Elegant communicator gives 7 good reasons for storytelling in business. As you can imagine, I try to keep an eye on other leading professionals in my line of work. Jon Thomas of Story Worldwide, an ad agency in New York, continues to impress with his wonderful blend of words and images. He puts together some …
Author: John Stevenson
A better blunder – The Sunday Snippet – [9.30.12]
Companies are made up of people, and people make mistakes. Even market-leader darlings like Netflix – and most recently, Apple – have problems that come up. When things do go wrong – and they always do, eventually – great companies handle challenging times with a proven formula. Here are the basics: Publicly acknowledge problems and mistakes. Don’t sweep …
Funny business – The Sunday Snippet – [9.23.12]
Improvisational comedy fundamentals can be useful off the stage, too.
Mojo, momentum, and motivation – [9.16.12]
Finding, getting and keeping your mojo is crucial for personal and professional success. Marshall Goldsmith is widely considered to be the godfather of business coaches. He’s a distinguished teacher and keynote speaker and has worked with the world’s top CEO’s for a long time. He’s also the author of New York Times bestseller What Got You Here Won’t …
The Swiss Army Knife of marketing – how to maximize utility and get the most for your marketing dollars – [9.9.12]
One of the most common questions we get about client stories is “How should we use them?” It’s a good one and I love it because it shows the wheels are turning. This is a lot of fun to discuss because the possibilities are numerous. This is why I like to call the client success story …
One more thing – good questions are the best tools we have for engagement and education [9.2.12]
Persistent, disheveled, and friendly, Lieutenant Columbo (Peter Falk) of 70’s TV was famous for his shrewd case-solving capabilities. His investigative style was to simply ask question after question that would methodically reveal the solution to the crime. “One more thing” was his catch phrase that he delivered right before asking a final zinger of a question designed …
20 miles rain (snow) or shine [8.26.12]
“10x leaders are clear-eyed and stoic, 10xers accept, without complaint, that they face forces beyond their control, that they cannot accurately predict events, and that nothing is certain; yet they utterly reject the idea that luck, chaos, or any other external factor will determine whether they succeed or fail.”” – Jim Collins and Morten Hansen, Great …
The possibilities are endless – [8.19.12]
“Destiny is not a matter of chance, but of choice. Not something to wish for, but to attain.” – William Jennings Bryan “When you’re born, the possibilities are …
Jack be nimble – [8.12.12]
“Doing is always going to be better than not doing.” – Jonathan Colman, REI The word ‘agile’ is commonly used to refer to quickness, lightness, and ease of movement. Flexible, nimble, and ready to change on a dime. Agile development is a popular method among software developers, and now marketers have adopted its key principles. …
Take a stand [8.5.12]
“Great businesses have a point of view, not just a product or service.” – Jason Fried, 37signals Jason Fried has become famous for his point of view. In fact, his book Rework is a collection of his sometimes counter-intuitive ideas on building, running and growing a business. He’s not afraid to call it like he …