Why I Pimped My Poken

Never let it be said that I don’t have a fun, free-spirited side.  Most people (who don’t know me socially) are under the impression that I’m all work and no play.  Can you believe it?  While I’m no party girl, I do have a playful side.  In fact, sometimes I’m just plain outrageous.  I live in a house with teenagers, I have to be outrageous to keep my sanity.  So, when I decided to purchase my Poken, I knew I wanted one that had a little character to it.

Not familiar with Pokens?  A Poken is a portable electronic device that stores and retrieves social networking contact information.  When you meet someone with a Poken, you simply make the Pokens touch (or poke) and presto – you exchange each other’s information in seconds. The green glowing light from each Poken will tell you when the transfer of information is complete.

With a name like “Olalah”, how could anyone really expect me to buy a Poken and not customize it.  So with the help of an incredible lady named @PokenGirl (via Twitter), my out of the box geisha girl Poken became a blinged out hottie named Belle.  Why did I name her Belle?  Remember that outrageous side of mine I mentioned earlier?  Well, I like bellydancing to stay in shape instead of going to the gym.  So, Belle is short for bellydancer.  I told you I had a playful side.

Me in my kitchen holding up Belle!

The decision to “pimp my poken” was part fun and part conversation starter.  You would be surprised how many people ask me about my Poken.

How did she get her name?

Who customized your Poken?

Why did you do that?

Was it expensive to customize it?

The biggest bang for the few bucks that I spent on my Poken is the sheer number of conversations that get started simply because I did something a little bit different.  Pimping my Poken has done wonders for opening the door of conversation, both professionally and socially.

Pimping my Poken gave me an opportunity to let people see a more playful side of my personality.  It helps people like they know me a little better, which is always a good thing, both in business and in life.

Is there a bellydancer in you just waiting to come out and “poke” someone?