When I grow up...

Do you remember certain milestones of growing up?

• Riding the school bus
• Getting your ears pierced
  
• Wearing pantyhose
• Driving a car alone
• Preparing your first tax return
• First day at college
  
• First NSF notice from the bank
• Getting married
• Giving birth
• Death of a friend
• Buying real estate
• Getting divorced
• Earning more per year than your age X 1,000
• Death of a parent
• Death of another parent

After a certain age, (for some, this is in your 30s, for some your 60s!) the milestones of growing up seem to be more a matter of changing your perspective and giving yourself permission to change.

• Completely changing the course of your life, by choice
• Ending bad relationships
• Not giving a hoot about what other people think about you
• No longer trying to control everything
• Comfortable with giving Plan B a chance

Interestingly, these later developments of growing up, seem to come in an instant of clarity, not over years. It is like leaping over a bridge. Once you are on that far side, you look back at your old self and give a big sigh of relief. This is, in my opinion, when you know you have truly grown up.

This is the fun part....

I was asked to consult a business on some areas of concern regarding slipping sales, dipping response rates to marketing efforts and an overall slowdown of business. The manager seemed despondent, depressed and frustrated. They have a great product, superior service, yet they were not keeping pace with their plan.

Call me Little Mary Sunshine, the annoying optimist, but..... in my opinion this is when the fun starts. This is where you can tell who LOVES running and marketing a business and who just relies on formulas they learned in a seminar in 1996.

All of the business books you've poured through, the magazine article case studies you've pondered, the blogs you follow, the tips and tricks you've heard along the way when times were good. Now is the time that you get to actually put those golden nuggets of DIY in place and see what works!

If you love business and especially marketing, these are the best of times, when creative business minds produce their finest ideas. Perhaps motivated by fear or necessity, but regardless, you are forced to shake things up a bit. It is easy to get lazy when sales are steadily going up, your employees are enjoying healthy paychecks, and your clients pay their bills on time. So, now is the time to become the clever whipper-snapper of days gone by, when you were still fighting to show off your stuff.

Let me also say that for those of us who sign the BACK of a paycheck, now is also the time to show off your best stuff at work. With layoffs looming, you want to show off your best stuff when times are tough. Present a cost savings idea, dig deeper for new business, show your enthusiasm regardless of the economy.

Bottom line: Your attitude makes all the difference, for you, your co-workers and your own economic future. If you approach these challenges with enthusiasm, passion and the spirit to find the winning combination of efforts, you will not only increase your chances of great success but also gain the self-confidence of having come through it all a winner, no matter what.

A Business Wake

A friend of mine is preparing to dissolve her beloved business. Big sigh. When I heard the news, I knew she must be in the starting stages of business grief. I prepared to contact her in much the same way as I would reach out to a newly widowed friend. What to say? Will she be able to talk about it, or is it too soon?

Fifteen years ago, I closed my family's business, a travel agency. After making the decision, there was much to do: meet with employees, negotiate debts with creditors, sublet the office space for the remainder of the lease, sell our fixed assets, contact our licensing agencies, etc... Among the toughest parts was, without a doubt, letting long-time clients and suppliers know that we had decided to close the doors and why. They had become such great friends over the years.

We were closing the business because of my mother's terminal illness. Because of that, the closing of the business became a metaphor for what was happening in our family. A few months later, when she passed away, many clients and vendors came to her memorial and shared wonderful stories about their fun experiences with the travel agency as much as with my mom. The memorial became a funeral for 2. My mom and her business.

I am a believer in happy endings. Because we hold our businesses so close to our hearts, I have suggested to my friend that she have a business wake. I'll host. We all love her business and will miss it. This would not be a funeral, but more reminiscent of an Irish wake, with a lot of drinking and jolly story-telling. I imagine that these might become commonplace. Perhaps this could be a new business for an enterprising event producing entrepreneur!

When it comes time to close a business, the owner can feel ashamed, and filled with a sense of failure. I say, "Nonsense!". When a venture no longer serves its original purpose, profitable or not, close that sucker down and move on to another path toward your next source of happiness. Far too many of us have held on to a business, a job, or a career that WE have outgrown or that has simply become a drag.

So, make the decision, fulfill your obligations to others, throw a party and move on to brighter days. I'll host.

How Sticky Are You?

Here is what I love about the book, Made To Stick: You will learn how to craft messages than MEAN SOMETHING. Corporate babble is easily forgotten. Touch my heart, make me laugh, give me goosebumps, force me to remember your idea and make me want to share it.

I just dread seeing, hearing, reading ads that include "Our goal is to exceed your expectations". S-N-O-R-E . Meaningless words. If I paid an ad agency to develop a brand message for me and that was what they came up with... well, you can imagine.

This book starts with the example of Subway's Jared, the guy who lost over 100 pounds eating their food everyday. How many years ago did they roll that out? You still remember Jared, you remember that he ate only Subway and he lost a ton of weight. Simple idea, big message, easy to remember and tell to a friend. Sticky!!!!!!! The message sticks.

Who cares if your company has convenient parking, award-winning service, 65 years of experience, serves the entire Midwest? Put that information in a message that SPEAKS to me, now you've got something.

I love this book, love the idea, and can't wait to have you read it. You can get a discount at Horizon Books, just mention the Marigold or Mary in the Morning Book Club, or order it through amazon.com using the icon link provided.
Mary

From the Marigold website, GoMarigold.com:

Marigold and sponsor Bill Marsh Automotive Group are proud to present the Marigold Book Club. Together we'll read and discuss some of the hottest books to develop your career and your business! First up? Made to Stick by Dan Heath and Chip Heath. Why do some ideas thrive while others die? And how do we improve the chances of worthy ideas? In Made to Stick, accomplished educators and idea collectors Chip and Dan Heath tackle head-on these vexing questions.

Join us on 106.7 YOU-FM April 9th from 7am-7:45am on Mary in the Morning for our Book Club launch! Do you have to read the book to be a member of the Club? No; but we hope you will. Membership is free, but you must be registered!

Sign Up for the Marigold Book Club Here!

Read about Made To Stick in TIME Magazine