The two common traits in successful people across disciplines and professions are passion and perseverance. Effort matters twice as more than talent because its involved in skill development and putting that skill into practice that eventually leads to achievement. The secret to having a long-term goal and sticking with it for an extended length of … Read more
Our status in society influences our decision-making. We use status as a shortcut to decide where to place people and entities. “there are two types of Social Influence: normative social influence and informational social influence” https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4718651/#pone.0146536.ref006 “Normative social influence – The influence is based on people’s motivation to gain approval and avoid rejection by conforming … Read more
In 1974 the most powerful signal ever was sent into space towards other galaxies with information of our human race like the DNA sequence. We haven’t heard back yet. Does your marketing feel a bit like that? What do you want your signals to say about you? What do you want your audience to think … Read more
Harvard Business School marketing professor Theodore Levitt said, “People don’t want to buy a quarter-inch drill. They want a quarter-inch hole!” Over the last five years, I’ve worked with edtech, IoT, interior design, and IT services companies to interview their customers and build marketing personas for them. And here’s my current approach to building a modern … Read more
Have you eaten at a restaurant where the ambience and the food transported you to another place? To help the audience understand your message, it needs to paint a picture in their mind. We don’t store words and sentences in our heads. We store them as images and memories. A key marketing ingredient, tension, is … Read more
I probably have ADHD. Distractions and time are my enemies. Finding a practical and sustainable productivity system is an ongoing struggle. If sticking to a plan is hard, if you get distracted all the time and you tend to procrastinate a lot, then I feel your pain. Here are some ideas that might help: 1. … Read more
Horror clients. Bad Projects. Chasing payments. Mismatched expectations. I’ve seen it all in my years of running the agency. Here are pricing mistakes you should avoid making: 1. Always take an advance up front. 50% if possible. The money is for blocking your time and ensuring the client is equally committed to the project. 2. … Read more
Don’t hire an agency or a brand expert until you’ve understood this. Your company has evolved, the products and services you once sold are no longer relevant. Or you are transitioning into a new industry niche. Whatever may be your reason, how do you decide whether to refresh your brand or create a new brand? … Read more
Attention = Desire x Tension Dopamine is the neurotransmitter of desire. Norepinephrine is the neurotransmitter of tension. Together they add up to attention. Tension is the struggle between what you have and what you don’t. This type of low-level conflict often leads to action. “Here’s a 30% discount on your favourite gadget. but hurry the … Read more
“high but not the highest intelligence, combined with the greatest degree of persistence will achieve greater eminence than the highest degree of intelligence with somewhat less persistence.” Stanford psychologist, Catharine Cox The problem with goals is that they are either too far out or very short-term. And there’s nothing in between connecting them. One of … Read more