GarthBox

The old school way of thinking is to create something and work to convince people they need it. Find the solution first, then look for the problem.

Much more the norm now is to look for the problem and then create a solution for it.

Yet, so often that solution only benefits those who buy in… selfishly it helps your bottom line, but if it’s not significant enough to get others to buy in too, why not create something that helps more people with less?

Consider the type of alarm system on cars. The loud alarm deters carjackers from your car, but there’s no reason they won’t go to your neighbors car without one. This type of alarm protects you, but not others who aren’t investing in it around you.

Now consider the silent alarm. The one that goes off, alerts you and the authorities without making a sound to the thief. Once the carjackers are aware of there being silent alarms in an area, they won’t take the risk of trying your neighbors’ car.

Your car and the car of all those around you becomes that much more safe… merely because a product was designed to help more than just the person paying for it.

How can your product or service help more with less?

Or, if you’re the consumer, what can you invest in for the greater good of you and those around you?

 

Stay Positive & We Before Me

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In the past, “okay” was a positive response when customers were asked about their experience.

Now “okay” is another way that customers say they are disappointed.

Okay isn’t good enough any more.

 

Stay Positive & What Are You Doing To Ignite A Better Response?

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When was the last time you closed a door on an option?

Likely not any time recent. That’s because people are wired to leave their options open.

I recall a time that my significant other and I put off buying new dinner plates because we couldn’t decide between red or blue. We’ve all had similar situations. Getting a Ram means you won’t get the Silverado. Buying one phone means you won’t get the other and vice versa.

The problem with indecisiveness is the cost of waiting.

The old tale is that there is a donkey standing between two haystacks of identical size at two opposite sides of the barn. The donkey stands in the middle of the two haystacks, not knowing which to select. Hours go by, but he still can’t make up his mind. Unable to decide, the donkey eventually dies of starvation.

Death was the consequence of indecisiveness.

While this is an emphasized analogy, it drives home the point that every minute, hour, day you postpone a decision, the greater the consequence becomes.

 

Stay Positive & Decide

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You can yell at a toddler to walk faster, but they’ll just walk slower. This is disconnected marketing at its finest. We pull people toward what we want instead of giving them the push they need to go where they want.

The boss tells her employee what she needs to bring to the presentation this afternoon instead of giving her the push to bring her best self, that it’s her moment to shine and that she’s got the gumption to do it.

Every smart marketer is always asking where the target wants to go (and why) and, more importantly, uses that knowledge to decide what to say, when to say it and exactly how to say it.

Marketing isn’t about finding the right way to say “Quickly. Let’s go!” It’s about listening and understanding why they would want to go there in the first place.

 

Stay Positive & Read Their Map, Not Yours

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Focus applies to more than putting your mental attention toward one task.

It’s just as much about narrowing your vision. Removing what you see to your left and your right. You can’t let your neighbors and competitors dictate your next move.

The only thing catching your eye should be what you’re creating.

 

Stay Positive & Avoid Peripheral Distractions

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You’ve been going back and forth with a client about a project. You’re confused and peeved by her latest message because next steps are poorly communicated.

You forward the email to a co-worker on your team, writing that you’re frustrated, that what the client is saying doesn’t make sense, and that you’re at wit’s end.

You hit send.

Milliseconds later you realize you hit reply and not forward.

It’s my understanding that what you’d do next to treat your mistake is similar to how one ought to treat any mistake.

1. Communicate immediately and apologize (hop on the phone to say sorry)
2. Be vulnerable (admit to the client what you’re feeling and discuss a new way forward)
3. Get energized for next steps (feel determined to tackle the project in whatever way you need regardless of what happened)

What trips up a lot of people is the third step. They make a mistake. Apologize. Open up. Then shut down. Instead, any mistake needs to be followed up with an insane desire to do better…and to get right to it.

 

Stay Positive & No Sulking, There’s Work To Be Done

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Hoping for the promotion, for the external event to be invited to, for the friend to invite you over; it’s a waste of your time and energy.

It’s always better to switch from hope to focus and place it on things you can control.

Of course, it’s not a fun thing to do.

The moment you know it’s all in your hands, you begin to feel overwhelmed, anxious, downright fearful of it all. Once you know it’s in your control, you’re squeezed by accountability and expectations for yourself.

There’s no short cut out of it. All one can believe is that it’s less frustrating to do what you can than to wait for someone else to do what you hope.

 

Stay Positive & What’ll You Choose?

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