November 2010 – Page 3

I’m Not Your Gal

I told someone
that I didn’t have the experience
to do a job yesterday.

He didn’t believe me.
He asked if I was giving up too early,
like I’d magically get the experience
by staying longer.

When I was a junior jammer,
I would take jobs I couldn’t possibly do
and I’d stay silent about my lack of qualifications.
My vanity wouldn’t allow me
to admit that I couldn’t do something.
These jobs usually ended in disaster
with everyone unhappy.

Now, I swallow my pride
and speak up.
If the person still wants me on the job,
I might or might not blunder along
depending on the opportunity.
Hey, if they want to pay me to gain experience,
who am I to argue?

It is very hard for a professional
to admit that she doesn’t know something.
If she says she can’t do a job,
save your money and believe her.

High Vs Unrealistic Expectations

I started my new business gig today.

My boss listed the tasks
he wishes me to accomplish
in the two short months I’m there.

Impossible under the constraints
he has given me.

When I pushed back
and told him
his expectations were unrealistic,
he didn’t budge on them.

I came close to simply walking out.
I know I won’t meet his expectations
and he’ll be unhappy with my results.
I will fail.
If failure is guaranteed,
why try?

THAT is the problem with unrealistic expectations.
High expectations challenge
and excite people.
Unrealistic expectations squish them flat.

Ensure that your expectations
are reachable.
(oh, and if an expert says they aren’t,
maybe you should listen to her)

Insane Risks Vs Calculated Risks

Darren Hardy has a wonderful post
on the difference between
insane risk and calculated risk.

I love Richard Branson’s thoughts on risk.
Outsiders perceive the Rebel Billionaire
as taking crazy risks
when in reality, he is a pro at calculated risks.

“First of all I never risk the main business
for the sake of a new venture.
That is why each Virgin brand
is a separate business.
No new business will ever put
any existing business in jeopardy
—that is my first discipline.
Then in each new risk
I build in an out.

When I started Virgin Airlines
I started by buying only one used 747 from Boeing.
Part of my contract was that after a year
if it didn’t work out,
they would agree to buy back
the plane from me.
That ensured if it didn’t work out
I wasn’t really risking anything,
just the time to see if I could make it work.”

Calculated risks are good
and necessary for success.
Learn how to manage risk properly.

Losing The Faith

I start a new business gig on Monday.
I didn’t take it because I needed the money
or was hankering for business
or was excited about the opp.

I took it for one reason
and one reason only.

I lost the faith.

Rejection in the writing world beat me down.
I need a breather.
I need a pat on the back.
The quickest way to get this
is to take a short business gig.

I’m putting the writing on life support
(writing a short a month
during the gig).
After the gig
(less than two months long),
I’ll focus fully on the writing once more.

You WILL lose the faith
while building your business.
Before you do something dumb
and quit completely,
figure out the quickest way
to regain that faith.

Follow Up Emails

You’ve sent an email two weeks ago.
The prospect or publisher or employer
hasn’t responded.

Many people
(women especially)
are shy about sending a follow up email.
In this age of aggressive spam filters,
this hesitation is dumbness.
Odds are…
your prospect didn’t even receive the email.

That said…
it means that your follow up email
should be written
with the assumption that
she hasn’t read your original email.

Yes,
you should write
something like…
‘this is a follow up to
the email I sent on Tuesday, November 5th
regarding my submission of XXX.’
This allows her to find your original email
if she so wishes.
It always lights a fire under her ass
if she’s been sitting on it.

Then you repeat everything you stated
in the original email
plus any updates.
This saves her time
if she prefers not to look up the original email.

Sure, it takes extra effort
to repeat all the original information
(if you consider using the cut and paste function
extra effort)
but your prospect will appreciate it.

Phone Interviews

I had a phone interview
with a prospective employer yesterday.

The executive tried to multitask
during the interview.
There were constant interruptions
which prompted abrupt changes in topic.
He drifted off in conversation
and rambled
while I heard a tapping
(likely of his fingers on a keyboard).
He’d yell things like
‘what the hell was that?’
and ‘I can’t believe it’
at random.

In other words…
he came across as a total nutbar.

I don’t know if he’s crazy.
He’s an executive
for a high profile company
so I’m guessing he’s not
but first impressions stick.
I’m seriously reconsidering my interest.

When you are involved in a phone interview
or, heck, any sort of phone conversation,
give that call your entire attention.
If you don’t,
you could end up looking insane.

Let Creativity Rule

I’m participating in Nanowrimo
(National Novel Writing month)
which challenges writers
to write 50,000 words in 30 days.

Yesterday, I wrote zero words.

Why?

Because yesterday
I was in a blue sky mood.
My mood was over-the-top positive.
Creativity was off the charts.
Solid story ideas were flowing.
I spent the day
brainstorming plot lines
and recording them.
The day was wonderfully productive
and very inspiring.

Blue sky days are rare.
I don’t waste them
by doing grunt work
(and writing is often grunt work).

If you have a blue sky day,
you also may not wish to waste it
by going to meetings
or filling out expense reports.

Push the daily stuff off if you can until tomorrow
and spend as much as possible
of that blue sky day
in creative pursuits.

If You Can Do Anything Else…

One of the common phrases
in the writing world
is
“If you can do anything else,
do it.”

Writing, like anything worth doing, is hard.
It takes the average writer
10 years of serious writing
before she is published.
The job is rejection after rejection.

So if you can do something else,
you will.
You’ll quit before you’re successful.

Seth Godin has a great post
about how this holds true
for business start ups.

“The people who successfully
start independent businesses
(franchises, I think are a different thing)
do it because
we have no real choice in the matter.
The voice in our heads won’t shut up
until we discover if we’re right,
if we can do it,
if we can make something happen.
This is an art, our art,
and to leave it bottled up is a crime.”

If you can do anything else,
do it.
If you can’t get that business start up
out of your brain,
you’re likely an entrepreneur.

Discipline Trumps Inspiration

On one of my publisher loops,
an author wrote
asking for help.
He hasn’t been ‘inspired’ lately.

One of the best answers
was given by… well…
one of the most successful authors.
(Imagine that)

She told him
“Suck it up, princess.”
She explained that he isn’t a hobby writer.
He is a professional writer
and professional writers write no matter what.
It is a job.
If we don’t show up,
we don’t get paid.

She pointed out that inspiration is flakey.
If he waits for inspiration,
he could be waiting for a while.
Discipline is what divides professionals from hobbyists.

Are you a hobby entrepreneur,
waiting for divine motivation
to make that sales call,
that marketing plan,
develop that product?

Or are you a professional entrepreneur,
doing what needs to be done
regardless of how inspired you feel?

Those Rebel Beyblades

This past weekend,
I bought a beyblade
for my 10 year old niece.

Beyblades were slowly growing
in popularity.
This slow growth grew into a flood
when schools decided to ban the toy.
Letters were sent home,
confirming what every kid
had told her parents.
Every child had one.
(or at least enough kids had one
to create a problem).

And now every child DOES have one.
And yes, children are bringing them
to school (banned or not).

Having your product banned
is not necessarily a bad thing,
especially if your target
is the tween/teen demographic.