Category Archives: Success

Pleasures and All

Every animal has their pleasures (yes, us humans are included in this).

Whether we’re vocal, public, or confident about it is another matter.

I have noticed a trend that those of us that do not shy away from our pleasures, whether it’s investing in stocks, creating toothpick art, a perfect cup of coffee in the morning, or reaching 5 orgasms in 10 minutes… the idea is that if we are proud of what we’re doing, if we’re interested in it and dig into it with all that we have and possess, then we’ll find ourselves in the region where a glow and shine emanates from our beings vibrantly.

That’s where I’m going. I hope I’ll see you there.

To Plan and To Re-Plan

Leave a reply

It feels good to write it down on paper, to create that list, to plan, to strategize, to brainstorm, to set those goals.

And more, it feels good to have an understanding and a direction to move forward with, to be able to communicate it with your coworkers, partners, directors, or employees. To be able to work towards goals with the understanding that the goals have been set because they are milestones in achieving the planned success.

It really does feel good to cross those things off, and to look back evaluating how the strategy has been followed, if any of the goals have been met, if the brainstorming was used.

To the point, it feels good to use this information to move forward, to make changes, to tweak the strategy.

I like feeling good, do you?

All In An Instant

Leave a reply

There is patience and there is crippling fear.

Patience is an aware look at the situation, using better forms of judgement and aptitude to gauge prospects plainly laid out in front , and using all of this information to base judgements and action upon.

And then there is crippling fear that roots one so hard to their current situation that one fails to acknowledge discomfort, stress, and effects on health and mood before it’s too late and something breaks.

Both of these situations take just one single moment, one single instant to rectify, both within ourselves through our own actions or mindset, or through external forces that may just be the factors in the situation itself. A simple unexpected event.

But we can’t plan for the unexpected. We can plan, we can strategize, but the unexpected is.. unexpected.

It’s the difference between saying: “Yes, I understand that things are busy right now, getting out of control, but I’m creating plans and routines and methodologies to help with this, that I’m very eager to practice! Patience and persistence will solve this problem shortly.”

Or I can say: “I am so busy. I can’t do this. Why do these people keep demanding of me. I’ll never get this done. But I can’t stop, or somebody might get mad. Everybody is counting on me. There is no alternative. Must just keep doing as quick as demands come in.”

I prefer doing anticipatory work, rather than reactionary work. I prefer looking for schemes that will allow me to scale easily, rather than lurching like an old rusty transmission.

Smart & hard, not just hard. But this is my efficiency, not yours.

We Put In the Time

Leave a reply

We strive and learn, and write all the right notes in a very nice and tidy notebook. We buy the right tools, and we connect with the right people.

Today, because of our information/data age of internet, there are so many people to listen to, people who have found a way to solve all mysteries and are very eager to give them away to you for free (including me). I subscribe to many of them. Seth Godin, Tiny Buddha, Kim Anami, Art of Manliness, etc. and they’re great. They all give me such food for thought it encourages me daily. They each have such a rich abundance of life I could spend most of the better part of 10 years reading their archives page after page.

So, I’ve found my golden source of water. My lifeline. My connection to the super culture I’ve always been looking for.

Or have I?

Have I got my new secret way that only a small culture of us have tapped into and will exercise? Sure, we’re exercising our minds and that’s a huge part of the battle. But this idea is dangerously close to sitting back into cruise mode and keep ourselves busy reading blogs that tell me that I’m doing it right.

To quote Ben Harper, “You can put a man through school, but you cannot make him think.”

You’ve done the reading. you’ve studied the books, you follow the blogs, you’ve got the tips. You’ve learned it all. Now we step out into the new light of day and say, “So, I think I’m ready now.”

I think I’m ready now, and I think you’re ready now! But, I guess that’s up to you to decide.

Let’s put this plan into action.

Far Too Easy Doesn’t Get You Far Enough

Leave a reply

It is far too easy to get caught in a tunnel and keep pushing on according to the latest thing we read on best practices: 10 tips of how to get people to (insert marketing goal here).

Far too easy.

It’s far more smarter – and a little bit harder – to develop a strategy that makes sense to you, and your goals.

It’s time to project our thoughts to the long term.

Case Study Time

So we make this newsletter and send it out quarterly, and in 4 years, after we’ve sent out 16 of them, what will that look like and how do we define success? If we assume that each newsletter is carefully crafted for 3 days (24hrs) by our well paid interns at $20/hr, are we finding a return on investment for one newsletter at $480? After 4 years $7680? After the newsletter has been crafted so meticulously and sent out, where does it retire to?

It’s your answer, not mine.

It’s foolish to think that just one is all that’s necessary: just one newsletter will capture their hearts and they’ll be fans forever; if I make just one widget that sells millions, I’ll be set for life!; I’m going to buy just this one last laptop and make sure it’s the best I possibly can buy and it’ll last me a lifetime.

Sure, just 1 may be all that’s necessary about 1% of the time, but in investments, we want to do everything we can to increase that percentage.

Yes, your time is an investment, and so is the time of every person whose employ you are responsible for.

I’ve talked about this before in a personal mission statement. We define what we want life to look like in 10 years, then we define missions to live by for the next 5 years that will drive us in that direction. Then we break down each one of those missions into critical tasks to focus on day in and day out that when adhered to will find us rolling down in the direction we have planned for all along.

This is not the easy way. This is not reading an article on a cool website with Chinese symbols and following a top 10 things to do to make life count list.

This is pounding the pavement, doing the due diligence. This is planning for success.

This is being aware of the habits you’re getting into and asking yourself why?

Why am I doing this?
Why has this been integrated into my life?
Why do I think this is a smart investment?
If I do a case study from my own life, does history prove this logic correct?
Does this align with my goals?

The more you ask yourself this question, the quicker you’ll get at identifying whether it does align or not. Further, it helps to remind us to consciously think about our direction in life, and encourages us to go forth with fury because we are certain it is our quest. With this confidence, it is impossible to hold back.

Perhaps you have a strategy you use to identify the why that works great for you? I’d love to hear in the comments below.

Nurture, not Nazi

Leave a reply

Any environment, whether it’s work, school, sport, or collective of some sort, thrives when each member effectively nurtures each others strengths, and adapts to their weaknesses.

There is nothing to fear about this. This is awareness and acknowledgement, this is working in a dynamic environment capable of growing into a very dependable organization.

How does this look?

When new ideas are introduced into the organization, the first question is why. Once that is explained (and explained twice to the people who don’t understand it the first time) and any logical opposition is ruled null, everybody says yes instinctively and eagerly.
Each member of the organization understands their role and volunteers solutions for problems relating to it.
Definitely no questions asked by managers: “What is your agenda today?” or “What are your action items today looking like?”
Questions like: “Is there anything I can help you with?” or “Do you have any suggestions for solutions to my problem?”

A well oiled machine knows how it runs and knows why it’s running.

A dynamic machine (your organization) is a well oiled machine, but also adjusts to needs, picks up the slack, eagerly attacks new projects, is creative in solutions, and makes everybodies job feel easier (or at least more enjoyable). As an added bonus, every single person in a nurturing environment grows and becomes stronger.

And then there’s the Nazis.

For those of you that have forgotten, the Nazis were fearful, meticulous record keepers, didn’t trust different or new (that wasn’t directed from the top down), and most interestingly, made a very depressing world/environment for anybody that wasn’t yelling the orders (from the top down).

How are you running your family, venture, team, class?

I hope you’re nurturing.

I’d love to hear how in the comments below.

Premium Quality Anything Takes Time

Leave a reply

While being inspired on Twitter one fine afternoon, a friend of mine started talking about how premium quality anything takes time to develop and build. We dove into a discussion about this, and how relevant it is today with the rapidity of growth, economies of scale, and the power of the exponent.

I asked her if she wanted to write something for the site, and she obliged.

It’s comforting to remember that premium quality anything takes time.

By Anna O’Reilly, 21^st Feb 2014

My friend Ned picked up on a thought bubble I wrote for my twitter account, and asked me to expand on the concept within the context of strategies for success.

While considering how to convey the idea in terms of success, my mind kept going back to something I read from an obscure Buddhist text in my early 20s. The words I recall were something like the following: If you wish to become a master, you must begin by learning to sweep a floor.

The notes to the text went on to explain that sweeping a floor properly, along every edge and corner, requires that the sweeper pay attention to detail. The individual who aspires to mastery of the mysteries must first become a master of the mundane. Furthermore, a master must never forget to remain humble. Beginning the journey with a menial task is an excellent leveller to yoke the wily ego. It’s the ego in the end that spoils quality.

The ability to create premium quality actions or articles in any medium requires that the mind of the creator is refined. Quality thinking demands attention to detail, method, logic and discipline without which, abstractions of the imagination become meaningless. There is a correlation here to the link between the concepts of limitation and freedom.

And so, the experience accumulated between learning to sweep a floor with thoroughness and discipline, and the creation of a premium quality work of art, craftsmanship, literature or theory, takes a lot of time.

Getting back to my original statement, it is comforting to recognise that quality anything takes time. In general, the human world around us is demanding and fast. Much of what is produced and promoted is neither premium quality nor considered beyond the value of immediate profits or benefit. In short, many products are shabby and thoughts are half-baked at best.

Those with a taste for quality resonate to a different frequency, dance to a different beat. We expect high quality thoughts and action from our relationships, our work, our governments and ourselves. It’s about context and taste. It’s about noticing the dirt in the corners of the floor and the dust along the skirting. Don’t worry if your project is taking time, it’s supposed to take time to get the best.

Email Etiquette 101

Leave a reply

Emails are abundant in the day to day.

And I’m not using the word abundant lightly. I’m sure everyone who is active on the internet can sympathize with waking up to 30 new unread emails – on a good day.

Email Rules to Live By

I would like to point out a few rules to live by, when it comes to sending emails to anyone.

Signing up to a mail list is permission marketing. They want to receive your emails. This puts the onus on the email sender to provide relevant, personal, and necessary information in the communication.
Don’t amalgamate email lists, this will lose subscribers interest very quickly – and also known as spamming. This doesn’t mean don’t cross promote. If another site/person’s message is relevant and you suspect your readers will benefit from it, by all means promote it. That’s why they love you.
If you expect the subscriber to spend 5 minutes to read your email, is it not fair to expect you to take 5 minutes to go through your contact list and make sure their information (merge tags) (ie. first name, last name, company, etc.) are updated and populated with proper vitals?
If there is no particular reason for the email, why are you even hitting that send button? Nobody wants unnecessary emails clogging up their flow.
Did you just cc (carbon copy) somebody in on an email and there is no identifiable reason why they should have been included in the communication?
If you’ve been discussing a plethora of items with a co-worker, client, etc., and one particular item needs other members involved in the communication, take the time to compose a new email with a new email subject with: an overview of where the discussion is at, any relevant background information, followed by specific requests. Don’t waste my time by making me go through the entire conversation history trying to understand why I was just included in this communication, and if there is anything I’m supposed to be doing.
Just cc’ing somebody at the end of a long conversation is extremely frustrating, not to mention the possibility of breaching confidentiality or exposing a level of formality between you and a contact only achieved after a long discussion or many messages.
Remember, you’re a person and you’re engaging somebody on a personal level – much like letter mail – so focus on being coherent, precise, and easy to understand. Unless, of course, you’re a unique writer sending out abstract writing short stories…
If you’re not getting responses from email subscribers, it’s not their fault. It’s your email, it’s your message, it’s your content, it’s you pressing the send button. This is your image and it is your engagement as a producer to your subscriber; make the communication valuable and if it’s not, change it up.
If your message/request is exciting, alluring, clear, and cohesive, you might convince me to do it. Otherwise, you have very little chance to engage me and I’m going to get bored after reading the 2nd line in the email.
If your message/request isn’t exciting, alluring, clear, and cohesive, I will not respond to it immediately which risks the hazard of being buried in my inbox.
If you have an email, and a call to action, there had better be a hyperlink for me to click to follow your directions. This makes it easy for me, and also smoothly directs the flow to your website, event page, etc.
“When does this end? And why am I even waiting for this to end?” <~ this is not a good reaction to an email.

I’ve amalgamated this from a variety of sources over the years (Seth Godin in particular), and my own personal experiences.

Do you have any other email taboos you’d like to illuminate? I’d love to hear them in the comments below.

…because time

Leave a reply

Because we can only do so much in the day, there is a problem.

You see, to do everything one must do in the day, every day must be filled with what we must do. In order to fill every day with what we must do, we must do it, every day, always.

What I’m trying to point out here is that there is no rest. No time off. No pause button. No: “Can I get that back?”

Time has been fairly accurately divided into 24 equally spaced sections – let’s call them hours – for your organizational convenience, not to mention planning helps reduce anxiety and the feeling of overwhelming.

Now: do.

🙂

Humanity vs. Hyperlinks

Leave a reply

You see, as we lose our humanity we begin to increase our automation. Everything is a get rich quick scheme, that if we just follow this strategy a few lucky early catcher-on-ers had the fortune to mastermind, we will be just as successful!

But in reality, for the rest of us that aren’t staring in some website promo add, it’s not like that.

Automating a tweet about your latest promotion, 3 times a day, for even just 3 days in a row is too much for most people.

It’s almost like the domino effect. So BIG AWESOME COMPANY is doing it, we see that BIG AWESOME COMPANY appears to be successful, so let me do it. Let me follow their successful strategy. We’re not the only people seeing this, everybody loves BIG AWESOME COMPANY. Everybody want’s to follow their strategy to success.

Who’s doing it better? Who has the more effective method?

What is missing in the first place is that gap between startup and BIG AWESOME COMPANY. BIG AWESOME COMPANY started as a startup, built the following and loyal fans, and became BIG AWESOME COMPANY through strategic operations and planning.

Sure you can act the part, you can even spend the part, but the only way to really be the part is to put in the ground work, gain that following of loyalty through engagement and appreciation, and build your name organically.

If you have a bottomless wallet, I guess it’s another game all together.

Loyalty is big though. Apple certainly has a bigger loyalty base than Blackberry. Lulu Lemon certainly has a bigger customer loyalty than the Gap. Have you ever wondered why people buy brand name rather than Presidents Choice no-name brand?

What you’ve been sold is a success story. What you haven’t been sold is hard work, commitment, humanity, and meaning.

It’s your game in the end, but this is customer service & satisfaction.