White Space Time

In advertising design there is a term used to describe the empty space around visuals or copy ... it's called white space. Using white space appropriately is incredible effective.

Recently, I heard of "white space time" ... a time to do nothing but think.

This week has been an awesome week - boatloads of success on all fronts. However, it was go-go-go. It seemed to be one meeting or project after another ... you know the routine. In fact, come to think of it, maybe it's been this way all year!

We've often used the concept of "in" or "on" to ask ourselves are we working in our business (down in the trenches) or on our business (strategic level). In order to ensure that we have a balance, we are disciplined at having weekly meetings, quarterly retreats and annual planning sessions. If we're even a week off in terms of the scheduling for our quarterly retreat, everyone feels it and needs it ... it's embedded in our culture.

However, I need more. When I look at my responsibilities list, it often occurs to me that being disciplined about "white space time" would yield the greatest benefits to our business, our team, our clients and me personally.

Here's my action plan:

Objective: White Space Time
Strategy: Protect my "white space time" by scheduling on my calendar.
Timelines: Tuesday, Nov 4 - put time on calendar, commit to 3 months
Accountabilities: You & Me (I'm going to keep you all posted on how I do and the benefits of this process)
Resources: Time
Evaluation procedures: At the end of three months, evaluate what worked/what didn't and draft plan to continue.

Stay tuned ...

BSPR-Bob Sutton is More than Just a Guy Who Likes to Say "Asshole"

As I a reminder BSPR is a segment where I'll share a blog once week that I read and happen to find useful or inspirational. As I mentioned I'm still looking for a better title for these posts because this one doesn't make any sense but I refuse to create it. So we're still stuck with BSPR still because I've received no suggestions. Meanwhile everyone has an opinion on Kyle's damn mustache.

Last week for BSPR I wrote about Brains On Fire, the great identity company in Greenville, SC. This week I'd like to move to a guy, named Robert Sutton who is all the way over on the other side of the country at Stanford University but can easily be right on your computer every morning with the magic of RSS. Robert looks like a professor but he doesn't talk like one, the title for one of his four books is called "The No Asshole Rule."Robert's blog and books cover creativity, leadership and change. He shares great stories, experiences and insights with a thoughtful and yet casual tone. So check him out and learn what "The No Asshole Rule" is all about that way you can make sure you aren't one.

Happy Halloween

Happy Halloween

from everyone at Catch Your Limit
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Finally Inked

I love art, plain and simple.

Getting to express that directly on my body has always been something I looked forward to. For me, being able to get a tattoo was the most exciting thing about turning eighteen.

Months before my birthday, I knew what I wanted to get. I'm a huge fan of animals, especially sea animals. I always thought of jellyfish as being interestingly peculiar, extremely dangerous, yet so beautiful.

A few weeks before my birthday, I drew out the design for my tattoo. I liked it, but something was off. I was relying on the tattoo artist to help me figure it out. Luckily, I had an amazing guy working on my tattoo, and he took one look and said it too closely resembled a tribal tat (which I didn't want). Instead, he suggested the top should just be shaded, not lined with solid black. After seeing the result, I quickly agreed.

So with a collaboration of my tentacles, and his improved head, I got one awesome tattoo yesterday. I'm thrilled with how well it turned out. Props to Nate at Euphoria!

Deal With It

I've had a little bad luck lately. You know those days where it seems like the world is working against you? It's usually nothing major, just a lot of little, out of the ordinary things that add up to make the day a little crazy (bad crazy, not good crazy). In retrospect, some of them are funny even though they weren't at the time.

I'm not writing this blog to complain though! I'll tell you some of the shenanignas, but not all.

I'm writing it because I think the way people deal with things is interesting. Sometimes, you need to have the kind of personality to just laugh it off. And sometimes, you need to force your mind into problem solving mode (even if it doesn't want to).

Yesterday I got pulled over for the 12th time. I have been able to evade an insurance hike for quite sometime, but now there will be no such luck.

As I drove away I came to the conclusion that I deserved it, and that there was nothing I could do at that point. It's funny because the mind goes into shoulda, coulda, woulda mode, but sometimes you just have to admit that you can't do anything about it. You just have to deal.

A situation that did warrant problem solving would have to do with a paper I had to write for class. I was running a little late, and some instructors count your paper late if you show up late on a due date. I park my car; here I am with a 3 page paper that has to be stapled to a 4 page article. I have four copies of each. No big deal right...wrong. When I opened the envelope I learned that nothing was collated. Throw in some gale force winds and the walk to my class became a sight to see.

I chased a few papers down, but I eventually came up with a plan. Instead of trying to also hold a stapler in my hand, I put it in my back pack and concentrated on collating. When I got in the elevator I put them all on the ground and stapled like a mad man. I got some weird looks, but I didn't know those people anyways. I finished just in time and turned it in without incident.

Sometimes you have to consciously choose a plan of action for your actions AND emotions. It's really hard to do when little things add up because then anger and frustration sneak up on you gradually.

Another thing to consider is the importance of grabbing a helping hand. When you feel yourself falling into a bad mood is when you need to cry for help! I was at that point yesterday so I immediately called my girlfriend. It's like magic, in a matter of minutes everything is OK and we have plans for queso and dinner.

So to recap... half of dealing with problems is identifying what kind of an issue they are.

Can you logically problem solve? Good, keeping your cool will help you solve the problem faster.

Maybe all you can do is laugh it off. Hey, it could have been worse right?

When things feel like they are piling up, call someone that makes you laugh or that you love.

Have a nice day!

Crafting Messages that Connect the Dots: When a Child is More Powerful Than a Politician

One of the organizations I'm involved with is The Florida Center for Performing Arts and Education, an initiative to bring a Performing Arts Center to Tallahassee had a momentous occasion yesterday, as demolition began on the buildings that stand on the site of the future location of The Florida Center.

The event featured all the makings of an occasion of this sort, local and state politicians, local businessmen and women, school board members, a stage of choral singers from a local high-school. Three cranes sat behind the stage waiting for their big debut while the incoming chair from the Tallahassee Chamber, the president of Tallahassee Community College, and the Mayor of Tallahassee all gave speeches on why The Florida Center will be an important part of the community with a focus on education, economic development and entertainment. All of the speakers were eloquent but when you're committing to an undertaking that involves many years and hundreds of millions of dollars it's important to be convincing too.

Then a girl named Keaton, a high school student who wouldn't have cleared the "are you tall enough to ride" qualifications at Space Mountain approached the podium. As she adjusted the mic downward she spoke to everyone about what the arts meant to her, about how it shaped her and helped her learn. She spoke about her hopes that one day Tallahassee would have a performing arts center and what it would mean for kids like her if it did. Eloquent and convincing.

The Performing Arts Center has its opponents, some people believe the city shouldn't use tax money or that The Center isn't a priority but at that moment, when Keaton spoke The Florida Center had no opponents. If a vote was held at that moment it would have been unanimous. Bob Fosse could have been there as spokesman and Keaton would have still been more impactful.

How can a high-school girl be more effective than a mayor or college president? By sharing with us very clear specific ideas and stories on how the arts had effected her life. It was concrete. When the politician and college president spoke they presented us with lofty ideas I agreed with but nothing we could hold in our hand and feel, nothing we could picture and see. They spoke about how The Florida Center would effect children by saying just that. Keaton spoke about how it'd effect children by BEING that.

When we create marketing campaigns with clever slogans and pr plans with strategic angles and even mission statements that hope to capture an organizations purpose it's easy to try to go to big. We clutter the scene with abstract language, generic and over used metaphors and fancy graphic design. We try to do too much when often all it takes is a kid walking on a stage telling the world what theater means to her.

It's Getting Harder and Harder to Live in a Virtual World

The following story was recently in the news.

As the virtual world continues to evolve, we could ultimately find ourselves living and dying in the very world we created as an escape from the real one (we also created).

Print this idea on a Starbucks to-go cup as a thought starter for a great way to kick start the day.

TOKYO — A 43-year-old Japanese woman whose sudden divorce in a virtual game world made her so angry that she killed her online husband's digital persona has been arrested on suspicion of hacking, police said Thursday.

The woman, who is jailed on suspicion of illegally accessing a computer and manipulating electronic data, used his identification and password to log onto popular interactive game "Maple Story" to carry out the virtual murder in mid-May, a police official in northern Sapporo said on condition of anonymity, citing department policy.

"I was suddenly divorced, without a word of warning. That made me so angry." the official quoted her as telling investigators and admitting the allegations.

The woman had not plotted any revenge in the real world, the official said. She has not yet been formally charged, but if convicted could face a prison term of up to five years or a fine up to $5,000.

Players in "Maple Story" raise and manipulate digital images called "avatars" that represent themselves, while engaging in relationships, social activities and fighting against monsters and other obstacles.

The woman used login information she got from the 33-year-old office worker when their characters were happily married, and killed the character.

The man complained to police when he discovered that his beloved online avatar was dead.

The woman was arrested Wednesday and was taken across the country, traveling 620 miles from her home in southern Miyazaki to be detained in Sapporo, where the man lives, the official said.

The police official said he did not know if she was married in the real world.

Whassup for President

For those of you who remember the "whassup" ads for Bud, you'll be interested to know that those crazy guys are back. They own the rights to the "whassup" concept. Bud only had it licensed for 5 years. So, they've used the concept to promote something completely different ... a presidential candidate! I'd say that's pretty creative!

CEO Title Does Not Equal Leader

A company, with which I am very familiar, recently conducted layoffs in order to combat these very trying economical times our nation finds itself in. While I completely understand the need for companies to make business decisions that impact employees in order to actually stay in business, I think there are some right and wrong ways to go about it.

To begin with, this company kept the layoff decision and process at a very, very high level. The CEO did hold an informal “lobby” meeting to talk about the current company situation, but he kept it very vague, not every employee in the corporation was invited, and he veiled the impending layoffs by saying “we are going to have to make some tough decisions.” There was actually one department who didn’t even get invited to the meeting, and they were ultimately impacted by the layoffs.
Understanding the need to not start a panic or mass exodus, I can partially forgive them for not letting more people in on the “secret”. However, what does this show the associates who are still there? That the upper management doesn’t trust them? Probably. So why should those associates trust upper management? Every time there is a meeting of the minds behind closed doors, the remaining associates are going to be thinking the worst. The results: productivity plummets, trust dissipates, gossip boils over, and you’re left with demoralized staff members who are most likely sprucing up their resumes.

Oddly enough, a very funny movie popped into my head that gives a good example of what happens when CEO’s make morale impacting decisions without caring enough to get the pulse of their organization. Christmas Vacation starring Chevy Chase is probably one of my favorite movies of all time. I’ve watched it so many times that I can quote it line by line. You might wonder how I found a comedy to have relevance to such a serious topic as layoffs. Well, in the movie Chevy’s boss, Mr. Shirley, decides to suspend Christmas bonuses without telling the employees. Clark Griswold, Chevy’s character, has already counted on the money as part of his salary and has begun putting in a family swimming pool. When the “check” finally comes and it is not a check at all, but an enrollment in a jelly of the month club, Clark is devastated. When confronted with what he’s done, Mr. Shirley sees how his decision impacts his employees on a personal level. He understands immediately how making the decision to suspend bonuses without really thinking how it would affect those who make his business successful was not a good decision at all.

So, what’s the connection? Communication and options. First, regardless of how horrible a decision is going to be received, you owe it to your staff members to be honest. Treat them with dignity and respect at all times. In Clark’s situation, a meeting to address the issue of bonuses could have been held to discuss the decision. If Clark would have known that all he was going to get was jelly then he wouldn’t have started the pool project.
In the layoff scenario, don’t veil it. Let people know ahead of time that workforce is going to be reduced because of the economic climate. Give people a chance to make some decisions, ask questions, and even leave on their own if they so desire.

Second, think about options before making such impacting decisions. If the company was in financial hardship, maybe Mr. Shirley could have offered half bonuses or full bonuses, but paid in quarterly installments, or maybe there were other options.
With the other company, maybe they could have let everyone know that layoffs were going to happen and could have asked for volunteers. Maybe there was someone close to retiring or someone close to quitting who would have taken a severance package. Maybe there was someone who has a spouse who works enough that a severance package would have been enough for them to live on. This, at least, would have helped the employees keep some faith in the company and that it wasn’t “every man for himself”, especially at the top.

In the movie, Mr. Shirley actually added 20% to Clark’s bonus from the previous year. However, that’s a movie. Real life says there might be more layoffs and/or people are just going to start jumping ship. Either way, damage was done in this company that is going to take a long time to restore. True leadership is not just about the P&L statement. True leaders also take care of the people who make that P&L statement possible. Hopefully, this company will work on their communication techniques and possibly involve more people to help think of options other than simply saying “off with their heads.”

Movember

I'm going to look awful, yet, I haven't been this excited in a long time. Its going to be over before I know it. I have just signed a death certificate for my social life for the month of November.

Why you might ask? Well, you see, I'm growing a moustache... for charity. More specifically men's health. See it here: http://www.movember.com/

The Movember Foundation is a charitable not-for-profit based in Australia that puts on the Movember event around the globe every year. Moustaches are called "Mo's" in Australia and because of the heritage of the event, Movember was born. Although the approach is light-hearted, the Movember Foundation helps bring to light Men's health issues. Since its inception Mo Bros and Sistas (slang for participants) have raised over $29 million.

The main benefiting charity is PCF the Prostate Cancer Foundation. Research shows "Prostate cancer is the most common non-skin cancer in the US with one in six American men developing the disease and more than 28,000 men dying of the disease every year," says the movember people.

My moustache inspiration is Burt Reynolds. A fellow FSU alum and a fine example of what the right moustache can do for your career. There are many different types of moustaches, which one I grow remains to be seen. But as Movember suggests: "You don't choose the moustache, the moustache chooses you."

Pics coming!

BSPR-Ignite your mind with Brains on Fire

As I said earlier in the week I'm going to share a blog every week that I read regularly or something that I find either insightful or useful. I will post it each week under the title Brain-Synchronization-Phobia Realization. As I mentioned I'm still looking for a better title for these posts because this one doesn't make any sense but I refuse to create it. So for now we're stuck with BSPR

For the first edition of BSPR (Brain-Synchronization-Phobia Realization) it has to be Brains on Fire, as they are an organization that reminds me a lot of Catch Your Limit Consulting. I think in a lot of ways we're kindred spirits. And after reading their blog for over a year and a half I can tell you they are an organization that doesn't need us. They call themselves an identity company and they are truly experts at word of mouth marketing. But what's evident from their blog more than even their marketing acumen is that they truly understand the importance of bringing joy into the workplace, having fun, creating a culture of open and honest communication and the power of people to shape and change organizations, ideas and movements.

Check out Robbin's post from today about change and the challenges of complacency. While you're there be sure to check out some of Spike's insights, he's a genius and truly passionate about WOMM.

Courage

Today I went to lunch and came back to the office. I struck up a conversation with the receptionist. Then, I went down the hall to my office. A colleague came in and we chatted for a while about a big presentation. A few hours passed and I was off to do the presentation. Everything seemed to go great. I came back and a friend at work dropped in to ask about the presentation. I shared with them the highlights and how confident I felt. Then, I went to the restroom. In the restroom, I looked in the mirror. And, there it was! A piece of broccoli ... in my teeth. It must have been there since lunch and no one had the courage to tell me!

Stories are powerful.

This week, I was working with Jim, a leader that I met recently and can't wait to learn more about. To set up a discussion he wanted to have about courage, he told a version of the story above (which you may heard before). It was a great set-up to lead us into a conversation about courage at work.

Why is telling someone they have broccoli in their teeth so hard to do? What is it that we're afraid of? Why is giving criticism or suggestions so hard to do? What is it that we're afraid of? Why is talking to someone about something they are doing that is making them look bad so difficult? What is it that we're afraid of?

The more I thought about this, the more I thought about not only the courage it takes to tell someone they have broccoli in their teeth, but the courage it takes to deal with that person's reaction. It is our assumption based on past experience that the reaction will be highly emotional. Therefore, our way of protecting ourselves is to not have the conversation.

So, why do we typically react so emotionally? Let's face it, I want someone to tell me that I have broccoli in my teeth before a big presentation ... knowing this will give me the opportunity to get the broccoli out of my teeth which will make me look better. Why don't we approach other forms of criticism or feedback with this same mindset?

Someone is sharing this information with me because they have the courage to tell me something that may hurt or embarass at first, but ultimately will make me better. We, too, must have the courage to react in a non-defensive way. How better would I be today if I was great at receiving constructive criticism?

"With courage you will dare to take risks, have the strength to be compassionate, and the wisdom to be humble. Courage is the foundation of integrity." K. Nair

Free Can of Fish Camp Caviar

Catch Your Limit is promoting a new product for the 2008 Holiday Season. We have fresh cans of our Fish Camp Caviar available for that special someone.

Get your Fish Camp Caviar NOW before they're all gone!

Fish Camp Caviar is best served warm after sitting over an open campfire. You can heat the Fish Camp Caviar in the can or empty the contents into a saucepan. This is such a rare commodity, beware of envious fellow campers and be prepared to share!

Fish Camp Caviar also makes an amazing companion dish to our Fish Assholes.

Be the first one to email me and receive a can of Fish Camp Caviar entirely free. (Catch Your Limit employees and family members are excluded) Email me at scott@catchyourlimit.com. Be sure to include your name and mailing address.

*Fish Camp Caviar contains varying size and maturity fish roe, water, brown sugar, sugar, bacon, salt, mustard, onion powder, spices and natural flavoring.

To the /-\rtist

This is an ode to the artist at Catch Your Limit, Tallahassee. Her name is Becca Carpenter. She makes things happen around here with her artistic ability and craftswomanship (as she would put it), and she loves Cake Shop Oreo bars.

Where would we be without your tumble weed?

Without your painting or without your carving?

Just the thought...

it's alarming

We would be lost, and candy corn-less.

We would be crossed and have uncool glue sticks.

This is an ode to the artist

that makes dreams come true

an ode to the artist

with her yellows, and her blues

You make cardboard into weathered wood

and you make wart-ridden pumpkins look so good.

This is an ode to the artist,

I'd help if I could.

For poetry readings and song writing contact Joseph Rector at joe@catchyourlimit.com

Smashing Pumpkins, not the band.

A very interesting thing happened today.
A group of three young adults had two pumpkins outside of our office.
They claimed that these pumpkins were "petrified" and uncarvable.
They then proceeded to try and smash them, having found no other good use for them.
One of the young adults climbed into a tree with a pumpkin and swung it up in the air.
The pumpkin landed with a thud, and remarkably remained intact.
These were petrified pumpkins.
He threw the same one again, and it finally smashed, but barely.
Another one of the young adults took the other one and threw it into the air as high as he could.
It landed with a much more satisfying burst.
The third one slung a big piece down and accidentally showered herself in pumpkin guts.
The group then started slinging pumpkin pieces at each other's feet.
When they were done, they were kind enough to throw the pumpkin pieces away.
These three young adults certainly, positively, in no way consisted of Joe, Brock, and me.
=)

How Much Time Should Be Spent Developing Leaders Poll

Business leaders on the hook for their successors
Some 1,602 SmartBrief on Leadership subscribers responded to last week's poll question: "How much time do you think company leaders should spend developing the next generation of leadership?"

• 20% to 25% of their time, 463 votes, 28.9%
  
• More than 25% of their time, 432 votes, 26.97%
  
• 10% to 20% of their time, 448 votes, 27.97%
  
• 5% to 10% of their time, 223 votes, 13.92%
  
• Up to 5% of their time, 36 votes, 2.25%
  
  

"Leadership's responsibility to develop the next generation of leaders is clear. About 84% of business leaders believe they should devote 10% or more of their time to cultivating future leaders, with a full 56% committing 20% or more of their time to this challenge. This can only be read as a substantial commitment of time and a commensurately important responsibility." Eva Schmatz, president, Summus.

Knowledge Socialist: You too can be smart Sarah Palin

Okay-that was a mean title but I'm giving it to myself as a gift. (thank you David Berman)

I think of Catch Your Limit sort of like knowledge socialist and so what we're going to be doing is spreading the wealth.

Last week at the Tallahassee Society of Association Executives' Education Day I was experiencing a phenomenon I just made up called Brain-Synchronization-Phobia. I believe it afflicts consultants, teachers and anyone sharing an idea. It is the fear that sounds a little like, "everyone knows the information I'm about to present and they are going to either be bored to tears or so angry that I'm wasting their time they are going to start pelting me the swag they've received at this conference."

WARNING: This fear never afflicts politicians they always believe what they have to say has value.

You see, I read a lot of books, magazines, periodicals and blogs and like most young somewhat narcissistic Gen Y's I assume everyone is just like me. Reality is most people have better things to do. When I went to speak about the four generations in the workforce at Education Day I sort of feared everyone else in the room would be as knowledgeable if not more than I about the subject. Of course they weren't, they are busy running associations. They don't have time to read about Gen X & Gen-Y clash points all day long. How weird would it be to walk into an entire room full of association executives that all happen to be generational experts?

The speech turned out great. I fielded some really thoughtful questions and I hope provided some meaningful reasons for why they can't stand their boss, coworker or employee and opportunities to overcome those challenges.

BSPR-HELPING YOU, BE LIKE ME
Once I realized how ridiculous this fear of my audience was I decided it'd be kind of fun to validate my fear after the fact by making it a reality. So what I'd like to do once a week, starting this week, from now on is share a blog I read regularly or something that I find either insightful or useful. I will post it each week under the title Brain-Synchronization-Phobia Realization. I will use this title until someone suggest something better....please suggest something better. Maybe Knowledge Socialist? Is that better?

And if you have anything you're reading that you'd like to share on BSPR send it to me at jeff@catchyourlimit.com

P.S. If you really want to sync with us follow everything we're reading here at Catch Your Limit on Delicious by copying this link into your RSS reader.

Chess and the stategy of life

I love games. Baseball, Football, Tennis, Golf, Gin Rummy, Poker, Backgammon, Darts, Dominoes, Petanque, Boccie, but most of all I love Chess. It's such a simple game, but it offers so many opportunities for insight. Insight into your opponents life and insights into your own.

There are a couple of principles of the game that have direct corollaries to business.

The first is the principle of momentum. White moves first in Chess and as such has the Big Mo right from the start. All Black can do is respond and wait for White to take his or her eye of the "ball" so to speak at which point Black can seize the momentum and force White into the defensive position.

The second is the principle of engagement. The center four squares of the board are the most important, because which ever side controls them limits the opponent's options. I watch players lose momentum because they move pieces which do not continue to engage their opponent in the center of the board i.e. where the fight is.

In the world of business, it can be said that we have the momentum when our customers express an interest in our services. If we do not keep engaged with them we lose momentum and either another need becomes more pressing or a competitor moves in and makes the sale.

Now, serious Chess players reading this are saying I'm over simplifying the situation and salespeople reading this can probably think of numerous examples when this didn't apply to why they lost a sale.

I, however, believe that more sales are lost because for whatever reason the salesperson disengaged and lost the momentum.

Ask yourself, what can you do to sustain the dialogue with your prospect without becoming obnoxious?

Momentum is hard enough to establish, don't lose it through timidity or inattention.

Stay engaged by listening and focusing on your customers' needs, so you can sustain your Mo' or, even more satisfying, grab it from your competitors.

Next time you're in Richmond, drop me a line and let's see if we can play a game of Chess or Golf or Petanque or whatever strikes your fancy. There's a lot to be learned from playing games and like evrything else we do at Catch Your Limit; it's fun.

Monday, Monday

About three Fridays ago at our Monday ><(("> PowWow (we always have Monday all hands PowWows every week, they just don't always happen on Monday) I encouraged everyone to blog at least once a week. Our blog continues to gain readers and I felt if we all pulled together, we could even have more delicious ><(("> content served fresh daily.

One thing led to another and it was decided we would each be responsible for an assigned day each week. Since I started this, I said I would take Mondays, you know, just to get the idea off the ground and flying right.

Well, last Monday Melissa and I were in the air literally all day flying from Tallahassee to Montreal. We had connections in Charlotte and Philadelphia. I knew I had Monday blog duty, but I kept putting it off. Maybe the next stop. Maybe in the plane. Maybe when I land in Montreal.

At Catch Your Limit the only thing off limits is making excuses, and I am not going to break that cardinal rule now. I blew it fair and square.

The rest of last week was either client focused or Tom and Melissa time off. Every day I would find time to read our blogs and sure enough, everyone, including Melissa, stood tall and filled their slots. But, I just couldn't seem to find time to make up missing my Monday blog.

As the week rolled on I found myself obsessing on why I didn't blog as promised. I kept coming up with all sorts of reasons why I didn't, but ultimately admitting to myself, that I was just offering up another flimsy excuse. In my dreams I would hear a loud voice say, no excuses, Tom. No excuses. Then I saw my whole team, dressed in heavenly choir robes sing, no excuses, no excuses, no excuses.

I was tempted to email everyone to say, no more assigned days for blogs. I was going to say it was a stupid idea to begin with, but the fact was that everyone else was honoring the challenge and doing a great job to boot.

So, I decided to defect to Canada. I figured Canadians would be much more tolerant and would except me for the lying, untrustworthy, slimy little team player that I had become. But, then I remembered I didn't like cold weather.

So, here I am, missing America and my team so much, that I am writing two Monday blogs in one and on Sunday night.

Please accept this as my penance and my apology. I am truly sorry I blew my blog duty. Just know how bad (really, really, really bad) I feel. From now on I will be at my post on Monday.

I have failed. I have learned from my failure. I pledge to move forward and become a better person, team player, and American.

No excuses.

Surrounded by Great Lessons in Leadership & Service

We are working this week in Montreal. We are staying at a Fairmont property, "The Queen Elizabeth," located downtown.

Montreal is an amazing city. The fall leaves are "peak" at this time and the weather is cool but not so much so that you can't get out and enjoy walking around the cobblestone streets of Old Montreal in the evenings.

It just so happens that The Queen Elizabeth is the last of many hotels in the area that have staff that are "on strike." Prior to getting here, I have to admit that I questioned the clients decision to move forward with one of their annual international conferences considering the situation.

However, while people are picketing outside, the "management" and those staff not unionized such as the "front desk" staff are doing an amazing job. The Maitre'd and the Director of Catering are serving meals, cleaning tables and other managers are cleaning rooms and doing whatever it takes to make the conference experience a great one. Hotel restaurants are closed except for breakfast, there is no bar that is open and your sheets don't get changed unless you specifically request it. So, things aren't exactly normal, but there are no excuses, no complaints ... in fact, they're very proud of what they're accomplishing.

The attendees of the conference are very impressed and very complimentary of the staff. We as speakers had more AV help than is typical, so all is well. Last night, I stopped to talk with one of the managers. I asked him when he thought the strike would be over and what would it be like when everyone was back on board. He thinks they're close to coming to an agreement - maybe first of next week - and he said that "things are going to change" for both sides - those who striked and those who didn't. Now that he's doing the jobs of those he usually supervises, he's going to appreciate them more AND he's going to expect more out of them because he's seen what this new "team" has been able to pull off.

It's an irony that the purpose of this trip was speak about "branding" and the importance of "living the brand" at every touchpoint. And, for an example of the best, we had to look no further than the hotel we were in. Great lessons in leadership, service and delivering on brand expectations are surrounding us everywhere we turn this week at The Queen Elizabeth. The result will be a new sense of understanding by the management and a sense of pride for what they accomplished this week. And, not to mention great word of mouth from the conference planners and attendees.

I sure hope that the next Fairmont propery I stay at/work at can live up to the expectations created by this skeleton crew. And, I hope the next time that as a leader, I'm confronted with a daunting challenge, I look to this experience for inspiration.

National Boss's Day!

It is ironic on a day that we should be praising our bosses on how wonderful they are, how much they mean to us and how lucky we are to be working for them that we should happen to stumble upon this image on the internet.

Please, if you see them, do not try to apprehend by yourself! Call us at 850-894-FISH and we will handle the situation. They are armed with knowledge and experience.

My Very First Trade Show

Today i attended my very first trade show, ever. It wasn't anything spectacular, but I really enjoyed seeing Catch Your Limit at work. It's hard to believe that I've been with CYL for over a year now, and I still had never seen them speak, or teach, or really do much at all other than what they do in the office. I was pretty excited to see them (well, half of the office) in action!

This whole experience really showed me that it takes a tremendous amount of time and effort to put a booth together. I was in the office until 8:30 last night finishing up my responsibilities. But then I think about all of the hard work Scott, Jeff, and Joe put into the trade show, and I am just in awe of their workmanship, and their creativity when throwing all of this together. They are true geniuses in creating a booth that is welcoming to others, and really shows what we're all about. I don't even know how many people stopped mid-stride to comment on our makeshift fire pit. I just wanted to applaud these guys, and tell everybody how wonderfully they did tonight!

I'm so gracious for the luck that brought me to Catch Your Limit. They are all truly remarkable people, and I love working with them. I'm going to make a point to see CYL outside of the office more often (I especially want to see Tom and Melissa speak). Every day I see their creativity and innovation inside of the office, but it's really a treat to see their work applied to the rest of the world, making an impact on any and everyone that sees it.

Customer Service Everywhere!

Management for college living communities may not be associated with great customer service. But this morning I experienced an exception.

I was leaving The Preserve here in Tallahassee Florida when I noticed some people and a table smack dab in the middle of the exit.

Management was standing outside giving out drinks and breakfast to residents leaving for class/work! What a pleasant surprise. I really enjoy those kind of things.

It got me thinking about the importance of customer service...

It's not just for brands like Target and Publix. Customer service is for everyone, even college living management.

Can you imagine where Wal-Mart would be if they weren't directly associated with poor customer service? The one near campus is so bad that I gladly drive to the Target which is twice as far.

That's the power of customer service.

The most important rule: EVERYTHING COUNTS

Even the small things count, like being a phone call away. If I ever have a question about my car or my extended warranty, I can call Saab any time any day and a human will pick up the phone! And what's more...it's a helpful human!

I once had a question about a repair and whether or not it would be covered under the extended warranty. The representative said it should be, but she called the dealership I was intending on going to and double checked with them. Then she called me back to confirm that everything was set.

Last thing....random acts of kindness is an awesome way to enhance your existing customer service. That's what I experienced this morning. Take just a little time out of a random day and remind your customers that you love them. It makes the a world of difference.

I always hear about bad customer service experiences..but lets hear some good ones. What brands have doubled their perception in your mind through some good service?

The Bradley Effect and Why it Effects Every Organization, Team, Department and Company

This morning I was enjoying my morning ritual of coffee and reading news when I came across an article on Cnn.com about Barack Obama and the Bradley effect. This phenomenon also called the Wilder effect refers to closet racism, the idea being that when polled people claim that they'll vote for Obama, but behind the closed curtain of a voting booth people free their inner racist and vote for the not-black candidate.

Reading the article made me think of how often the Bradley effect takes place in organizations in a non-racial way.

The idea that we say something for politically correct reasons and then in private reveal how we really feel isn't new to the workplace. A challenge that effects many organizations believe it or not is too little conflict. People, by nature love to please and avoid conflict. So when we don't agree with an idea our boss suggest we often go along with it simply to avoid the conflict. After all we wouldn't want to be argumentative. And we want our boss to like us.

Then we go back to our office and or send a message to someone else a coworker/friend/spouse about how stupid our boss is but how we didn't want to make waves so we just went along with it. In the end we find ourselves executing a bad idea, an idea we don't believe in simply because it was easier than having positive conflict about how to make it better. This is one reason why organizations end up with average or failed product launches, average or failed events and so on.

Now I'm not saying that Obama is a bad idea, I love the guy I plan to make a little dot next to his name in November. Also I don't mean to belittle a giant societal issue like racism by comparing it to something like the marketing strategy for a new line of baked catfish nuggets but I believe the underlying challenge is the same. It is that we've created a culture that makes certain discussions off limits whether it be in our society at large or in our teams, departments or organizations culture. Our society can't talk about Obama's race the same way you can't challenge your boss on strategy because of the culture that has been created. It is a culture that fears conflict. In the larger culture it might be because if someone finds out how you really feel you might be labeled a racist and in the organization's culture you can't talk about how you really feel because you might be labeled an "idea killer" or the guy with the bad attitude.

Getting the whole world to have a meaningful conversation about race is a challenge I can't begin to comprehend but everyone can go back to their departments, teams and organizations and create the foundations for a culture that allows nurtures positive conflict.

What have I learned from surviving cancer?

I sent out an email to many of my friends and colleagues the other day sharing the news that while I am still recovering from my cancer treatment, I am now cancer free. As you can imagine I have received a variety of responses. Many people celebrating with me, some expressing dismay that they never knew I was sick and making it very clear I had some explaining to do for not having kept them in the loop, but the most intriguing response came from a long time friend and colleague, market research guru, Jack Yager.

After expressing his happiness and chit chatting for a while Jack asked, “Well, what are the three things you’ve learned from this?”

Now, let’s start with the fact that I’m generally the guy asking this kind of question. Second, I’ve been so busy dealing with the day to day that I haven’t paused to give much thought to what I’ve learned. I thought about it for a moment and I said, “Jack, I don’t know about three things, but the first that popped into my mind was to be myself.”

By that I mean I’ve gotten through the treatments and the pain and the drugs by engaging versus retreating.

My nature is to find conflict and engage it.

When things are not progressing, my first instinct is to acknowledge and discuss the situation. Get it out in the open. In the case of my treatment I saw myself as the head of a team that included my physicians, nurses, technicians, caregivers, family and friends. I engaged as many people as I could to gather information and to discern questions I should ask. I distributed the material to as many people as I deemed necessary and after processing their input I repeated the process over and over again. Once a course of action (the strategy) was settled upon I then did my best to get out of the way of the people to whom I’d delegated my care.

I was pretty much drugged out of my mind for a while there anyway, so that was probably an effective decision. None the less, my partners, Tom and Melissa, said I was extremely polite even when I was hallucinating. You can credit my mother for my manners. But as I listened to them recounting talking to me when I was hospitalized I’d like to think that even drugged I was myself.

Why should you care about any of this?

We are currently in a global economic crisis. I encourage you to engage it. Ask yourself, “What information do I need to grow my business during this period of turmoil?” Ask, “With whom do I need to talk to find out what I want to know?” I’ll tell you right now your customers and employees ought to be on that list. Listen for the opportunities. Listen for the threats and ideas on how to neutralize them. Then be yourself and make what you believe are the right decisions. Share your thoughts with your people, listen to their response, then make up your mind and employ your people to execute the necessary tactics to realize your strategy. Remember as the boss your job is to decide ‘what to do’ (the strategy) and then get out of your employees’ way while they work out ‘how to do it’ (the tactics).

I’m sure as time goes by more “lessons” will present themselves to me, but for now I am reminded of Polonius’ advice to his son, Laertes in Shakespeare’s Hamlet:
To thine own self be true, and it must follow, as the night the day, thou canst not then be false to any man.
So, go forth and be yourself. It’s working for me.

Tom Laughon for President!

If you have ever wondered what viral marketing is, this is a pretty good example. Although the service it promotes is nothing to write home about, the video is right on target. It's fun, timely and people love to see their names where they don't expect it! In fact, because I used Tom's name and not my own, I should receive some major brownie points in the office! (Hint: He loves tattoos) So even though I would not use or support the product this marketing effort promotes, I am still perpetuating the "Viralness" of the campaign. This is what Viral marketing is all about, finding something that people will use and forward to their friends who in turn create their own version and forward to another set of friends and so on. And in all that time the company is driving traffic to their site, gaining exposer.

Enjoy!

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What is the point of sports?

So, last night I was sitting at a bar with a friend watching the MLB American League division series between the Red Sox and the Angels on one T.V. and the Monday Night Football game on another. We were having a very nice time having a few drinks, some food, and just catching up. Let’s not leave out the fact that I love sports, so I was also very into each of the games.

Both games were about half over when in walks two guys who proceed to sit down next to us. Let me say that again; two GUYS walked in and sat down at the bar. As much as that sounds like the opening to a bad joke, it isn’t. To my delight, they didn’t bother us at all… until one of them opened his mouth and spoke… not to me mind you, but to his friend and this is what he said: “what is the point of sports?” My mind kind of froze for a second and it wasn’t because of the martini I was drinking. I had to rewind and make sure I heard correctly. Yep, a guy hanging with his buddy at a bar asked what the point of sports is. I was shocked, appalled, dumfounded, speechless, and any other verb or adjective that can possibly describe a situation that ruins a perfectly good stereotype.

To his friend’s credit, he tried to talk him off the ledge, but he just kept inching his way towards it. He continued to make snide comments about the point of baseball, football, soccer, and even the Olympics. Being a pretty direct person, it took everything in my power not to shove him off his high horse, or at least his bar stool, and set him straight. Instead, I decided to save it for this blog.

So, what do we get from sports? What is the point? Let’s start with unity. We gather with family and friends to watch sports, we unite as cities to watch sports, we have "pools" at our places of work during NCAA March Madness, for example, in honor of sports (for entertainment purposes only, unless in Vegas) and we even derive strength from sports when tragic events strike such as the 9/11 terrorist attacks and hurricane Katrina. However, sporting events go beyond uniting people, we also have exemplary examples of leadership in sports.

There have been some very powerful leaders over the years in this world; FDR, Winston Churchill, Ghandi, just to name a few. Those three leaders happened to flourish in times of great hardship because they knew how to lead and unite people. Herein lies the parallel to sports. What are coaches and managers if not leaders? Take Joe Maddon, the manager for the Tampa Bay Rays, for example. He took a team with the worst record in baseball to the AL East championship this year and into the playoffs. Joe was able to take a demoralized team and create a band of brothers who still have no idea how to quit.

And there have been and still are other extraordinary examples of coaches in our time: Vince Lombardi, Joe Torre, “Bear” Byrant, Pat Summitt, Mike Krzyzewski, Pete Carroll, John Wooden… the list goes on and on. These men and women know how to lead. They understand what it means to create a team, how to instill trust, loyalty, and stand behind what they say. They understand ethics, values, and virtues which all great leaders should possess. Are they perfect? No. But no great leader is. Making mistakes is normal, but leaders know how to admit it, learn from it, and move on. Am I saying coaches are as impactful as leaders of nations? No, of course not. They are, however, phenomenal illustrations of what great leaders exemplify; they unite teams and help them prosper, which in turn unites the fans of those teams and that can be a very powerful thing.

Back to the question at hand, what is the point of sports? Most likely everyone has an answer, but here’s mine: for individuals, sports build confidence and self esteem. Almost more importantly, however, sports unite people together in ways that not many things can. A team with strong leadership inspires passion, loyalty, and unity. And for that I will always be a sports fan.

Grow Your Stars--Don't Buy Them

Just like the star running back that turns out to be a bust once he signs the big contract with the new team in free agency, many times star performers that are brought in don't perform up to expectations. Why not just develop a pipeline of talent with training and development? It's cost effecient and more effective.

Forgotten Innovators

It was bound to happen, and here is my car post. But this isn't your father's car post, it's a list of forgotten innovators, leaders in their segment that have changed the automotive landscape.

You may be surprised by some of this stuff -- that's the point. This list is meant to be quirky and remind you of some familiar faces that showed tremendous leadership and foresight.

1. 1998 Lexus RX300: I would consider this to be the most significant innovation. While everyone was building their SUVs on truck platforms, Toyota comes out of left field with an SUV based on a car platform (the Camry's). The RX line quickly became (and is still) the highest selling vehicle for the brand. Nowadays, these car-based SUVs are called crossovers. Talk about foresight.


2. 2000 Nissan Maxima: Family cars didn't always come with 255 horses under the hood. In the middle of some bland times for this segment the Nissan Maxima single handedly raised the bar on performance. I'm talking 65 more horses than a base Mustang at this time.


3. 1998 Dodge Durango: Before the Durango, 3rd row seats were reserved for Expeditions, Suburbans, and minivans. The concept of a 3rd row in a midsized SUV was brand new. This was the first midsizer to do so. After the Durango, everyone was scrambling to slap extra seats back there. Now, you can even get a 3rd row on a Toyota Rav 4!


4. 2005 Ford Mustang: This is very recent, but so important that I had to put it on this list. Think about where the styling for America's muscle would be if the Mustang hadn't gone retro? They had to have some guts to do this after the retro Thunderbird tanked. After this debuted, the Camaro, Charger, and Challenger all followed suit. Now there's some leadership.


5. 2001 Toyota Tundra: During this time, crash test results weren't very high on the priority list for this segment. Then, word got out that the Tundra was the only pickup to do well in the IIHS crash test. Fast-forward to today and Detroit has 5-stars for it's trucks across the board.


6. 1997 Mercedes-Benz M-class: This is what set fire to the luxury SUV segment. The concept of an off-road capable, comfortable, luxurious, made for the masses SUV from the three pointed star was brilliant. At the time, there was nothing like it. The M-class also introduced several safety innovations for this segment, like side airbags. Does any one remember it's debut in Jurassic Park The Lost World? That's when I fell in love.



7. 1996 Dodge Caravan/ Plymouth Voyager/ Chrysler Town & Country: If you are my age then chances are that you knew at least 5 families that had one of these when you were a kid. This was the modern mold for today's minivan. During this time Daimler Chrysler was considered to be Detroit's design leader; these minis where head and shoulders above it's competition. The sheer sales numbers put it on this list along with some big-time mid 90s innovation.


So there we have it, leadership in a way that might not cross your mind everyday.

Awesome Video

Take a look at this video. It premiered on Ellen and is really powerful ... celebrities encouraging YOU to register. If you're not registered to vote, you need to be.

http://ellen.warnerbros.com/2008/10/breaking_news.php

Also, you all remember the basics - advertising is about AIDA - Attention, Interest, Desire & Action.

Watch this - register - send to 5 friends.

Rock the vote!

The Power of a Thank You or Job Well Done

In one day, I've been reminded three times of the power of a thank you or job well done. Today, after facilitating a board retreat for a really neat group, I received a phone call from the Executive Director saying thank you and sharing positive feedback she heard from her board members. Jeff received a thank you voicemail from a national association thanking us for providing an article in a snap and saving the day. And, Tom received an email from a group thanking him for his flexibility and a job well done.

And you know ... it made us feel great! We're all strutting our stuff and kind of giddy today. A little bit of praise really does go a long way.

So, in addition to individual thank yous that I need to deliver, I wanted all of our fans to hear me say THANK YOU and JOB WELL DONE to the ><(("> team - Tom, Scott, Gayle, Jeff, Becca, Joe, Elizabeth and all of our partners that help us do great things for our clients. I believe that everyone at Catch Your Limit puts all of their heart and soul into their role. I truly do believe that. And, yes at times, we may make mistakes. But for the most part, we accomplish amazing things day after day after day and we're like a family ... at times we drive each other crazy but we do love and appreciate each other tremendously and have a lot of fun together.

And, one thing that we do that I want to share with the world (again) is our bell. We have an antique bell that is mounted on our reception area tin roof bar that we ring when we have good news, a celebration or a thank you.

The bell is there for us to ring for each other and for us to ring for ourselves. And, in our culture ringing the bell for yourself is encouraged. Someone walks up to the bell, rings it and everyone stops what they're doing and gathers around the bar. We love it when someone shares good news or tells us that they've gotten rave reviews from a client ... we can all join in the fun and celebration. And, we love to ring it for each other. This simple thing helps us to communicate what we're doing right and in those moments, bonds are created.

And, although we do celebrate internally, I have to admit, I'd love to hear that bell ring even more. And, I hope the praise from our clients keeps pouring in ... it truly is powerful and inspires us all to keep catching our limit!

For Great Managers: Now is the Time

This guy is a bit smiley and creepy at moments but his message is right on. Now is the time, just like the weak financial instituations that are crumbling, weak managers will crumble when times are tough and the great managers will excel.

Also some of the statistics that scroll across the bottom of this video or pretty interesting. 70% of Microsoft employees feel their meetings are a waste of time. WOWSERS! That is dreadful, no wonder Apple is killing it right now...