23: Recovering from Validation Tunnel Vision
How do you know if what you’re doing is working? How do you know if what you’re doing is right? It comes down to the signs you’re looking for, doesn’t it? They could be marketing metrics like leads or engagement, or approval from other people, or the opportunity you wanted. I get fixated on specific […]
22: This Is What I’m Afraid Of
For years and years (and to this day!) I didn’t let myself try things I wasn’t already good at. A pick-up game of soccer? Nah, I’ll just watch. Video games? No thanks. Slap cup? Only grudgingly because I didn’t want to feel left out. I avoid most things competitive, where others rely on me and […]
21: Is All Marketing Manipulation?
You’re at the gift shop of the botanical garden. The store has vaulted ceilings, natural light, and the soft sound of water burbling over smooth stones. You wander to the personal care section. The gift shop carries perfume, lotions, and different kinds of soap: some look like rocks, some look like fudge, some are crusted […]
20: Why Should You Care?
One time, as a young green member of a communications team, I had to call a newsroom. The company I worked for was opening a new store, and we wanted as much publicity as we could get. A man answered the phone and asked what news I had. I put on my cheeriest voice and […]
19: I’ll Have the Opposite of What She’s Having
When I was growing up, it galled me to no end when my younger sister would “copy” me. “Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery,” my parents told me, but I wasn’t having it. I wanted to stand out and get distance and distinction from my family, and when my sister did or said what […]
16: Is Your Pricing Manipulative?
When I was a kid and I would see a price tag for $9.99, I would roll my eyes. Ha, I thought, You’re not fooling anyone. WE ALL KNOW it basically costs $10! It was like everyone was playing pretend: we were all pretending that $9.99 was a much better price than $10, even though […]
11: Enough with the Advice Economy
The problem today is that everyone is using unsolicited advice as their content marketing strategy, and it’s wrecking your self-confidence, self-trust and energy. The Advice Economy has taken over. Here’s what I’m talking about: the industry that makes money off telling people what to do. Examples (these are off the cuff, but they’re probably the titles […]
9: Does Email Marketing Make You Feel As Heavy As I Do?
You can be in command of many aspects of your marketing and sales cycles, but you cannot command timing. (You can say the same thing about every facet of life.) Imagine all the people who might, someday, need your services or products… but don’t need them right now. How do you stay “top of mind” […]
6: Consistency – Why Do Things You Don’t Want To Do?
All day I’ve been arguing with myself: maybe you can skip writing today. Maybe it can be 100 Blog Posts in 100 Weekdays. It’s Saturday, after all. Don’t you deserve a break? Why do things you don’t want to do? It makes me realize how much I balk at consistency in myself… while resenting inconsistency […]
5: Are You Good Enough Today?
On the phone yesterday with Lisa Gates, my client and half of the incredible She Negotiates (and an all-around funny, sarcastic, real, candid, whip-smart, humble human), I shared my 100 Blog Posts in 100 Days challenge. She made the kind of noise you might make when you pick something up and it’s a thousand times […]
