The Business Brickyard

For me, there are two ways to deliver a presentation.

I recently watched an old interview Charlie Rose did with Danger Mouse. In it, he referenced a great quote from this NY Times article...

Given the great challenges AND opportunities we all face this year I thought the below was a good post to re-post.

A few years ago, the New York Yankees were in a neck and neck battle as they tried to win their division against their long time rival the Boston Red Sox, way too many years ago now to remember, catcher Jorge Posada gave out T-shirts to his teammates that said ..

"Grind It" on the front and "There is no trying, there is only doing or not doing" on the back.

As the saying goes, "Everything old is new again."

Hershey's and Coke each bring back their old and beloved jingles. Even Horse-and-Plow Farming is making a comeback. Fashion from decades ago always comes back into style.

So why not follow that idea path and apply it to whatever business you are in?

Figure out the "golden" or "good old days" of your market or industry. Any way to bring that experience back to your clients? Moments that make you have fond memories of the past are some great moments. No?

Do AT&T executives experience dropped calls when they use their cell phones?

Do travel agency execs ever try to book their own tickets online?

Do Doctors go to a Doctor, wait in the waiting room for 30 minutes to receive 5 minutes of medical attention?

Does Michael Dell order his laptop by calling 1-800-WWW-DELL and sit on hold for 30 minutes?

Southwest execs fly their airline all the time and it shows in the execution of all the basics that seem to elude their competitors.

Why are so many companies trapped in "me too" strategies and seem allergic to ideas that are very new or very different?

Fear.

Fear of the unknown
Fear of the new
Fear of being wrong and many more..

We see it way too often. We experience it ourselves. It often disguises itself in rationalizations, denial or the quick disposal of new ideas.

Great solutions that move your business up to the next level do not come from giving in to the fear the problem triggers.

What you do that forces yourself to execute outside your comfort zone turns fear into Power.

There is a giant sign above the doors at my local JP Morgan Chase bank that reads:

"Thank You For Coming.
Service Excellence Is Our Goal"

Thanks and noted. What I want to know is .. SO WHAT?

Am I comforted by this fact? Do I really care what their "goal" is?

This is one of the largest financial institutions in the world that would probably love to sell me a laundry list of add-on products and services. The marketing department decided they would put up the most prominent sign in the place to tell me about a vague hope they have for themselves.

Good morning everyone and thank you for coming today,

Today is a big day in the evolution of blogs as a communication tool for every business in the world. Ironically, today I am here to announce the death of Blogs. (pause for audience gasp)