I am in the process of planning for 2013. (Are you beginning to make plans for 2013 to be an exceptional year? If not, there is no better time to get started than right now.) I big part of what I plan to do differently in 2013 is to write more. More blog posts and at least one original article every month for a newsletter I will begin publishing. In preparation, I am rereading the few posts I've written in the past year or so. My self-criticism is this: Too long! Apparently I didn't put enough time into the [...]
Dig Your Well NOW
As I read posts on LinkedIn and am asked for advice on effectively using social media, one thing stands out lately . . . Too often, people are wanting to solve an urgent problem. They may be trying to connect with a certain person through a second- or third-level connection, hoping the target person is the key to landing a job, contract or sale. Though it doesn't constitute good advice, my observation is that they're trying to do too little too late. They are looking for a quick fix, a magic pill to solve a problem that's been years [...]
Show Me the Content
Okay, so it's a bad knock-off of "Show me the money," a phrase made popular by Cuba Gooding Jr. in the movie, Jerry McGuire. But it's a good rule of thumb for social media postings. Show me the content! Recently someone has been making too-frequent posts to one of my LinkedIn groups. There are at least three things wrong with his posts. They are not his own original content. They are incomplete, apparently teasing the reader to click through to some content on his website. The link is to the home page of his franchisor's [...]
19th Century Marketing Fails in 2011
I love good pens. I honestly don't know if the fountain pen is 20th century, 19th century or earlier technology. I enjoy it when I have time to write with a good one and am even pretty particular about ball point and roller ball pens. I appreciate a store that makes good quality pens and refills available. That's why it was so difficult for me to cancel an email subscription from Daly's Pen Shop of Milwaukee Wisconsin. That's also why I took the time to write them about why I canceled. This is the email I wrote them this [...]
Sprint Through The Business Day
I've read about business people using an "egg timer" to help them stay focused and on task throughout the day. (It's not really my idea of an egg timer. When I think of an egg timer I think of a mini "hourglass" timer with enough sand in it for only three minutes.) The way it works is that you set the timer for 25 minutes. Get to work on a project and don't allow distractions until the timer goes off. After the timer goes off, get up and move around. Take no more than a five minute break and [...]
