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Building a brand

8/2/2014

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I have referred to grits so many times in my talks that people expect me to include it. They either remember me as the person who talks about grits or that "nerd communicator". 

Do you think that bothers me? 

Heck no. 

The key part of that sentence is "remember". They REMEMBER me. 

Sure, it might only be because of my association with a slimy white food item (even in South Africa) or because of my obsession with numbers or my poor social skills but they REMEMBER me.  The next time they see my name, they might be inclined to come to my talk.  The next time they need a nerd to translate some technical topic, they just might think of me.  That is my goal. 

What are you doing to make sure people remember you?
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Here's your sign

10/12/2012

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Picture
Do you think they really needed a sign? 

This was at an event in Murfreesboro, Tennessee ( a wonderful city that just happens to be the birthplace of my son) but if you are staying at the Embassy Suites in Murfreesboro and you spot some unrecognizable goo in a pot on the breakfast buffet, aren't you going to assume it is grits?  

Even if you have never seen them before, you gotta know they exist in the South and this sure doesn't look like oatmeal. 

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Start ups

6/27/2012

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We used to be drawn to jobs at big corporations. They seemed safer. Secure. They came with big pensions and health insurance.  Government work used to afford similar security.  

Times have changed. 

It seems to me that every day someone I know is let go, down-sized or moved to the basement (with or without their red stapler.)  People struggle with bosses who don't act, who prevent those below them from doing their best work, who hoard information, or don't define goals and objectives.  These bad bosses (they aren't leaders, they are bosses) are scared of good ideas that come from their employees and so they suppress them. 

We have to become entrepreneurs. 

Every job and every thing we do is really our own little start up. We need to treat it that way. What would you do if you owned your own business and did the job  you do at work? What ideas would you try? What training would you like to have? What images would you hang on your office wall? Who would you want to be around?  Get a clear picture and then make it happen.  

Make small changes to create the perfect environment in your workplace. Seek out people who inspire or motivate you and learn from them. Start acting like that cubicle is your own private enterprise. Find ways to bring more of yourself to your job. Share your big ideas. And when someone above you decides to cut costs or reorganize or downsize, you will have already figured out how to make the most of each day. 

And please don't start networking the day AFTER you lose that corporate job. Meet people, help them, go out to lunch, listen, learn, mentor. 

 Time's a-wastin'. 
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Perfect enough.

3/12/2012

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Perfection is nice. If you can achieve it.
I'm not sure I've ever experienced it, in person.
It's a great thing to strive for. 
Except whien it holds you back. 

Perfect-seekers set the bar high. Too high. And then they get paralyzed with fear. "I can't jump that high. So I just won't jump. I'll stay here. Safe. In this spot.  I'll just wait. I'll keep waiting. I'll wait for that bar to move down a peg and then I'll jump. Years can pass. I have time. "

I'm gonna stick with good enough, thank you.
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There's a new kind of glass ceiling.

1/15/2009

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It's invisible. It comes from deep inside us. It's growing in our collective consciousness. It's called FEAR.

We're all sitting in our houses, listening to other people tell us why we can't succeed. Why we can't buy houses, afford to go out to eat, why we should hold on to our cash and hoard our food and water. And as we sit, and tremble, and hoard, we make them right.

Take out your hammer and crack that ceiling.

Make your own truth.

Find new ideas, help someone else, tell a new story. Find something to laugh about, find someone to hug, watch a child for just two minutes and then try to feel fear.

Remember what it felt like to roll down a hill?  Think of that when the fear tries to slip into your mind.

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