could be risky to be left out, especially as Facebook is the only social media app many people use.

Maybe that would be a sensible approach, but the truth is it just doesn't feel right to me. I'm an all or nothing kinda guy. If something isn't working for me I'll try to fix it first, then give it some time to change, but if there's still no magic then I don't see the point in lugging it around with me. I feel better when I travel light. As for the risks of being an outsider, it depends what they are and if you consider those things important.

MySpace is also hugely popular, but I never felt interested in trying it out in the first place. I don't feel like I'm missing out there.

As a professional geek, it's important for me to keep up with what's going on in all aspects of the industry, especially in the trailblazing area of social media. But that's the point. I couldn't possibly join every social networking service - there are too many of them. I wouldn't want to anyway.

It's possible to avoid something without ignoring it, in any case. Microsoft is a huge player in the tech world too and I am diligent about keeping up with what they're doing. But I don't personally use any of their products, and I certainly don't feel like I'm missing out on anything by making that choice.

I am missing out on over 90% of the tutoring and consulting market by choosing not to deal with Microsoft products, but I'm never short of work. The part of the market I do focus on is plenty big enough and is also far more enjoyable and rewarding.

The internet is continually making it easier to keep a strong focus while at the same time reaching a larger audience. When it's so simple to connect with the people you want, who needs to be part of a mainstream popularity contest?

One point worth mentioning is that currently, Facebook accounts for more referrals to my website than any other source. I could easily continue to boost my visitor count by simply using Facebook to broadcast my latest posts or announcements.

To me, this violates the spirit of what Facebook is for. It's a place for friends to keep in touch, and in many ways it's very good at what it's for. But I don't feel right about using it as a megaphone to shout a stream of self-promotion at people, because that isn't what it's for.

Sure, I'll lose some traffic in the short term by lopping off a major avenue of promotion, but again, it's about finding the right audience, not necessarily the biggest one. The people on Facebook who were truly interested in my work will likely seek me out anyway.

The Moral of the Story

Facebook isn't a bad service, it's just outlived its usefulness for me. It served as a good first step into social media, and continues to do so for millions of people as it becomes ever more mainstream. In fact, getting the mainstream public comfortable with social media and sharing information online may be the most valuable part of Facebook's legacy.

But speaking as a lifelong geek who likes to be at the cutting edge, it's time to move on. I'll keep an eye on Facebook's progress of course, and if it becomes useful again in future no doubt I'll be back. But in truth I don't see much of a future for Facebook personally, at least not without some fundamental changes to the way it operates. Chief among those changes would be a move to a more open format and a total revamp of its applications platform. They'll also need to find a way to pay the bills.

I could be wrong of course, and often am, but I get the feeling that in a few years time neither Facebook nor MySpace will matter much. For now they're helping people become familiar with social media and I believe they'll continue fill the gap until a better breed of services comes along, at which point they'll both be soon forgotten.

At the moment, Facebook has many Friends. But perhaps they're the sort you have for a reason or a season, rather than a lifetime. For me at least, that season has now passed.

Today's quote is from a fictional character, but that should make it no less valuable.

"Education is the silver bullet. Education is everything. We don't need little changes. We need gigantic, monumental changes. Schools should be palaces. The competition for the best teachers should be fierce. They should be making six figure salaries. Schools should be incredibly expensive for government and absolutely free of charge to its citizens, just like national defense. That's my position. I just haven't figured out how to do it yet."
- Sam Seaborne, The West Wing [written by Aaron Sorkin]

This lights my fire every time. I couldn't agree more.

If I had to pick one theme to describe this year, it would be change. The world is changing and we all know it. The global economy has changed. The climate is changing. We cheered as Obama promised change we can believe in. We're all looking for change, or can at least sense that it's inevitable. Yet so little of it seems to be actually happening. Why?

For real change to occur, we need to change the way we think about things. For most people, that isn't easy. Certain ways of thinking about things become so entrenched that we can't even imagine the idea that there might be a different way to think about them.

Can you imagine a calendar that didn't have 12 months of roughly 30 days? Can you imagine what it would be like to live in a world without such a calendar? If not, why not?

Can you imagine if every map of the world had the southern hemisphere at the top and the northern hemisphere at the bottom? What would that be like?

I'm not saying we should change the calendars or the maps, but if we can't at least imagine doing so, there is a problem. Big change is always a rough ride; not everyone survives it. The sheer scope of the change human society needs to go through to adapt for the future is simply staggering.

But as a society, we still seem to be struggling with the small stuff. Remember the obsession everyone had over fuel prices a year or two ago and what would happen if they ever crashed through the psychological $1 barrier? It seems silly now, but the point is it was silly then too.

There has been a lot of chatter this year about how old media is dying and new media isn't replacing it fast enough, along with much wailing and gnashing of teeth regarding the future of journalism. But the way the discussion is framed is totally absurd.

There was an article a few days ago in The New York Times about the closure of news bureaux in Washington DC.

Those that remain have cut back drastically on Washington coverage, eliminating hundreds of journalists’ jobs at a time when the federal government — and journalistic oversight of it — matters more than ever.

Where does the assumption come from that more journalists means better journalism? Do more politicians mean better laws? More lawyers better justice?

The world doesn't owe journalists a living, no matter how worthy an ideal journalism might be. Old media is dying simply because its business models don't work any more. It has nothing to do with journalism. The old music industry is dying too, yet people listen to more music than ever. There's every indication the same is true of journalism.

Many people then complain that the business models for new media aren't coming fast enough, as if old media and new media were somehow like two tanks of water where a finite amount of journalism flows gracefully out of one and into the other. That sort of thinking demonstrates a total misunderstanding of the relationship between 'old' and 'new'.

There's nothing graceful about big change from old to new. Those who cling to the old always die in the end, and those who are focussed on the new can rarely wait for them to leave. The sad part of it all is that those who fight for the old and those who fight for the new are often fighting for the same ideals. But for the time between them they might have fought side by side.

So why haven't the new business models arrived yet? Some would say they have. But new media certainly isn't mainstream yet. Why not? Because people need to change the way they think. New media will never truly take off until enough people stop thinking in an old media mindset. Alternative energy will never truly take off until enough people stop thinking in a carbon-dependent mindset.

That's all it is. Never underestimate the power of denial. It won't make a damn bit of difference to the outcome, but it certainly affects the way change happens. The more people resist change, the bloodier it is when it finally arrives. I wonder how many people realise just how bloody this is all going to get in the next few decades. If the $1 fuel debate looks silly now, just wait and see how important the current global economic 'crisis' seems in another year or two.

If you've read this far and you're feeling bleak and concerned about the future - slap yourself now and pay attention! Haven't you been listening?

Old. Always. Dies.

New. Always. Wins.

Keep up with the new. Think different. Keep imagining. It's that simple. There has never been a more exciting time to be alive. What a privilege each and every one of us has to be here in this moment. To be here at all. Why waste precious moments trying futilely to hold on to a way of life that was far from perfect to begin with? Why not help build a better one?

As for the stuffy old Luddites in positions of power who wouldn't know a new way of thinking if it rose up and threw them out of office - get off the world stage already! And to those waiting in the wings to replace them - slap yourselves now and pay attention! Haven't you been listening?

New. Is. Different. To. Old.

That's. What. Makes. It. New.

Stop waiting around for change you can believe in and go make your own. In case you hadn't noticed, the political system is broken too. People seem to want it to work so badly. It already works badly. Why not start thinking about building a better one?

Gotta keep up with the new. You might have your eye on the ball today, but where will it be tomorrow?

Just imagine...

Given the furore over morality and censorship in Australia at the moment, this seems appropriate.

"There is no such thing as a moral or an immoral book. Books are well written or badly written."
- Oscar Wilde

It's not every day you change cities. For me, it's the first time. In fact, it's the first time for a lot of things. I'll be blogging the story of the move as it unfolds. Perhaps it will be interesting to look back on in the future.

Not Just a Job

It's been years since I had a genuine full-time job. I've been self-employed in some fashion for around eight years now, and the jobs I've had during that time have mostly been to support my self-employment in some fashion.

However, since my company went bust last year and I declared bankruptcy, my appetite for self-employment has been dampened somewhat. I promise I will get around to sharing that story one day, but for the moment it's still a bit too raw for me to talk about in detail.

When I move to Melbourne, I've ruled out self-employment as a viable option, at least to begin with. My two best options are to study fulltime study or to find fulltime employment. I've made an application to RMIT to study a Bachelor of Social Science, but I won't know if I've been accepted until January 20, 2009. Given the fact I've been basically broke for the last 18 months however, it would be nice to have some money again, so a fulltime job certainly sounds appealing.

What I'm Looking For

Assuming I go the employment route, there are three main things I'd be looking for in a job opportunity:

• Something in a field I'm passionate about (technology/media/politics)
• Something with a certain degree of independence, autonomy and opportunity for challenging self-development
• A salary over $50,000

That's what it would take to get me interested. Beyond that, I'm open to ideas. I am very capable, committed and resourceful when I'm set on a task, but I have to be engaged and motivated otherwise it's just a waste of the employer's time and mine.

What I'm Like as an Employee

In eight years of self-employment, and especially in the wake of monumental failure, you really develop a deep understanding of yourself. Nevertheless, rather than use my own words, I find it difficult to improve on the assessment of my Myers-Briggs Type Indicator - INFJ - with which I resonate strongly. Here's an excerpt from an INFJ personality type analysis:

INFJs are distinguished by both their complexity of character and the unusual range and depth of their talents. Strongly humanitarian in outlook, INFJs tend to be idealists, and because of their J preference for closure and completion, they are generally "doers" as well as dreamers. This rare combination of vision and practicality often results in INFJs taking a disproportionate amount of responsibility in the various causes to which so many of them seem to be drawn.

INFJs are deeply concerned about their relations with individuals as well as the state of humanity at large. They are, in fact, sometimes mistaken for extroverts because they appear so outgoing and are so genuinely interested in people -- a product of the Feeling function they most readily show to the world. On the contrary, INFJs are true introverts, who can only be emotionally intimate and fulfilled with a chosen few from among their long-term friends, family, or obvious "soul mates." While instinctively courting the personal and organizational demands continually made upon them by others, at intervals INFJs will suddenly withdraw into themselves, sometimes shutting out even their intimates. This apparent paradox is a necessary escape valve for them, providing both time to rebuild their depleted resources and a filter to prevent the emotional overload to which they are so susceptible as inherent "givers." As a pattern of behavior, it is perhaps the most confusing aspect of the enigmatic INFJ character to outsiders, and hence the most often misunderstood -- particularly by those who have little experience with this rare type.

Usually self-expression comes more easily to INFJs on paper, as they tend to have strong writing skills. Since in addition they often possess a strong personal charisma, INFJs are generally well-suited to the "inspirational" professions such as teaching (especially in higher education) and religious leadership. Psychology and counseling are other obvious choices, but overall, INFJs can be exceptionally difficult to pigeonhole by their career paths.

In their own way, INFJs are just as much "systems builders" as are INTJs; the difference lies in that most INFJ "systems" are founded on human beings and human values, rather than information and technology.

Read a full analysis of INFJ here, or find out more about the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator here.

I Hate Resumes

I have a resume, but I don't like it. For all my love of writing, structure and systems, I find it impossible to compile a resume that makes me look like anything other than a scatter-brained chronic underachiever.

I'm not entirely sure what to do about this problem. Once I get to the interview stage I'm totally comfortable, but I find the first step intimidating and embarrassing to the point that I'm genuinely scared of applying for jobs in the first place. If I'm allowed to express myself freely in an application I'm fine, but I find the restrictions of the resume format and the cattle-call recruitment process deeply upsetting and uncomfortable.

I've made my resume, such that it is, available as a PDF.
References are available upon request. Job Search Websites

I truly hate job-search websites. I'm sure I can't be the only one. All the ones I've seen are designed in a way and for a purpose that's totally unhelpful to someone like me. Occasionally I'll feel compelled to give them another go, but they invariably they just make me angry and frustrated.

In the past I have usually found work by applying directly to employers in response to a job posting on their website, by hearing about a position through friends and colleagues or simply on-spec.

The Bottom Line

I've been told by some people in the past that my attitude to things like finding a job seems stubborn, unreasonable or unrealistic. This is a criticism I've learned to live with. The truth is I simply have a personality and a set of skills that lend themselves to a certain way of doing things, and is largely incompatible with what is apparently considered normal.

In the past I have remoulded myself to suit this 'normal' that I hear so much about, but it has never brought me anything other than misery, frustration and disappointment. Eventually I realised that all these attempts to change the fundamentals of who I am are actually quite insulting. I don't ask anyone to compromise their values, and as far as I'm concerned mine are off-limits too.

All this means I've ended up taking an unusual path through life so far, but an interesting and exciting one. My hope is that someone will recognise my unique qualities and point me in the direction of a meaningful and worthwhile opportunity.

If that doesn't happen, I'll find something else to do. I really can't see myself getting a pointless job just for the sake of it. Life's too short to waste time.

Click to see more posts from the 'Moving to Melbourne' series, or start from the beginning.

It seems the poms are taking an interest in the Australian debate over internet censorship. UK-based online magazine Spiked published a collection of three articles on the issue today by Australian authors, myself included.

The articles are as follows:

Tear Down Australia's Great Firewall Reef - Guy Rundle

'Digital Natives' take on censorious Kevin - Danu Poyner

Liberal tyranny on the World Wide Web - Kerry Miller

Spiked describes itself as:

an independent online phenomenon dedicated to raising the horizons of humanity by waging a culture war of words against misanthropy, priggishness, prejudice, luddism, illiberalism and irrationalism in all their ancient and modern forms.

Last night, the ABC screened the final episode of its documentary, The Howard Years, in which the story of the Howard Government's 11 years in office was told by the players. After watching all four episodes, a couple of things became clear that I believe are relevant to the internet censorship debate.

Governments think they know best

Many of the Howard Government's key policies were deeply unpopular with the electorate. The position it took on gun control, the GST, the Iraq war and WorkChoices all provoked massive public anger and widespread riots. And yet every single one of these policies was implemented anyway.

When you hear Howard and Co. tell it, they invariably dismiss the public sentiment and say they implemented the policies anyway because they had to do what was right. That in itself is grounds for a debate on the nature of government and democracy, but it can wait for another day.

Governments can't see outside their own ideology

One gets the impression that at the time, members of the Howard Government honestly did not understand why people were so angry at their policies in the first place, and that a year after being booted out of office, many still don't. Peter Hendy, former Chief Executive of the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry and longtime Liberal Party insider, said he thought all the uproar surrounding WorkChoices was a retaliation for what happened during the 1998 Waterfront dispute.

Alexander Downer said:

It was a political mistake. It might not have been an intellectual mistake or a policy mistake, but it was definitely a political mistake.

Peter Costello said:

The probabilities that people were going to be ripped off in this environment were lower than in the last several decades.

John Howard himself says of WorkChoices in an interview:

If ever we were to enact this further reform, this was the time to do it. A strong economy, a falling level of unemployment. If you didn't do it then, you'd never do it.

With such an attitude, any resistance on moral or ideological grounds was never going to be heard or make the Government change its mind. The resistance certainly helped change people's minds about the Government however, which lost in a landslide to Labor in November 2007. But by then, for those who opposed WorkChoices, the damage had already been done. WorkChoices had already become law.

The more things change, the more they stay the same

The point is - a year later, the bulk of WorkChoices is still law. Sure, Labor promised it would get rid of it, but will it? It seems more likely that they will simply tinker with the existing legislation and rename it 'Forward with Fairness'. That's not the same thing as getting rid of it at all. That's keeping it, but adjusting it to suit yourself.

The Australian internet censorwall must not go ahead. And yet what have we learned from the last 11 years? Sure, we can yell till we're blue in the face about free speech, and we should, but will it really change the Government's mind?

Make no mistake, the Rudd Government is every bit as prone to ideological misadventures and moral panic as the Howard Government was, and indeed most governments are. They're the ones in control. They see it as their duty to 'do what's right', regardless of public opposition.

If the censorwall becomes law, we will never get rid of it, just like we'll never be rid of the GST. It will just get tinkered with by successive governments as it suits them. The biggest threat the censorwall poses is not from what this government wants to do, it's about what every government that comes after will do.

This fight is too important to lose

We cannot allow the censorwall to become law. Thankfully, there are dozens of good reasons why it's a terrible idea and they are easy to explain and verify. I implore you all, fight this fight on policy, not on ideas. It's much harder for the Government to defend a policy that clearly won't work and is a waste of money, as opposed to one that the public simply doesn't like.

The Filtering Fallacies website has a great list of over 100 reasons why the censorwall is a terrible idea. I strongly encourage you to check it out.

"Yesterday was one thing, today is a whole nother thing entirely!"

The practice of splicing the word another with the word whole sounds quite natural when spoken, but really makes no sense when you write it. Is there such a thing as a 'nother'?

The word another only came about in the 16th Century. Before that it was 'an other', but could easily have been mistaken for 'a nother'. That sort of mistake has happened more than you'd think, especially when it comes to words beginning with 'n'. Some interesting examples are:

• an adder - originally from the Middle English naddre, meaning snake
• an apron - originally from the Middle English napron (for some reason the word napery has survived intact)
• a nickname - originally from the Middle English eke name, meaning an additional name
• an umpire - originally from the Middle English noumpere

Linguists call this false splitting, which basically means mistaking where one word ends and the next begins.

The word another isn't an example of false splitting however, it's an example of juncture loss, where two words become one. This is how 'an other' became 'another'. Other examples include:

• atone from at one
• alone from all one
• alligator from the Spanish el lagarto, meaning 'the lizard'

This means when you say 'I saw an alligator', you're really saying 'I saw a the lizard'. There are many similar examples, particularly from Arabic words which have become English words which start with 'al', such as albatross, algebra, alcove, alchemy, alfalfa and alcohol.

But back to this business of 'a whole nother'. Putting one word inside another is a form of what linguists call infixation. It may not be technically correct, but English is so messed up anyway that you may as well live by the motto that if it feels good, do it.

So are you free to go on saying 'a whole nother'? Abso-bloody-lutely!

The Watch Your Language series is a tongue-in-cheek look at the way we have with words.

It's not every day you change cities. For me, it's the first time. In fact, it's the first time for a lot of things. I'll be blogging the story of the move as it unfolds. Perhaps it will be interesting to look back on in the future.

Why move?

I'm 25, and I've lived and worked in the Brisbane/Gold Coast area all my life. It's time for a change. I caught the travelling bug in 2004 and I've since been to Sri Lanka, Singapore, Thailand, Italy, Greece, San Francisco, Los Angeles and Hawaii, among others. Because of my background I am eligible to get a UK passport and in the future I would love to spend some time living and working around Europe. Before I do that though, I'd like to spend some time in one of Australia's biggest cities.

Why Melbourne?

I have been to Melbourne no more than five or six times, and never for more than a few days at a time. My first visit was only for a few hours, in late 2006. But even a few hours was enough time to fall in love with the place. The city has a vibe that reaches out and draws me in. There's always something going on and I feel like no matter how long I stay there, I'll never explore it all. Sydney, by comparison, has plenty going on as well, but I can never seem to escape the lingering sense that it's a city in decay and decline. Besides, Sydney takes itself too seriously. Melbourne is more cultural, playful and quite frankly a total basket case of a city. It's all over the place and that's the way it likes it. I like it too. I can't wait to jump in and immerse myself in its soothing chaos for a while.

Why now?

I began seriously considering a move to Melbourne more than a year ago, but the final decision was made only recently, in late October 2008. The previous year, the business I started and had been managing since 2004 imploded within a few short weeks and I lost everything I'd been working towards for years. My instinct was to pack up and move somewhere to start again, but practical considerations like having tens of thousands of dollars worth of debt with nothing to show for it made that plan difficult to carry through.

Over the last 12 months however, much has changed. I declared bankruptcy, which, while it comes with its own problems, means I am free from debt. I am in a loving relationship with my boyfriend Doug, who saw something in me even at my lowest ebb. He is also keen to travel and likes the sound of Melbourne. I have become a much stronger person as a result of all I've been through and have found new joy and purpose in writing, teaching and learning. I have begun making new friends and connections in new places.

In short, I'm as ready as I'll ever be.

The Plan

'Plan' is perhaps too generous a word. The goal is for Doug and myself to get to Melbourne, find gainful employment, somewhere nice to live, make some friends and have a great time, all in the space of a short time in early 2009.

The nature of the aforementioned employment, the location of the nice place to live and the identity of the friends are all very much up in the air, but that's not to say there's no plan. It's just a matter of starting a lot of plates spinning and seeing which ones make it without smashing. That in itself is an inevitably chaotic process and, as such, is a good part of the fun!

There are already some plates spinning, but it's unlikely I'll know much about the fate of any of them until the new year. Until then, it's a matter of tidying up loose ends and getting ready to jump when the moment comes.

Loose Ends

This past year, I have been making ends meet by doing freelance technology training and support work for a small group of loyal clients. I've also started writing a book which aims to take the fear out of technology by explaining how it works. I originally wanted to have the book finished by the end of 2008, but I've fallen behind because of other things that have been happening. I need to get at least the first full draft complete before I leave though otherwise things will be far too busy and it'll just sit and rot. I also need time to organise the hundred and one things that need to be done for the move. I've informed my clients what's happening and started saying goodbye. I've set aside two periods for them to make final appointments, one before Christmas and one early in the new year.

It's going to be an extremely lean Christmas as I have very little money anyway and I'm cutting off my main source of income by saying goodbye to the clients, but it has to be done.

What's Next?

Having set the fuse which will burn my bridges, I also need to be making arrangements for a safe landing at the other end. I have put in an application with RMIT to start a degree in Social Science next year, though I won't know if I'm been accepted until sometime in January. This is mostly a fallback position anyway. I would like to land a good job that pays well doing something I like. The feelers are already out and I have at least one application pending. I will start looking more seriously after the Christmas break.

Doug is currently helping his parents manage a franchise they bought a few months ago. I believe he will have little trouble finding something suitable quickly in Melbourne when the time comes. The plan is for me to secure something first and when that happens, we move. After the final week of January, he will be ready to move at a moment's notice.

In the meantime, I will work on my book and get the first draft finished. I'm currently about halfway through.

I'll post the next update when further developments unfold.

Click to see more posts from the 'Moving to Melbourne' series.

This will be my last update on writing progress for 2008. At the end of July I decided to pursue writing seriously and set some goals for the rest of the year. Those goals were as follows:

• Establish and maintain a clear focus and purpose
• Build a loyal base of subscribers
• Raise my profile and reputation

In my next update I'll see how I did and set some new goals for 2009. For now, let's look at my progress towards these goals.

By the Numbers

November saw a significant uptick in traffic to my site, prompted mostly by my post called 'How to Defeat Net Censorship'. The issue of net censorship is important to me and this was the third post I had written on the subject, although it was the first that put forward my own ideas and opinions. The post was quickly circulated around the IT community and was linked back to on a number of other blogs. (click here for a list) This is the first time a post of mine has been picked up around the net so it was quite exciting!

As a result, I had a week of unusually high traffic, including one day with 51 visits, the highest I've had so far. Traffic has since tailed off but remains at a higher rate than before my net censorship post.

The main traffic metrics fluctuate a bit from month to month and shift in line with the continual growth in traffic, but by and large they stay around the same level. Around 50-60% of visits to the site are from first-time readers, and around 90% of visitors go to more than one page per visit, with the average number of pages viewed being around 3 to 4.

The percentage of visits originating from referrals on other sites continues to increase, account for roughly 6 in every 10 visits. This is good. On the other hand, visits from search engines currently account for only around 15%, and most of those seem to be people searching for 'danu poyner' on Google. Over time I expect search engine visits to increase as I have a greater amount of content online and my ranking in various search engines improves. Direct visits from people who type my address into the browser or have it bookmarked account for around 25%. These are mostly regular readers and ideally this should be lower over time as I convert them to feed subscribers, whose visits do not show up in these statistics. I currently have around 10-15 feed subscribers. This is an area I need to work on.

Guest Posts

As well as having my highest traffic day ever, November was also the first time I've been asked to write a guest post for another blog. Two, in fact! The first guest post I wrote was for an academic tutoring blog about how mature-age university students could make better use of technology. The second was another piece on net censorship for a site called 'Somebody Think of the Children'. This one was even more exciting because I actually got paid for it, making it my first official paid writing gig. Hooray!

Writing guest posts raises your public profile and increases traffic back to your own site. I hope to be doing more of these in the future as they are a lot of fun.

Copywriting

As well as getting paid to write a guest post, I also did a small job writing copy for the website of a freelance Gold Coast graphic designer. As I write this, the site has not yet gone live, but here is the link anyway - it will be online soon no doubt. This was my first paid copywriting gig! I also hope to be doing more of these in the future.

Twitter

Twitter continues to be an indispensable tool. Both the guest posts and the copywriting job came about through Twitter, and after Facebook, it is the #2 source of traffic to my website. Twitter makes it fun and easy to connect with others in areas you're interested in, and I have been joining the conversation among my favourite circles - technology, politics and media. As a result, I'm becoming more well known in those circles as time goes on.

Book

I finished writing the draft of Chapter 4 during November and have mapped out the narrative of Chapter 5. I have fallen a little behind schedule, but I hope to regain ground when things die off over the Christmas period.

Summary

November was a great month for writing progress. I had my highest traffic ever, took my first steps into the wider blogging community and got my first couple of paid writing gigs. I am starting to get some momentum and things can only go up from here.

A guest post of mine has been published at the PSI Tutor: Academic Mentor website. It's a list of tips and some helpful advice aimed at mature-age university students who are new to or unfamiliar with computers and technology.

The post is called 'How to Survive as a Mature-Aged Digital Migrant' - click here to read it.

Amusingly, I supplied the article with hyperlinks in brackets which I intended to be linked through the text. This wasn't done, so the links just sit there by themselves, although some other words that I didn't link have had links added. I guess the author of the site could use a little tech help themselves

On Thursday 28th November, Crikey published an article about the scandal surrounding the Government's choice of men's health ambassadors.

The article elicited the following comment from a reader the following day:

Michael Byrne writes: Re. "Roxon's ambassadors: homophobic, sexist and totally inappropriate" (yesterday, item 1). Is there a word, or does it require a phrase, to harness those who cast the epithet of "homophobe" against anyone who holds traditional views that homosexuality is an aberration of the natural order of sexual practice, as life source, and relationship? I expect Bernard Keane would wear the new badge with pride.

Bernard appears to be a member of the legion of anger merchants who see the world having begun in the 18th Century and has become complete in their own life time. Anyone who furthers, or more to the point, upholds their social progressive cause in full view of the barrenness of their social outcomes, is praised as a person of conviction. This angry legion labels those with a reasoned contrary conviction as wearisome cultural warriors. The angry legion render tenets, tested in time, as untenable. They worship their social progressiveness in tribunals and courts to silence and punish the ignorant, stupid and their modern day breed of the detached individual, as racists, sexists and whatever other "ists" they define in their dogma.

But I do write in gratitude.

I would not usually journey to the web sites of Marsh and Williams. They too have an angry agenda. However Bernard's reference to the document, 21 Reasons Why Gender Matter, has revealed an informative work with depth and indeed a reference to work with. I do hope there will be a solid rebuttal by Bernard, or other members of the legion, to add more depth to his summation of it as "vile and bigoted". My quickened perusal saw that it covers fundamental issues concerning parenthood and the sense of rightness and unity parenthood brings in such an embrace with nature for couples across continents, cultures, religions and class/caste.

Thank you Bernard.

It's a nasty little comment and I was surprised Crikey had decided to publish it, though they are usually pretty free and easy about giving people space to make a point. Nevertheless, I felt compelled to send in my own comment in response, which was published in today's edition:

Danu Poyner writes: I'm inferring from Michael Byrne's comments on homophobia that he holds the "traditional" view that "homosexuality is an aberration of the natural order of s-xual practice, as life source, and relationship". Michael is, regrettably, entitled to hold these views, but I'm disappointed in Crikey for publishing them and thereby giving both Michael and his views some sense of legitimacy.

It would be nice to be able to get through my day without being attacked, however vicariously, by others for what is an innate and, if you believe so, God-given part of my life and being. To be on the receiving end of such hateful comments is hurtful in and of itself, but hurts more when presented as a reasonable and legitimate viewpoint. I can't argue that it's traditional, but a quick look at other 'traditional' views over the ages invariably puts that idea in context.

Most of all, I resent having to respond to someone else's hateful prejudices. And yet I have to respond to it, because otherwise it goes unchallenged and gains further legitimacy. The burden of proof should be on Michael to support his views, not on those he is attacking to defend themselves. So please, Crikey, unless you think that discrimination and hateful, ignorant prejudice belongs in your publication, don't publish it in future. As for Michael, I have no idea what you have against homosexuals or why it affects you, but I'm happy to discuss it with you if you're interested.

It's a fairly small thing in itself, but I felt something needed to be said. I'm past the days of just letting things slide.

Not everyone spends as many hours on the internet as I do, which means not everyone gets to see the vast swath of stuff it spews forth from day to day. From time to time, I post a selection of my favourite bits - in case you missed it...

Food Security in Japan

There is a global food crisis emerging as a result of overpopulation, evolving lifestyles and climate change. The Japanese Government has created a fantastic 4-minute animation to explain the situation in detail. There are lessons here for all of us. (Thanks Stilgherrian)

Why good writing matters

I often find myself explaining to people why good writing is so important. Ironically, I think this video makes the point better than anything I could write about it. Watch it, it's worth it.

You can never have too many vulvas!

Not my words, but those of The Velvet Vulva, a line of fine purses and magical bags, representing in three-dimensional form the sacred portal to the feminine temple. There's something here for everyone. (Thanks Luke)

The merchandise is surprisingly tasteful, but still incredibly unsettling. I'm curious to see if my traffic skyrockets for certain keywords after posting this...

20 people welcome home a complete stranger

I've written about Improv Everywhere before, the New York drama group who stage public acts of random generosity. Their latest project involved going to the airport, finding a driver holding a sign and then staging a huge welcome home for that person when they arrived, even though they had no idea what was going on. It's funny, and also quite touching.

15 images you won't believe aren't Photoshopped

This site features a collection of images that seem too good to be true, but really are true. They range from amazing to stupid to hilarious to disgusting.

When you visit the page, don't forget to click on Page 2 at the bottom otherwise you'll miss some of the best ones.

Click here for previous editions of In Case You Missed It

Not a bad way to live...

"Life is like playing the piano. First you must learn to play by the rules, then you must forget the rules and play from your heart."
- Anonymous

Have you ever heard something described as 'meteoric'? For example - 'Susan's promotion to cabinet secretary is the latest step in her meteoric political career.'

What does it mean?

The first definition for 'meteoric' provided by the Oxford American Dictionary, unsurprisingly, is:

of or relating to meteors or meteorites.

It then goes on to define 'meteor' as:

a small body of matter from outer space that enters the earth's atmosphere, becoming incandescent as a result of friction and appearing as a streak of light.

That's all well and good and sounds very fancy, especially the bit about the streak of light. But we all know what happens to a meteor. Either it burns up entirely in the atmosphere or it becomes a 'meteorite', for which the definition is decidedly less exciting:

a meteor that survives its passage through the earth's atmosphere such that part of it strikes the ground. More than 90 percent of meteorites are of rock, while the remainder consist wholly or partly of iron and nickel.

The word 'meteoric' is used most often to describe someone's career. Taken at face value, that would appear to mean it hurtles very fast towards the earth and either burns up before it gets there or hits the ground with a big thud. Yet the writer usually intends its meaning to be quite the opposite.

Most dictionaries do take care to note the figurative meaning, where 'meteoric' by consensus appears to be synonymous with 'rapid'. Indeed, a thesaurus search for 'meteoric' will suggest several similar words such as 'lightning', 'swift' and 'speedy'.

But any of those words fail to specify a direction. The default direction of a meteor is earthwards. Can you have a rapid career? That would suggest it's over quickly. So would lightning, swift and speedy.

It simply makes no sense to say someone has a meteoric career unless you mean it burnt up, hit the ground at great speed or was over in a flash. But below are just a few examples of the phrase as it's used regularly by writers in various publications. Click on an image to see the example in its original context.

The last one is my personal favourite because it's from a career coaching company which proudly promises people a 'meteoric career path'.

On the other hand, you can say someone has had a meteoric rise. Indeed, that is what is usually said. But it's still a little strange. When was the last time you saw a meteor rise?

Perhaps the lesson in all this is that if you're a writer looking for a meteoric career rise, then maybe you should keep your writing down to earth.

The Watch Your Language series is a tongue-in-cheek look at the way we have with words.