Bounce Back

Why is it, when no one is around and you fall down supremely hard -- it feels so good to just lay there for a minute or two and really soak in the trauma your body just took? This frigid winter morning I have been pondering this exact question after slipping, falling and wacking multiple body parts while on skates, shoveling our outdoor ice rink. (Ah, who said self-employment doesn't have perks?) Is feeling sorry for one's self a natural human condition that some are more apt to feel than others? Is it truly one of those natural reflexes that is almost impossible to avoid?

I tend to believe it is, but the greatest people, athletes, thinkers and business leaders of the world definitely have above average bounce-back reflexes. When these entities stumble, they may lie still for a minute but then they quickly get up off the cold, hard ground; dust themselves off and adapt, grow, innovate or disrupt the situation they are in. I recently read about a few great examples-- one is no surprise, the little engine that could called Yahoo but the other is an organization I hadn't really thought of as a disruptor before-- the Library. http://blog.mindjet.com/2013/01/disruption-in-2013/

The business of life is as unpredictable, rough and slippery as a backyard, amateur ice rink. But it can also be serene, enjoyable or exhilarating. It depends on the day, the others skating on the ice with you and of course the elements that are out of your control. But as much as I am enjoying this metaphor today-- time to get back to work (with a mug of hot chocolate.)

The Power of "Fresh Blood"

Never underestimate the power of "fresh blood."  I have been experiencing this first hand in more ways than one recently but the example that I'll talk about here is a community organization I do pro bono work for and power of the people who work hard for it.  

For the last few years in this group, volunteerism was low, members were frustrated or apathetic and the group had gained a reputation of being unorganized and a bit of a black hole. Enter stage left just a few fresh faces to the monthly Board Meetings last fall and things started to change. The change has been swift and impactful. The new people made some noise-- they asked a lot of questions, queried why things were done they way there were and brought in ideas to reinvent. Granted all the new ideas weren't winners but debate, action and new work has started to occur. Luckily this "fresh blood" didn't die off and kept coming back month after month and toiled on projects in-between meetings-- so much so that the leadership just had to stop saying "we've tried that before" and "we can't afford to do that."

There is absolutely no doubt in my mind that the people who had been running this group should be commended for the countless hours of thought, angst, caring and work they have put in over the years. But they also had made it known they were at the point of burnout and ready to spend their time elsewhere. I don't think they expected for change to happen as quickly as it has, but that can be the power of new.

You don't need to be at "burn-out" level by any means to benefit from new.  Perhaps you think everything is just fine when you look at the surface but to achieve greatly you also need to look deep within. If by any chance you feel like your business, club or organization is at cross-road, or if you take a close look and see that the same strategies, tactics, ideas are being recycled year after year-- maybe it's time for some fresh blood. Hire a consultant, writer, designer, motivational speaker or masseuse to come into the office and shake things up a bit. Yes, these things may not be in your budget but perhaps you can cut elsewhere to find the money for an investment in the new.  Testing out some fresh blood just might be what your company needs to thrive. 

Get Your Company Truly LinkedIn!

As I work to refine the services I can provide to small and medium-sized business owners, I have discovered that there are some basic marketing/social networking projects that I can tackle for busy business people.  One of these is the creation of a company's LinkedIn business page.  

LinkedIn is the #1 B2B network and building this profile out provides an excellent opportunity for a company to continue to expand its B2B presence, share compelling news with potential partners as well as increase an organization's reputation when in hiring mode. 

Below are 10 steps NJK, Inc. recommends to create a great LinkedIn Company Page that will motivate people to click the “follow” button and become more engaged/aware about your company's service or product offerings.  NJK, Inc. can manage this project initially to ensure it is completed quickly and serves as a new (free) outlet to syndicate corporate news releases in the future.

1. Write a compelling summary

2. Add products and services

3. Make sure your most important service is listed first

4. Capture attention with a compelling cover image

5. Add career/hiring information

6. Ask employees to connect with your page

7. Ask for product and service reviews from current customers 

8. Publish company updates to make the Page look useful

9. Promote your LinkedIn Company Page – add it to current website and to all company correspondence (including email signatures)

10. Use featured updates to highlight important content (LinkedIn feature that puts your most important story up top)

11. Use targeted updates to promote more effectively (this is a feature in LinkedIN that allows you to promote by audience segment-i.e. customer type, employees, etc.).

This project would cost approximately $250-$500 based on depth and breadth of content.  If this is something you might be interested in, let's connect and talk about the project!   

Come Together?

I am trying to listen to the universe and my own thoughts more lately.  I know that sounds really Oprah-y but she really drove this message into my brain more than any other influencer of my generation. When fate, the universe, God or whatever you want to call it shows you something-- really listen to it, believe it.  

One of the things I am listening for and trying to learn more about is a really big question. It's the "who am I?" question. Because honestly I am starting to think I've been living life more like 2 or 3 people instead of one. And hey now-- that's just not efficient.  It's also rather exhausting some days.  I am realizing during this search for new work that I need to pay attention to all my different facets. I am finally starting to figure out that the key to more life fulfillment just may lie in bringing these facets together more. 

What I can't figure out is just how far I should take this idea. I know intellectually that complete work/life integration is definitely not necessary.  There are millions of successful people out there who take great care to separate their work lives from their personal lives from their spiritual lives. They do this because they have to or they want to, or both. But I bet they have made their decisions with intention, they haven't just muddled along trying to juggle these different portions of their lives indiscriminately.  There just isn't enough time in the day, the week, the month or the year to do it without making deliberate decisions and sticking with them.

The people whom I like to read and know and learn from on a regular basis seem to bring a lot of their "stuff" all together. Their political views, their altruism, their client successes, their kids' triumphs, their worries and their opinions. People like Glennon Melton Doyle at www.momastery.com, writer and old classmate Molly Logan Anderson www.grabthegood.com;  social media guru/futurist Geoffrey Colon https://twitter.com/djgeoffe and my former workmate and friend Jason Burnham http://www.digitalsphinx.com. These people aren't celebrities--- they don't need to build public personas to make a living.  They are writers, thinkers, learners, travelers, business people, friends, parents, children.

Hmmm, sounds a lot like how I might describe myself. The past few weeks I have been giving myself time to clear my head (it's an overused figure of speech but apt.) After 10 years of juggling just about everything life could throw at me (close family member deaths, childbirth and child raising, very challenging work, marriage, health scares, home ownership, etc.)  I feel a little bit like I do in summer, sitting on a pool deck when the clouds are covering the sun yet the clouds are starting to move.  I know if I just be patient, relax for a little a while longer...eh, maybe even 20 or 30 more minutes longer, the clouds are going to move on. And when they do I will be much more content, able to enjoy clearer skies and the warm sun on my face.