A couple of weeks ago I had a drink with someone who’s done some great work in their field. As we chatted about our respective projects and areas of interest, he asked me what I called what I did. This has long been a bone of contention and frustration for…
Date Archives June 2019
Switching to Annual View
Whether we’re coming fresh out of a salaried role or have spent years out on the road as an independent, it’s easy to default to the monthly view. Just like a calendar, the month is the most easily understood timeframe. No time differences to manage, or weeks starting on a…
Lucky Number 7 – and a 40-degree day
Many of us are captivated by the number seven. It’s supposedly lucky (more on the reasons behind this were discussed on this NPR episode) But what happens when we ditch it? Look at a survey with respondents asked to rate a product or service on a scale of 1-10. When…
Two types of role model
When we think about role models, the person or persona we aspire to emulate, our minds will usually go to one of two places: the stand out success; or the person already in our life. The one close by is relatable and real. We can see the path they’ve trodden,…
Positioning: Get Uncomfortably Narrow
A lot of entrepreneurs and freelancers struggle with positioning. Often it’s ironic as the work many of us do is to help others communicate, tell stories, and stand out. Yet, of course, we struggle to do this effectively for ourselves. Here’s one way to think about it: get so narrow…
The Vessel & The Lens
Last week I had lunch with a friend who, like me, is a recent graduate of a coaching certification program. [1] As we compared notes on our various projects, I used a word I’ve been thinking about quite a bit recently with regard to my new venture. The Vessel. I…
KPIs: The slide snap
Here are couple of simple KPIs for all the teachers, facilitators, and keynote speakers out there. 1. How many times audience members take photos of what’s up on the screen. 2. The slide that get the most snaps. These sound like strong metrics. Or are they? Do they in fact…
Sampling: You don’t know it until you’ve tried it
Why the Hitchhiker’s 3 rules of technology reactions permeate far further Douglas Adams, author of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, came up with three rules that describe our reaction to technologies: 1. Anything that is in the world when you’re born is normal and ordinary and is just a…