Influence

IN THE BOX PODCAST

Episode 46: Friends/Family Influence, Downtime, Bite Your Tongue And More (Podcast)

Garth Beyer

On this episode of In The Box Podcast we talked about how family and friends influence you’re decisions when you’re first starting a business, what we do when we have downtime, when we better bite our tongues, how to avoid bad energy and the difference between acknowledging something doesn’t work and being a naysayer.

Episode 46: Friends/Family Influence, Downtime, Bite Your Tongue And More

Family/Friend Influence – How much influence / power should you give your close friends and family when you are sharing a new business idea with them?

Downtime – What do you do when you have a moment of down time?

Bite Your Tongue – When is it a good idea to bite your tongue?

Bad Mojo – One tip on how to cut ties with bad energy?

Bonus – What is the difference between acknowledging something sucks and being a hater?

 

Stay Positive & Check Out All The In The Box Episodes Here

Someone Is Always Watching

Garth Beyer

It’s likely not the first time you’ve heard the expression, “act like someone is watching… because someone always is” – or something of the sort.

I think it’s a damn good philosophy to follow even if it’s not necessarily true. There’s not a single person watching me write this right now, but I act as if there is.

I work as if a group of friends and influencers are behind me watching me, seeking inspiration, watching to learn how to do things the best way, not the short way.

Deep down, we all have a group of people who follow us around in our minds influencing what we do, so, in a sense, someone is always watching what you do, but who that someone is is of grand importance.

Is it all the critics who have said you’re not good enough? Is it the family member who said to settle instead of risk it for what you really wanted? Or is it the teacher who said you were going places? Or the parent who will support you no matter what you choose to do?

 

Stay Positive & You Choose Who Watches

Dancing Personas

Garth Beyer

Personas are built, not bred.

Marketers establish their buyers’ persona to give them direction on how to communicate.

Kids establish their everything is silly and cute persona to get out of spilling the cup of juice you gave them in the pool.

I’ve established this persona of allowing myself to be vulnerable so it makes it easier to ship something each day.

Personas are incredibly interesting because they are ever-changing, always dancing. We, as marketers and as people, have the ability to influence the persona of others, but we’re also forced to update our persona when it doesn’t work anymore.

Leaving direct mail on the doorway handles of people’s homes used to work for a construction business. It fit their buyer’s persona…until it didn’t. Same with the kid and his juice. Silly and cute only works for so long. And it will be interesting to see if being vulnerable ever stops working for me. (I assume it will once it becomes constantly expected.)

While no persona lasts forever, we have a say in the longevity of it for ourselves and others.

I have a young friend who you would think is an old man by how much he aches, complains, and doesn’t care what comes out of his mouth. Not to mention how slow he drives. Since his friends (including myself) always call him a geezer and point out all the things that make him an old man, he continues to fill the shoes of that persona.

Michael and I chatted about this phenomena on our podcast (episode 9) when discussing why people become referees. Since recognizing my influence, I’ve started pointing out all the things that make my friend young and I holler at those who feed his old man persona.

Personas are simply a new name for category, and humans are naturally categorical in thinking, in acting, in deciding to buy product X or product Z, but they don’t often realize it.

Being the best you, making a positive impact on others, and crafting the greatest marketing message is almost all rooted in your understanding of the personas of those you’re engaging with as well as yourself.

 

Stay Positive & Now You Know, Leverage It

Why Do Your Best At Everything (Even What Doesn’t Matter Much)

Why Do Your Best At Everything (Even What Doesn’t Matter Much)

Garth Beyer

Do Your Best Work, Leave An Impression

An ol’ professor of mine asked the class to raise their hands if they truly believed the grades on small assignments mattered. Some students kept their hands down signifying only the large assignments mattered. The professor responded with one of my favorite sayings.

Everything matters.

He went on to say the grade itself matters, sure, but more importantly it’s the impression that matters. “Everything, no matter how little or big, leaves an impression,” he said.

His words resonate with me still to this day.

Every action we take (and don’t take) leaves an impression. The 20 poor ideas you pitch during the brain storm session, they may have been rated poorly, but your impression of pitching 20 ideas matters. It shows you’re committed, willing to risk ideas while others play it safe, and able to use your imagination.

Inaction (which I have to point out is still an action) also leaves the impression.

Earlier today I was at an event to listen to Mariah Haberman speak. I noticed a handful of guests standing around waiting for the event to start. No conversing with other attendees. No networking using the twitter hashtag for the event. No engagement at all. You can imagine the impression they left.

I, and I’m sure my ol’ professor (and you now?), can’t stress enough how much everything we do matters.

Forget the “grades.” Focus on the impressions.

 

Stay Positive & Start Asking Yourself “What Impression Am I Leaving?”

[Lucky for you SMBmadison recorded the presentation. You can listen to Mariah here.]

Photo credit
Marketing!

Marketing!

Garth Beyer

Everything Is Marketing

I’m known as the marketer in my office. Most conversations I overhear I end up shouting “marketing” when I hear of something someone did on purpose, but my coworkers didn’t realize it.

During some cubical conversations, my coworkers will ask if something is marketing or not. I rarely look over from my standup desk to respond, I just shout “everything is marketing.”

It is.

Each interaction you have whether it’s with an ad, with a client or with your coworkers, you’re marketing.

It doesn’t matter if you’re thanking your boss for bringing donuts, on the phone providing customer service or out mowing your lawn. You’re marketing.

What you’re marketing is yourself and if people who see your marketing know you well enough, by extension you’re marketing your lifestyle, your job, your personality, your story, your brand.

Everything is marketing these days. It doesn’t matter if someone is watching or not.

Nor should it.

 

Stay Positive & It’s Bittersweet, But It Can Work To Your Advantage If You Want It To

Photo credit

How To Get A Second Meet Up

Garth Beyer

We meet a lot of important people: Idols, Influencers, Administrators, Deans, and so on…

Typically, after meeting them, we fly on the cloud quote of, “You won’t believe who I met!” And that’s it. Rarely does one continue to say, “and I am meeting them again for lunch in a couple of weeks!”

To get that second meet up with someone, all you have to do is ask a question – and no, it’s not “would you like to meet up again?” [insert “ain’t nobody got time for that” meme]

You want to ask a question that the other person won’t be able to answer right away. Not only that, it must be one that they will want to think deeply about and get back to you on.

It seems simple, but it’s devilishly difficult to 1. Put in the emotional labor in such short of time to understand what the person is truly passionate about and 2. To craft a question that they have never thought about related to their passion.

In achieving this task, you create an instantaneous bond. People who are of high influence are always more attracted to those who give them more challenges than they are attracted to their supporting fans.

 

Stay Positive & It Works Out Best When You’re Both

Garth E. Beyer

Questions are a big deal.

A Bit Of My Purpose If You Don’t Already Know

Garth Beyer

IMG_1529

My life purpose isn’t about connecting with like-minded people.

It’s to be there for those who aren’t. To show them there are good people in the world; there are people who truly care about them; that they need to raise the bar higher; that they can always be happier; to never settle.

There is a saying, “who you surround yourself with, you become.” Most motivators take it seriously. They repel the downers or the unnaturally lazy people in their lives and only make room for “people who matter.”

How do you expect to make an impact on people’s lives if that’s all you do? All you surround yourself with? Hanging with only motivated people will make you a motivated person, but that doesn’t mean you have become a motivating person.

There’s a big difference between being motivated and being motivating.

 

Stay Positive & Just So You Know Which One I Am (and which one you are..)

Garth E. Beyer