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Does Your Email Inbox Need A 60-Sec Cleansing?

By Alex Mandossian

email1 It was a warm Friday morning in Kona, Hawaii … and there I was eating my breakfast with five of my TLC friends.

Suddenly, that all-important topic of distractions came up. So I seized the opportunity to ask all five thought leaders the single most important entrepreneurial productivity question that I routinely ask my students, friends, colleagues and even my mentors.

Here’s the question:

“What’s the #1 distraction you inevitably face each day in your personal and professional life?”

They went five-for-five and gave the same answer. It’s the same answer I hear from my students. It’s the same answer I hear from my JV partners, my colleagues and even my mentors.

Survey after survey, Ask Campaign after Ask campaign … Email seems to be everbody’s undisputed #1 distraction in their personal and professional lives!

Imagine that? The #1 distraction entrepreneurs and [Read more…]

Kipling’s 6-Step Secret Dissolves “Writer’s Block”

By Alex Mandossian

rudyard-kipling3 Joseph Rudyard Kipling (1865–1936) was an English author and poet. Born in Bombay, British India (now Mumbai), he is best known for his works of fiction like The Jungle Book.

According to Wikipedia, he is one of the greatest innovators in the art of writing the short story. Kipling was one of the most popular English writers in the late 19th century and he won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1907.

He is the first English writer to receive the prize and to date he is still its youngest recipient.

As a work-at-home entrepreneur, I believe that Rudyard Kipling’s greatest contribution to the marketing and copywriting world was his Six Honest Serving-Men technique (or “Six Honest Servants” which is more politically correct today).

Whenever he waged an occassional battle with [Read more…]

3 Marketing Lessons Learned From Geese

By Alex Mandossian

Entrepreneurs can learn a lot from geese. The next time you see geese fly overhead, take a closer look at “how” they fly and you’ll discover “why” they can fly farther, faster and with less effort.

Got 2 minutes, 17 seconds to spare right now? Grab your mouse, click on the picture below and watch this clever video.

As each goose flaps its wings it creates an uplift for the other geese that follow. By flying in a “V” formation the whole flock adds 71 percet of extra flying range.

Lesson #1: Entrepreneurs who build reliable teams, “vendor networks” and strategic alliances accelerate the growth of their businesses faster, better and with less effort.

When a goose falls out of formation it feels the drag and resistance of flying alone. Every goose quickly moves back into “V” formation to take advantage of the lifting power of the other geese in front.

Lesson #2: Entrepreneurs who willingly accept feedback from their target market accelerate the growth of their business faster, better and with less effort.

When the lead goose tires, it drops back into the formation and another goose flies to the point position. The geese flying in formation honk to encourage those up front to keep up with their speed.

Lesson #3: Entrepreneurs who “honk” at their team members and vendors with encouragement accelerate their personal productivity and business growth faster, better and with less effort.

When a goose gets sick, two geese drop out of formation and follow it down to assist and protect it. Entrepreneurs who protect their their teams can grow their businesses even during economic downswings.

Write a comment below and forward this post to a friend or colleague.

Do You Make These 3 “Resource Box” Mistakes?

By Jeff Herring

I see many people get into article marketing, write some good articles, and then blow the whole thing in the resource box.

So let’s take a look at three of the deadliest prospect and profit killing mistakes people make, and then what to do instead.

Mistake #1 – Making the Resource Box All About You – This one is really easy to do, especially since the resource box is also called the bio box. Many people tell the reader all about themselves.

I’ve actually seen a resource box that was almost as long as the article, filled with just about every award the author had won going back to grade school.

Sorry, but the reader is not [Read more…]

Why Is Google Unhappy About Getting “Verbed?”

By Alex Mandossian

The first recorded usage of “Google” used as a verb was on July 8, 1998, by Larry Page, who wrote on a mailing list: “Have fun and keep googling!”

“Google” was officially verbed in the Oxford English Dictionary on June 15, 2006 and to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary in July, 2006.

I firmly believe that having the public utter your company name as a verb is like going to heaven without the inconvenience of dying. Getting “verbed” is the ultimate accomplishment for any brand – the marketer’s Shangri-la.

But Google doesn’t see it that way. Its legal department isn’t happy about getting “verbed” probably because they’ve bought into the myth that a company risks [Read more…]

Short Movie About the Power of “Validation”

By Alex Mandossian

The principle of validation can take on many meanings in English or any other language.

The best definition I’ve come up with (as it relates to human potential) is this 10-word sentence: “A specific acknowledgment of appreciation for a task well done.”

But the most curious thing about validation is that it feels just as good to the person who does the validating as it does to the person who gets validated.

As a trainer and teacher, I feel the most validated if one of my students unexpectedly shows their appreciation by verbally acknowledging the time and effort I put into designing the tele-curriculum.

How and why they show their validation is important to me, but when the validator is specific about what they appreciate about my training, it makes me feel even better.

Key Point: The more [Read more…]

Survey Results: Readers Want 2 Posts Per Week

By Alex Mandossian

On December 30th, 2008 I posted a survey so my readers could decide if 3 posts per week would be better than 2 posts per week.

Over 320 readers voted and the final tally I took revealed 202 – NO votes compared to 119 – YES votes. The Blog Dialogue survey result was a WIN-WIN for me because I get do less work and serve more of my readers.

Starts Immediately: So as of Thursday, January 8th, my blogging editorial calendar will 2 posts per week that show up every Thursday and Tuesday (every week in 2009) at precisely 8:44am Eastern.

One of my core premises is: “People support what they help to create.” And thesimplest way to get support is to “Ask.” That sounds simple, but it’s not easy.

The”Ask Principle” is what the Greek Philosopher, Socrates discovered nearly 2,500 years ago, which is now known as the The Socratic Method. It is what Gandhi insinuated when he said, “In order to G-E-T you must first A-S-K.”

And it is what George Gallup did for most of his professional life – assessing public opinion on political, social, and economic issues, including the hopes and fears of people around the globe, their leisure-time activities, their morals, beliefs, etc.

What To Do Now: In 2009, I want you visit and revisit this blog on Tuesdays and Thursdays. When you do, you’ll see a new blog post that appears at precisely 8:44am Eastern.

It may seem silly to you, but for me, having that level of consistent precision (Tuesdays, Thursdays at 8:44am Eastern) makes me more predictable to you. And predictability typically leads to Trust.

Breaking Through the Far Side of Disappointment

By Alex Mandossian

Wikipedia has an interesting way of definining “disappointment.” If you take a moment to look the word up, here’s what you’ll find:

“The feeling of dissatisfaction that follows a failure of expectations to manifest. It differs from regret in that the individual feeling regret focuses primarily on personal choices contributing to a poor outcome, while the individual feeling disappointment focuses on the outcome.”

Looking back on my own marketing accomplishments, one of the things I’m certain of is that my disappointments inspire me to storm the gates that others gladly sneak past.

When you learn how to handle disapointments – miscommunications, violated expectations or thwarted intentions – as welcomed guests into your business life, you’ll have the mindset of cheerful expectancy of having a breakthrough not long after :-)

If you feel what I’m saying is just a bunch of [Read more…]

Blog Survey: Shall I Post 3X Per Week In 2009?

By Alex Mandossian

I made a public declaration about six months ago to consistently post 2X (two times a week) for the rest of 2008. It was more work than I originally realized, but I’ve been pleasantly surprised by the number of “referrals” and “comments” I’ve received ever on this blog ever since. Many thanks!

As I indicated on my Dec. 26th post, I’m only focusing on 4 marketing tasks to grow my business. I plan on “outsourcing” my weaknesses to vendors who play at things I work at. One of my strengths is Blogging.

Here’s The Survey Question: If I blog 3X per week vs. 2X per week, will you read and comment on my posts? If your answer is YES, then say so and give me your brief reason WHY.

As Jim Rohn says, “The bigger the WHY, the easier the HOW.” So if your answer is NO, I want your candor to tell me WHY. Deal?

If I get a “Net Score” of 101 YESes (Total YESes minus Total NOs = Net Score), then every Monday, Wednesday and Friday in 2009 at 8:44am Eastern, you’ll see a new blog post. If I don’t get that “Net Score” I’ll continue at 2X/week.

Make your YES/NO vote in the “Reply Box” (click “Comments”).

Strengthen Strengths, Outsource Weaknesses

By Alex Mandossian

During the final 2 weeks of December, I typically review my goals for the upcoming year. I enjoy the feeling of cheerful expectancy (as Earl Nightingale used to say) I have this time of year.

Your Strengths are your daily activities (the WHATs of your day) that “make you feel strong” according to Cambridge-educated researcher and author, Marcus Buckingham.

In an ideal world, you repeatedly want to focus on strengthening your Strengths and outsourcing your Weaknesses. Buckingham defines a Weakness as an activity that consistently makes you feel weak, drained or bored.

You get it, right?

I got it about 3 years ago when I started to capture, clarify and confirm the daily activities that made me feel strong (my Strengths) and the activities that made me feel weak (my Weaknesses).

Wow! What an eye-opener that was … and it still is!

I encourage you to do the same. It is WHAT you do that consumes your time. Your efficiency of HOW you do things and your internal motivation behind WHY you do those things are not nearly as important to your success as WHAT you do.

You don’t have to believe me. Just grab [Read more…]

Does Your Email Inbox Need A 60-Sec Cleansing?

Kipling’s 6-Step Secret Dissolves “Writer’s Block”

3 Marketing Lessons Learned From Geese

Do You Make These 3 “Resource Box” Mistakes?

Breaking Through the Far Side of Disappointment

Strengthen Strengths, Outsource Weaknesses

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