For the past few weeks I have been promoting my new photography site using Twitter, Facebook and email. It only makes sense to use Rural Technocrat as an avenue to share some of my work – check it out at ColeMason.ca!

Hello my readers! While I have a few ideas for new posts percolating, I want to get in the habit of interacting with all of you so that I can provide the best content possible. Be it marketing, domain, interview, tea, book, data or Web-related I encourage you to suggest topics for future Rural Technocrat posts. Feel free to comment below, fill out the contact form or send me an email!

In the meantime, take a look around and jump into some of the categories you enjoy – who knows what you could have missed! I look forward to hearing your suggestions and have a great weekend everyone,

Cole

Over the last couple of hours I have been flipping through my old, and current, “idea notebooks” looking for something to really spark my interest. The nuggets of information and previous insights that I came across astounded me and have provided some spectacular motivation. The notion of “idea notebooks” is something that I take to heart. I try to have notebooks with me at all times and in all places (camera bag, laptop bag, jacket pockets) so that I can jot down quick notes and ideas that would otherwise be forgotten. Sure, I could type small notes into my iPhone, but I am less likely to expand on those ideas at a later date.

I would love to hear how Rural Technocrat readers keep track of their ideas, thoughts, musings, and anything else while on the road or at home relaxing. My primary notebook (pictured in this post) is a Moleskine 5″ x 8″ hardcover squared notebook, while I also use a collection of super-thin Moleskine 3″ x 5″ lined notebooks when mobility is more of an issue. Share with us what you use!

Let loose!!

Well, it has been a slow couple of weeks at Rural Technocrat as I have been taking some much needed personal time to get back to basics and sort some things out. I have a few articles underway so look forward to those in the near future!

On another note, I am still unemployed, but I have taken it easy on the job applications that last few weeks in attempt to lower stress levels – still unsure if that worked! ANYWAYS, If you are an employer you are in luck as I am available and willing to start ANYTIME! How about I take a few minutes to discuss the work I wish to find.

Most of you that have been here before have probably checked out my curriculum vitae, but if not I encourage you to take a look! Please keep in mind that this is a VERY detailed résumé and is not the same as the succinct file that I send to employers. My formal education consists of an Honours Bachelor of Business Administration and an Honours Bachelor of Science in Computer Science, both of which were received from a top Canadian business school, Wilfrid Laurier University. In addition, I have sixteen months of relevant co-op experience – eight at each of Goldman Sachs and Bell Canada.

I am looking to establish myself in a business role that takes advantage of both degrees as well as my passion for technology and the Web. The ideal position would be located in Toronto or Vancouver (open to any other major city world-wide) and be in the field of marketing or business analysis. My abilities to organize, analyze, synthesize, but most importantly learn, make me an ideal candidate for any organization. I am very passionate about changing the way business is carried out and have hopes of stream-lining and tailoring the workplace for the next generation. Now is the time to adapt and I am willing to play an integral role in both accepting and championing a fundamental shift in how business is done.

I welcome information regarding any job opportunity you may have to offer. Please check out my CV and contact me if you have a relevant opening!

First, I would like to thank all of my readers for taking the time to visit my site. Recently I had a surge of traffic after the posting of Hiring Process Likes & Dislikes (thanks @andreipetrik) that really got me excited about what rural Technocrat can become. For this reason I would like encourage all of my visitors to use the power of social media and relationships to share my site with others! Come on readers, it is time to promote the hell out of rural Technocrat. Not only can you do things to help me, but I will reciprocate to help YOU!

What you can do for me

Spread the word. If there is a specific article you enjoy or just like this site in general, spread it to others using Digg, Reddit, StumbleUpon, Delicious, Twitter, Facebook, your own website and even email.
Comment. Have something to add to an article or want to start a discussion? Leave a comment! There is no doubt that you will meet some cool people this way and always be sure to include your website.
Suggestions. The only way that I can provide my readers with relevant content is to give you what you want. I am a mind reader only a small portion of the time so email me some suggestions for content, design, or anything else and I will do what I can. I love hearing from my visitors!
Link to me. This is targeted at my fellow bloggers – I know that many of you have far more traffic than I, but you were, at some point, my size so you understand how difficult it can be to reach a larger audience. Add me to yourblogroll and I will reciprocate. Better yet, feel free to excerpt my articles for your own use.

Come on people, lets get BIGGER!

Are you new to rural Technocrat or are looking for suggested articles to pass around?
Collecting Product Feedback that Already Exists on the Web
Shift to a Data-rich Web
Hiring Process Likes & Dislikes
Building an Online Presence for Free Using Social Media

Well, the holidays are now among us! In between family obligations and sports viewing why not read a book or two? Here are a few books that I have enjoyed:

Have a book you think I would enjoy? Please let me know!

Well, it has been a long time coming, but I am finally jumping back into the blogosphere with my latest incarnation, rural TECHNOCRAT. Before I jump into discussing what I hope to achieve with this site let me briefly go over a little about what I have previously achieved on the Web.

During 2006 and part of 2007 I was the creator and sole editor of Shift+Backspace, a blog dedicated to the promotion of Linux and open-source software. I was extremely passionate about the proliferation of software with freedom and, for that for that reason, I provided over one thousand daily visitors with various software/distribution reviews, opinion pieces, and news related to the open-source community. The project was beneficial on a personal level as it helped me improve my written communication skills and gave me a sense of belonging, along with credibility, in the open-source community. The project came to a close as I began a co-op position with Goldman Sachs causing my free time to slowly dwindle away – without contributions on a regular basis it was difficult to continue and as such Shift+Backspace was retired.

A lot of time has passed between 2007 and 2009 so what have I been doing? Well, first and foremost, I completed my education – receiving both an Honours Bachelor of Business Administration (HBBA) and an Honours Bachelor of Science in Computer Science (HBSc) from Wilfrid Laurier University, located in Waterloo, Ontario. There have been various side projects with friends, notably one called Ninja’s Ninja. A group of friends and I found that we were continuously sharing funny videos, images, and insults with each other so we thought a website to share these would be ideal – sadly it was not. My partner in that pursuit has since become a Hawaiian-shirt-wearing and outdoor-living hippie. He is attempting to “reinvent”, either himself or the world by gathering a group of people to start a hunter-gatherer group in Ontario or New York. Feel free to hit up the Reinvent 2009 website for details.

There you have it, a brief look into my life for the past few years. So what is the deal with rural TECHNOCRAT? I originally used the domain to showcase my amazing experiences and skills to potential employers. While this was fine, I wanted to start discussing my passions – the Web, technology and business. It is my hope to pursue a career in the field of Internet marketing, trend analysis or business development for a technology firm. To tie these together future posts on this site will bring together ideas, resources and commentary that relate to my passions and career aspirations.

Well, I should stop rambling and start working on some content! I encourage everyone to contact me through the Contact page with recommendations, ideas, complaints, and anything else you can think of. I  truly hope to provide my community of followers with quality content on a regular basis and with your support I see only success.

Take care everyone,

Cole