Branding David

For a very long time now, I have been a WordPress user. I have released free and paid themes, I’ve worked on a few different plugins, I’ve blogged about WordPress (Blogging Pro) and its community, and I’ve been part of two WordPress focused podcasts (WordPress Podcast and WordPress Weekly). I never reached the brand tie-in that many upper echelon WordPress fans have been able to reach, despite having been using the software, and touting its awesomeness for far longer than most. This limitation has been, in my mind due to my need to speak out on things that I find odd, unreasonable, and strange, as well as my inability to really connect with the people doing the amazing work behind the scenes.

My post today isn’t about my involvement with WordPress though. Instead it is about WordPress itself, and the unfortunate state of the WordPress community today. It isn’t the WordPress community of a few years ago. Things are a mess, and I feel like I need to stand up, one more time, and go over my thoughts on the current state of the WordPress project. (more…)

In the midst of talking to a good friend of mine, Tom Leroux, he mentioned that I buy and sell online projects like some people change their socks, and I had to agree with him, though since last talking to him, my philosophy of working online had changed.

I quickly presented him with my new set of rules.

1. No more writing for other people.
2. Only start projects that I can see myself doing for 5 or more years
3. No more selling projects

Of course there are always exceptions to rules, but I think that following this set of ideals will help me become more passionate and successful online. I’ve always had issues with staying focused, and that was usually because I was chasing money instead of chasing passion or my dreams.

It is hard to be passionate for a long period of time, and even more so when you aren’t doing exactly what you want to be doing. I’ve had numerous people in the past tell me how cool it must be to work as a blogger full time, but they don’t give thought to the types of topics I have to cover in order to pay my wages. I’ve written about so many things I have no interest in, and worked very hard, only to end up at the end of a period of time with “nothing”.

What are your own “rules” for working, either online or offline?

Here are some of my latest domain purchases, some of which I want to develop, others that just seem decent to me.

• BargainVine.com
• BrandRant.com
• BrandShoppe.com
• CapitalSeed.com
• DomainStumbler.com
• GoThumbs.com
• HireVine.com
• LessonNetwork.com
• LinkedCareers.com
• LogoSpring.com
• MarketingBits.com
• MatchTask.com
• OptimumPPC.com
• PayPerClickEdge.com
• PictureNest.com
• RSStoMobile.com
• TaskMatch.com

I have to stop buying domains, but I really enjoy acquiring new names. They give me ideas, most of which I’ll never find time to utilize, but all are fun to consider.

I have always thought of myself as an idea person. I am good at coming up with ideas for solutions to problems, or to create new sites.

I don’t think of myself as a domainer, but I definitely own more than my fair share of domain names at this point.

Anyone else suffer this exciting, and potentially expensive “disease”?