That's pretty unlikely.
When we see someone with well developed abs, we don't say, "oh sure, he was born that way." Instead, we realize that a lot of effort went into it.
The same thing ought to be true for people who understand science, or make good decisions, or are capable of emotional labor. You don't get to let yourself off the hook by pointing out that it doesn't come easy to you. That's beside the point.
We're all capable of huge leaps of insight and empathy if we're willing to go to work to learn how.
September 10, 2017
It's easy to imagine that some things have to be the way they've always been. That music has to be delivered on a round platter. That an overnight stay needs to be in a hotel. And that learning is solely the result of top-down lectures plus tests for compliance.
The internet is a transformational technology, not merely a faster way to send an email. People all over the world are learning more deeply, transforming their expectations and changing their role and their contribution. It's time for your voice to be heard.
One of the surprising benefits of combining video with peer-to-peer learning is that you get to talk about your work, explore your specifics and work with others in discovering what can work for you, not just learn in the abstract. This is something we can deliver in a format that's almost impossible in a book or lecture alone.
The impact that the Marketing Seminar has had on the thousands of people who have enrolled is just stunning. It's a transformative three month experience that helps people see things differently and gives them the support and momentum to go make their ruckus.
Here's a note, unedited, from a recent graduate of The Marketing Seminar.
100 days is a long time.
Many have shared their challenges and victories and tagged fellow and sister students who illuminated our path.
Many more are still on the journey. They’re overcoming setbacks, distractions and competing priorities.
It’s now Day 107. In the past week, I’ve shifted gears from intense learning to intense doing. I’ve shipped more in the past week than I’d shipped in the previous several months. They weren’t all products going out the door. Some were decisions and turning points that clarified where Web Story Builder is headed and why. It’s saying “no” at a key moment when four months ago I would have said “yes,” believing that I could be everything to everyone.
It’s tempting to start tagging people that made an impact on me. I’m not doing that because it’s easy to tag those who have commented or posted the most. That would leave out an important group: Those who don’t talk as much. Those who read and liked. Or just read. All of them, every single one of you, made an impact on me.
The Discourse stats say that I have visited 98 days with a cumulative viewing time of four days, posted 58 topics and 392 replies (and counting), and clicked the “like” button almost 800 times. And there are currently 210 topics that I haven’t read and oodles more that need replies. A single comment can change my world. Or yours.
So it turns out that 100 days is just enough to create new habits and cement new ways of thinking. The world is different now. We are different.
… Godspeed!
Thanks for listening,
Anne
September 9, 2017
Without a doubt, it's long-term, consistent and persistent effort that makes real change happen. Systemic change is a process, not an event.
But as we watch Irma bear down on millions in Florida, it's worth remembering that first aid brings urgent help to people in need. I've just made a donation to the Red Cross… It scales, it's powerful and it's needed right now. (Also consider a food bank and other smaller organizations.)
I'm thinking of the families that are going to be disrupted (or worse) this weekend and I'm grateful for every volunteer and first responder brave enough to face the danger. Thank you.
September 8, 2017
Don't be trapped into accepting shame from someone who is trying to keep you from doing something you have every right to do.
Ignore the mob that would like you to feel badly for not fitting in. Categories are rarely permanent, and most important work is done by people who don't easily fit in.
Realize that no one is more aware of your minor flaws than you are. No one else is noticing the little nick in your tooth or the fact that your shoelaces don't match.
Someone else's fear doesn't have to be your fear unless you want it to be.
Don't use time and money to paper over insecurity.
…When in doubt, do the generous thing. It usually works out the best.
When they began airbrushing the models in fashion magazines fifty years ago, no one complained much. Everyone knew, we thought, that it was some sort of make believe.
But then they started airbrushing our food.
And then vacations.
And family photos.
And brands.
And jobs.
Spend enough time looking through the glass on your tablet and you'll come to believe that you're the only one with a less-than-perfect situation. With the right filter, the grass really is greener…
Which may very well cause you to amplify the differences, to magnify the distance between you and the airbrushed person with the online life. It's gotten to the point where people even airbrush their difficulties, making them ever more dramatic in their drama.
"Compared to what?" is not always a great question. It might be better to merely say, "this is pretty good."
September 7, 2017
But most of us don't like to admit it.
That's because selfish marketers are pretty scummy. They steal our attention, they lie to us, they use shame and guilt and the short-term zinger to get us to buy something we don't want and don't need.
That's not you, of course. You're trying to bring your idea to the world, grow your freelance practice or do a great job for the company you work for. You're trying to make change happen, to influence the culture and help people find something that they'll be glad they discovered.
What's the best way to do that?
What's the best way to persuade your boss, your co-workers or your investors to move forward? What's the most powerful story to tell to the outside world, to get a business to stock your product or a person to fall in love with your art?
Answering these questions is the reason we built The Marketing Seminar.
More than 3,000 people have enrolled in the first two sessions, and we're running it just one more time this year.
It's a unique way of learning, a hybrid of more than 50 video lectures from me combined with an ongoing discussion board. Over the course of the 100 day seminar, we ask each other more than 200 different questions, questions that will shape your thinking and give you an opening to find a better way to make a difference.
It's tempting to hide your voice, to keep your work quiet, to shy away from speaking up about the contribution you want to make. We've been so bruised by marketing, by all the noise and hassle that comes with it, that sometimes it's easier to just sit back. But modern marketing is different. Modern marketing is based on humility, empathy and effectiveness. We can show you how to do this, to find your voice, to discover the niche where you can thrive.
I'm delighted to announce that the new seminar begins September 12 (see all the details here). There are new videos every other day until mid-December, and you can watch them and respond at your own pace.
You've already decided to be a marketer, because you've already decided that you want your ideas to be heard. Now, the only question is: will you decide to be really good at it?
PS look for the purple circle at the bottom of the home page. We have a secret discount there, but it gets a little smaller every day, an advantage for people ready to leap.
September 6, 2017
Effective education is rarely done TO people. It's done with them.
I had my first professional teaching gig forty years ago this summer. Since then, I've taught at institutions like NYU and Tufts, at community colleges, from the stage, one on one and most of all, on the vanguard of digital media.
As our hemisphere goes back to school this week, I hope you'll spend a few minutes thinking about who school is for, what it's for, how it works and how it doesn't. We're wasting a huge amount of time and money, bankrupting our children, hindering progress and stultifying growth, all at the same time. Even worse, we're not even seeing all the things we're not learning, not engaging with, not creating, because we're so busy learning like it's 1904.
Here's my free book-length manifesto, Stop Stealing Dreams. It's been shared (in PDF and video form) more than 4,000,000 times. I hope you'll forward it to parents or learners or people you care about.
Consider the radical shifts being pursued by Acton, by Harlem Village Academy, by Big Picture Learning. Or experiences like Global Citizen Year. Before you go a quarter of a million dollars in debt, it's worth reading Hackiversity, a new book about re-examining what gets learned in college.
I've written a popular Medium post, "Will This be on the Test?," in which I outline how the altMBA and The Marketing Seminar are pioneering changes in adult education. Digital learning isn't merely a version of in-person learning, (online).
It's an entirely different experience, one that can transform people faster and with more impact. The exchanges, the experience and the outputs are all dramatically different.
When you're in it, it might not feel like a revolution. But it is. One by choice. One that's urgent. One that's happening right now.
September 5, 2017
There's often a line out the door.
It's not surprising. The ice cream is really good, the portions are enormous, and a waffle cone costs less than three Canadian dollars. And it's served with a smile, almost a grin.
It's irresistible.
Of course, once you finish the cone, you'll stroll around, hang out by the water and maybe start to make plans about where to spend a week on next year's vacation.
The Opinicon, a lovely little resort near Ottawa, could charge a lot more for an ice cream cone. A team of MBAs doing a market analysis and a P&L would probably pin the value at about $8. That's where the ROI would be at its peak.
But they're not in the business of selling ice cream cones. The ice cream cones are a symbol, a beacon, a chance to engage.
If you run everything through a spreadsheet, you might end up with a rational plan, but the rational plan isn't what creates energy or magic or memories.
Stew Leonard's was a small supermarket with a big footprint. They were profiled by Tom Peters and had the highest sales per square foot of any store of its kind. As they grew to a few more stores, a new generation took over, one that seems more intent on ROI and less focused on magic. As a result, profits went up. For a while. But now, year after year, it's a bit less crowded, a bit less energetic, a bit less interesting. So when new store options open nearby, they lose a few more customers, then a few more, and finally, people begin to wonder, "why do I even bother coming here?"
It might not be about being cheaper. It's tricky to define better. But without a doubt, the heart and soul of a thriving enterprise is the irrational pursuit of becoming irresistible.
September 4, 2017
It's not sizzle or hype or a fad, not when you're serious about it.
Consider FCP Euro, for example. They sell high-performance auto parts. Things like brake pads, oil, oil filters, etc.
People always whine about the fact that they can't possibly make their boring stuff remarkable. That's silly.
FCP has the following policy: Everything is guaranteed for life. Everything. For as long as you own your car. Send it back, they replace it.
Even the oil.
Even the oil.
Think about that.
And yes, it works. Do the math and you'll see why.
If someone can make used motor oil remarkable, what can you do?
September 3, 2017
If you want to teach, to change minds or to cause action, a consistent curriculum is always better than a single event.
Drip by drip, with enrollment.
September 2, 2017
