GarthBox

At it’s finest (in the sense of the microscopic, the near undetectable, the heart of it) marketing sends signals.

An email sends a signal even if it goes unopened.

A hand written congratulations note may not be called for with a minor achievement, but it sends a signal to the recipient when they get it about where your heart is.

The flow of your website even before a word of copy is read sends a signal.

At it’s finest marketing is about sending a signal.

And the signal doesn’t always have to be positive? It can produce constructive tension. But even that is a signal.

The more signals, the more power marketing has.

And when signals are consistent – both in emotion and in cadence, that’s when marketing works.

Stay Positive & When It Works “Overnight”

I’ve had a friend that said I should dress better (at the time in my career, I was wearing khakis and t-shirts). So I started showing up wearing button ups and a sport coat with a pocket square.

I’ve had a leader that said I should be reviewing the pipeline numbers more regularly. So I started every day with it and often slacked him my read and action items…probably too often.

I’ve had an industry vet say I shouldn’t open a bar. So I did… and I made it award-winning.

If you’re willing to read on, here are two observations about going to the extreme.

The first is that it only feels extreme in that moment. Looking back, I could have done a full tailored suit, communicated to the CEO my findings in the pipeline, and, ya know, opened two award-winning bars.

The second is that going to the extreme helps more than it hurts. Have I ran into walls trying to reach the end of a spectrum? Sure. Fallen off the edge a few times, too. But in all the years of my career so far, going all in helps more than it hurts.

Think about this…

“I’m sorry I took it too far.”

vs.

“I’m sorry I did nothing.”

Sure there’s a middle ground, but no one recognizes it at first. Recall my first observation about extremes? It only feels extreme in the moment. In hindsight, the suit jacket with jeans was actually the middle ground.

Stay Positive & Go Ahead To The Extreme

The basketball hoop had finally broke. It wouldn’t raise or lower the rim any longer. So I kept practicing my shots.

Though I was nailing them, no one would say that I was ready to play in league. They knew the hoop was a solid 7 inches higher than what I’ve shot at.

It took a new hoop that forced me to have higher expectations of both my personal excellence and my goal of being one of the most valuable players on my league team.

The funny thing about most of our pursuits is that we’re not playing with a broken hoop. We have the power to raise expectations for ourselves and others.

It required no additional incentive. No pep talk. No additional training outside my normal commitment.

Sometimes setting higher expectations is literally all it takes.

Stay Positive & What Does A Slight Rise Look Like For You?

One of the best ways to get a toddler to learn how to skate is to have them learn how to walk with skates on before putting them on the ice.

If you want to give a standing ovation-worthy presentation, it pays to present in front of your friends first.

On the path to greatness, there needs to be an environment in which its safe to practice, train, and trial. Multiple times on the path, actually.

The more opportunities to make an attempt, the more an attempt because a show and a show becomes a legacy.

Stay Positive & Practice Area, Next Exit

There’s value in asking someone to connect. More often than not, it works and is a win-win, assuming there’s effort put in.

But there’s even more value out of creating an opportunity for others to connect with each other.

If given the chance of a single connection or a network – choose the network.

Stay Positive & When The Next Opportunity

First – hopefully you’re the one that catches you complaining.

No one has ever said they liked a coworker because they complained or a smart idea got expertly executed because someone complained.

Squeeky wheels get grease but they don’t get promoted, valued, partnered with… They get minimally corrected and then discounted.

Second – observing that there’s complaining means action has to follow.

Complaining about the job? Create a new one. Complaining about a coworker? Drown them with kindness. Complaining about your weight? Well… I could keep going but all these are obvious.

And that’s where the real pain of complaining comes from when it’s shared with others.

Actions are obvious to those that hear you complaining (and when you address it to yourself, it’s obvious too).

It’s not easy to go from feeling the need to complain to feeling the power to do something about it; but it’s necessary.

Stay Positive & Take Action

If you’re faced with a challenge you’re struggling with, it’s entirely fair to ask someone for insight, help, or – my personal favorite – to react to a solution idea (rather than asking them to come up with one from scratch).

The issue I see with some who agree that this is a great move is they don’t know who to ask. So they stall.

Mainly because they don’t like the answer to the question: who can I ask?

Anyone.

Over the years of running businesses, every quarter or so I’ll get an email from someone I’ve never met asking for advice. The question is almost always ill thought out and sometimes it even answers itself as they ramble on, but I love these more than any other questions I get because what’s indicative of a leader in the making isn’t the answer I give them, it’s the fact they asked someone. Anyone.

Stay Positive & Ask Anyone… But Do Ask