Renovations of the Career Intensity Site are underway. 

Normal posting will resume January 2, 2007

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What is PR worth?

I work with many people who want to get on TV or get mentioned in the newspaper because they hope it will help them sell their product or service.

This just isn’t true.

PR helps you build credibility.

If someone asks you to invest money with their PR firm to promote your business you need to first ask yourself what benefit you will achieve.  Attorneys, Consultants, and some Sales Professionals can use publicity to help establish themselves as experts. 

In most cases a good referral program (positive word-of-mouth) is better and it can be done far more cost effectively.

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We have been the target of a massive Spam Attack.  Comments are closed until we find a way to combat it.

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“The challenge is in the moment, the time is always now.”

-James Baldwin

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The sales process is all about filling the wants and needs of your customers.  How do you know what they want?  You need to ask.

Seth Godin has posted a list of the types of questions that don’t work.  They are:

1. Asking a question with no query. Examples: “Your neighbors don’t like you.” “Some people think you killed your wife.”

2. Double-barrelled questions. Like: “Is this your first business? How did you get started?” You’re unlikely to get answers to both. One question at a time.

3. Overloading. Ask: short, simple questions. “What is it like to be accused of murder?”

4. Adding your own remarks. Again, this is not the time or place to say that you hate Chryslers… You’re not being interviewed.

5. Trigger words. One famous example of this was when TV reporter John Stossell asked a pro wrestler about the “sport’’ by volunteering this about the fighting: “I think it’s fake.” The pro wrestler hit him twice. “Was that fake?” he demanded.

6. Hyperbole by the questioner. Overstatement typically causes the interview subject to counterbalance by understating…

7. Closed query (Yes or No question). If the question begins with a verb, its most likely a closed question — and will generate a one word answer.

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From the Globe and Mail:

Successful entrepreneurs are supposed to be outgoing, risk-taking workaholics.

But Rhonda Abrams says there are actually nine different types of entrepreneurs, each with their own style and interests, allowing more of us the chance to enjoy the joy of entrepreneuring:

1. Adviser: Some entrepreneurs are paid for giving advice, such as lawyers, accountants, and financial advisers.

2. Administrator/Organizer: Like organizing? You can plan weddings, oversee projects, or take care of accounts, databases, and order fulfillment.

3. Builders/Creators: Artists, bakers, carpenters, and designers are examples of entrepreneurs driven to create something tangible where it did not exist before.

4. Caretaker: People with a helping personality find opportunities taking care of people, plants or property.

5. Communicator/Trainer: If you can transmit information or communicate in different languages you might find demand in sales, marketing, writing, training or a variety of information services.

6. Entertainer/Host: If you thrive on being with people, you may find an entrepreneurial opening in the hospitality industry or service industries such as hairdressing. Or you may be an entertainer, actor, musician, or singer.

7. Investor/Owner: If you have money to invest you can put your capital to work for you investing in stocks, real estate or businesses.

8. Seller: This covers salespeople and brokers in our purchases, from real estate to insurance to art.

9. Technologist/Engineer: If you love figuring out computers, autos and engines, you may want to explore entrepreneurial opportunities in software development, engineering or technology.

Which entrepreneur are you?

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“We are all dreaming of some magical rose garden over the horizon-instead of enjoying the roses blooming outside our windows today.”

— Dale Carnegie

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Many of you may know that I am a Cable News Junkie.  I am fascinated by the marketing aspect of the Cable News Wars.

The Christmas Day programming choices of each of these networks speaks volumes about their leadership/marketing savvy.  

Many people are with family and friends on Christmas Day so it is not a big TV ratings day.  It is also probably not a great day for the staff of a news network to work (most people, regardless of their religious beliefs, find something interesting to do).  Bottom line – there’s not going to be many big stories on Christmas Day so the cable news networks take a break.  Below is how each of the big three handled Christmas this year:

CNN went with a Larry King Marathon.  They ran 18 straight hours of the talk show.  If you missed a compelling episode of Larry King this year, chances are good they re-ran it yesterday.  If you like Larry, yesterday was a great day.  I’m certain that there was an army of agoraphobic senior citizens on the edge of their seats as they watched Larry pitch softballs to the likes of Donald Trump, Katie Courric and Jon Stewart. 

MSNBC went with a Christmas Crime Marathon – broadcasting the real life trials of murders, rapists and pedophiles.  Heart-warming tales for the whole family.  Pass the eggnog and the arsenic.  Clearly MSNBC was trying to capture the fringe element of teenage males who takes a break from burning ants with a magnifying glass on Christmas Day.  Seriously, who wants to watch an entire day of horrible crime on the most peaceful day of the year? 

Fox News Broadcast Pastor Rick Warren’s Church Services over and over again.  They also augmented this coverage with some topical programming hosted by their regular news anchors (Brit Hume had a look at the involvement of Evangelicals in environmental causes).  There was just enough original programming to get your attention – and the re-runs (the church service) had contextual significance.

At the end of the day, all three news networks ran their programming over and over.  Fox News however remained true to their brand and stayed relevant to the events of the day.  You don’t need to agree with everything you hear on Fox News Chanel  but you should respect their focus on their viewers.  It is clear that they “get it”.  Even on Christmas Day, Fox News was giving viewers what they wanted. 

The other two networks would have been better off running the Yule Log for 18 hours.  At least that would have had some cultural relevance.

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It looks like the Career Intensity RSS feed to Blog lines readers is not working.  It appears to be a problem on their end.  We have contacted them and they are working to correct the problem.

Thanks for your patience.

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“To love what you do and feel that it matters — how could anything be more fun?”

-Katharine Graham

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Regardless of religion, today is a great day to take a break from the hectic nature of everyday life.

Enjoy the day and the rest of the holiday season!

And thanks for reading the Career Intensity Blog all year long.

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Carnival off Next Week

The Carnival of Career Intensity will be taking next week (December 30) off.  

This is partially because your carnival host will be ushering in 2007 on the beach in Miami and partially because we will be re-tooling the Career Intensity Blog over the weekend. 

I’m not going to make any big announcements (one of the many things I have learned in 2006) but there will be some changes in the new year.

Career Intensity Blog will take Christmas Off

We will also be taking tomorrow – Christmas Day – off. 

I wish all of you the very best this holiday season!

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Although I put up the entire posts of the five bloggers I selected for the carnival this week, I encourage you to visit their blogs and scroll through their archives.   Click the links below to check them out.

Click Here for The Only Trait of a Leader.

Click Here for GT.

Click Here for  Blog Fabulous.

Click Here for Cultivate Greatness.

Click Here for Trust Matters.

You can find the Carnival of Career Intensity here each and every Saturday.  Here is a refresher about how it works:

Each week I pick five posts I think best demonstrate Career Intensity from the submissions I receive.  I am looking for posts that add value to careers of my readers. 

The carnival opens on Saturday at 9 AM (Eastern Time) with Post Number Five that week. Post Number Four goes up at 11AM.  Post Number Three goes up at 1PM.  Post number Two goes up at 3PM. And the big winner for that week goes up at 5PM.  I will run each post in its entirety and provide a link to the contributing blog. 

Each author of the five posts selected for display will receive a signed copy of my book Career Intensity:  Business Strategy for Workplace Warriors and Entrepreneurs.  If you see your post on the blog, please email me you name and mailing address and I’ll send you a book (US mailing addresses only).

Admission to the Carnival of Career Intensity is on a rolling basis. If your post does not make it this week, don’t despair, I might use it next week. Submit posts around the clock by e-mailing:  carnival@careerintensity.com

You can also enter by filling in the form at http://blogcarnival.com.

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“Start by doing what is necessary, then do what is possible, and suddenly you are doing the impossible.”

-St. Francis of Assisi

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Carnival of Career Intensity – Post One

John E. West presents Leaders are made, not born posted at The Only Trait of a Leader.

I read an article recently arguing that leaders are born, not made. I disagree.

I view leadership as a continuum, probably because of my other view that there is only one trait of a leader: followers.

The consumer
If the only trait of leadership that matters is that other people are motivated by what you say and do or are influenced to act in a way that is in line with your goals - whether in your personal or professional life - then you are leading.

Easy examples? Do you usually pick where your group goes to lunch? What about movies? Did you get a new Powerbook a couple years ago and now all your friends want one? You’re leading.

True, this kind of leadership is at the low end of the spectrum (an amateur-level practice, at the same level as buying a point and shoot camera to take pictures at your kid’s parties), but it’s leadership, and we all do it all the time.

The pro-sumer
You can focus, shape, and multiply this “consumer-level” leadership when you recognize that you are leading, and then think consciously about consequences and meaning before (or as) you act. This conscious interaction with the consequences of your own leadership leads you to develop over time a more well-developed leadership skill set that can allow you have to real impact.

This is a “pro-sumer” kind of leadership (to carry on the product analogy): you are more accomplished than most amateurs, and probably using a high end digital camera, but still not making a living.

The pro
When you start really developing your leadership skills by seeking mentors, seeing a bigger picture, and setting a vision you can graduate to the “professional” level of leadership. Not everyone wants to put in this kind of time and effort, and it takes some real talent to really succeed as a professional in leadership just like everything else. But to some extent you can exchange talent for time and effort and still become an accomplished leader or an accomplished professional photographer.

Virtuosos
Then there are the virtuosos: Jack Welch from GE as the famous photographer Ansel Adams (to finish the camera analogy). Sure, these guys did the rest of the stuff I’ve already talked about, but they have a magic sauce the rest of us just don’t have. They work as hard as we do and accomplish orders of magnitude more, sometimes even with the same equipment.

I do think that virtuosos are born and not made. Whatever your craft - whether leadership or photography - if you don’t know you are a virtuoso already you probably aren’t.

The un-virtuoso club
I’m certainly not a virtuoso either. But here’s the thing: the world doesn’t need legions of Jack Welch clones. We just need stronger leadership throughout our personal and professional organizations. And where we really need it is at the bottom, where most people think leadership is “someone else’s job.”

Leaders are born and made, and you can start making a difference in the world around you right now no matter which class you fall in to.

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Carnival of Career Intensity – Post Two

Brandon Peele presents The Economics of Self-Awareness posted at GT.

The four most pressing trends in business are sustainability, leadership, authentic marketing and innovation.  Every company uses these words to appear to be with it, but few really understanding what these words mean or how they are cultivated. As such they are typically reduced to an oversimplified set of actions, from which only failure will result.  I will explore the definitions of these trends and the philosophical heir they share, self-awareness.  In pursuing their source, we are empowered to realize optimal economics by positioning ourselves and our organizations as beings which embrace the future, attract customers and build sustainable competitive advantage.

First let us define in concrete terms what sustainability, leadership, authentic marketing and innovation mean.

Sustainability refers to making optimal decisions with regard to two dimensions, time and breadth.  That is, the longer the time horizon (into the future) considered with regard to a decision, the more sustainable that decision.  Thinking long, by necessity requires the employ of the second dimension, breadth.  As time horizons increase, the number of variables and risks increase.  Thus, to accurately determine the true effect of a particular decision, we must develop a broader knowledge of the things which affect our decision and the effects of our decision.  A common expression of sustainable decision making is stakeholder engagement (meeting with employees, customers, suppliers, community members, environmental, trade and labor organizations, etc.).  The broader the host of decision factors and the longer the time horizon incorporated into any decision model, the more sustainable the company/decision/person.

Innovation is just a five-dollar word for creativity.  It is the heart of product development and market creation (iPod, Wii, etc.)  Creativity is the combination of two or more things which were previously uncombined.  The ability to innovate or create is the wherewithal to see these as yet expressed combinations.  This ability is what we mean when we say a person, a company or an artifact is innovative.  The study of creativity reveals that it becomes manifest whereupon an authentic self-expression exists.  One cannot create unless one can readily draw from one’s own internal source.

Leadership, briefly, is comprised of one internal characteristic, integrity.  Though there are a host of other leadership qualities, these qualities are only the expressions of integrity; that is being what/who one is all the time - total synthesis between thoughts, words and actions.  Leadership is oft confused with management, which is merely the operationalizing of an idea.  Good management is artfully removing obstacles for those within an organization, such that they spend as little time possible doing things they are not personally fulfilled by, and as much time possible self-expressing on behalf of the firm.  Management, thus is action, whereas leadership is action inspired by one’s qualities.  Thus, to cultivate leadership, we must cultivate the quality which inspires; this is, as mentioned, integrity. 

“It has been said that ‘common souls pay with what they do, nobler souls with that which they are.’” - Ralph Waldo Emerson

Authentic Marketing is the result of the consumer’s disdain for contrived branding, inauthenticity, corruption, deceit, lack of vision/sustainability, etc.  Only companies who are able to demonstrate total transparency, and unify marketing strategy, business strategy and organizational/human capital strategies are able to authentically market themselves and their wares.  The LOHAS consumer market segment (~30% of US adults; ~$230B marketplace) pioneered this behavior; they demand that the companies in which they patron as consumers, investors and employers share their values of authenticity and integrity - becoming true, transparent and whole.  While the majority of America is not solely focused on this, the LOHAS consumer is infecting the populace with consciousness and critical reasoning such that the mainstream is acting progressively more green, transparent, authentic, long-term and holistic.

So what do these four mega-trends have in common?  Anyone can see that they are interrelated.  A leader cannot be unless she/he is economically productive and adept at manifesting integrity on the job, necessitating the expression of self and values which generate authentic marketing, sustainability and innovation.  One cannot market authentically without being whole and sustainable.  One cannot innovate without a modicum of leadership (integrity).  One cannot be sustainable without being in the black, requiring innovation, authentic marketing and the leadership to enable it.

At the crux of personal, organizational and economic success is self-awareness - the driver of these mega-trends which economically reward people and organizations.  Is an understanding of self-awareness self-evident?  Do we really need to explain what it is?  Yes.  Like math, it’s complexity decreases and increases infinitely, such that there is a wide variety of people who claim to understand math, but differ greatly in their actual math comprehension.   A second grader with an A in math and a PhD in Theoretical Physics can both demonstrate mastery and even be proud of their comprehension, at their level.  They both understand math, but only in a relative sense.  Self-awareness functions similarly, as everyone believes they are self-aware, but only within the limits of their comprehension, level of psychological/cognitive/spiritual/kinesthetic development.

A common understanding of self-awareness is that it is an understanding of strengths and weaknesses, or likes and dislikes, or associations and dis-associations.  However, once we move past the obvious - our feelings, egos, history, etc. - we come into the basic questions of existence.  What is a human?  Why are we here?  I am doing what I was put here to do?  Thus at this level, self-awareness means a deep philosophic resonance that ties together thoughts, words and actions, such that the human organism functions in a coherent and highly effective manner. 

From this point, self-awareness continues to evolve into the question regarding the limits of identity, such that as consciousness expands, it begins to make fewer and fewer distinctions between things, instead seeing only commonalities, themes, etc.  In this regard, the broader one’s conception of self, following the progression of identity from senses, ego, mind/body, family, group, nation, world, cosmos, the more self-aware the organism.  Within our body, certain cells do not comprehend any notions of wholeness and other cells are able to master complexity and comprehend functions, organs, systems, the body and even environmental changes; accordingly, people have varying degrees of self-awareness / identity with the whole.

Self-awareness brings with it an element of perfectibility.  When people become aware of things, tendencies, ideas, etc., they are faced with a choice.  They can strive to integrate them, such that they can continue to embody and express integrity.  Or they can deny them, such that they can continue to assert their understanding of the world despite the existence of data which render it incomplete.  Self-awareness can only be ascribed one who chooses the former, who sees the perfectibility and ever expanding nature of man.  Closing out realities is to deny that all our realities and facts are subjective and that one’s one understanding of the world is correct or complete.  As Emerson so aptly put, “All history becomes subjective; in other words there is properly no history, only biography.”  Accepting new data and undergoing the often painful process of integration yields a larger self, a more complete whole, and expanded self-awareness.

Self-awareness brings with it humility to see that the only constant, the only thing that can be relied upon is that we are always wrong; everyday we learn new things which negate yesterday’s understanding.   This humility is brought about by a dynamic understanding of time - one who accurately perceives his/her wrongness is ironically the only one who can be right in that moment.  Seeing life a progression of correct choices embodying the same principles and understanding throughout is a pleasant fiction.  Seeing it as an optimization, a process of encountering, integrating and acting upon new ideas and themes, is the path of one who is perpetually self-aware.

Self-awareness extends even further towards the oft ambiguously defined state of enlightenment.  The best definition I’ve seen (speaking from an intellectual, not experiential, comprehension) is in the Diamond Sutra: no distinction between perceiver, perceiving and perceived.  That is, self-awareness ultimately subjugates notions of separateness, preferring unity.  The ladder of self-awareness continues even further I’m sure, however my own limits of self-awareness prevent me from relating them to you - ask someone wiser than I!

As can be inferred, the more self-aware an individual the more effectively they will perceive, relate to and master wholes; the more easily they’ll be able to tap into the Source and create; the more integrity they will bring to their lives, organizations and customers; the more they will be able to authentically communicate their own lives, their professions and their company’s products; the more others will be convinced they are sincere; and the more others will be moved to act on behalf this sincerity.  Thus, sustainability, innovation, leadership and authentic marketing, the mega-trends of our current economic environment and arguably timeless realms of perfectibility, are the result of self-awareness.  Though there exists a litany of profit-takers who defy this assertion in the short-run (fossil fuel, pharma, auto, tobacco, alcohol, defense companies, corporate villains, LBO firms, etc.), the long-run success of every individual and organization is determined by his/her commitment to self-awareness.

So how do we manifest this commitment?  We have to make it part of our daily lives.  There are a number of activities which one can engage in to nurture self-awareness.  Borrowing from the work of Michael Murphy and Ken Wilber, there are four major lines of human development (amongst dozens which are also worth reviewing); these are psychological, contemplative, cognitive and kinesthetic.  A robust self-awareness practice, or set of practices will draw on all four.  An example of such a practice would be:

• Psychological: weekly psychotherapy for 1 hour, dream journaling in the mornings for 2 minutes
• Contemplative: daily meditation for 40 minutes, listening to spiritual music in the car
• Cognitive: guitar playing 3x week, nightly gratitude journaling
• Kinesthetic: yoga, weights and cardio, each 2x week

What this cross-training produces is an understanding of the deep-seeded emotional drivers which determine our actions (psychological), of deeper-realities than those typically present at work, on TV, etc. (contemplative), the creative impulse within and the gift of life (cognitive) and the relationship between mind, body and soul (kinesthetic).  Thus, self-awareness is multidimensional, drawing on an integrative set of practices which nurture not only our understanding of self, but the evolution of self.  Much like a whole car will benefit from an oil change, tuning ourself up in one line of development will cause breakthroughs in understanding and performance in other lines of development.

Meditation specifically has the remarkable ability to tune and integrate all levels of development.  Though the effects will not be marked from the outset, continued practice will yield sporadic bursts in the development of not only the soul, but mind, body and psyche.

Conclusion
The shifting business climate of today requires not only new technologies, but the awareness to utilize and master them.  The four mega-trends of the day are sustainability, leadership, innovation and authentic marketing; these trends at their heart are merely hallmarks of a self-aware individual.  By making self-awareness your top priority you will not only realize greater economics, but fulfillment, creativity, joy and peace.  The elephant in the room, the grand caveat, is however, that once self-awareness takes hold of you, you might not feel compelled to perform any action, economic or otherwise, as your self-awareness will reveal the wholeness and perfection of the world as it is already.  You may be still called to serve and create, but the vast majority of pursuits common to economic man might begin lose their luster; as master of yourself, you will embody the creative principle and do, not by obligation to others, but by the necessity of your soul to self express.

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Carnival of Career Intensity – Post Three

Kim Banks presents How To Give A Presentation With Confidence and Flair. Prepare, Practice, Peace. posted at Blog Fabulous.

I’ve talked about what an important element effective communications is at work.

Whether you are an executive who must drill corporate strategies into the psyche of the company, or you are a mentor, acting as a guide for a young employee, or your are just having an average conversation with your boss.

But the one area of communications I have not pursued here is the presentation — most likely because I have such bad memories of my own performances.

I can tell you that at least twice a Sr. manager told me I needed to go to classes to improve my skills. I never had the time to do that, but I did teach myself a few things — and they have helped me as a business owner.

I know there are thousands of books, articles, blogs and other resources on this subject — not the least of which is Dale Carnegie.

But I wanted to share my own ideas to keep things uncomplicated and genuine for you:

Preparation is king in speech-giving — lest you want to be compared to the person who gave the horrible toast at a wedding.

Preparation means a few things to me.

First, if you don’t know how to use PowerPoint or whatever presentation software your company uses…you must learn or get someone to teach you.

Trust me–this is half the battle. Plus you get to play graphic designer for a little while — designing strong and stylish images and messages.

Know your subject matter — i.e. your company and your business — inside and out.

If there is time, prior to the presentation, begin to take good notes at meetings, talk to colleagues about important aspects of the business or strategic plan that you are presenting.

Scour the internet about your industry…find relevant facts about your company, your competition and about new trends that may impact your company. No idea is really ever new (seriously) don’t try to write the whole thing from scratch.  Dig through files and find previous presentations to see what is relevant to yours…and then edit, re-write, cut and paste into your presentation. And just like you did for your college term papers, reference experts.

And speaking of writing…use everyday language…no one is going to care that you’ve chosen to use the word postulation, as opposed to concept.

Keep your slides or images very concise…bullets, bullets, bullets! You want people to commit to memory your key points.

Which brings us to timing. A solid presentation really shouldn’t be more than 12 minutes…15 minutes tops — unless your Steve Jobs giving the annual Apple presentation.

Be mindful of your attendees schedules…they will appreciate it.

Find impactful images: graphs, charts, even photos if it will help strengthen your ideas.

Practice! Take your presentation home and practice in front of a mirror, before friends, maybe even video tape yourself so that you can see what you look and sound like.

Speak up — speak clearly and slowly. Women can sound shrill if they speak to quickly.

Check your overall appearance: no dangling pendants, no shiney brooches…you want your audience to be listening to YOU, not be distracted by your jewelry.

Try to limit your hand movements…but if you can’t help yourself, make sure you’ve gotten a manicure.

If you have to give a presentation out of town, be sure to have a general sense of your audience in terms of office wardrobe. NYC Vogue does not fly in Des Moines.

When presentation day comes, be sure to thank your audience — especially senior members of management.

And lastly, try to stay on point — my biggest faux pas usually happened when I began to notice the audience fidget (often when I digressed and tried to throw in a giggle.)
I would stutter and really get so off topic that I’d forget where I was in the presentation — which eventually led my management to pull me aside and tell me I needed classes…ick.

We all know that public speaking is difficult…but believe me…if you prepare and practice — you will present with confidence.

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Carnival of Career Intensity – Post Four

Travis Wright presents Choose To Be Around People Who Make You Think posted at Cultivate Greatness.

Sometimes it is just easier NOT to think. But to truly grow and move forward in our chosen path of life, we need to think optimally, and need to surround ourselves with others who truly make us think.

Its seems more and more these days, that deep thinking is a thing of the past. Most people have such shallow conversations, that it is literally mind-numbing.

“Did you watch [TV Flavor of the Season Show] Last night? Oh wow, it was so awesome and such and such did such and such with Whoever! Can you believe it! Wow, what a great show.”

Seriously, who cares? Its fantasy. Stepping into the TV realm is like checking your consciousness at the door and being 100% reliant on the cable providers to give you something nice to look at. This isn’t thinking. It’s wasteful consciousness transference.

Instead of ‘thinking’ about your television shows, seek out others in your area that watch minimal amounts of television. And get together and have life enriching conversations about stuff that matters. Things that are gonna help you out along your path towards success.

Like attracts like, so if you are always wasting time, and watching TV… you will get more of the same of what you already have. And if you are like me, and wanting to improve the quality of your life, then I recommend getting off the couch and off the damn television. Turn it off, unplug the damn thing. Or, cover it up with a nice blanket or something. I used to do this during my college days… it really helped me to study with the TV covered, or I might have been tempted to turn on its consciousness dumbing downness. heh.

Yeah, so… Choose to be around smart people… people who you learn something from when you are around. Embrace their knowledge and grow. Find new people who can help you enrich your life. In turn, you will gather new found skills and knowledge that will help you enrich others lives. Its a win-win situation.

Or, you can choose to spend your free time sleeping in, and then watching copious amounts of worthless television, then logging on to read personal development blogs 20 years from now, wishing your life was better than it is right now.

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Carnival of Career Intensity - Post Five

Charles H. Green presents Trust Tip 26: Check Your Ego at the Door posted at Trust Matters.

What do we all do before the sales presentation, the big pitch, the final report? Usually, we rehearse until the last minute, fine-tuning and tweaking, building energy and adrenaline, all geared to peak at the final event.

Don’t go there.

By the time of the event itself, about 95% of the outcome has been pre-determined—you just don’t know the answer. The slideset will do what it will do; the political alliances are all in place; personal chemistries are what they are; and if there’s a fix, it’s in.

In fact, trying to wrestle that last 5% to the ground is more likely to annoy than impress the client. You’ve got precious little upside, and a lot to lose.

It doesn’t have to be that way. Next time, try something different.

Next time, stop for 15 seconds in the hotel room. Or in the restroom before the meeting. Or even just outside the meeting room itself on your way in.

Stop, and let this thought take over: “Let me check my ego at the door; let me be a channel for the great things I can offer this client.” Then walk in the door—with no concern for the outcome.

Things are what they are at this point. The event itself is either a ceremony or a scripted play (which you didn’t write). You now have very little power to alter the outcome.

So—give it up. Detach from the results. Stop trying to control things. Let your mind think simply, what can I do in this meeting to be of help to these people? I know lots of great stuff; how can I best channel it to them?

If you think that way, your 95% odds will surely get no worse—and you will get fewer ulcers worrying about the result. Whatever flexibility is left will work in your favor if, at this late date, you’re seen to be helpful rather than shading that last little point, tweaking that last little comment.

If you’re religious, call this a prayer. If you’re spiritual, make it your mantra. If neither, then just call it a pre-flight checklist.

Check your ego at the door. Be a channel. And when you’re done, walk out with a feeling of graciousness that you behaved with class.

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“Our task must be to free ourselves … by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature and its beauty.”

— Albert Einstein

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From Seth Godin:

You don’t realize how much you need a boss until you don’t have one. Bosses don’t always do the following, especially when they’re not very good bosses, but here’s what we know about good bosses:

Bosses organize your time for you.
Bosses decide what’s urgent.
Bosses give you cover when you work on something stupid (”she told me to!”)
Bosses pay you even when the client doesn’t honor the invoice.
Bosses can be sued.
Bosses create deadlines, and stick with them.
Bosses make sure you show up in the morning.
Bosses pay for the Postits.
Bosses give you someone to complain about.
Bosses carve up the work and give you just that piece you signed up to do.
Bosses give you a role model. (Sometimes one to work against, but that’s a different story).

The main thing a boss does, though, is give you the momentum you need to get through the stuff that takes perseverance. The main thing that ends the career of a Free Agent is the lack of a hand pushing on the back, someone handing out assignments and waiting for the deliverables. Who keeps you going when you don’t feel like doing it?

If you don’t have a boss, you may need to invent one.

Seth is asking people to rate their favorite posts (from his blog) of 2006. This is mine.

Filed under: Entrepreneurship - General
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Smart Lemming points us to an interesting article on Wall Street Journal’s Career Journal titled, “15 Questions For Setting A Career Change in Motion” by Eileen P. Gunn.

This is a “must read” article but my favorite question is:

“Think of the worst boss you ever had. What made him or her bad to work for? What did you learn to not do from him or her?”

The answer to this question is a window into the employee’s soul.  You not only get to see what they view as “bad” when it comes to bosses, you also get to see how they react to adversity.

I like it.  I like it a lot.

Filed under: Career Commonsense
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“I’m a great believer in luck, and I find the harder I work, the more I have of it.”

-Thomas Jefferson

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Decker Marketing has 15 Ideas to Create a Great Conference. Here are my favorite:

Send a Countdown to Hotel Sell Out — Every conference has a preferred hotel with reserved room. Most attendees are procrastinators on booking the hotel. With a regular email tell them how many rooms are left.

Separate Content and Exhibitor Fees — Should exhibitors be able to pay their way to speak? Would this create great content? Good magazines separate editorial from advertising. Conferences should do the same. If part of a conference’s product are great speakers and topics, the event organizer should find the best speakers and topics…period. At online online retail conference, for example, you can pay to speak (and it costs a lot). Even if I had more budget than I knew what to do with, I wouldn’t want to be associated sponsored speaking because as an attendee (and I am both), I wouldn’t want to listen to sponsored speakers. I think the topics aren’t as interesting and the content suffers. Anyone paying to speak will be more likely to ’sell’ in an effort to recoup that investment.

Create Roundtables — Shop.org has a popular section of their conference where brand leaders, sometimes with their agencies and vendors, present topical case studies. Roundtables are popular because they are targeted, small enough to allow Q&A and discussion, and they are great for networking. It’s also a great way to find out what topics are most popular! One roundtable on organization issues had to put two roundtables together to meet the demand.

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Michael Wade from Execupundit:

The Career Manifesto

1. Unless you’re working in a coal mine, an emergency ward, or their equivalent, spare us the sad stories about your tough job. The biggest risk most of us face in the course of a day is a paper cut.

2. Yes, your boss is an idiot at times. So what? (Do you think your associates sit around and marvel at your deep thoughts?) If you cannot give your boss basic loyalty, either report the weasel to the proper authorities or be gone.

3. You are paid to take meaningful actions, not superficial ones. Don’t brag about that memo you sent out or how hard you work. Tell us what you achieved.

4. Although your title may be the same, the job that you were hired to do three years ago is probably not the job you have now. When you are just coasting and not thinking several steps ahead of your responsibilities, you are in dinosaur territory and a meteor is coming.

5. If you suspect that you’re working in a madhouse, you probably are. Even sociopaths have jobs. Don’t delude yourself by thinking you’ll change what the organization regards as a “turkey farm.” Flee.

6. Your technical skills may impress the other geeks, but if you can’t get along with your co-workers, you’re a litigation breeder. Don’t be surprised if management regards you as an expensive risk.

7. If you have a problem with co-workers, have the guts to tell them, preferably in words of one syllable.

8. Don’t believe what the organization says it does. Its practices are its real policies. Study what is rewarded and what is punished and you’ll have a better clue as to what’s going on.

9. Don’t expect to be perfect. Focus on doing right instead of being right. It will simplify the world enormously.

10.If you plan on showing them what you’re capable of only after you get promoted, you need to reverse your thinking.

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“Peace is not merely a distant goal that we seek, but a means by which we arrive at that goal.”

— Martin Luther King, Jr.

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One Year Ago:

Successful people approach their every interaction in a manner that’s different than everyone else. People who are successful enter into each interaction with a desired outcome. They have an idea of what they want from each meeting, each phone call, and each email. The most successful individuals have internalized this behavior; they don’t even realize that they are doing it. There is also a flip side to this coin. Successful people are incredibly appreciative when other people are focused on achieving an outcome from a meeting or interaction. This helps them cut through clutter and enables them to be almost twice as productive as everyone else.

Many people ask me if, by outcome-driven, I mean communicating in a frank or direct way. Although direct communication is often helpful and appreciated, that is not my specific focus. In this case, I am referring to the thought process that occurs prior to an interaction, such as scheduling a meeting, accepting an invitation to a meeting, picking up the phone, writing an email, or even going to the store. Most people take these things for granted. You will sit in a meeting for an hour or more and then leave the room wondering why you just wasted an hour of your life. You go to the mall with no clear purpose and end up just killing time.

Outcome-driven thinking is about being in the moment. What you do right now will create your past and it will have an impact on your future. Your life is a collection of these finite opportunities. You do not know when they will run out, so you owe it to yourself to make the most out of each and every moment. Entertainers say that, when you go up onstage, you have to “be in the room.” You need to be in tune with everything that is going on around you and act in harmony with those events. You have to be present in order to make a difference. In business, use these moments to advance toward the outcome you seek. Take advantage of the fact that you have that critical person on the phone, or that they read email at the beginning of the day. Use these tools to your advantage.

Filed under: Mental Sharpness
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Jared Jost of Salary.com has posted Seven Tips to a Better Review. Here they are:

1. Track your contributions

Keep a journal at your desk that you can update daily or weekly with your key accomplishments, positive feedback you have received and comments about areas where you can improve.

2. Compile your greatest achievements

Each month, review your journal entries and track your progress against your goals and areas that have been identified for improvement. When you prepare for your formal performance review, compile these in an easy to reference list and highlight the especially important improvements and accomplishments.

3. Research your market value

If you want to convincingly discuss what you are worth, conduct your own market research. You can start at Salary.com with the Salary Wizard to find national average salaries for your job description or you can get a more specific and comprehensive report if you purchase a Personal Salary Report.

4. Present your findings

Deliver to your manager a summary of your key results. It should be a document that looks professional and is well written. You may also want to include your self-assessed goals and areas for improvement for the upcoming review period.

5. Listen to your feedback

Be attentive and take notes as your manager provides feedback or outlines your goals for the upcoming review period - don’t be defensive, accept it as an opportunity to develop your professional skills.

6. Confirm the accomplishments and areas that could be improved

After you discuss your accomplishments and areas for improvement, confirm with your manager that you clearly understand each point. Then focus the conversation on activities you should undertake to ensure your contribution during the next review period. This will help you and your manager agree on the most direct path to achieving your goals.

7. Create a plan to achieve your goals

After you have completed your performance review with your manager, it is time to prepare for your next review. Start by creating a list of your key goals and objectives, and then formulate an action plan to achieve those goals by your next performance review. Make sure your goals are aligned with company goals and priorities.

This is all good advice – and I must say, it looks rather familiar.

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“Always do right. That will gratify some of the people, and astonish the rest.”

-Mark Twain

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Google’s Zeitgiest report is out.  It is a list of what people have been searching for on the internet.  Here’s a taste:

Google.com - Top Searches in 2006
 
  1. bebo
  2. myspace
  3. world cup
  4. metacafe
  5. radioblog
  6. wikipedia
  7. video
  8. rebelde
  9. mininova
10. wiki 

Google News - Top Searches in 2006
 
  1. paris hilton
  2. orlando bloom
  3. cancer
  4. podcasting
  5. hurricane katrina
  6. bankruptcy
  7. martina hingis
  8. autism
  9. 2006 nfl draft
10. celebrity big brother 2006
 

There are also links to What’s Hot, Current Events, etc.  Click Here to check it out.
   
 

Filed under: Marketing
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Have you ever thought of starting a business with your spouse? 

Janine Popick at Inc.com offers this advice:

1. What type of personality do you each have? If both of you are “alpha” people, or strongly opinionated, be careful. If you are constantly in disagreement, it could leak over to your home life.

2. Do you bring complementary skills to the business? This is important because if you overlap too much, you potentially could find yourselves going up against each other too often (see the last bullet). However, if you each have your own “domain” to manage, chances are you’ll have some new things to talk about at the end if the day.

3. What happens now when you have disagreements? Be careful if you are the type of person to go to bed angry. If disagreements go unresolved, not only will it make your home life uncomfortable, the tension could make your hours — and your employees’ hours — at work unbearable.

4. Is it ok for one of you to be the leader as opposed to the other? If you can’t support a chief or your spouse can’t support you as the chief, beware. Having a leader in the company is important, especially if you have employees.

Filed under: Entrepreneurship - Start-up
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“Excellence is not an exception, it is a prevailing attitude.”

-Colin L. Powell

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From p. 119 of Jack and Suzy Welch’s book: Winning: The Answers:

“Point Blank:  HR should be every company’s killer app.  What could possibly be more important than who gets hired, developed, promoted or moved out the door?”

Having the right people makes a big difference in any company.  It doesn’t matter what business you’re in.

Period.

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Attention readers of Start-Up Fever I have a Holiday gift for you…

Beginning January1, 2007 you will have your own blog (hosted by yours truly) focused on Entrepreneurship!

Thanks to those of you who have stuck with us while this project was in development.  The blog structure has been assembled and we are currently populating it with content. 

I’ll announce the address and redirect the subscribers of Start-up Fever to this new site right after the first of the year. 

Again, thanks for your patience and I hope that most of you remain Career Intensity Subscribers as well.

Filed under: Entrepreneurship - General
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“Everything that irritates us about others can lead us to an understanding of ourselves.”  
— Carl Jung

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One year ago we discussed ways you can prepare yourself to face adversity.  Here are some thoughts on how you can get yourself ready for any possibility.

We have all heard the expression, “It don’t come easy” in reference to success. This is the truth. Although success may appear to happen in an effortless fashion, someone somewhere worked very diligently behind the scenes to ensure optimal results. You must prepare your mind for the difficult tasks that lay ahead of you as you drive your way toward success. Just as a world-class athlete spends years training his body to take the punishment of intense competition, you must train your mind for the battles you will face on the road to making your goals a reality.

Your mental training regime involves challenging yourself with completing increasingly difficult tasks that require you to be alone. The task, be it an intellectual pursuit like getting a degree, or an artistic pursuit like painting or writing poetry, will help you push your limits and develop the mental toughness you need to become a success.

You will learn more about yourself during this strenuous alone time than you would after hours spent on a psychologist’s couch. When you focus your alone time on really difficult tasks, you battle every vice you have. When you win these battles, you gain the confidence that comes with self-awareness. You will know how far you can push yourself, knowledge that is absolutely critical to your career success.

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Although I put up the entire posts of the five bloggers I selected for the carnival this week, I encourage you to visit their blogs and scroll through their archives.   Click the links below to check them out.

Click Here for Ririan Project.

Click Here for   Queercents.

Click Here for   idealawg.

Click Here for Phil for Humanity.

Click Here for  Victor Fam.

You can find the Carnival of Career Intensity here each and every Saturday.  Here is a refresher about how it works:

Each week I pick five posts I think best demonstrate Career Intensity from the submissions I receive.  I am looking for posts that add value to careers of my readers. 

The carnival opens on Saturday at 9 AM (Eastern Time) with Post Number Five that week. Post Number Four goes up at 11AM.  Post Number Three goes up at 1PM.  Post number Two goes up at 3PM. And the big winner for that week goes up at 5PM.  I will run each post in its entirety and provide a link to the contributing blog. 

Each author of the five posts selected for display will receive a signed copy of my book Career Intensity:  Business Strategy for Workplace Warriors and Entrepreneurs.  If you see your post on the blog, please email me you name and mailing address and I’ll send you a book (US mailing addresses only).

Admission to the Carnival of Career Intensity is on a rolling basis. If your post does not make it this week, don’t despair, I might use it next week. Submit posts around the clock by e-mailing:  carnival@careerintensity.com

You can also enter by filling in the form at http://blogcarnival.com.

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“How we spend our days is, of course, how we spend our lives.”

-Annie Dillard

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Carnival of Career Intensity – Post One

Ririan presents 6 Ways To Boost Your Mental Acuity At Work posted at Ririan Project.

Whether you’re having trouble concentrating at work or you just need an extra mental kick to make it through your finals, there are some easy tricks that can improve your memory, concentration and focus.

It doesn’t matter how brainy you are or how much education you’ve had, if you combine some of these “brain fixes” you’ll have boosted your brainpower in no time.

So, here are six ways to flex your grey matter and get the best out of your brain cells:

1. You are what you eat, and that includes your brain

Studies from Switzerland, Hawaii and Boston, Massachusetts, support the memory and cognitive benefits of a diet rich in antioxidants (vitamins C, E and beta carotene) and B vitamins.

If you have an important morning meeting, Douglas Kalman, director of clinical research at Peak Wellness, suggests eating a high protein breakfast to help raise your serotonin levels, which produces hormones that make you feel alert.

If you’re feeling sluggish midday, boost your serotonin with a small dose of carbohydrates, such as fruit or an energy bar. Also, drink lots of water. A craving for sugar can be the initial stages of dehydration.

2. Think positive, loving thoughts; it is easier than you might imagine

A decade of research at the W.M. Keck Laboratory for Functional Brain Imaging and Behavior led by neuroscientist Richard Davidson found that choosing specific thoughts and emotions can permanently change the working of the brain.

When participants practiced feeling love and compassion, their brains went into action - connecting and building new circuitry at high speed.

Davidson has concluded that emotions play a strong role in mental acuity and that spending just 10 minutes a day focusing on feeling loving and kind can make you smarter - and happier.

3. Don’t be a slave to technology

In more than 80 clinical trials, Dr. Glenn Wilson, a psychiatrist at King’s College London University, found that workers distracted by phone calls, e-mails and text messages suffer a greater loss of IQ than if they’d smoked marijuana.

The IQ of those juggling messages and work fell by an average of 10 points - equivalent to missing a whole night’s sleep and more than double the four-point fall seen after smoking pot. The drop in IQ was even more significant in men.

To keep sharp, resist the urge to check messages continually. Instead, schedule blocks of time throughout the day to retrieve and respond to them.

4. Physical exercise can boost brain as well as brawn

Exercise boosts circulation and bolsters brain-nurturing chemicals that improve your creativity, reaction time and retention. Researchers at Middlesex University found that participants scored higher on a creativity test after engaging in 25 minutes of aerobic exercise.

Likewise, a University of Illinois study found that inactive individuals increased their memory and ability to multitask by more than 15 percent after participating in a walking program.

5. Never underestimate the power of a good night’s rest

Lack of sleep also results in reduced productivity and increased errors. A National Sleep Foundation study found that half of all workers in the United States say sleepiness interferes with the amount of work they get done - and nearly 20 percent say it causes them to make mistakes.

Sometimes those mistakes are tragic. Government investigations of human error in the space shuttle Challenger explosion and Exxon Valdez oil spill cited sleep deprivation as a “direct cause” of those accidents.

“The brain keeps an exact accounting of how much sleep it is owed,” says Dr. William C. Dement, a Stanford University sleep expert who says we all need to get one hour of sleep for every two hours we’re awake. “If you sleep one hour less each day then you’re supposed to, you will acquire ’sleep debt.’ ”

“Everyone should block out eight hours of sleep,” Dement adds. “Consider it an appointment that can’t be broken.”

6. Put your mind to work in the right way

Mental exercise is important, too. Using your brain to learn a new language, master a new hobby or engage in friendly debate stimulates blood flow and strengthens the connections (synapses) between nerve cells in the brain. A Washington University study found that memorization techniques also encourage the brain to work more efficiently and may reduce age-related memory loss.

Dr. Robert Goldman, author of Brain Fitness, suggests reading challenging books, doing puzzles - even combing your hair and brushing your teeth with your other hand.

Or check out some of the “brain gyms,” such as Mybraintrainer.com, which has proven so effective that the testing company Kaplan Inc. offers the service to high school and college students preparing for entrance exams.

Studies of workers’ IQ levels show they rise and fall throughout the day depending on a variety of factors and events.

So, boost your mental acuity with these easy tips and you’ll operate at your peak.

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Carnival of Career Intensity – Post Two

Nina presents The Great Divide in Compensation posted at Queercents.

A shortcut to riches is to subtract from one’s desires.” – Plutarch

It’s that time of year when the media reports on Wall Street bonuses. Unless you live in NYC, most people are unaware what these bonuses do for the New York economy.

“Is business good for everyone when Goldman Sachs has a great year? You bet it is,” a Porsche salesman at Manhattan Motorcars, Manny Quinones, said in a New York Sun interview.

The article continues, “Of course, year-end bonuses at Wall Street’s largest investment banks are not distributed in equally divided parts — much to the chagrin of first-year associates everywhere, who might or might not be driving new Porsches five months from now. Intergalactic sums surpassing $10 million are paid out to the privileged few: typically managing directors and star traders. But this year, even junior level analysts and newly minted MBAs stand to fetch $50,000 and up when the firm doles out its bonuses in February.”

I remember when I first learned how much money investment bankers make. I dated a woman in Connecticut and her Chase Manhattan-investment banker sister-in-law pulled in nearly half a million dollars at the spunky age of twenty-nine. At the time, I was the same age as the in-law and was struggling to find myself and a worthy career all while waiting tables as I tried to figure it out. I remember thinking that I worked just as hard as her and moaning to the girlfriend about the inequity of income. She said, “Well, stop complaining and go get your Wharton MBA. Then you can have fun and success on Wall Street.”

I didn’t get my MBA and actually we broke up soon after upon which I bolted to another part of the country. But that’s when it hit me: there is a great divide in America when it comes to compensation. Is it fair? No. Is there anything that I can do about it? Probably not but it certainly is an interesting topic to discuss when it comes to money.

The New York Times reported, “Three decades ago, compensation among occupations differed far less than it does today. That growing difference is diverting people from some critical fields, experts say.”

Case in point: “A decade into the practice of medicine, still striving to become ‘a well regarded physician-scientist,’ Robert H. Glassman concluded that he was not making enough money. So he answered an ad in the New England Journal of Medicine from a business consulting firm hiring doctors. And today, after moving on to Wall Street as an adviser on medical investments, he is a multimillionaire.”

It used to be that medicine was both a noble profession and one that would lead to wealth. Not so today. Another New York Times article mentions, “The average securities salary is now 5.1 times the average salary paid in other industries, up from 2.5 times in 1990 and 4.3 times in 2003, according to a recent report released by the New York state comptroller, Alan G. Hevesi. The securities industry accounted for only 4.7 percent of jobs in New York City in 2005, but 20.6 percent of the wages.”

“First-year associates, those just out of business school, can expect a range of $200,000 to $270,000 in total compensation — base pay, bonus and long-term compensation — while a first-year analyst, just out of college, can expect to make $105,000 to $145,000.”

And those are the wannabes. According to ABC News, the top tier investment bankers who advise corporations on their financial dealings are: “As a group set to do the cash-huge bonuses this year. Johnson Associates estimates that 1,000 top-tier investment bankers will earn in the neighborhood of $2 million to $3 million in bonuses. That’s more than 10 times their $100,000 to $250,000 salaries. The CEOs of premier investment banks will pull in the biggest money — about $40 million plus bonuses to the premier companies, mostly in the form of stock.”

What’s the point? How can most of America compete with that? Clara Jeffery at Mother Jones gives A Look at the Numbers: How the Rich Get Richer. Check out these stats during a work break. For additional reading pleasure, catch this lengthy profile in the New York magazine called, Please Sir, I Want Some More and is about how Goldman Sachs carves up its money pie.

Now back to work, all you worker bees. Present company included!

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Carnival of Career Intensity – Post Three

Stephanie presents Is this lawyer a workaholic? posted at idealawg.

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Carnival of Career Intensity – Post Four

Phil presents Etiquette to Reading and Replying to Emails « Phil for Humanity posted at Phil for Humanity.

If your job is like my job, then you also heavily rely on emails. I easily get a few hundred emails a day. Most of these emails are not important, however each day I get a few critical emails that must be replied to and replied quickly too. That is why I am very vigilant with reading and replying to my emails.

However, why don’t other people offer the same courtesy? So, I started asking people, who I know that are bad at responding to emails, why they are that way. Here are some of their excuses and why these excuses do not make much sense.

1. “If it is important, another email will be sent.” But if all emails are not read, then the second email may be not read too.
2. “I have too many emails.” This is by far the most common complaint that I hear. If someone has too many emails coming in every day, then they are overloaded. Either learn to delegate tasks and emails to other people, read each email quickly and decide to not respond because it is not important, or get more behind. Some people like being overloaded with work and call this “job security”. I like to call this “job delinquency”, because I think timely responses are just as important as good responses.
3. “I only read or respond to emails from my team and manager/boss.” So, only critical issues from outside of their team that are escalated to management get attention. That’s like only doing fire fighting, and never any fire prevention. This makes it look like these people think that their team is more important than any other team. Additionally, this makes these types of people look bad in their managements’ viewpoint, since management consistently only sees critical issues being escalated. Of course, some people prefer this “job security”. Well, I think it is selfish, since these types of people are holding up work for other teams. As I like to say, “If there is no ‘I’ in team, then there is no ‘U’ either.”
4. “If someone else does not respond to my emails, why should I respond to their emails?” This is your job. Get over it and do it. Escalate to their management if timely responses are not given.
5. “My mailbox is full.” Apparently, some people don’t know how to delete or backup emails. Saving every email that some people ever sent and received will not help if these people stopped receiving emails. I am still amazed that some people have full mailboxes for days in a row. Do they think the world is going to stop around them until they get a chance to clean their mailbox?
6. “I have too much ‘real’ work to do.” How is responding to fellow employees not real work? I understand that management wants measurable results from their people everyday, and management may not consider replying to emails as quantifiable productivity. However, this does make other people in the company more productive.

In conclusion, every excuse that email slackers use is not very good.. to me anyways. I think that each of us must read each of our emails, and reply to the most u