Alert

You always have something to learn.

Even when you are on top of your game, even when you have been around for decades, even when you are the number 1. There is always something more, or something else.

Keep your senses alert. Not because you should not rest or because you should always stress, but because there are still opportunities to learn something new.

And that’s the essence of life.

Breath life into values

If you have company values and you don’t talk about them often, have them in company presentations, discuss them at company events, represent them with stories and examples, wrap them around basically everything your company does, then it’s better not to have company values at all.

A small example. We started our company event yesterday with a question about who would remember our company values. Not many hands went up. In the afternoon, we planned a game where the assigned scores were based on actions that reflected our values. In the evening, everybody was pointing at things and discussing events, stressing how this or that was indicative of a given value. Some for fun, some for real.

If you have company values, breath life into them.

Energising

Meeting others is energising.

It’s when you get to share ideas, when you get to improve your thinking, when you get to tell your stories, when you get to learn something more about you, when you get to solve difficult and interesting problems.

The last two years (and some) have been tough on this aspect.

Now is the time to recharge the social batteries and look farther.

Tell stories

Tell about yourself with examples.

You are not self-motivated, you have started your own solo business and grown it to 200k ARR.

You are not a team player, you have joined a team and found a way to help your peers get the recognition they deserved.

You are not a marketing professional, you have researched audiences for five companies and found the most effective way to build a connection with their audiences.

Don’t tell about labels, tell stories.

That’s how you are going to win us over.

Note: It’s just as valid for products and services.

Do unto others

Do unto others what you would like them do unto you.

Isn’t that THE golden rule?

Be kind to others if you want them to be kind with you.

Be honest and trustworthy with others if you want honesty and trust.

Don’t cheat on others if you don’t like to be cheated on.

But also – with a marketing twist.

Don’t put out there content you would not read yourself.

Keep your forms simple, as you like them when you are the prospect.

Don’t reach out to people after one signal, since you don’t want to book a meeting after downloading a guide.

It’s a golden rule indeed, yet one we fail to practice often.

And the main reason might be that we are inclined to believe that we are somehow special, that we are worthy of forgiveness, that we (and our product, and our services) will always get a second, and a third, and a fourth chance.

The harsh reality is that we are not.

So, do unto others what you would like them to do unto you.