Sunday, February 05, 2012
I was flying to Denver when it happened.
I was preparing my notes for a speech called, The Entrepreneur’s Dilemma. The focus of the presentation was how loneliness was an inevitable landmark of the entrepreneurial landscape, and how to manage it. A topic near and dear to my heart.
The guy next to me couldn’t help but notice my screen. After about twenty minutes of sneaking glances, he finally asked, “So, Scott, are you writing a book?”
Headphones still in, I said yes.
Next, he asked about the topic of the book. And I said something vague like “communication.” Being on a roll with my work, I didn’t want to give an answer that garnered too many follow up questions.
Couldn’t this guy see that I was busy trying to write about loneliness?
I went back to my work.
About thirty seconds later, he asked another question. Then another. And another. Apparently he had never met an author before and was curious about the publishing process.
Seriously. This guy really needs to leave me alone. How am I supposed to finish writing this piece about how lonely I am if –
Oh. Right.
Standing on a whale, fishing for minnows.
Smacked in the face with a healthy dose of irony. I wised up, unplugged and started talking to him.
Nice guy, actually. He was an entrepreneur himself.
And I asked him, “What takes you out to Denver?”
“My father’s funeral.”
Oh.
And I thought I was lonely.
LET ME ASK YA THIS…
How many people did you go out of your way to ignore last week?
LET ME SUGGEST THIS...
For the list called, "12 Ways to Out Service Your Competitors," send an email to me, and you win the list for free!
* * * *
Scott Ginsberg
That Guy with the Nametag
Writing, Publishing, Performing, Consulting
scott@hellomynameisscott.com
Never the same speech twice.
Now booking for 2012-2013!
Watch The Nametag Guy in action here! Labels: approachable, beauty of reflection, business growth, hello my name is scott, nametagscott, reverse word of mouth marketing, scott ginsberg, the nametag manifesto
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Saturday, February 04, 2012
We’ll never run out of reasons not to do something.
Our capacity to rationalize our way out of anything will always be available. Human beings, more than any other species, have an infinite ability to procrastinate their way to inaction. We can put things off like bumblebees can fly.
Eventually, though, we have to decide.
To move our dreams out of dream form, we have to figure out what’s important to us, honestly admit what we’re really afraid of, calculate what we’re willing to lose and then go, go, go make something happen.
Otherwise it will never happen. The resistance will win. And we’ll reluctantly join the ranks of the wannabes, gonnabes and nevergonnabes, reminiscing about dreams we once had, but never did anything about.
The exciting part is, no matter how many excuses, no matter how many reasons we have not to do something, all we need is one really good reason to say yes.
LET ME ASK YA THIS…
What do you need to decide?
LET ME SUGGEST THIS...
For the list called, "12 Ways to Out Service Your Competitors," send an email to me, and you win the list for free!
* * * *
Scott Ginsberg
That Guy with the Nametag
Writing, Publishing, Performing, Consulting
scott@hellomynameisscott.com
Never the same speech twice.
Now booking for 2012-2013!
Watch The Nametag Guy in action here!
Labels: approachable, beauty of reflection, business growth, hello my name is scott, nametagscott, reverse word of mouth marketing, scott ginsberg, the nametag manifesto
[Read the Full Post...]
Friday, February 03, 2012
I recently chatted with woman who ran a mom and pop garden center.
When we got on the topic of word of mouth, Ellen bragged about how her customers rarely told people about her plants.
I was confused. Anonymity didn’t seem like something to be proud of.
Until she told me what one of her customers told her.
“I love your flowers, so please don’t send me your catalogs. I don’t want my neighbors to know where I buy them.”
Yes, it’s a selfish thing to request. And yes, it’s a frustrating marketing dilemma for any business to manage. But this level of loyalty, this echelon of exclusivity, might contain huge leverage potential.
Sometimes buzz that goes the wrong way, goes a long way.
Because if a business is willing to stay small, willing to focus all of its energy on a single, narrow, high-end micro audience – who buys enough to keep the lights on – maybe it doesn’t matter if not everybody’s talking about us.
Maybe all we need is a small handful of people who love us to help our brand last forever.
LET ME ASK YA THIS…
Who's afraid to tell people about you?
LET ME SUGGEST THIS...
For the list called, "50 Questions Every Entrepreneur Should Ask," send an email to me, and you win the list for free!
* * * *
Scott Ginsberg
That Guy with the Nametag
Writing, Publishing, Performing, Consulting
scott@hellomynameisscott.com
Never the same speech twice.
Now booking for 2012-2013!
Watch The Nametag Guy in action here!
Labels: approachable, beauty of reflection, business growth, hello my name is scott, nametagscott, reverse word of mouth marketing, scott ginsberg, the nametag manifesto
[Read the Full Post...]
Thursday, February 02, 2012
It’s hard to be healthy alone.
When it’s just us, there’s no accountability. Nobody to keep us conscious of portion control. Nobody to meet us at the gym before work. Nobody to remind us that we don’t need another drink.
When it’s just us, there’s no incentive. Nobody to motivate us to get better. Nobody to celebrate with us when we reach our goal. Nobody to bust our chops when we fall short of the mark.
When it’s just us, there’s no relationship. Nobody to share the joy of cooking with. Nobody to experience the catharsis of exercise with. Nobody to build a sense of connection with.
When it’s just us, there’s no community. Nobody to share our humanity with. Nobody to face our injustice with. Nobody to make us feel less alone about handling the ups and downs of life.
If want to be healthier people, we don’t need more supplements.
We need more people.
LET ME ASK YA THIS…
What's your health secret?
LET ME SUGGEST THIS...
For the list called, "26 Ways to Out Brand the Competition" send an email to me, and you win the list for free!
* * * *
Scott Ginsberg
That Guy with the Nametag
Writing, Publishing, Performing, Consulting
scott@hellomynameisscott.com
Never the same speech twice.
Now booking for 2012-2013!
Watch The Nametag Guy in action here!
Labels: approachable, beauty of reflection, business growth, hello my name is scott, nametagscott, scott ginsberg, the nametag manifesto
[Read the Full Post...]
Wednesday, February 01, 2012
Not everybody reflects.
Thanks to our backwards school system, most of us were never taught us how to reflect. Only to sit in straight rows, follow the rules, solve the next problem, memorize meaningless facts, take the test, accept our grade and move on to the next assignment.
God forbid we stop for a moment to look back on life.
No, that would require independent critical thinking. That might even lead to questioning authority. And you can’t control people who do that. You can’t grow them into obedient, productive cogs for the corporate assembly line if they’re too busy contemplating how baldy they’re being screwed by the system.
For this very reason, we owe it to ourselves to introduce rituals of reflection into our lives. Even if it’s only five minutes a day, we always benefit from looking back.
It’s not a form of narcissism – it’s an act of introspection.
It’s not about living in the past – it’s about confronting our history.
Only then, when we know where we’ve been, can we decide where we need to go.
Only then, when we know who we’ve become, can we decide where we need to grow.
And yet, many of us still won’t do it. Not just because we think it’s an unproductive use of our time, but also because we’re afraid of what we might see, what we might realize we were dead wrong about.
But that’s the beauty of reflection.
That which stares back at us is that which we most need to see.
LET ME ASK YA THIS…
What are you afraid to reflect on?
LET ME SUGGEST THIS...
For the list called, "10 Ways to Make the Mundane Memorable" send an email to me, and you win the list for free!
* * * *
Scott Ginsberg
That Guy with the Nametag
Writing, Publishing, Performing, Consulting
scott@hellomynameisscott.com
Never the same speech twice.
Now booking for 2012-2013!
Watch The Nametag Guy in action here!
Labels: approachable, beauty of reflection, business growth, hello my name is scott, nametagscott, scott ginsberg, the nametag manifesto
[Read the Full Post...]
Never the same speech twice.
