I have to admit that when I first heard about OC SOCIALIFE I rolled my eyes.

Really?

Just what the fine folks of Orange County need.

Another reason to get trapped into some scammy networking nightmare: I have some friends I’d like to introduce you to.  Oh, there’s something you don’t see every day, a drunk middle-aged guy.  And here comes the pitch: “Just sign here and for $595 you can get started on the path to riches with a parcel of land in booming Costa Rica.”

No.  No.  A thousand times no.  We’ve seen this movie.  We are living this movie.  We don’t need any more of that right now.  Or ever.

Networking needs to be reinvented.  And so does philanthropy and conferences and featured speaker talks.  If social media has taught us anything it’s that YOU have a ton to offer.  And that the best opportunities come when like-minded people can find each other, make a connection and start collaborating.

Brent Callaway gets that in spades.

Only an optimistic jock from Odessa Texas would lay down a bet that he could grab Orange County by the shoulders and shake up what it means to be social.

For every social media marketing rookie talking about “conversations” and scheduling tweets on Hootsuite there are a thousand of us wondering where the real conversations are.

They are offline.  It’s meeting people face to face because you enjoy getting away from your desk.  Because you love helping out a local charity and want to discover new businesses doing cool things.  Because you want to create community.

Community.  There’s the rub.  We all want it and it gnaws at us without us knowing what it is we’re after.  We are social animals.  We feel good about ourselves when we give to others.  We enjoy new experiences.  And it’s what OC SOCIALIFE is striving to provide.

OC SOCIALIFE Founder Brent Callaway

Callaway:

“We created OC SOCIALIFE for those who want to be connected and involved in the Orange County social and philanthropic scene.  We couldn’t be happier to redefine what it means to be a socialite in Orange County and cannot wait to see the impact this will have on the local economy as we bring members into Orange County businesses to eat, drink, give and be social.”

Krochet Kids International is their first “Spotlight Charity”.  Members can learn more about the nonprofit’s efforts and how to support it, directly from OCSOCIALIFE.com.

Callaway again:

“We are humbled to support an amazing organization that teaches women a craft in order for them to provide for their families. At the core of OC SOCIALIFE is a desire and a responsibility to give back in a meaningful way. Krochet Kids products will be available for purchase at many of our upcoming events.”

Events include wine tastings, happy hours, VIP gatherings, galas, yacht parties and other community-based activities.  The philanthropic piece attracts a certain kind of person.  The guy ready to recite his LinkedIn profile will stay home.  And you might meet someone who ends up being a new friend, colleague, collaborator or perhaps all-in-one.

So you join for $20 a month.

Give a little.

Get a lot.

I’m in.

You?

OC SOCIALIFE is holding a wine tasting event tonight at 5PM at Da Vine Food & Wine in Dana Point

Tekcetera has been providing infrastructure solutions, cloud services and managed IT services for Orange County businesses for the past 10 years.

In February, they launched a program to celebrate this milestone anniversary by giving back every month for each year they’ve been in business.

They’re calling it 10 Months of Giving Back.

You’re right.

It is clever.

And their PR kicks your PR’s ass.

I spoke to CEO John Pitts and you can hear his passion for his company and the community that has supported it.  So it’s not surprising that they would come up with a cool way to celebrate and do it throughout the year.

A quote from Pitts:

“We have created a very special culture of ‘do what it takes’ to care for people in both business and community.  Our ‘10 Months of Giving Thanks’ initiative is not out of the ordinary for the Tekcetera team. We have spent the past decade giving back, but for the next 10 months, we’ll give thanks as a team of one, with our managers, staff and family members. Tekcetera is proud to be in this position after 10 years in business and we look forward to the next 10 months and beyond of thanking the Orange County community that has supported us over the years.”

They started off in February with a CHOC Toy Drive for children with cancer.

And followed it up in March with a visit to Someone Cares Soup Kitchen in Costa Mesa, preparing and serving food to local hungry residents.

 And this month they’ll be participating in the Make a Wish Walk for Wishes tomorrow and hitting a local park to do a clean up in celebration of Earth Day, which is this Sunday April 22.

Here’s the thing.

They don’t have to do this.  No one is forcing them.  They just have a quality as a company that makes them say, ” If we’re gonna market ourselves, let’s at least give back while we’re doing it and have a little fun.”

Those are the kind of qualities you want from someone you outsource services to.  Lots of companies like this are competent.  But not all of them are giving and most won’t brighten your day.

As I’m writing this I’m listening to Love My Way by the Psychedelic  Furs on my iPhone with Sonic Emotion‘s Headquake app.

The sound is unreal.

And when I say unreal I mean UNREAL.

It does way more than I thought it would.  And this is merely an app for the iPhone.  I can only imagine what their home entertainment systems, docking stations and gaming sound bars are like.

Sonic Emotion has its U.S. headquarters right here in Irvine.  And their new CEO is Cal State Fullerton grad and former SmartHome  president Rajeev Kapur.   So it’s the home team.  And I’m all about the home team winning.

CEO Rajeev Kapur

But you gotta pass the sniff test.  Are you doing at least one of these three things?

1.  Something different

2.  Giving back

3.  Kicking ass

Sonic Emotion does all three.  3D sound technology is certainly unique. Rajeev is the chairman at Irvine-based Greenwala, whose mission is to “help people create opportunities to go green and improve their lives.”   And garnering worldwide patents, establishing yourself as the leader in audio processing technologies and coming up with a cool app like Headquake, which was an Innovation Honoree at CES this year is certainly kicking ass.

If you think about your surround sound system at home you really have to be in the right spot to get the full effect.  Sonic Emotion’s system and technology makes everywhere the sweet spot.  The sound is more of a field than a wave.  And it’s all done with no extra cables or gear.  It’s very very cool.   And it’s innovation straight outta the OC.  To learn more about Sonic Emotion visit their website.

Okay so that’s not the tagline that they use but knowing who reads this blog it might as well be.

Because you guys are busy and you love your business like a child and you have very little time.

And forget the bar scene.

I study my analytics.

You guys are way past the bar scene.

So how are you going to meet someone?

You probably met your last great date or hubby or wife at work right?

Well, this is pretty much the same thing.  The only difference is that Palm and Associates brings your workplace into someone else’s workplace.

I know the owner, Kimberly and she is very good at what she does.  She really cares about her clients.  I have literally sat in her office and heard her coaching a client who was nervous on a first date.  And it was a guy!  It was very sweet.  This is a small niche agency that is very selective about who they choose to bring in.

There are a lot of testimonials on their website that can speak to the experience of working with Palm and Associates better that I can.  They have an active Facebook and Twitter presence as well and a blog that they regularly update.

In short, they are a modern boutique matchmaking agency that serves high-end clients in Orange County.

They are not a dating mill.  This is not a place where you will find the creeps and freaks.  Usually creeps and freaks don’t have successful small businesses, although we all know exceptions.

I admire Kimberly, who came into this field from a completely different profession and saw a need and decided to fill it. It is not an easy business, especially if you want to do it right and not prey on people’s insecurities. She works very hard at what she does and deserves your patronage should you decide this is something you would like to try.

Can’t recommend her enough from what I’ve seen and been told.  If you find yourself  alone every night after a tough day doing battle in the business world, give Palm and Associates a call at (949) 706-5596.  They may find someone that will ease and enrich your busy life.

Wow.  Here is the take from TechCrunch.