December 2008 Entries
Bill Walton, the legendary NBA star, was quoted “Never mistake activity for achievement." (Somehow I feel that he may not have been the first one to say it…) With the incredible communication tools available through “the internets” I sometimes feel that I might be trapped in that conundrum.
Seth Godin wrote in his blog the other day that “the stuff you do online doesn't cost money. In the old days, money added friction. Money made you choosy. Money ensured that you valued your marketing efforts appropriately, because if they didn't work, they cost you money.”
How true. Reading and posting and linking and networking and connecting...
Keeping your focus --- especially when all those around you have lost theirs --- takes, well, focus! Here are nine steps I saw that might help you maintain yours:
1. Say no.
2. Delegate more effectively.
3. Communicate better.
4. Set well-defined boundaries.
5. Let go.
6. Think more about targets than goals.
7. Plan and prioritize each week.
8. Reflect on the big picture at least one hour each week.
9. Celebrate your victories.
Originally, I was going to discuss each one and provide an example, but upon reading them again, they seem so obvious that I think it will be a good exercise to...
I just finished reading Seth Godin’s new book TRIBES. I highly recommend it. One of his key points is the concept of a figurative posture of “leaning in.”
“A marketer can offer a product, take orders, and move on. Or he can use interactions with prospects to create something more, to surprise and delight and generate far more…”
So that’s what it’s called. I have always tried to establish more than just an order when I work with a customer or client. Friends have sometimes even mocked me for “working too hard” and “going further than expected” and “wasting my time” with the lagniappes (Cajun...
One of my favorite blogs is “Never Eat Alone” by noted networker KeithFerrazzi. A few weeks ago he posted a conversation with Marc Matheiu, former CMO of Coca-Cola. They discussed the concept of selling your brand with a “story”.
Since that post, the concept has been fermenting in that dark, moist place that is my brain. With generous helpings of horrendous economic news, and global poverty and conflict, it finally rose to the top this morning: so THAT’S how they sell Coke…with a compelling story that defines the brand!
Seriously, if you are not already associating your brand with a non-product message that resonates...
It seems to me that life is a lot like a high school cafeteria…you always wonder what its like to sit at the “cool table”; but when you do, you find out that it’s not only not so cool, but that the people sitting at it are assholes.
“There’s much to be said about not saying much.” --- Frank Tyger
Seth Godin is the definition of a true marketing maven. His commentary on business and life often create “AHA!” moments…and sometimes they create “HUH?” moments. His blog this morning is the former. Below is my take on his commentary… (A link to the entire blog entry at the end of the post).
He addresses the issue of the “High Cost of Now.” Being first always carries a premium. And sometimes that premium is not worth the cost.
The closer you get to the source and moment of information, the more it costs. Apropos of the current financial crisis, if you want to know how the stock market...
It was another of those “perfect storms.” In the space of three days, I saw articles/columns in the NY Times, LA Times, and even our local ATL AJC encouraging people to get out to their local restaurants. A plot by the National Restaurant Association? Probably not. I suspect it’s a reaction by editors to find a “feel good human interest story” to place alongside the stories about the stock market tanking, pirates in the Mediterranean, and Detroit going down for the third time.
Its true…the restaurant industry IS suffering along with the rest of us, only more-so. A recent Gallup Survey found 81 percent...