A Wowser of a Year, So Far

We felt the ground shake a little there at the end of 2006 and knew something really big was going to come this way.  It turned out to be one direct hit after the next and that makes Q1 of 2007 the most memorable, phenomenal period in our business and personal lives--ever. 

It's been a wowser of a year, so far, and it's time to climb back up in the blogging saddle and ride out the rest of this year, with you, our loyal customers and blog fans.  The great news is I have enough great information and stories to feed this Customers Count blog for some time.  Here's the top lines of what's going on and what you can look forward to.

1. Business is booming and the talent is terrific. It's not just professional football owners who scout the college talent for their first round draft picks--my company does the same thing.  We looked for a super achiever in communications practices and performance and found it in our newest member of the firm.  Because of blogging, UTube, social media, and all of the essentials communications consulting in the future, we now have a 20-something consultant who won the hearts and minds of all of our clients before we got to the end of January.  Most importantly--the customers are especially thrilled. 

2. The book--it's a big hit. Duct Tape Marketing was officially released on January 9th and that put our whole world on fast forward. We knew there would be a feeding frenzy the minute it came out and we have been delightfully swamped with the success, buzz and additional business coming this way because of the book.  We bought 100 copies to give away to 100 CEO's and marketing leaders who are our loyal customers and best referrals.  We have 100 great stories and that's another reason to stick this blog in your RSS feeder.  Come back often. You'll love theses stories. Okay, here's my favorite.  One recipient of a Duct Tape Marketing book is a super sharp consultant who is a Wharton MBA graduate.  She said, "Every time I read a business book I want to slap the author because they insult me or mislead the reader.  This Duct Tape Marketing is the first business book I've read where I didn't want to slap the author. It's good.  Really good."

3. Life gets in the way of blogging. We know the rules.  If you are on the Duct Tape Marketing blog team, you have to act like a #1 Blog author and that means posting several times a week.  My dad went into the emergency room of a hospital in January, ended up in the Intensive Care Unit and he died within 10 days. Intellectually, you know that everyone will die.  Emotionally, you don't think it's your turn. Not this month.   But it is.  The aftermath of it all takes months of appointments, decisions and paperwork.

4. Getting back on the blog. There are some bloggers who you should read anyway.  If you ever need a shot of inspiration or motivation to write good blogs, all the time, see if these do it for you (in addition to the whole Duct Tape Marketing Channels blog):

• Social Customer Manifesto

• Network Centric Advocacy - Advocacy strategy for the age of connectivity.

• Media Guerrilla

What makes them worth your time (which you will never get back)? They are interesting,frequent, and useful. They give you something every week that helps you find customers, connect with customers or increase value for your customers.

5. Learning to Live. When business and life is super intense every day, you discover the absolute necessity for taking time to recharge your battery.  For years we've heard how important this was and we just thought that was for those who are already wealthy or have too many customers.  Because of the extreme intensity of 2007 so far, we also learned about the ways to decompress and handle that stress.  It really is a killer and it will rob you of years of life, if unchecked.

There isn't a business person reading this who doesn't have a stressful job. Customers, no matter how much you like them, have a way of changing their minds, going outside of the scope of work and expecting more for less.  This can drain you and make you less than cheerful and generous with another customer or prospective customer.

Here are some proven strategies that will help you stay where you prefer to be--on top of things.

1. Laughter. A lot of laughter, with friends, for at least 15 minutes over something really funny will make you feel great.
2. Music. Go for the music you love--the kind that makes you move your whole body.
3. Exercise. If nothing more than a fast walk outside for 15 minutes, exercise is a key to staying emotionally balanced and positively charged.
4. Recreational reading.  This is not the book you think you should read--go for the one you think is totally stupid or diversionary.  It will help you decompress and stimulate parts of the mind you thought were deep fried with burnout.
5. Special time with family or friends. Don't assume they will always be there. Do something that shows them how much you count on them, caring about you.
6. A special place or special activity. These always feel like guilt, such as four hours playing golf or a weekend getaway instead of working constantly.  This is what you really need the most.
7. Extra sleep. This is what renews and restores you, so why are we all cutting into our sleep time to check off five more items on our super hot priority list?
8. Massage. My husband, who has to have a massage every week for a medical condition, introduced me to the health-promoting aspects of this.  See item #6.  This feels like luxury at first.  Then you realize it is one of those things you'd better do, like dental hygiene, if you want to stay well.

Taking care of yourself if the same as taking care of your customers.

Comments

[nel wilson]

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[Edward]

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[Küre]

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[oyunlar]

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[youtube]

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