You Are Allowed To Have Fun At Work

by Todd Schnick on March 9, 2012

My simple philosophy: you are allowed to have fun at work.

If you don’t have fun at work, you should find something else to do.

It is why I run my own businesses. This is hard…having to eat what I kill. Very unpredictable. Revenues never guaranteed from one month to the next. But I wouldn’t have it any other way.

I was talking with Scott Dinsmore yesterday, who cited a report that 80% of people are unhappy in their workplace.

I can’t even fathom this.

After my chat with Scott, I reflected on yesterday’s “work” day. I was in the studio. Working on this project. The best part about this job? We have a ball doing it. We laugh. Mock each other when we goof up on set. Keep a file of all the mistakes we make, which are usually followed by merciless kidding and joking.

It is a glorious way to make a living…

Thinking more about Scott’s statistic, most people do not have fun at work. They aren’t allowed to have fun at work. They are punished for having fun at work.

When you don’t have fun at work, you:

1. Count the minutes until happy hour starts.
2. You don’t sell as well.
3. You aren’t nearly as creative.
4. You call in sick more.
5. You go home and bitch about the boss more.
6. The weekend is your solace.
7. You hate Sunday nights.
8. You find no value in what you do.
9. Clients become a misery.
10. You are less willing to take risks.

And on and on.

Having fun at work is painting outside the lines. [and heck, why not paint on the walls too...] Trying things. Being creative. Seeing what works. Seeing what happens. It is here that art is created.

Not having fun at work is being REQUIRED by some policy manual to paint inside the lines, using pre-selected colors. It is here that creativity is stifled, and boredom settles in.

Simple request: if you aren’t having fun at work, run away.

Run far away…

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[learn how to have more fun at work here!]

[drawing by hugh macleod]

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Jeff Goins on Intrepid Radio: On Writing and Creativity

by Todd Schnick on March 6, 2012

Podcast: Play in new window | Download | Embed

Jeff Goins

Joined in the studio recently by Jeff Goins, author, writer, and blogger. You can learn more about Jeff here. Here, you can also download some great manifestos and other materials.

On the episode, Jeff and I discussed the following subjects:

1. How to be a professional writer…and yet not devote full-time to the craft of writing. And despite that, still get book deals, build a large audience, and make a difference.

2. The debate about whether we are ALL creatives, or artists in our own way. Perhaps creativity is something that is obvious to you, but brilliant to someone else…

3. Steve Pressfield’s notion of “the professional,” and what it takes to turn pro. And how you have to turn pro in your head first…

4. The mindset of an author and a creative. And how finding passion in the work you are doing is essential to generate the ideas you write about and create.

5. Content marketing for sales and marketing is all about helping people, adding value, doing it well, and connecting with an audience.

6. Is the practice of writing effortless? Maybe, maybe not. But the key is to show up. And the more you work on a craft, the easier it becomes. It is no different with writing and creativity.

7. Guest posting, meaningful networking, and sincerely trying to get to know people — are three keys to building an audience.

Jeff’s book, Wrecked, will be published later this year. We look forward to having him back to discuss it!

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[join my family of intrepid creatives here]

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How To Harness The Secret Power Of Experiential Selling

by Todd Schnick on March 5, 2012

We were conducting an interview with one of the best of the best… One of the top sales guys from one of our 100 million dollar clients… A gentleman hand-selected to get interviewed for a special project…

…and he didn’t do very well.

Oh, we ultimately got some good video content out of him. But it was a struggle.

And this guy was wicked smart. Tested way high in various aptitude tests. Heck, he was an engineer by education. He could speak a technical language that would sound like Swahili to you and me.

But our video camera, studio lights, and green screen freaked him out. Made him panic. Got him way out of his comfort zone.

I would argue that was good for him. Made him better. An exercise in personal growth. A new experience to learn from. But in the end, he never will like the camera.

And that’s ok. As much as I enjoy being on the mic or in front of the camera, most others don’t. There are certainly things about his job that are way over my head.

The key is, we have to remember that the guy we are selling to operates from a different paradigm. Likes different things we do. Learns a different way. Works from a different set of experiences. Sees things through a different lense than we do.

Yet we get frustrated when they don’t see it the way we do. When they don’t move at the pace we want. When we have to explain something several times because they just don’t see it.

But that’s reality.

Become a coach, and lead someone through it. Become mentor-like, and educate someone to understand. Become a curator, and show someone through meaningful example. Become a storyteller, and tell of the experience through others.

But most importantly, become a patient man. Because it will take time. And you will have to learn and adapt.

We were able to coach our video subject and get some good content out of him. He might even ultimately champion the work we did on the project. Hopefully he did learn something from the experience, and grow a bit as a result. If we are lucky, he might even come back.

Next time, he will view a film shoot through a different set of goggles. He will view it differently. He won’t be so nervous. He might even secretly set out to prove to us, and to himself, that he can do it better.

For me, this is experiential selling. Selling by doing. Selling by seeing. Selling by living. Selling by sweating through it.

The poor guy might have been dragged kicking and screaming to sit in front of the bright lights. He might have even been ordered to do it. And while he might not like it, he knows it a little better now.

And things will be different the next time. Easier. Faster. Better.

How are you applying experiential selling in your arena?

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[learn Intrepid selling strategy here]

[drawing by hugh macleod]

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10 Benefits To Podcasting [New Audio!]

by Todd Schnick on February 28, 2012

Podcast: Play in new window | Download | Embed

You may or may not know that I offer a FREE Content Marketing Course.

You can sign-up for this course RIGHT HERE.

The goal of the course is to help business folks get a better handle on the ins and outs of content marketing. So, I’ve created, and constantly update, a 30-part weekly course on the strategy and the tactics behind content marketing.

In this case, I just created some new audio content to add to the course, and I wanted to share it here. In this podcast, which you can listen to above, I talk about ten benefits to podcasting:

1. Builds rapport with your audience. Hearing your voice works wonders to deepen the connection.

2. Creating audio content is easy. I recorded the audio here via my smartphone.

3. Interview others to create good content for YOU. You don’t always have to create from scratch.

4. Podcasts are easy to share on the internet. The social webs are great for sharing and spreading!

5. Published podcasts become indexed content on the search engines, helping your SEO. Just tie the audio to the appropriate keywords!

6. The interview process for your podcast becomes high-end networking for you. All everyone benefits. The interview process is a great way to learn about someone.

7. Your audio content is available 24 hours a day. Helpful content when your audience wants it!

8. If your podcast guest is a prospect, the show experience is a kick ass sales call. The experience is memorable and fun.

9. Reaching out to invite someone to your show is much easier approach than a sales cold-call. And more effective. A sales call puts people on the defensive. A radio show invitation does not.

10. The interaction builds trust, rapport, and a friendship. Much easier to sell this way.

Once again, sign-up for my FREE “Workingman’s Content Marketing Course” right here!

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[in addition to the above course, you can also sign-up here to learn more about intrepid business strategy!]

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The Steve Prefontaine Way: Bleed For Your Business

by Todd Schnick on February 27, 2012

While doing some work this morning, I kept my eye on the film Prefontaine, about famed distance runner Steve Prefontaine.

A distance runner myself, I’ve been sharing Prefontaine quotes for years now, but I honestly didn’t know much about his story until I watched this film. I was particularly struck by his 5000 meter race in the ’72 Olympics, where he came in fourth in the finals, despite leading with 150 meters to go.

A young runner at the time, he came very close to knocking off the world’s best distance runners, but fell just short. And this bitter disappointment lead to his drive to compete in the ’76 games before he died of a car crash at 24 years old. He held every collegiate and American distance record.

I am always inspired by people who leave it all on the playing field, and poor their guts into their quest. And from intrepid people like this, I try to draw out business and life lessons…

“A lot of people run a race to see who is fastest. I run to see who has the most guts, who can punish himself into exhausting pace, and then at the end, punish himself even more.”

Let me assure you, we all need to push ourselves. Life deals lousy cards often, and only those with the guts will push through and survive. Running a business is hard. It drains you. Things happen. Clients achieve great things with you, and some cause misery. You have to have the guts to punish yourself and keep going.

“Somebody may beat me, but they are going to have to bleed to do it.”

A guy in a cubicle can work hard, and achieve great work. But only those who bleed for their work will achieve really big things, change the world, and wake up each day energized to do work that matters.

“To give anything less than your best is to sacrifice the gift.”

We all have gifts. Great gifts, in fact. Most never do anything with them. The above quote is my favorite Prefontaine quote, because it has always been a bitch slap to me to remind myself to get off my butt and fight for what matters.

“You have to wonder at times what you’re doing out there. Over the years, I’ve given myself a thousand reasons to keep running, but it always comes back to where it started. It comes down to self-satisfaction and a sense of achievement.”

In life, business, and the pursuit of what matters to you, there is NOTHING more satisfying than a sense of achievement. No, not about completing a few TO DOs on a simple list, but achieving something they’ll talk about when you are gone.

They might even make a film about it.

What are you bleeding for?

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[to live an intrepid life, join our tribe!]

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Sales Is All About P2P, And If You Don’t Understand This, You Will Be Out Of Business In 5 Years

by Todd Schnick on February 23, 2012

I am growing tired and weery of all the old paradigms about the differences between B2C and B2B sales.

I’ve been frustrated about this for a while. And Dan and I will soon discuss this topic on a future episode of SalesChaosTV. But until the other day, I didn’t have a way to voice what I’ve been feeling.

I was participating in a LinkedIn group chat about organizational sales forces and whether or not they should be integral players and participants in the corporate social media program (I argued yes).

[some sales guy on the chat had the gall to say, "Well, that's not my department." He doesn't get it.]

I was finally able to voice what I wanted to say here when some lady engaged in the dialog made the point that there is no longer B2B or B2C, there is just P2P.

Yes! People. To. People.

Finally!

Sales is about people. It is about human beings.

It isn’t about some imaginary wall between selling to customers and selling to other businesses.

And yeah, yeah, I damn well know there is a difference between selling laundry detergent to a homemaker, and selling complex long sell cycle engineered conveyor systems to a manufacturing concern.

But damitt, both the end buyers are people.

Am I wrong?

I am sick and tired of people who won’t adopt, or won’t even bother to explore and examine certain sales and marketing applications just because some damn consultant six years ago said that it only applies to a B2C approach, or vice versa.

Human beings are a pain in the royal ass. They have egos. They have big problems. They have kids that stink in school or have health problems. Humans have mortgages, bills, massive debts, and a spouse who is no longer interested in them intimately.

Said another way, closing the deal with you is way frickin’ low on their priority list…

It is my contention that we needlessly complicate the sales process by adding layers of complexity and jargon that only make for good books and impressive speeches by sales and marketing gurus.

In my experience, and I’ve sold both homemakers and manufacturers, each sales opportunity is different, unique, weird, sometimes mystifying, and complex enough in their own way. Why?

Humans. People. All with emotions and problems.

And until we strip away all the self-burdened complexities and learn how to deal with, how to communicate with, how to relate to, and how to empathize with real people…

…sales will continue to be a frustrating, segmented, miserable vocation.

Shift away from following generations-old corporate models, expectations, and paradigms, learn how to interact with real people, and you will free yourself to build real human relationships.

And then selling is no longer selling. It is serving.

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[join my merry band of intrepid business leaders!]

[drawing by hugh macleod]

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6 Simple Keys To Successful Branding

by Todd Schnick on February 21, 2012

Podcast: Play in new window | Download | Embed

I was speaking with a prospect of mine from the west coast the other day. We were discussing a brand vision development engagement, where I will help her craft a message and vision for what she wants her newly-formed organization to stand for.

As a result of that chat, I jotted down six things we talked about, and wanted to share these with you. These are some simple, yet critical things you should think about when it comes to executing your brand vision and fulfilling your brand promise.

1. Start with why – Simon Sinek says we need to know why we do what we do. Why are you doing what you are doing? What is our purpose? What is our mission?

2. My obituary model – What do you want your obit to say? What cool story about your life and work should that obit say? What do you want people to think about when they reflect upon your life? So, write your obit right now. Then live it.

3. What emotions do you want people to feel when they interact – or are exposed to your brand? I want to distance run and achieve big things when I see Nike ads. What actions/emotions do you want people to feel with your brand?

4. The “Live vicariously though you” concept. Your story, and your mission, needs to be so compelling that people want to be a part of it, to go on the journey with you. In other words, to live vicariously through you. Read another way, they are living your brand too.

5. How can people contribute to the story? How can they add to it? Look at what Coca-Cola is doing with their Content 2020 initiative. You don’t tell the story of your brand…your audience does. Empower them to do so…

6. Is living your brand promise enough to get you up and moving in the morning? If not, you need to find something else to do….

What do you think? What other ideas about branding can you share…or identify with?

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[learn more intrepid branding strategies here]

[you can purchase Simon's book here (affiliate link):

[photo from flickr]

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10 Things Winners And Losers Do When A New Social Network Appears

by Todd Schnick on February 20, 2012

Pinterest is getting a of buzz lately. I finally wrote about it Saturday.

From my unscientific observations, I’ve noticed two basic camps: Those that are claiming it is going to be second only to Facebook and a critical platform for business. And those crapping on it as a waste of time and that you’ll likely go to jail for using it.

[if you don't know what I am talking about, then you are likely in neither camp]

To be frank, this phenomenon occurs when any new social network with some juice happens on the scene. It is becoming a tiresome process. But like our political system, that’s all we know, so it will likely stick around for a while.

This process, and how people react, annoys me. Why? Well, I am always tired of seeing people talk about something, instead of “doing” something about something. I’ve classified these into two camps myself: Winners. And Losers.

LOSERS

1. Losers complain that the new social network is going to take up too much time. “Oh, I don’t have enough time for Twitter and Facebook as it stands, how am I ever going to have time for something new?” My answer? You suck at time management, and need to learn how to use the platforms properly in the first place.

2. Losers complain about functionality. Oh, this pisses me off. First of all, most platforms are FREE. So, until they start charging, I’d stop with the incessant fussing. If you don’t like it, get off your lazy butt and create a social network that you think is perfect. Here is a hint: you can generally mold these platforms into tools designed to serve your purposes. You just aren’t trying.

3. Losers say “my target business audience can’t be found there, so it is NOT worth my time.” Kiss my grits. It is a new social network, so most EVERYONE isn’t exposed to it yet. This statement is code for two things: One, you are lazy. And two, you just don’t want to invest the time to find your audience. When users of a social network number in the millions? There are prospects to be found.

4. Use the platform to spam. Listen kiddo, a new social network is NOT a new platform for you to blast me with your content one-way. Social networks are, well, social. They are designed for conversation and interaction. I mean, every time, the same damn people. As soon as they join, I get hit with their same crap posted on EVERY OTHER network they are a part of.

5. Losers join every new network without giving it any thought. [Especially if, you know, they are a self-proclaimed social media guru.] They immediately join the new network, follow 1,200 people right away (of which they know 47 of them), and start mass bombing. They follow the same people, are followed by the same people, and do EXACTLY the same thing on all networks. [I mean, really, feeding your Twitter stream to LinkedIn. You have a head. Use it.] Losers then complain that social media isn’t driving revenue or meaningful traffic to their site.

WINNERS

1. Winners take a quick look at a new platform, dive in, and check it out. They experiment. They test. And they make a quick judgement about whether it will move the needle for their brand and their business. And, they do this without a lot of fanfare. If they seem to be talking about it, they are not. You see, what you are really seeing is them communicating with real people. This is called conversation. This is how most successful people build their business.

2. Winners use the tools as designed, perhaps make some helpful recommendations, but most importantly, they seek to read and learn how best to utilize the new platform. Losers go straight to their blog and bitch about it…

3. Winners find ways to integrate the new social network (if they deem it worthy) into their existing mix. They understand that each network is different, and serves different purposes, and find the right combination of message and strategy to exact benefit.

4. Winners understand it is a social network, and treat it that way. They see the networking value, not the BROADCASTING value.

5. And some winners decide the new network isn’t for them, and they quietly move on. But you don’t hear about it, because they are busy doing. Or, they are busy learning about yet another new tool that will be used to kick your business ass.

What are you?

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[join my network of intrepid business people. winners only please!]

[drawing by hugh macleod]

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Why It Is Worth Giving Pinterest A Look

by Todd Schnick on February 18, 2012

I promised myself that I wasn’t going to join the thousands of others writing their Pinterest blog post.

And I do not intend to spend this whole article trying to convince you. And yes, I did write an article not long ago about why I wasn’t going to join the Pinterest fray.

click to enlarge

But I’ve been on the network for about two weeks [you can find me here], as of this writing. And I merely wanted to share with you a few quick observations. And these, in my humble opinion, should inspire you to consider at least exploring Pinterest.

1. After two weeks, it is already driving traffic to my blog. Just four days ago, it ranked as the 23rd best referral source. This morning, it ranked 13th. And, again, this is after just two weeks.

2. More importantly, the bounce rate for visitors referred by Pinterest is MUCH lower than the site average.

3. And even more significant, in my opinion, the average time on site for visitors referred by Pinterest is ELEVEN MINUTES! This goes without saying, but this is WAY higher than the site average.

Three immediate comments:

1. With items 2 and 3, the point is, at least at this point, Pinterest is driving meaningful traffic to my site!

2. These same measurements NEVER occurred when I first joined Google+.

3. I do expect these numbers to normalize over time, but for now, it is very exciting to observe.

As I promised, this isn’t an article meant to teach you how to use Pinterest. But I thought these numbers were worth reporting…in case you had doubts about investing time here.

Full disclosure…I did finally join Pinterest because I had a client that I thought could benefit from the platform. And after two weeks of experimenting, I think this will become a meaningful tool for my client…and all small businesses.

Pinterest is proving to be a great platform to tell your story, and promote your brand promise.

That is, of course, if you use it correctly… ;-)

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[join my merry band of intrepid marketers and learn more about integrating social media into your organization]

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Never Speak Unless It Improves On The Silence: A Lesson For Marketers

by Todd Schnick on February 17, 2012

Never speak unless it improves on the silence. | Buddha

Sometimes a quote stops you in your tracks. You may know I am a minimalist in both the practice of my business and my life. And with as much reading as I’ve done on the topic, somehow I’ve never stumbled upon this quote.

But I think this is the problem with the world, yes?

Most of us speak more than we need to. Most of us say more than needs to be said.

Especially us marketers.

I think a truly good marketer achieves the goals of the brand blueprint without saying anymore than is entirely necessary, if anything all.

Websites need only say what is necessary to get the conversion. A story only needs as many words as necessary to draw out the emotion. A design only has to do enough to make you feel something. Written copy only has to say enough to drive you to the action.

Most of us say too much…when sometime silence is all that is needed.

I was talking to a high-level executive coach on one of my radio shows earlier this week, and he said, a good coach merely draws out the understanding from his client, that which he already knows. He merely does just enough to help his client reach the conclusion he already knows deep down. The coach could say a lot more. But why?

I think the best marketing accomplishes the same thing.

Yet, most marketers say too much, speak too much, type too much, push too much, publish too much, harass too much, distribute too much, and print too much.

Time to slow it down. Focus more on the meaning of the message itself, the emotion the message is trying to elicit. Instead of raw volume and mass.

The silence can say a hell of a lot…

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[simplify your business thinking here]

[photo from pinterest]

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