Casual Fridays

Cats don’t have 9 lives. Most of them are perceptive and nimble creatures. Growing up, we actually had a cat that wasn’t perceptive or nimble. He fell on his back ALL THE TIME. Needless to say, he didn’t last long in rural Oklahoma. But this isn’t a cat blog, so I’ll get to the point.

Successful people don’t have 9 lives either. They’re not made of Teflon, nor are they truly golden. Most are nimble and resourceful. Yes, a few are just lucky. But, the bottom line is they were given one life to live.

Just like you.

What Einstein, Ghandi, Mother Theresa, Bill Gates, Steven Spielberg, Maya Angelou and others like them have accomplished… has been in one life.

We all want to be world-changers. By now, you probably realize your life won’t be measured on an international, or even national, scale. Still, your impact could be just as important.

What if we thought about 9 lives in a different way?

What if you could choose 9 lives? Just 9 lives you could impact. How would it change the way you viewed being a world-changer? If you could be a positive influence – through encouragement, inspiration, support, acceptance, justice… love – you could change the world for one person. Then another. Then another.

You’ve been given one life, choose to use it wisely.

Happy Mother’s Day to all the moms out there. We need you… or we wouldn’t be here.

I’m a lucky one. I’m blessed with a wonderful mother of my kids, and a wonderful mother of my own.

I just haven’t been happy with the look & feel of the blog lately.

Trying out some new skins.  Maybe if I get the right theme going, I’ll blog more often.

The great folks at FuelYourWriting.com have asked me to contribute a monthly article to their site.

If you’re a writer of any sort (blogger, author, screenwriter, copywriter, etc.), FuelYourWriting is just beginning to fill with great tips and resources for you.

My first article was posted yesterday, 5 Tips for Tantalizing Writing.  Check it out and tell me what you think.  Did I leave anything out?

There are many hurdles to overcome in order to go, or take a team, to a conference.  Especially in a down economy. But what if:
• The conference is local.
• You can invite whoever you want.
• It would cost next to nothing (or maybe even nothing at all)

That eliminates most concerns, doesn’t it?

Before I talk about how to do this, we have to discuss WHY conferences are beneficial:

1. Getting to hear great content.
   Honestly, this is overrated.  That’s a big deal for me to say, because I’m a content junkie.  You can still have a successful conference experience without great content, but great content is the icing on the cake.  Most of us prefer our cake with icing.
2. Being around other people who are like-minded.
   This is underrated.  How cool is it to attend an event surrounded with others who value the same things you value?  You know that by attending a marketing conference, people you encounter read similar books and have similar challenges.
3. Getting away from “it all.”
   One of the biggest benefits of a conference is breaking your routine and escaping the busywork, appointments, meetings, phone calls, etc.  The time away sparks fresh ideas and creates space for retrospection and assessment.

We’ve all done the trips, which can be expensive and time-intensive.  Some of us have put on our own conference, which were not dirt-cheap and VERY time-intensive.  What if you tried something else?

1. The Internet is full of great content.
   TED is one of the premiere conferences around and their content is available online.  There are also DVDs available from a variety of past conferences.  Look at the websites of conferences you covet attending and check their resource areas for videos of past sessions.
   –Business organizations may be interested in Tom Peters’ videos.
   -Churches and ministries may appreciate video resources from Willow Creek in Chicago.
   -I’m sure there’s much more out there. This is a small sample.
2. Gather a group of like-minded people.
   Big or small, depending on what we want to accomplish. (not too big or you get into the expensive, labor-intensive and time-intensive stuff) This could be employees, clients, vendors, networking spheres… even competitors.
3. Find a place to ‘get away.’
   You may need Internet access, but other than that, you could be almost anywhere.  This could be the back room at your favorite cafe. Maybe a small conference room at a local hotel.  It could be a cabin or even a large home.  Point is, turn off email and cell phones, and block off some time (a day?).
4. Create an agenda.
   My goal would be to choose content, people and a schedule that fosters creative discussions about what you’re all about.  In the blocks for presentations, you could even allow other colleagues show a video that inspires them.  Give them some ownership.  Think about food breaks, snacks, note-taking and – most importantly – bathroom breaks.

Now, go get your conference on!

“Take a risk on me.”

That’s probably one of the toughest sells out there.

The few people out there with enough confidence and competence to take a risk, probably will take that risk on themselves.

The rest are too motivated by fear and need a ’sure thing.’   Something proven.  Something they can count on.  Something safe.

What if you’re the first of your kind?  If there are no case studies… no precedence?  How do you get someone to take a risk on you (or with you)?

1. Fear becomes greater than the risk.

Your risk becomes (perceived as) the safe choice.

Setting an appointment with the doctor is a bigger risk (loss of time and some money, discovery of serious health issue) when you just have the sniffles.  When you’re bed-ridden and burning up from fever, the doctor seems much safer than the risk of letting an illness run rampant.

Being in-the-know becomes a lower risk than the time spent watching the reality show or the money spent on an iPhone.

2. Love becomes greater than the risk.

We do plenty of stupid things in the name of love.  We risk embarrassment, heartache, rejection, money, our pride, our reputations… our lives – for love.

But love seems so ethereal.  What can you do to lead customers to love you (your brand, your product)?

Take a risk on them.

I’ll be talking about Word of Mouth Marketing at this year’s Tulsa TechFest.

You can see more info here.

I’ll be speaking Friday, October 10th at 10:30 AM.

One of the neat things about this event is the price of admission.  This is a non-profit event that supports local non-profits, so you only have to bring $2 or 2 cans of food as a donation to get in.  The donations go to the local food bank and Family & Children’s Services.  Left over lunch portions are even donated to the local homeless shelter, John 3:16 Mission.

The event is Thursday October 9th – Friday October 10.  So, if you’re in Tulsa and are interested in what’s happening in technology, eBusiness and marketing, I hope you’ll join us!

I’ve been at the Willow Creek Arts Conference this week. I hoped I could blog about it while here. My schedules been packed, though. Hopefully, I’ll soon get to share the nuggets of inspiration and wisdom we’ve picked up this week.

Happy (Casual) Friday!

Dustin

I’m taking some time off.

Blogging has become a weekly chore.  Not because I don’t like to write.  I think it’s because I don’t like WHAT I write.

I need some space to rethink what I’m doing here.

Two things I know:
1. I don’t like blogging in a vacuum.  I want to encourage readers to participate in the conversation.  I get decent traffic to the blog, but few comments.

2. I want to develop community.  I don’t think the formatting of my blog encourages that.  It’s more like a soap box than a club.  I want that to change.

So, I’m taking off the month of November.

Return in December for an update.  Thanks for your patience.

I gave this new presentation to a great group of guys and gals at the Forestry On The Grow Conference this morning.

It’s a little comparison of Dotcom vs. Web 2.0. I enjoyed the challenge of putting it together and will probably load a version of it on my blog soon.

Sorry for the technical difficulties over the last week. I actually lost two posts from last Friday in the process.

But it’s good to know I’m not the only one with 404 issues.

Unrelated: I’m taking my son camping this weekend, so my posts today will be sparce. But I can’t wait to spend some quality time my 4 year-old boy. Special times.

I had the wonderful pleasure of spending the majority of LAST Friday with Mike Wagner, President of White Rabbit Group and author of the Own Your Brand blog.

I have always been impressed with Mike through his blog writings, his contributions to MarketingProfs and through our email and phone exchanges. He was even more impressive in person.

Mike presented a 1/2 day workshop for the annual BMA Tulsa(Business Marketing Assocation) Seminar Friday morning. Then we spent the afternoon together, meeting with a few Beyond Agency clients and partners.

What impressed me most about Mike was his ability to do two things simultaneously:

1. He acknowledged the difficulty of “brand ownership” for owners and managers. I know they appreciated the brutal facts being addressed.

2. He gave strong, applicable principles that demonstrated how organizations can own their brand. He gave them hope in the face of the brutal facts.

Many of you aren’t in the Tulsa area, so you didn’t get to come see and hear Mike last week. If Chicago is closer to you, I’d highly recommend you see him at SOBCon 07. Here’s a good synopsis of why you should attend.