Monday, June 24, 2013

Sign up for my Creative Courage Webinar






Organizations who have been through the workshop:



Friday, June 14, 2013

Nobody Cares about You

Sorry if that seems harsh, but the truth is in the way that statement makes you feel. If you agree, then I am likely right. If you are offended by that statement, you likely don't believe it's true and you've already begun to file through all the reasons why'.

"I have value!"
"I make a difference!"
"I change lives!"

Great! That is the perfect state of mind to be in to get some real work done. If you really believe those things are true, you must ask yourself if others also think that way about you or your brand. Do people seek you out? Do they value associating with you? If not, is it their fault, or yours?

When people ask "What do you do?", are they looking for a list of tasks? Or, are they actually asking "What can you fix?", or "Can you enlighten me on solutions I didn't even realize I need?" If they had the answer to those questions then they wouldn't be talking to you, right? So, it's not about you, it's about the results you can achieve.

But to find out how to answer those questions, you first need to figure out what it is you do, how you do it and why you do it. Be truthful to yourself at this point, as it will lead you on the right path. It will open your eyes to the value and impact of what you do. This makes answering the big questions easier, because you become more qualified to understand what motivates and drives you. Solutions manifest themselves more quickly as a result, and you can answer the "What can you fix?" questions with confidence.

When people ask you, "What do you do?", you should describe the impact of what you do first. Then the tactics on how you get those results, so they can clearly see how what you do impacts what they need.

Thursday, June 6, 2013

Vulnerability is our most accurate measurement of creative courage


To understand our creative capacity 

we must see the world through the eyes of our own infancy.


Monday, June 3, 2013

What does your brand stand for?

I recently encountered the question, "what does your brand stand for?" In essence, what makes you different? The advice that followed the question recommended making "a list of the differences and the extremes and start with that. A brand that stands for what all brands stand for stands for nothing much."

 

I don't agree with the premise that you need to compare and contrast your business with others to discover what your brand stands for. Comparisons don't reveal the truth about who and why you are, they only reveal differences. But being different is not your goal, it's your inevitable result if you go through the process of defining your brandWhen using comparisons to define your brand, you are more likely to see perceived negatives and counter them with definitions that may or may not be true. At that point, your brand is being defined by the failings of others and not by what is truly great about it. I believe the better advice is to look inward and examine your methods and techniques of doing business. What are your personal motivations? What are your learned solutions?Collecting that information will define your brand truthfully,and the differences will manifest themselves within the definition. If you are able to share with others who you are and why you do what you do, you are communicating the truth of what your brand stands for. And, if you don't like what you see,you are now in a position to develop an informed solution.