I've been watching a fascinating exchange lately.
A couple of small businesses I follow on Twitter have been communicating with each other about a potential deal for one due to the need of the other.
The connection came about for a few reasons.
One, the company in need, instead of doing their own research on who could provide their need, just put it out there on Twitter. "Hey, we need this. Help."
Two, I saw the need, thought of the providing company, and told the company in need: "Hey, check these folks out."
The fascinating part though is how the relationship has developed. As far as I can see, it's all been via Tweets between the two companies. All out there for anyone to see. Essentially, public email exchanges (or text messages I suppose given the short length).
It really is a new era of transparency, connection...and opportunity. (Interesting Freudian slip. When I first wrote this, I wrote "ear of...opportunity". It's that too...if you're listening to the right media channels.)
In some recent consulting engagements, I was surprised to see how unfamiliar some sales teams, leaders, and individuals were with the social media tools available to them. Following unfamiliarity were disinterest, and often, disdain.
Much as I hate to say it, there was a significant correlation to age when it came to acceptance of the new tools that are out there. This kind of phenomenon has been well documented.
What hasn't been has been lost opportunity and commissions...
Tuesday, December 20, 2011
Wednesday, December 14, 2011
30 Things...To Do (Riff)
Years ago, I read Golf Is Not A Game Of Perfect by Bob Rotella, a noted sports psychologist. In this wonderful book, which has numerous applications to life far beyond the golf course, I found a teaching that greatly impacted my golf game...and life.
Most golfers, as they stand in front of a tricky shot over a water hazard, have the following running through their head: "Don't hit it in the water...don't hit it in the water."
What Dr. Rotella explains, is that there is a funny mechanism in our brains that does the following...it removes the word "don't". Therefore, between your brain and the muscles, the message changes to "Hit it in the water." (Well, that explains some things.)
Owing to that anomaly, he says simply take the message from a prohibitive, to a directive one: "Hit it over the water." That mental trick works well for my personality (see my previous post on Relentless Positivity).
Whether the 17th at Sawgrass is in your mind when you read this or you've never touched a club, the implications are clear.
This approach (pun unintended, but not bad), sprang immediately to mind when I read the following fantastic post on avoiding negative habits from the cooly-named Marc and Angel Hack Life: 30 Things To Stop Doing To Yourself
When I read this excellent article, I was mentally reframing each of the 30 statements that start with the word "stop", into a more directive statement a la Dr. Rotella's approach above. About a third of the way through, I decided to write it out...and here I'll share it with you.
I'd encourage you to go look at the original post, compare my riff on it, consider your own...but most of all...do some of it in your life!
Thank you Marc and Angel for providing the rich source material for this interpretation.
30 Things...To Do...
1. Spend time with the right people.
2. Face your problems.
3. Be honest with yourself.
4. Reprioritize your own needs.
5. Be authentic.
6. Move on.
7. Take a chance.
8. Forgive yourself.
9. Earn deep satisfaction.
10. Look within for stability.
11. Do something.
12. Do something you're not ready for.
13. Pick the right reasons for relationships.
14. Leave old relationships out of new ones.
15. Compete against your own standards.
16. Be appreciative.
17. Learn from failure and move on.
18. Forgive for real for your own sanity.
19. See #15
20. Be authentic start to finish.
21. Disengage.
22. Smell the roses while doing #21
23. Be content with good enough.
24. Take the stairs.
25. Let it out.
26. Woman/Man up.
27. Do what you can and let it go.
28. Sweat the right stuff.
29. Keep your eye on the ball...not everything else.
30. Appreciate.
Most golfers, as they stand in front of a tricky shot over a water hazard, have the following running through their head: "Don't hit it in the water...don't hit it in the water."
What Dr. Rotella explains, is that there is a funny mechanism in our brains that does the following...it removes the word "don't". Therefore, between your brain and the muscles, the message changes to "Hit it in the water." (Well, that explains some things.)
Owing to that anomaly, he says simply take the message from a prohibitive, to a directive one: "Hit it over the water." That mental trick works well for my personality (see my previous post on Relentless Positivity).
Whether the 17th at Sawgrass is in your mind when you read this or you've never touched a club, the implications are clear.
This approach (pun unintended, but not bad), sprang immediately to mind when I read the following fantastic post on avoiding negative habits from the cooly-named Marc and Angel Hack Life: 30 Things To Stop Doing To Yourself
When I read this excellent article, I was mentally reframing each of the 30 statements that start with the word "stop", into a more directive statement a la Dr. Rotella's approach above. About a third of the way through, I decided to write it out...and here I'll share it with you.
I'd encourage you to go look at the original post, compare my riff on it, consider your own...but most of all...do some of it in your life!
Thank you Marc and Angel for providing the rich source material for this interpretation.
30 Things...To Do...
1. Spend time with the right people.
2. Face your problems.
3. Be honest with yourself.
4. Reprioritize your own needs.
5. Be authentic.
6. Move on.
7. Take a chance.
8. Forgive yourself.
9. Earn deep satisfaction.
10. Look within for stability.
11. Do something.
12. Do something you're not ready for.
13. Pick the right reasons for relationships.
14. Leave old relationships out of new ones.
15. Compete against your own standards.
16. Be appreciative.
17. Learn from failure and move on.
18. Forgive for real for your own sanity.
19. See #15
20. Be authentic start to finish.
21. Disengage.
22. Smell the roses while doing #21
23. Be content with good enough.
24. Take the stairs.
25. Let it out.
26. Woman/Man up.
27. Do what you can and let it go.
28. Sweat the right stuff.
29. Keep your eye on the ball...not everything else.
30. Appreciate.
Monday, December 12, 2011
Relentless Positivity
Don’t know why on a Monday of all days such a positive vibe seems to be in control. (Especially pre-first-cup-of-coffee.)
It did strike me as ironic that a Google search of “brutally honest” yields 5.2 million results, while a search of “relentlessly positive” yields only 129k. For more on my thoughts on brutality and honesty, see http://tricendent.blogspot.com/2009/04/surgery-vs-brutality.html, but for now I’ll focus on positivity.
In the current environment, this seems to be more difficult than ever. Yet much of our drive and resilience comes from positivity, and I love the illustrative juxtaposition of the words in the term Relentlessly Positive. Positivity seems so Pollyanna-ish, yet Relentlessness is so hard-edged. It might seem an oxymoronic phrase, but when you have it, and you stick to it, it pays dividends.
There actually is a blog I had never seen before called Relentlessly Positive. (http://relentlesslypositive.blog.co.uk/) In it, I found a key phrase right at the top of the latest post…
“Someone stole my Mojo for a week or so, but I'm back…”
That’s the great thing about Relentless Positivity, it doesn’t mean you’re always up (did I mention it’s Monday).
It means you always get up.
It did strike me as ironic that a Google search of “brutally honest” yields 5.2 million results, while a search of “relentlessly positive” yields only 129k. For more on my thoughts on brutality and honesty, see http://tricendent.blogspot.com/2009/04/surgery-vs-brutality.html, but for now I’ll focus on positivity.
In the current environment, this seems to be more difficult than ever. Yet much of our drive and resilience comes from positivity, and I love the illustrative juxtaposition of the words in the term Relentlessly Positive. Positivity seems so Pollyanna-ish, yet Relentlessness is so hard-edged. It might seem an oxymoronic phrase, but when you have it, and you stick to it, it pays dividends.
There actually is a blog I had never seen before called Relentlessly Positive. (http://relentlesslypositive.blog.co.uk/) In it, I found a key phrase right at the top of the latest post…
“Someone stole my Mojo for a week or so, but I'm back…”
That’s the great thing about Relentless Positivity, it doesn’t mean you’re always up (did I mention it’s Monday).
It means you always get up.
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