Acres of Diamonds

Someone I’ve not met in person who resides in the United States is the subject of this post. The individual's name is Joseph Skursky and I was fortunate to come into contact with Joseph using the popular social utility LinkedIN. 

Joseph through his networking has made connections in my part of the world here in Ottawa Canada. I’m not clear how the initial link I made with him started but that resulted in Joseph becoming part of my network. I'm fortunate however circumstances made that happen. Subsequently we got into a telephone conversation about his business associates. Associates specifically located in the city where I happen to be operating my organization.

My thought process goes as follows.

1. Geographic location is not a barrier today when forming your network. (This is fairly obvious but when people like Joseph call you up you appreciate the potential today for working at a distance ) 
2. I admit my skepticism puts a great deal of repellent effort toward those who we have limited background on or who may be calling in without having some prior knowledge of what they're offering or other references.
3. The profile about Joseph was quite impressive including his extensive connections.
4. My curiosity drove me to take his call and determine what potential opportunities may unfold.

OUTCOME

Joseph introduced me to people in Ottawa who are now playing a central role in what is expansion in the broadcast and digitization media space. His tactful counsel and introduction to some very insightful experts has opened opportunity to my organization and those whom we have been introduced. More importantly the introduction will result in an upside for our clients as a result of Joseph initiating a new partnership and collaborative forum. The collaboration will drive value to the clients in support of their specific aspirations and intentions to communicate to their audiences.

The idea around Earl Nightingales “Acres of Diamonds” couldn’t be more apt to describe the connections you have within the Social Utilities you build today. One has to be proactive and take or make the call to enjoy the good things from introductions online

A final note: I have Joseph’s Blog linked here “Keys 2 Business Growth” this is the highest ranking entry point of traffic to my blog. This illuminates the importance of establishing allies in the blogosphere who value and compliment your specific interests. THANKS JOSEPH!

Cross promote locally or internationally a great way to start the day.

I welcome your links and your comments. Have a great weekend!

Five Steps to getting your Brand revitalized

1. Form a team within the organization. The team must have direct access to the CEO. Having objective third party partners on the team ensures an honest approach to brand building. We have formed brand counsels including key contributors on larger enterprise brand development assignments.

2. The team’s first task will involve making guidelines that set criteria. This step begins by defining the core constructs today of what your organization is, or aspires to become in the months ahead. You’ll need to facilitate sessions that involve inputs from stakeholders and others who can provide you genuine honest observations about the nature of your organization. Competencies for setting criteria that belong on your team include two skills. a.)You require someone with strong research and analytical skills. b.)You require brilliant creative writing, specifically writing with a strong business/design thinking bent.    

                                    

3. Develop the story make it persuasive. Use carefully chosen words and establish an identity framework. The intent here is to create with words a foundation or “vessel” that can be used to properly sustain your organizations brand. Your team will eventually launch this upon the organization as a whole and beyond to your external market channels. The story “vessel” once crafted can be fitted with visual treatments including word marks, symbol design or other visual language. Design competency today is a minimum imperative for organization's serious about brand management.

4. Take the new identity to market. Launch into a sustained outreach campaign. Assess what response the new brand triggers. Judge the robust nature of your new identity's impact on various communities of interest. The organization will have to establish a plan on sustaining the brand through both paid media and investment in business media online. Brand Management involves a concerted effort to ensure the organization brand remains vital and engaged. This step includes opportunities to extend into your unique stratospheres of influence. Choose what those areas of influence are and pursue them leveraging innovation and design thinking. Social media is an obvious opportunity, trade fairs, networking opportunities, internal functions among the organizations staff. This step is only limited by the organizations budget allocation for brand building and perhaps the lack of willingness to take risk trying new techniques.                               

                                         

5. Analytics and measurement along the way will ensure a degree of reliability about the new brand's position in the market. Surveys, conversations with clients and a myriad of useful tools and tactics exist that will assist you building the brand's presence in the market. Course corrections may be required while you’re underway. Auditing the brand's impact at different touch points will provide an understanding of the organization's investment. Make a corporate commitment to measurement. Focus on how your identity is yielding response's and increasing brand equity. These activities will indicate you're on the proper course. Proactive measurement is essential while navigating toward your organization’s goals for growth and prosperity

Living Architecture

Living Architecture

Remaining cool when the pressure is hot

Misplaced asset, sudden notice and arrival of an "event" combined with course

correction on major engagement all within a 24 hour period monday morning. Thatʼs the way the week begins. These types of circumstances test management ability, patience and leadership.

These hot issues may set the tone for how the day unfolds or specifically how well we get on with the tasks at hand. Hot issues can be diversions when we need to be completely alert and focussed on core priorities. The art of management is to keep charging forward as a team despite what might be perceived as a set back or negative situation. These issues test both the organization and individuals.

I think of Ridley Scottʼs “Gladiators” one of my all time favorite movies. One scene comes to mind when actor Russell Crowe enters the Coliseum. He's portrayed as the leader among a diverse group of personalities. He takes charge of the situation by ordering everyone regardless of what comes they must stay together. One of the Gladiators in the event clearly looses control pissing himself among the line of men about to go into the ring. Immediately upon the gate opening another is smacked in the face and falls. 

"What ever comes out of these gates we have a better chance of survival if we work together"

The situation unfolds once the gates open. The film portrays a clear disadvantage to the Gladiators who come up against chariots pulled by horses with Archers. The Archers yoked on their fast moving platforms shoot arrows into the Gladiators specifically Gladiators who aren't grouped together. All of this makes for great theatre for the Romans but eventually the Gladiators show their strategy. They remain together as tight units. Their united prowess against threats and adversity successfully overcomes what is impossible odds, the Gladiators win.

Gladiator the movie defines great lessons for those interested in organizational

dynamic. 

I've seen it a half dozen times. 

The team today has grown to over seventy staff members. We're a multidisciplinary media house with business activities going on in quarters across the platform. The organization has entered a new phase of growth where no longer does one single outcome set the tone for the day. Weʼre doing amazing things. Things including meeting deadlines, enterprise web launches with stakeholders joining remotely across the country. They join in celebration of their new brand. We fulfill events where our team pitch new design or attend functions weʼve organized and fulfilled. Our team completes proposal submissions, sponsorship arrangements, client brainstorming sessions, outbound calling engagements and a myriad of activities weekly. These activities define who the organization is today and how weʼre perceived by our clients and stakeholders.

Staying together an intelligent response to hot issues.

Judge what’s coming, take time to determine the best course

Consider that everything is opinion, and opinion is in thy power. Take away then, when thou choosest, thy opinion, and like a mariner, who has doubled the promontory, thou wilt find calm, everything stable, and a waveless bay.

By Marcus Aurelius
Written 167 A.C.E.

Understanding how relationships form and evolve is certainly an area of study that can provide fascinating exploration. I’ve been contemplating my approach to getting along with others and for the most part have found the dynamics of relationships intriguing and rich with challenges and rewards. 

An interesting aspect of all of this is the way we respond to the day to day demands which often can become stressful. Certainly at times during the course of running the business stamina, patience and a balanced approach to dealing with issues and people is required.

I'm not sure as I close in on fifty years of age whether harmony in relationships is a more acute priority and I’m searching for more meaningful experiences or this reflection is me becoming more judge mental about who is in my midst. Either way the ability to define character attributes and social intelligence when running an enterprise is a priority. 

Without empathy for our clients after all how can we effectively tell their story and help build their relations with others. This context of relationships it seems to me becomes key to defining the prosperity of an individual or an organization. 

Here is my philosophy about relationships today as it stands for me at this time in my career and personal life. A metaphor is something I’ve been contemplating for a variety of reasons which I won’t go into here but some aspects of my day to day existence have emerged at this time that have me reflecting on my approach so I’ve come up with new strategies which I feel are worth sharing.

An oasis for escape for managing the demands and toxicity in life.

To get at the heart of this I’ve been thinking about an imaginary island. The island is situated in  turquoise waters in a temperate climate. Because this is all imaginary my island is likely in Polynesia. I’ve never been to that hemisphere of the world but my perception of the place is that it fits the vision for my personal imaginary island.  

The island is set apart from other land masses and because its my imaginary island I’ve got white sand, palm trees, bamboo structures and an assortment of watercraft.

My island inhabitants include Louise and Harry and immediate and extended family. The island is accessible at all times to closely related people in my life. A kind of imaginary utopia that when the stress levels are exceedingly high or uncertainty is pressing I go to the island.

The island has coral reefs off its shores beyond that is an expansive endless ocean horizon. 

This imaginary island becomes useful I find at different times. I’ve always jumped in with both feet to circumstances and realized later that my approach might be far to invasive or in conflict with balancing or carefully engaging relations. The Island has space around it with long sight lines. The idea is that you see what’s on the horizon and judge what’s coming you take time to determine the best course of action before the situation arrives or landfalls. The island is a welcoming environment for those whom you extend invitation to or you can repel others or if required set them adrift put space around them should they be coming toward you with conflict or toxicity. I’ve had sage advice and counsel that indicates suppressing conflict is not the best solution and the reality in life is clear, we will encounter tension, anxious situations and conflicts. 

Having a personal oasis is not a bad right brain exercise to support a more healthy outlook.

An interesting outcome from all of this is that I realize today my home in Chelsea has many of the imaginary island attributes without some of the watercraft I had in mind.