While skimming the electronic media today I came across an article on visionary leadership. The slightly edited article is included below.
Many people have told me that you need a 30 second “elevator speech” for your company, each product, and even for yourself. The idea is if you get on an elevator with a key customer can you tell him/her what you do and why they should buy your product/service before the elevator stops.
Carmine Gallo takes it one step further. Do it in 10 words or less and he provides some good examples of how a specific, concise and memorable vision has captured hearts, minds and success.
Until next time – all the best!
RolandB
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Be a Visionary Leader
By Carmine Gallo
Extraordinary leaders, managers, entrepreneurs, educators, and professionals create an emotional connection with their listeners by articulating a vision so bright, so magnificent, the rest of us cannot help but come along for the ride.
Build a Vision Not a Statement.
Don’t confuse vision with a mission statement. A mission statement is a long, convoluted paragraph. A vision, on the other hand, must be memorable and must have impact. Therefore, it has to be simple and profound. The challenge is, of course, attaining both. So how do you do it? By keeping your vision to ten words or less.
Sell It – Fast!
The folks at Sequoia Capital, the prominent venture firm behind such companies as Cisco, Google, and Apple, call it “the one–liner”: a concise statement that tells people what you do. Condensing your vision into ten words or less reflects your command of the business and your market. As one venture capitalist told me, “If you can’t say it in ten words or less, I’m not investing, I’m not buying, I’m not coming on board, I’m not leasing you space. Period.”
It might sound harsh, but this venture capitalist makes a good point. We all have audiences that we need to influence. Whether they are customers, employees, landlords, bankers, or investors, they want to understand you and your message – fast! They need to “get it” so they can decide whether your company, product, or service is worth exploring.
Articulate Your Pitch – a couple of good examples.
Google - “We deliver the world’s information in one click.”
Cisco Systems - “We network networks.”
It’s the power of your words that will ultimately feed your audience’s imagination and encourage them to back your vision and values. If you can articulate a compelling vision of the world that is specific, concise, and memorable, you will not only have grabbed their attention, but you will have captured their hearts. And where their hearts lead, their minds are sure to follow.
Carmine Gallo is a communications coach for the world’s most admired brands. His book, Fire Them Up! contains insights from top business leaders who inspire through the language of motivation.
Wednesday, January 23, 2008
Tuesday, January 22, 2008
Six degrees of separation
Six degrees of separation is the theory that anyone on the planet can be connected to any other person on the planet through a chain of acquaintances that has no more than five intermediaries. The theory was first proposed in 1929 by the Hungarian writer Frigyes Karinthy in a short story called "Chains." Playwright John Guare popularized the phrase when he chose it as the title for his 1990 play of the same name.
You may be able to jump start your search by knowing people that know high powered people and so on. In theory you can get a message to George W. Bush by knowing someone who knows Governor Mitch Daniels (Indiana) who then will deliver it to Bush. You probably can get a message to any politician in Washington if you know or know someone who knows James Carville and/or Mary Matalin (the political consultants). If you want to reach Peyton Manning you may be able to reach him through Tony Dungy, his coach, or Eli, his brother, or Kyle DeFur the president of the Peyton Manning Children’s Hospital.
I bring these examples up because I have recently been experimenting with the social networking site LinkedIn. My son is having fun with Facebook and I have been reading a lot about the value of social networking so I signed up on LinkedIn, a site for professionals, a couple of weeks ago. About a week later I got two messages from individuals I had not heard of for a while asking me to “connect” with them. It was fairly easy, click a link and it’s done. This weekend while exploring the site I came across a tool that would identify names in my Outlook mailbox that are LinkedIn members. The tool provided an easy way to “connect” with any or all of them. I sent out a few messages and in a very short time had over 50 responses!
What makes the site really interesting is the way it helps you potentially contact individuals. You type in the name of someone you would like to meet. If he/she is a member of LinkedIn the site will identify the easiest path to contact them. For example one of your contacts may also be a contact of the person you want to meet. It will also tell you how many “degrees” you are apart.
This should be a great way to start a conversation or at least find out some background information on people you are interested in conducting business with.
Click here for my LinkedIn information and let’s get connected.
Until next time – all the best!
RolandB
You may be able to jump start your search by knowing people that know high powered people and so on. In theory you can get a message to George W. Bush by knowing someone who knows Governor Mitch Daniels (Indiana) who then will deliver it to Bush. You probably can get a message to any politician in Washington if you know or know someone who knows James Carville and/or Mary Matalin (the political consultants). If you want to reach Peyton Manning you may be able to reach him through Tony Dungy, his coach, or Eli, his brother, or Kyle DeFur the president of the Peyton Manning Children’s Hospital.
I bring these examples up because I have recently been experimenting with the social networking site LinkedIn. My son is having fun with Facebook and I have been reading a lot about the value of social networking so I signed up on LinkedIn, a site for professionals, a couple of weeks ago. About a week later I got two messages from individuals I had not heard of for a while asking me to “connect” with them. It was fairly easy, click a link and it’s done. This weekend while exploring the site I came across a tool that would identify names in my Outlook mailbox that are LinkedIn members. The tool provided an easy way to “connect” with any or all of them. I sent out a few messages and in a very short time had over 50 responses!
What makes the site really interesting is the way it helps you potentially contact individuals. You type in the name of someone you would like to meet. If he/she is a member of LinkedIn the site will identify the easiest path to contact them. For example one of your contacts may also be a contact of the person you want to meet. It will also tell you how many “degrees” you are apart.
This should be a great way to start a conversation or at least find out some background information on people you are interested in conducting business with.
Click here for my LinkedIn information and let’s get connected.
Until next time – all the best!
RolandB
Thursday, January 17, 2008
Understand your customer
Rick Bailey and Sam Waterson gave a presentation at the American Marketing Association (Indianapolis chapter) today on best practices in marketing for not-for-profit corporations. Before I get into some of the detail I was intrigued by Sam’s title. He is the “corporate ethnographer” at Richard Harrison Bailey – the agency. I was impressed and needed to look up what an ethnographer did.
eth·nog·ra·phy (ěth-nŏg'rə-fē) Pronunciation Key n. The branch of anthropology that deals with the scientific description of specific human cultures.
It seems Sam studies various sub populations particularly the generation X (32-43 year olds), generation Y (21-31) and millennials (under 21) and observes how they receive and perceive information.
He discussed ‘how do you speak to a millennial?” My ears perked up – I need a few lessons on how to speak to my 17 and 13 year old sons. The typical dinner conversation is
(Dad) “What did you do today in school? “
(Son – either one) “Stuff”
(Dad) “What do you know now that you didn’t know this morning?”
(Son) “Nothing”
It seems, according to Sam, that millennials are much more “cause” driven than their parents or generation X and generation Y that preceded them. He suggested that marketers are selling products (such as jeans in Gap stores) by wrapping their products in a cause. Millennials will feel they are helping starving people in (name a country here) by buying specific products from that area of the world. He said that companies with products helping a distinct cause and a popular spokesperson (i.e. Bono) can do well with this group.
Now how can I turn cleaning the bathroom into a cause? I don’t think this will help much with my teenagers.
A major nugget I did take away is that marketers must really understand their target audience. A private college trying to recruit students actually has several different audiences with many different concerns. Therefore messages need to be targeted and segmented to each group. Students (time rich and money poor) may be looking for a place to spread their wings and try new things. Parents (time poor and money richer) are looking for a safe place for their children that they can afford.
Know your market, segment the message and make it easy for your key customers to communicate with you.
If this were easy everyone would do it. Ask your ethnographer.
Until next time – all the best!
RolandB
eth·nog·ra·phy (ěth-nŏg'rə-fē) Pronunciation Key n. The branch of anthropology that deals with the scientific description of specific human cultures.
It seems Sam studies various sub populations particularly the generation X (32-43 year olds), generation Y (21-31) and millennials (under 21) and observes how they receive and perceive information.
He discussed ‘how do you speak to a millennial?” My ears perked up – I need a few lessons on how to speak to my 17 and 13 year old sons. The typical dinner conversation is
(Dad) “What did you do today in school? “
(Son – either one) “Stuff”
(Dad) “What do you know now that you didn’t know this morning?”
(Son) “Nothing”
It seems, according to Sam, that millennials are much more “cause” driven than their parents or generation X and generation Y that preceded them. He suggested that marketers are selling products (such as jeans in Gap stores) by wrapping their products in a cause. Millennials will feel they are helping starving people in (name a country here) by buying specific products from that area of the world. He said that companies with products helping a distinct cause and a popular spokesperson (i.e. Bono) can do well with this group.
Now how can I turn cleaning the bathroom into a cause? I don’t think this will help much with my teenagers.
A major nugget I did take away is that marketers must really understand their target audience. A private college trying to recruit students actually has several different audiences with many different concerns. Therefore messages need to be targeted and segmented to each group. Students (time rich and money poor) may be looking for a place to spread their wings and try new things. Parents (time poor and money richer) are looking for a safe place for their children that they can afford.
Know your market, segment the message and make it easy for your key customers to communicate with you.
If this were easy everyone would do it. Ask your ethnographer.
Until next time – all the best!
RolandB
Wednesday, January 16, 2008
Indiana - good for business!
I had the opportunity to hear Bruce Kidd (Director of Entrepreneurship at Indiana Economic Development Council) and Nate Feldman (Indiana Sec of Commerce) speak at the Life Science lunch in downtown Indianapolis yesterday on business development in Indiana and particularly the Indiana 21st Century Fund.
ParaPRO was awarded a 21 fund grant of $2.1 Million last fall.
Some Highlights for 2007
1) 51 companies have been given 21 fund awards for a total of $65.4 Million since 1/1/06
2) Awards are given to companies with “market changing technologies”
3) 47 are entrepreneurial companies
4) 26 awards were given to life science companies for a total of $33.7 Million
5) The 21 fund is providing leverage to help companies raise additional capital. Companies awarded 21 grants since 2006 have raised an additional $150 Million
6) 44 Life Science companies have been approved for the VCI tax credit and have raised or are raising $80 Million (investors get 20% of investment back as credit on state taxes)
2008 Goals
1) Invest in 20-25 high potential new deals from the 21 fund = $25-30 Million
2) Support 40-50 SBIR Phase One companies and 6-10 Phase Two companies = $5 – 6 Million
3) Approve 60-70 companies for VCI Tax Credit and provide $7-10 Million of credits to investors
4) Create hundreds of new high wage jobs
5) Have a positive impact on our economy and in people’s lives.
More information on the IEDC and 21st Century Fund
The overall theme of the meeting was optimism. A few years ago a variety of speakers both in government and private industry were talking about what we should be doing. Now they are talking about what we are doing, why it is working and how we are going to make it better.
We may not have many natural lakes or mountains or oceans in Indiana. I am proud to say we have an improving business climate and a rapidly growing base of entrepreneurial companies. It is fun to be part of it.
Until next time – all the best!
RolandB
Thursday, January 10, 2008
Appreciate the moment
I was driving into work this morning and heard the following poem “The High Water Mark” on The Writer’s Almanac narrated by Garrison Keillor.
The poem touched me. How many times have we lived through something and did not really appreciate the significance of the event until years later. Only then did we say gosh I’d like to do that again and this is what I would do differently.
I had an opportunity a few years ago to launch a couple of prenatal vitamins using a national sales force. My team at Integrity Pharmaceutical Corporation did a fantastic job and the products were very successful. A key new ingredient DHA is now a staple in both OTC and Rx prenatal vitamins. We learned a lot and as time passed many of us have ended up in different places and looked back at that unique time in our careers.
I have been blessed and now have the opportunity to launch another product in a different area using new techniques. I need to remind myself to appreciate the moment. I wonder what would happen if I just let go and drifted downstream …..
An interesting thought.
Until next time – all the best!
RolandB
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Reprinted from website.
Poem: "High Water Mark" by David Shumate, from High Water Mark (buy now) © University of Pittsburgh Press, 2004.
High Water Mark
It's hard to believe, but at one point the water rose to this level. No one had seen anything like it. People on rooftops. Cows and coffins floating through the streets. Prisoners carrying invalids from their rooms. The barkeeper consoling the preacher. A coon hound who showed up a month later forty miles downstream. And all that mud it left behind. You never forget times like those. They become part of who you are. You describe them to your grandchildren. But they think it's just another tale in which animals talk and people live forever. I know it's not the kind of thing you ought to say... But I wouldn't mind seeing another good flood before I die. It's been dry for decades. Next time I think I'll just let go and drift downstream and see where I end up.
The poem touched me. How many times have we lived through something and did not really appreciate the significance of the event until years later. Only then did we say gosh I’d like to do that again and this is what I would do differently.
I had an opportunity a few years ago to launch a couple of prenatal vitamins using a national sales force. My team at Integrity Pharmaceutical Corporation did a fantastic job and the products were very successful. A key new ingredient DHA is now a staple in both OTC and Rx prenatal vitamins. We learned a lot and as time passed many of us have ended up in different places and looked back at that unique time in our careers.
I have been blessed and now have the opportunity to launch another product in a different area using new techniques. I need to remind myself to appreciate the moment. I wonder what would happen if I just let go and drifted downstream …..
An interesting thought.
Until next time – all the best!
RolandB
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Reprinted from website.
Poem: "High Water Mark" by David Shumate, from High Water Mark (buy now) © University of Pittsburgh Press, 2004.
High Water Mark
It's hard to believe, but at one point the water rose to this level. No one had seen anything like it. People on rooftops. Cows and coffins floating through the streets. Prisoners carrying invalids from their rooms. The barkeeper consoling the preacher. A coon hound who showed up a month later forty miles downstream. And all that mud it left behind. You never forget times like those. They become part of who you are. You describe them to your grandchildren. But they think it's just another tale in which animals talk and people live forever. I know it's not the kind of thing you ought to say... But I wouldn't mind seeing another good flood before I die. It's been dry for decades. Next time I think I'll just let go and drift downstream and see where I end up.
Monday, January 7, 2008
Goals for 2008
Thanks to all who have been reading my blog. Sorry it hasn’t been updated as often as I would like. Something to work on in 2008.
At the end of Mass this past weekend the server offered the blessing “May all of you achieve your goals during 2008.” My wife whispered to me, “may all of us set some goals in 2008.” She was thinking of our two teenage sons but it got me thinking, what are my goals, both professional and personal, for 2008? I'm thinking of something much more than a new year’s resolution. What do I want to accomplish this year, how am I going to do it, and how am I going to know that I've done it?
I’ve mentioned Kevin Eikenberry several times over the past few months. A few weeks ago he posted a very informative tool on his website. “Make your 2008 Great: 26 Remarkable Questions to Unleash Your Potential. A copy can be downloaded here.
The tool is a list of 26 questions each on its own page. Kevin offers some helpful tips on how to answer each.
This week I am working on the first 13 questions which are reflection questions from the past year. The rest of the month I plan on working on the next 13, projection questions for 2008 that hopefully will help me draft goals and action plans that are challenging and achievable.
My feeling is successful individuals go through this process in some way to build from their past experiences to achieve results in the future. This tool is helping me organize my thoughts much better than if I would start with a blank sheet of paper. It also is a tool I can use throughout the year to gage how I am doing. Try it out and let me (and Kevin) know if you find it useful.
Happy New Year!
Until next time – all the best!
RolandB
At the end of Mass this past weekend the server offered the blessing “May all of you achieve your goals during 2008.” My wife whispered to me, “may all of us set some goals in 2008.” She was thinking of our two teenage sons but it got me thinking, what are my goals, both professional and personal, for 2008? I'm thinking of something much more than a new year’s resolution. What do I want to accomplish this year, how am I going to do it, and how am I going to know that I've done it?
I’ve mentioned Kevin Eikenberry several times over the past few months. A few weeks ago he posted a very informative tool on his website. “Make your 2008 Great: 26 Remarkable Questions to Unleash Your Potential. A copy can be downloaded here.
The tool is a list of 26 questions each on its own page. Kevin offers some helpful tips on how to answer each.
This week I am working on the first 13 questions which are reflection questions from the past year. The rest of the month I plan on working on the next 13, projection questions for 2008 that hopefully will help me draft goals and action plans that are challenging and achievable.
My feeling is successful individuals go through this process in some way to build from their past experiences to achieve results in the future. This tool is helping me organize my thoughts much better than if I would start with a blank sheet of paper. It also is a tool I can use throughout the year to gage how I am doing. Try it out and let me (and Kevin) know if you find it useful.
Happy New Year!
Until next time – all the best!
RolandB
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