Mess happens.
When you do something for the first time something will go wrong at some point.
Don’t stress about it.
You can deal with it, as it pops up. Otherwise you can spin your wheels before you’re even off the starting line.
Over time you learn to identify the structural problems that turn up over and over again with change. But you won’t if you don’t start.
Is it a born or learned behaviour?
Often the argument with entrepreneurial traits.
Same with that ‘sales flair’.
The thing that this argument misses, is that if you’ve had a go with entrepreneurship at age 5, you’ve had 20 years of that thinking by the time you’re 25. When someone else is starting. That’s a lot of learning.
That’s almost your first 10,000 hours.
Google anything with the Top Ten before it chances are you’ll find a list.
I even had an idea several years ago to build a site just all around top 10 lists. Pretty sure someone has done it since.
It’s when we get stuck in comparing us against others that often pull us from our strategy. That’s why political parties end up so middle of the road, they keep comparing rather than sticking to their plans. It’s why brands start to compromise from their values rather than holding fast.
You could stack yourself up against that or just stick to what’s important to you.
That would be a great way to start the year. Not to strive to beat your neighbour but to strive to what matters.
This is the final post for 2011.
Posts have been a bit sporadic of recent, due to an ever increasing timetable, things are back in balance now though. So we should scream into 2012.
Few things to celebrate with Young & Shand, 290 proposals written in the last year, 250% revenue growth, 1 prototype product, 2 in development. Couldn’t be more stoked with progress!
How’s your year been?
Time to take some time off, reflect, read some good books, figure a plan of attack for the new year. Wherever you are – enjoy the festive season.
Look forward to tackling 2012.
Two years ago running a user generated initiative was hard work. A lot of work for little entries.
Now it’s 10 times easier, getting feedback, pictures, participation.
People feel more confident creating & sharing their personal content.
It’s now a habit, it’s that easy.
If you’ve given it a go in the past but didn’t work, time to rethink.
People speak of Steve Jobs & his reality distortion field.
If you’re in the business of change, it is your job to make it easy.
Break it up, provide the path, make it super easy for people to take the first step & get started.
Ultimately they may go off the path but it’s easy to readjust and get them back on it.
If you can do that, synthesise big ideas, make it easy to understand, get started & take part. You’ll be massively effective.
Paying for the attention of the exact same people over and over.
It’s a habit that marketers have fallen into. Yes we should use the opportunities available to get our message out there.
But do we really need to keep paying exorbitant sums of money to talk to the same exact people? Probably not.
Simply ask for permission. Permission to talk to them again.
It doesn’t necessarily mean we stop doing the former, it’s just we are missing out on massive value from the latter, the exact people that want to hear from us, that care about us.
It’s about spreading consumption.
All mechanisms to flatten the consumption curve, that is pull it up where it lacks.
They’re not only for restaurants & parking either. You could look at:
What could you do to change that?
Has it actually?
No really?
If it hasn’t, your initial decision probably still holds true.
If you’re having difficulty getting to a place of understanding step back and look at your assumptions.
Sometimes you need to put more effort into explaining your conclusions & assumptions before you get to your idea.
They’re the platform that you’re idea stands on, if people don’t understand them (or are even aware of them) they won’t get it. Or see the value.
That is knowing a thing or two about a subject matter.
Sometimes your domain expertise is being a specialist in five different generalist areas (as I’ve talked about here).
But don’t confuse that with expertise in a vertical.
People like Richard Branson are the rare exception however they partner with people that have domain expertise.
If you don’t have it, make sure your partner does.
Time is often the missing component, it’s something none of us have but we all use.
Surprisingly it’s often left out of planning, what is the real cost (or value) of the time that passes? Does it work to our advantage or against it?
It’s also what our customers give us, their time, their attention, we should reward them for that.
Through using up less of it or creating more enjoyment with it. Either or.
That is, a place where you keep your ideas.
Ideas that are neat, novel but not quite right. Even the ideas you do execute.
This is standard practice for Creatives, people whose careers live and die by their ideas. But you don’t have to be one to do it.
It’s like a photo album, helps you see where your ideas have come from, where they’re going but most importantly act as a way of inspiring yourself when you need fresh ideas.
Whether it’s an actual bottom drawer, a notebook or Evernote. Start it.
Once people understand they can get something last minute, they will.
Decisions will be more impulsive, as less commitment is required, average spend will go up.
I wonder what industries aren’t last minute, that could be.
Managers are having difficulty managing Gen Y.
There are tonnes of reasons why, one that’s no so obvious though is the need for high feedback loops.
Everything around Gen Y has instant feedback, Google, Taking a photo, Playstation. The one place that isn’t prevalent is the workplace.
It’s actually amazing that here’s a generation that actively seeks and wants feedback so that they can improve!
Don’t get frustrated, work with it and you’ll reap the rewards.