Today, I spoke to Mike Sacks, who is an editor at Vanity Fair and is the author of And Here’s the Kicker.   Mike talks to us about how important it is to build a website on your domain name if you’re a writer, how to start a writing career and advice for getting to write for major publications.

You own mikesacks.com. Should ever journalist (or person) have their own site?

I think it’s smart, yes, especially for writers. Editors, readers and friends can quickly find what you’ve written, which is important. But I think it’s also vital that you  keep the site simple, and to always have your contact info readily available. Too many sites are too confusing, and contact info is too difficult to find.

What did you learn while writing your book “And Here’s the Kicker…”?

It’s important to do as much research for each interview as possible. The interview will turn out better for it. It’s long, tedious work, but it has to be done. At the very least, the interview subject will respect you for it and open up more than he would have otherwise.

How did you start your writing career?

I sold my first magazine piece a few years after college when I was working in a record store in suburban Maryland called Kemp Mill Records. But I didn’t make a career out of it until years later, after I worked as an editor at the Washington Post.

What advice would you give to anyone looking to write for a major publication these days?

I think it’s practically impossible to make a career as a freelance writer. I’d recommend getting a job in the industry, such as an editorial position, and freelance write on the side. By doing this, you can also network, which is incredibly important.

Where do you think the media industry is heading in the future?

I think the media titans of the future will be found working out of their basements in their boxers and T-shirts. The industry will be run by many more people with a lot less power (and money).

——–
Mike Sacks has written for Vanity Fair, Esquire, GQ, The New Yorker, Time, McSweeney’s, Radar, MAD, New York Observer, Premiere, Believer, Vice, Maxim, Women’s Health, and Salon. He has worked at The Washington Post, and is currently on the editorial staff of Vanity Fair.  His first book, And Here’s the Kicker: Conversations with 26 Humor Writers About Their Craft, was released in the Spring of 2009. Some of those interviewed include: George Meyer, Harold Ramis, Al Jaffee, Buck Henry, Bob Odenkirk, Stephen Merchant, David Sedaris, Jack Handey, Robert Smigel, and Daniel Clowes.

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When someone seems stuck in their career and unsure of their next step, a question they’re often asked to answer is, “What are you passionate about?” That seems like a logical starting point. After all, when you’re working on your passion, whatever it is, the belief is that you’ll enjoy yourself more and be more willing to do what needs to be done.

But is passion really enough? I thought it was until I saw a movie this weekend called Herb and Dorothy which chronicles the true story of a Manhattan couple, who over a 40-year period amassed one of the most impressive collections of Minimalist and Conceptual art—nearly 5,000 pieces—all on a postal worker’s salary, and all from a one-bedroom apartment.

They lived day-to-day on Dorothy’s salary as a librarian and spent every penny Herb made on art. They bought pieces that they liked, were affordable and could fit into their tiny living space.

You could say they had a passion for art, but I also saw a very deep commitment to it as well. They spent every single dollar and every single free moment they had immersed in art, learning about it, talking about it, visiting galleries, meeting artists.

I really didn’t get Herb and Dorothy at first. Early in the film, I was disturbed by what seemed like an extreme art addiction. No matter how much they collected, they kept wanting more. What was the point of collecting so many pieces? When you had to start stacking works under the bed shouldn’t that have been a signal that enough was enough? It seemed like a constant thirst that couldn’t be quenched, and that bothered me.

But then I thought about the other extreme, that group of people who work and live without either passion or commitment. Going through the motions, caring very little and giving up at the first obstacle. That actually bothered me more. And it should bother you too because those people could be working for you, interacting with your customers, influencing your staff, or involved in something much more critical to your life.

Just getting by

You can’t really control the actions or motivations (or lack thereof) of others. You can’t manifest a desire within someone to do well; only they can do that. But what you can do is be a role model and develop excellence in yourself by re-committing to commitment.

If you’ve already identified what you’re passionate about from a work standpoint, ask yourself next how you can also remain committed to it for the long term, because that’s the true turning point towards excellence.

How can I be committed to being the best at what I do? How can I:

• Put in the time that’s required?
• Invest the money that’s needed?
• Build the relationships I need to build?
• Learn everything I need to know?

Being passionate about your work is for your benefit. Being committed to your work is for the benefit of others. Only when both elements of the equation are addressed can you be truly excellent in your field.

Author:

Liz Lynch is founder of the Center for Networking Excellence and author of Smart Networking: Attract a Following In Person and Online (McGraw-Hill, 2008). Connect with Liz on Twitter at @liz_lynch and get your free Smart Networking Toolkit at http://www.SmartNetworking.com.

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This is the first in a series of Personal Brand Audits, where we’ll make sure you’re keeping the touch points of your personal brand fresh and up to date.

LinkedIn is an absolutely vital part of your personal branding efforts online. If you don’t have a LinkedIn account yet, start by reading Dan Schawbel’s How to Build Your Personal Brand on LinkedIn.

Personal Brand Audit: LinkedIn

1. Is your headshot up to date?

If you want people to remember you, a picture is worth a thousand words. Have a photographer friend snap a few pictures in the studio to keep your professional headshot up to date.

2. Is your profile 100% complete?

Log into your account and make sure your profile is 100% complete. It only takes a few minutes.

3. Is your professional headline up to date?

Update your professional headline, which is separate from your current position. Make sure it reflects what you’re up to today. You can also use it to display your future goals.

4. Is your summary up to date?

Your summary is one of the most important parts of your profile. It’s the first thing people read to find out who you are, what you’re all about, and what you’re up to today. Keep it concise, compelling, and current.

5. Is your experience up to date?

It’s easy to let the experience section go stale. Make sure that you include new items if applicable, and if you change careers, tweak your experience section to reflect how it applies to your new career path.

6. Are you using applications to promote your content?

If you have a blog, display your feed using a LinkedIn application like the WordPress app. Same goes with SlideShare and your presentations. Aggregate the external touchpoints of your personal brand into one place on your LinkedIn profile with apps.

7. Are your recommendations current and applicable to your current goals?

Stale recommendations reflect the fact that you haven’t been WOWing anybody lately. Check out Jason Alba’s Asking For LinkedIn Recommendations for tactful advice about soliciting recommendations.

8. Have you claimed your public profile URL?

Claim your public profile URL so you can promote your profile in your email signature, resume, business card, blog, etc. in an attractive and easy to read format.

9. Have you imported your email contacts to connect with contacts you’re missing?

Import your email contacts to make sure your email acquaintances are also your LinkedIn connections.

10. Have you boycotted the default Invitation to Connect text, and customized your invitations?

Nobody wants to hear this boring default text three times a day: “I’d like to add you to my professional network on LinkedIn.” Personalize your invitations to connect to people in a meaningful, human way.

11. Have you joined relevant groups?

Join relevant groups and discussions to connect with major players in your industry by using the search tool to find groups by industry. Join groups, post relevant articles and participate in discussions.

12. Have you joined in relevant discussion in the past two weeks?

Meet people with common interests by participating in discussions related to your personal brand. Make yourself known as someone with thoughtful insights and a helpful attitude.

13. Have you asked or answered questions on LinkedIn answers in the past two weeks?

Use LinkedIn Answers to ask intelligent questions and answer others’ questions in your field. Remember to cite facts by linking to their sources.

14. Have you tapped your network in the past two weeks?

Let your network know what you are looking for. Searching for speaking gigs? Organizing a workshop? Building a mastermind group? Message people directly and set your LinkedIn status to reflect what you’re looking for to build your brand.

Tally Up: What’s your LinkedIn Audit Score?

Tally up your answers to determine your LinkedIn audit score. If you scored 0-7, take a few minutes right now to improve your standing. If you scored 8-11, set some time aside this weekend to improve your score. If you scored 12-14, you’re on the ball – keep up the great work.

Here are the audit questions, to recap:

1. Is your headshot up to date?
2. Is your profile 100% complete?
3. Is your professional headline up to date?
4. Is your summary up to date?
5. Is your experience up to date?
6. Are you using applications to promote your content?
7. Are your recommendations current and applicable to your current goals?
8. Have you claimed your public profile URL?
9. Have you imported your email contacts to connect with contacts you’re missing?
10. Have you boycotted the default Invitation to Connect text, and customized your invitations?
11. Have you joined relevant groups?
12. Have you joined in relevant discussion in the past two weeks?
13. Have you asked or answered questions on LinkedIn answers in the past two weeks?
14. Have you tapped your network in the past two weeks?

Good luck, have fun, and remember: a little personal branding effort now pays off dividends later.

Author:

Pete Kistler is a leading Online Reputation Management expert for Generation Y, a top 5 finalist for Entrepreneur Magazine’s College Entrepreneur of 2009, one of the Top 30 Definitive Personal Branding Experts on Twitter, a widely read career development blogger, and a Judge for the 2009 Personal Brand Awards. Pete manages strategic vision for Brand‐Yourself.com, the first online reputation management platform for job applicants, named one of the Top 100 Most Innovative College Startups in the U.S.

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Today, I spoke to Mark Goulston, M.D., who is a business advisor, consultant, trainer and coach trained as a clinical psychiatrist and author of the new book, Just Listen: Discover the Secret to Getting Through to Absolutely Anyone.  In this interview, Mark compares listening and speaking, goes over the elements of persuasion, shares some tips for getting attention at work and more.

Mark, can you compare listening and speaking. Which is more important during a networking situation and why?

Your partner, spouse or kids are not the only ones who don’t want an unsolicited opinion or advice or to be convinced of something. The people you meet in a networking situation actually feel the same even though paradoxically they want something from you. Is that difficult to believe? How would you feel if someone overtly (vs. covertly) said to you without being asked: “I’m here to sell you on hiring me or purchasing my service or product.”

Your goal in a networking situation is to say the least possible that will spontaneously trigger a response such as, “How do you do that?” or “Tell me more,” or “I need to follow up with you; what’s the best way to get in touch with you?” or “Can I call you tomorrow?” or “Are you accepting new clients or customers?”

Speaking more than you listen, jumping to conclusions, and interrupting people are highly unlikely to generate the responses above. What will generate those responses is asking questions and then listening intently to the answers in a way that shows genuine interest in the other person. In doing so, this will trigger reciprocal interest in you – except in the case of “dyed in the wool” takers – with whom you should be careful about revealing too much.

Sample questions that trigger spontaneous responses from others include:

• Show your interest in the service or product: “What do you (or your service or product or company) do, and who do you do it for, and when?”
• Go deeper and show an interest in another individual as a person: “How did you get into that?” “What’s the best part of what you do?”
• One of my favourite questions (I can get away with this as a psychiatrist, but when you have time you can also ask it) is: “Where and from who did you learn the best lessons on how to succeed in life, and what were those lessons?”

This last question is terrific, because it causes the other person to remember someone they feel grateful to and what they feel grateful about…and at some level they will be grateful to you for giving them the chance to feel it.

What is the relationship between listening and persuading someone to do something?

Everybody functions as if they were in a silo. And every silo looks at the world differently. When you try to persuade someone without knowing or caring where that person is coming from (because you too are blinded by your siloed view of the world), it’s like entering that person’s room or office without knocking.

Listening deeply earns you the right to persuade people to do something. I usually make the transition between listening and persuading transparently (vs. sneakily) by saying to someone after I have heard them out, “Might I make an observation from what you’ve said?” At that point I can summarize what I’ve heard and then come to a conclusion that begs for a solution. For instance, I may say: “I’ve heard that you want to accomplish such and such a goal by year-end, but I’ve also heard that your people may not be skilled enough to pull it off and so I wonder what training you have in place for them to get up to speed?”

How do you break through emotional barricades by listening and what results will you receive?

It’s what I call, “listening with my eyes,” and commenting on a barricade or roadblock I am noticing. So if someone seems resistant to something we have spoken about that makes patent and obvious sense, I might say: “I see you nodding that what we are talking about makes sense, and yet I perceive something is holding you back. What question haven’t I asked or situation haven’t we addressed that if we addressed, would address and ease some of the reluctance you are having right now about our moving forward with this?”

The key is that when the other person begins to tell you about their internal reservations, you acknowledge those reservations instead of bulldozing through them. Invite the other person into collaboration to solve their reservations. You can do so by saying something like: “I understand exactly where you’re coming from and your hesitation. Since you have agreed that what we’re talking about makes sense, how might we resolve or work around that issue that is causing you to hesitate?”

What are your top three tips for making your manager or co-workers pay attention and care about your work?

1. A lob into the future. Ask your manager or co-workers to imagine it is a year down the road and they are evaluating the past year. Say, “It was much better than any of us could have expected and we dodged a few bullets that we normally would not have paid attention to.” After they agree to do that, ask them to answer: “What happens this year to make that so?” Finally, articulate with them how and where what you do will play a critical role in that success.
2. Anticipatory Performance Review Training. Say to your boss or co-worker, “At my next performance review I am looking to have everyone who weighs in on it to say, ‘Give him a promotion and more money.’ What results will I need to get for that to occur?” Whatever they say, repeat it exactly back to them and wait for a confirmatory, “Yes.” A confirmatory “Yes” deepens their commitment to giving you the promotion or raise when you achieve those results. To make those results more achievable for you say to them: “In the event going forward I see that I need additional training or that I have to let go of some other projects I’m working on, and you may need to run interference for me, what’s the best way to elicit support from you on either issue?”
3. Earning respect gets you noticed. Say to your manager or co-worker that you have made a commitment to improve your performance, increase your results and the respect that people have for you and would like their help. Therefore you would like them to point out three things you should always do and three negative things you should never do that would cause them to increase their respect for you and also probably impact on your performance and results.

How have you built your own personal brand?

I am still a medical doctor at heart, because what still drives me in my relationships with other people is to listen deeply to them. My goal is to be of service to the other person without keeping score of what I am getting in return. Because of my natural inclination to be of service to others, it is important for me to select people to be involved with who are reciprocal by nature. I have developed relationships with some of the top CEO’s in the country by practicing exactly that. I never sell them on anything; I always try to make their lives better. With time – and after they realize that I have no hidden agenda – they spontaneously reciprocate and want to help make my life better.

And as MasterCard might say, “Generosity from a Fortune 500 CEO…priceless.”

—–
Mark Goulston, M.D. is a business advisor, consultant, trainer and coach trained as a clinical psychiatrist.  He is a Fellow of the American Psychiatric Association and was named one of America’s Top Psychiatrists for 2004-2005 and again in 2009 by Washington, D.C. based Consumers’ Research Council of America.  A partial list of companies and organizations he has trained, spoken to, provided executive coaching to or consulted with include: GE, IBM, Goldman Sachs, and Merrill Lynch.  He is a member of the National Association of Corporate Directors and the Worldwide Association of Business Coaches and is the best selling author of four books including Just Listen: Discover the Secret to Getting Through to Absolutely Anyone (AMACOM, 2009), is a contributor to Harvard Business, blogs for the Huffington Post, writes the Tribune media syndicated column, Solve Anything with Dr. Mark, column on leadership for FAST COMPANY, Directors Monthly. He is frequently called upon to share his expertise with regard to contemporary business, national and world news by television, radio and print media including: Wall Street Journal, Harvard Business Review, Fortune, Newsweek, Time, Los Angeles Times, ABC/NBC/CBS/Fox/CNN/BBC News, Oprah, Today.

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A dominant dimension of your personal brand is your personal history. Not your baby book and photos of you at prom. Your personal awareness and actions involving the events of the day: political, cultural, social, environmental, economic and otherwise. I call this dimension “personal brand engagement,” where you develop and communicate your take on what’s at stake in the world.

Part of my personal brand engagement is in public policy. During the years I hosted International Business on public radio it was my job to talk to the world’s most important people in business, politics, labor and government. That decade forced me to get smart and communicate about controversial topics.

These days, I have less time and a bit less access because my focus is largely on business. The upside is I am a civilian; I get to feel as much as think about the events of the day. For example, I worry about Iraq and Afghanistan like they are as close by as Canada and Mexico – our neighbors. I worry about the families there like I worry about the Hurricane Katrina families. I hope the schools and roads we have built matter to them, even if it is no exchange for their personal losses – we could be talking about anywhere there’s been damage and an attempt to repair.

I am an equal opportunity worrier. I hope the women in Afghanistan aren’t left in the dark world they can’t escape without help. I hope the newly homeless schoolchildren in America aren’t left without hope, since they can’t escape the destabilizing world of profound poverty without help.

Sending good thoughts and money

Because hope isn’t a strategy or tactic, I give money to people who seem to be making a difference. Occasionally, I advocate when I think an audience is powerful enough to change the world (I do speak to some very smart people). I don’t bring my soapbox everywhere.

This week on Facebook, one of my clients posted his take on the US healthcare reform bill. Greg’s personal brand engages often on financial issues, especially when they crisscross with social programs. His most recent post was about the tax impact of insuring all of us. On that topic, I engaged on what had astonishingly arisen from the ire: the safety of the President of the United States is at stake. The marchers on Washington last week carried a sign that read, “Bury Obamacare with Kennedy.” The tenor of the demonstration reminded me of reports about Dallas when President Kennedy made his fatal visit to Texas. The town hall meeting goers with machine guns strapped on and broadcasters’ violence laden talking points this week, sounded like the days before the Kennedy assassination.  I may be wrong but I am worried about what is being fomented.

Double dare you

How dangerous is it to let your personal brand engage on such controversy, and with a point of view that may not be the most popular? You may not have a choice as your clients have increasing access to you – and as people look to you for thought leadership on global events.

How can you interact on these topics without alienating people with opposing points of view? Demonstrate the depth of emotional intelligence and maturity that thought leaders bring to controversy. Ignore personal attacks and don’t make them. President Obama is a perfect example of what to do when you are the target of venom.  As we witnessed in real time Congressman Joe Wilson slide down the slippery slope of incivility with his outburst, “you lie,” the President didn’t react.

There’s an old adage about not talking politics and religion in polite company, but that saying is old and it hasn’t aged well. To not have a take on global climate change, carbon footprints, the economic crisis, homelessness, health care and war is to be perceived as vacuous and perhaps irresponsible.

You, only higher up

As you becoming increasingly important, other people will want to know you better. One of my dear friends played bass for Christina Aguilera on tour. I laughed when Michael remarked, “Think about spending 2 hours onstage but 22 hours offstage with the same people for months. You get to know each other better than you know your family.” As your star rises, people will know you really well.

Great brands have loyal customers and great reputations. The advantage you have over soda and soap is this: you have a heart and a brain. Consider how you use them to connect yourself to the world, and how you can open up dialogues that showcase your thoughtful perspective and facilitate others to engage with you likewise.

Always allow that you, like me, may be wrong – but we have a responsibility to be engaged in events that shape our world.

How do you kick start your personal brand engagement?

1.    Get smart. Read a news article a day from a website not in your home country. In the US? Try Asia Week or the London Telegraph.
2.    Feel it. Read the article again as if you were a citizen of that locale.
3.    Engage with it. Jot down an elevator pitch concerning the story. What would you say to a stranger, to inform them about the news – and your take on it?

By the way, the Facebook dialogue with my client concluded with each of us urging the other to take the lead and get other people engaged – in all dimensions of the health care controversy. Because he’s the client, I may have to step up.

Author:

Nance Rosen is the author of Speak Up! & Succeed. She speaks to business audiences around the world and is a resource for press, including print, broadcast and online journalists and bloggers covering social media and careers. Read more at NanceRosenBlog. Twitter name: nancerosen.

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I just got back from New York City and today is my 26th birthday.  I was going to blog about my time spent in New York, but I think I’ll save that for another day.  I would have also blogged about my accomplishments to date and some future projects that you’ll be hearing about soon.  Instead of these two posts, I would like to tackle some celebrity incidents that have appeared in the news recently and share some branding lessons.  The three I would like to discuss are Kanye West at the MTV Video Music Awards (VMA’s), Serena Williams at the U.S. Open, and then Joe Wilson during Obama’s health care speech.  I don’t watch TV, so I missed out on each of these three events, but was filled in by stories shared on social networks and friends who spoke about it.

In each case, a celebrity has stepped out of line and has brought negative attention to their brand. Some say that all press is good press, but I guarantee that a lot of people have lost respect for these stars and are not fans anymore.  In fact, I bet many people will cheer against them.  When it comes to your personal brand, you want to try and get as much positive exposure as possible.  When you become more and more well known, the stakes are higher and everything you do will be exposed to a greater audience.  In this case, the entire world heard about these three stories and they spread through many different forms of media very rapidly.

1.  Kanye West

If you haven’t seen the VMA’s from last night yet, then you still probably heard about this whole Kanye incident. During Taylor Swift’s acceptance speech for “Best Female Video,” Kanye grabbed the microphone and gave a shout out to Beyonce, who was one of the other nominees for the award.  He said that Beyonce had the best video of the year and the crowd was not happy.  In fact, I heard that his publicist is no longer working with him and that he might be banned from future events of this nature.  From the social media side, there were over 5,000 tweets when the incident first occurred, and then suddenly over 50,000!  Taylor Swift fans on Twitter started the hash tag and trending topic “#teamtaylor” to support her.

If you examine this more closely, you’ll notice that Kanye is one of the producers for Jay-Z’s new album, Blueprint 3, which is coming out soon.  This media “spark” might be a huge promotion for it.  Of course Kanye, Beyonce and Jay-Z are all friends and work with each other, so there may be something sketchy going on here.  The results are clear: a People Magazine poll stated that 77% of people would pay money to see Kanye shut his mouth till New Years and another poll from TV Guide stated that 84% of people felt that it wasn’t staged.  It was obvious that Kanye was either drunk, on drugs or all the above.

2.  Serena Williams

Serena was defending her U.S. Open title in a match against Kim Clijsters, got into a verbal fight with the line judge.  Serena disputed a foot fault and supposedly she said that she would killer her.  This resulted in a penalization of one point, which ended up costing her the match.  Previously, she was given a violation for smashing her racquet.  Obviously Serena needs anger management classes or a shrink.  The results were that she was fined ,000, which probably isn’t a lot to her.  The video below has been viewed almost one million times since it was uploaded!

3.  Joe Wilson

Joe Wilson is the South Carolina Republican congressman, who is now famous for screaming “You lie!” to President Obama during his healthcare speech to Congress last Wednesday.  Now the liberals and conservatives are up in arms wanting apologies.  This incident might have been a planned attack because the results were that Wilson and his Democratic opponent, Rob Miller, raised over .5 million dollars.  Punishments for this type of interruption can range from censure through a resolution or expulsion.

Brand analysis

All three of these celebrities have had their Google search results sprayed with poor headlines. What you’ll notice when you do a search for their name is that stories from major news outlets will appear towards the top, which is the first impression a viewer will get of their brands. Another trend for celebrities is that their Wikipedia page, which ranks high in search engines, will get blasted with their bad press as well, which creates a more powerful and consistent effect.

What you can learn from these mistakes

1. Don’t do things just to get attention.
2. Focus on building your brand in a positive light because you’ll have more rewards later and less stress.
3. Think about the people who are already associated with your brand.  When you mess up, they look bad.  This can be the company you work for, your parents, friends, teachers, etc.
4. Even if you mess up, try your best to remedy it as soon as you possibly can, otherwise social media will take over and word will spread faster than you can imagine.
5. Branding is a long term process, so even if you attract a lot of attention with a stunt, your brand will get hurt in the future, based on what you do today.

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*** Clearly my WOM Enthusiast hat is on with this post.

The FTC works to protect consumers from being influenced by unethical, untruthful, and unscrupulous business practices. Updated guidelines will address the need for endorsers, reviewers, and businesses to be 100% transparent and disclose when material compensation (in-kind gifts, special access privileges) and outright compensation (cash) changes hands.

On September 14, 2009, WOMMA hosted a webinar on ETHICS & ENDORSEMENTS: What is Adequate Disclosure. The diverse panel included marketers, entrepreneurs, a professor, a marketing analyst, and a lawyer.

It is a non-negotiable … businesses must solve for being obvious and upfront when a brand offers in-kind gifts, special access privileges, and cash as part of a marketing program designed to spark word-of-mouth.

Solutions discussed by the panelists centered around being clear and conspicuous when disclosing material relationships between a brand and a consumer. Practical implications talked about on the webinar included: “disclosure badges” on websites, prominently placed “terms of engagement” practices, specially designated “product review” blogs, and uniquely tagging of tweets (such as [#ad]).

• The complete 60-minute webinar can be accessed here.
• You are invited to dig deeper into this important matter by reading and contributing to WOMMA’s Living Ethics Blog.

Continuing my “Would you Miss” series …

What say you?

Post inspiration | Mavericks at Work

Here’s my 2 cents. The execution of the new logo is fine if you’re just looking to make a change. Personally I wouldn’t do it just for the sake of doing it. But obviously there was some sort of strategy change because they eliminated the word “Farm”. And that’s WHAT I don’t like about it. Farm meant organic to me. It represented all that was good and different. I mean really, how many yogurt/milk choices are you faced with when they stare at you in the face at a grocery store?

To me FARM was the reason I bought Stonyfield. It meant personal touch, small and caring and fresh.

What say you Kahunas?