Soul singer John Legend was born John Stephens.
Legend was a nickname friends gave him.
He told eTalk Daily that
he was nervous about
keeping the name Legend
until he uncovered the reason why
fear.
“The only reason I wouldn’t take it was
because
I couldn’t live up to it.”
John Legend gave himself
an aspirational name
and then pushed himself
to live up to it.
You can do the same.
There is a common saying on author loops
‘Anyone can write and publish a book,
very few people can sell a book.’
Studies done by
Will Page, Gary Eggleton, and Andrew Bud
find of 13 million music tracks available,
52,000 or 0.4 per cent
accounted for 80 per cent of downloads.
Yep, not even the expected 80/20 rule.
The blockbusters are bigger blockbusters,
the rest sell nothing.
Sociologist Duncan Watts
provides this explanation as to why
“Google can deliver 100 million songs to you –
but your brain hasn’t got any faster.”
We simply don’t have the time
or capacity
to evaluate unlimited choice
so we rely on the same social indicators
(like bestseller lists).
Lists, awards, other indications of popularity
still matter.
A loved one is a manager
of a department store
in a mid sized town.
The town is dying,
with all the main employers shutting their doors
this year
resulting record unemployment,
yet her store saw its highest profit
this past holiday season.
How?
The manager monitored everything,
adjusting orders daily
based on the sales the day before.
If they were out of stock,
they sold the product anyway
and then delivered it.
They delivered it
via employees
living close to the customer,
allowing employees to play Santa,
and
reinforcing the store’s place
in the community.
They even pulled a Miracle on 34th Street.
After gently explaining
that Apple gave their best deals
to the large multi-nationals
and not to local stores,
iPod seeking customers were directed to Wal-Mart.
The sales are there
but they aren’t going to come to you.
You have to go out
and grab them.
What is my outlook for 2009?
One word.
Terrific.
But… But… But…
how can I say this with such confidence
with talking heads throwing around
the D word?
Lets say we slip into a 1930’s style depression.
Did you know that
more millionaires were created
during the Great Depression
than in any other time in U.S. history?
A depression brings change
and change brings opportunities
for ambitious folks like you and I.
But that’s not why I’m optimistic.
I’m optimistic because I have a plan
and because I’m already taking action
on that plan.
As everyone else looks backwards at 2008,
I’m not only looking forward
but I’m reaching out for my 2009 goals.
2009 is going to be terrific!
My cousin
plans to lose weight in 2009.
Her goal,
as a self sacrificing mother
of 3 young children,
is to go to the gym solo
4 days a week.
Her odds of success?
Pretty much zero.
Why?
Because her tactic for accomplishing her goal
doesn’t fit in with her lifestyle
and her personality.
There are hundreds, even thousands,
of tactics for every goal.
When you decide upon yours,
ensure that they work with who YOU are.
In these challenging economic times,
many companies are cutting back
and one of the first expenses to be eliminated
is training and development.
Some employees use this as an excuse
to not take courses.
They say things like
‘if we pay for it ourselves,
the company won’t ever pay for it again.’
That’s B.S.
Without a training budget,
there is no formal reporting process.
If it doesn’t get reported,
it doesn’t get measured.
If it doesn’t get measured,
it doesn’t exist at the executive level.
As far as they’re concerned,
no one is getting trained.
Which means if your boss wants to brag about
how his staff is taking courses
on their own initiative,
he doesn’t throw out numbers,
he talks about individuals and individual training.
Instead of saying 86% of his team
met personal development objectives,
he says ‘K took a course on marketing using Twitter.’
And because others aren’t willing
to pay for the course themselves
and Twitter is a fairly new marketing tool,
K suddenly becomes the company expert.
THAT is why having the training budget cut
is not necessarily a bad thing,
not for an employee with initiative.
I receive at least one email a day
from a ‘reader’ asking to place a text link ad
on one of my sites.
This ‘reader’ never mentions
what site he or she is representing.
I ignore these emails.
I don’t do blind negotiations.
I don’t know many serious businesspeople who do.
If you’re serious about
a business relationship,
introduce yourself.
Yes, get the prospect intrigued first
(talking about how you can help her)
but end it with an explanation
of who you are.
There are no negotiations
without trust.
I was a Katy Perry fan.
I loved ‘I Kissed A Girl’
and ‘Hot N Cold.’
Then I watched her live…
ouch, NOT her strength
and so unnecessary.
With the almost unlimited mediums
available for artists to reach fans,
there’s no reason to use one
you’re uncomfortable with.
If you’re not comfortable live,
pretape, edit,
and put the piece on YouTube.
Or
focus on the dancing or entertainment
rather than the singing.
If you’re unattractive (NOT Katy’s problem),
don’t put your face on the back of books.
If you stutter (again NOT Katy’s problem),
use text rather than speech.
If you must use speech, hire an actor.
And please,
don’t go on tour,
simply because everyone else is.
New Years is traditionally the time to set
resolutions for the next year.
These resolutions are usually large
and unfortunately,
92% of them won’t be kept.
Why?
Because they are too big.
I always break down big goals
into small, almost trivial tasks,
my to do list for the day.
My blogging goal for today
was to write 2 posts for every blog.
Small, right?
Except that I only blog once a day.
So after a week of completing 2 posts,
I’ll be a week ahead of my posts.
After a year,
I’ll have a full year buffer.
Hhhmmm…
not so trivial anymore, is it?
THAT is how goals get completed.
Break ’em down.
Some of us have the day ‘off’ today
but as driven, passionate people,
we’re tempted to work.
Resist.
My buddies and I have a motto…
‘You can always get a new job,
you can never get a new family.’
If you’re lucky enough to have a loving family,
treat them as your number one customer today.
Stop reading this blog,
turn off the computer,
and give them your full attention.
Figure out their dreams, their needs,
and like a good saleswoman,
figure out a way to satisfy them.
The payoff will be huge.