GarthBox

There’s not much more frustrating than reaching a destination, but being upset with yourself for how you got there.

Taking shortcuts, hiding, searching for distractions all leave a bad aftertaste.

Better to decide now to be in it for the long run or not. To do what you need to do consistently, daily even, to reach your destination. To leave the “it’s time for a break” mentality behind and set a smart pace.

It’s also worth realizing whether you’re running from something or to it. That will often provide the motivation to go the distance.

 

Stay Positive & Decide Which Race You’re Running

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There’s a lot of advice in the world.

Some is applicable and helpful while other advice is given to keep you safe.

Don’t do this. Stay away from that. It’s too risky. Wait until there’s a better time.

The reasons not to do something can be endless, but you’re better off gathering as much experience as you can early on, because it’s the knowledge of past experiences that lead you to making better ones in the future.

It’s true, what you’re thinking of might not work, but at least you’ll truly know once you try it for yourself.

 

Stay Positive & If You Don’t Try, That’s When You Fail

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Kabir, Gandhi and the Buddha had some inspiring advice, but some people need sayings that are a little more motivating.

 

Stay Positive & Live On

Don’t wait for approval, assurance or someone’s blessing.

Don’t wait to see if the crowd will fund it, your family will back it or your friends will support it.

Just go.

 

Stay Positive & We Need You To Take Initiative

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You can market to people in hopes they come visit you.

You can market to them when they are there.

What about the time between?

What about when they are walking toward your coffee shop with ear buds in? What about when they meet someone right outside? Or the moment before they open their computer screens?

What are they thinking? Feeling? Who are they talking to? Why?

The smartest marketers are scenario-telling ones.

You need to consider the various circumstances and shape the experience to fit each scenario.

You can’t become the greatest by asking people what they liked and didn’t like after the fact. By that time they’ve already forgotten about the emotions they felt before engaging with you. So you scenario plan. You role play. You observe more and listen closer to what happens on their way to you.

 

Stay Positive & Tell Every Scenario, Then Act On The Trends You Find

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Whether it’s a compliment or a complaint (or anything in between), the smartest way (and certainly the most difficult way) is to pause and tell yourself the story the other person, group, fan base, cult, tribe is telling themselves.

The second smartest (and second most difficult) way of interacting with them is to shape your discussion and actions to fit within their story–that is, not to press yours unto them.

I’ll say this: It’s a lot easier to listen and respond than to wait around for others to do that for you.

 

Stay Positive & Are You All Ears?

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Change doesn’t happen all at once, and for the most part, it shouldn’t.

Different variables require different levels of attention.

Consider a DJ’s turntable. You can push all dials and bars to their limit, but then the noise is overbearing and insignificant.

You may think the dream of any project is to get all variables balanced–Update the website at the same time you update the brochures at the same time you update social profiles and email signatures.

But the problem with this thinking of complete alignment and consistency across platforms is that growth favors the growers, not those who stand still because they’ve reached equilibrium.

Too many businesses work to have everything match and then they stay there and watch sales decline, fans find someone new; they watch what they thought was a perfect balance start to crumble.

 

Stay Positive & Always Be Pushing

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