Will you know when the game changes?

Colleen Clifford

Playing Tag, 2 of 4

Picture this: It’s a gorgeous summer evening and you’re out playing hide-and-seek with the other neighborhood kids.

 
Early in the game you find the PERFECT hiding spot behind old Mrs. McPherson’s shed. You keep yourself perfectly concealed and quiet, happily checking out the bugs under an old brick for amusement and confident that you are the master of the game.
 

…except the other kids stopped looking for you half an hour ago.

 While you were back there basking in the glories of your superior hide-and-seek skills, everyone else decided to play freeze tag instead. Now all sweaty and happy and thoroughly worn out, they’ve gone back to Bobby’s house for ice cream. You’re sitting in the shadows with the bugs.

 What if you had poked your head out from behind the shed once in a while? Sure, you might have given away your position — but you would have also noticed when the game changed. You probably would have had more fun. You could be eating ice cream right now.

Playing expertly by the rules won’t help you much if the game changes.

When’s the last time you poked your head out from behind Mrs. McPherson’s shed?

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Don’t be a nit-twit

Colleen Clifford

twitter bird png

I’m starting to get annoyed with Twitter.

Well, not really Twitter itself so much — the service itself is fine, barring a couple of fail whales now and then. It’s really with certain types of users that I have a bone to pick.  Have you seen one of these?

The Chronic Re-Tweeter

This offender retweets everything.  And I mean EVERYTHING. I’m all for doing a RT of links to articles or blog posts that your followers might be helpful or interesting. As a matter of fact, I’ve come to depend on those that I follow to throw me good and useful stuff that I probably wouldn’t find on my own.  I’ve picked up some really cool information by combing through my stream, and I’m grateful to my Twitter peeps as curators and circulators.

My beef is with the person who doesn’t think before they tweet. The one who flips every last morsel back into their stream, presumably to curry favor for “link love” and artificially inflate their own stats.  Case in point today: 66 retweets in less than an hour.  Not a single original thought in the bunch. Really, Mr. Retweeter?  Did you actually read all of those links and deem them important enough to circulate?  I didn’t think so.  Knock it off.

The Follow Friday Freak

Follow Friday was a great idea when it started.  It was a social way of curating and passing on the good stuff.  You found someone that you really liked, and recommended them to your followers as worthy of their attention. It helped newbies to get up and running quickly with interesting connections. Organic word of mouth at its finest.

But now Twitter is a firmly established tool, and #FF has run its course. There are plenty of ways to find good follows.  Every website, blog and LinkedIn profile has a “follow me” link. (Mine’s right up there on the top right, in case you missed it.)  You can check the lists of other people you find interesting and see who they follow. There’s a handy search feature for specific topics.  Heck, if you’re really stuck—or just lazy— Twitter will even make recommendations for you.

There is really no need to regurgitate your entire follow list, people.  Stop it.  Stop it now.

As for the rest of you, thanks for caring enough to only forward what you believe is entertaining and useful.  Thanks for allowing me the opportunity to see your own work.  And thanks for throwing in a personal line now and then — it’s been interesting getting to know you as a person as well as a resource.

Thanks for not being a nit-twit, and keep tweeting responsibly!  Now if you’ll excuse me, I have some unfollowing to do…

 

 

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BOOK REVIEW: Delivering Happiness: A Path to Profits, Passion, and Purpose

Colleen Clifford

Last week I finished reading Delivering Happiness: A Path to Profits, Passion, and Purpose, and I deem this a MUST-READ for everyone who has…

Well, just everyone quite frankly.

This amazing book is part biography/part business case study. It provides insights into Tony Hsieh’s business ventures, education, and personal philosophy, as well as an insider’s look at how Zappos went from a near-failure to an Amazon acquisition by following his own inner compass of what a business should be.

And in keeping with the Zappos philosophy, from cover to cover Tony “keeps it real” in the tone and style. He speaks in his own authentic voice and leaves the business school hyperbole behind, making this book as entertaining as it is informative.

After early run-ins with boring jobs and deteriorating corporate cultures, Tony made the decision to create a place where he’d really want to work. He surrounded himself with others who shared the same vision and passion, and the cult of Zappos culture was born.

I think you should read this book for a couple of reasons:

It’s a good read all the way around. Tony tells an interesting story in an engaging way, frought with the highs and lows that come with being an entrepreneur. He doesn’t gloss over the low points but tells it like it is, and despite the fact that this story ends in success, it doesn’t read like a fairytale. It’s a good lesson that the path to success isn’t paved in gold, and that it is possible to overcome setbacks (even seemingly insurmountable ones) with the right mix of perserverence and intestinal fortitude.

It’s packed with useful stuff. Whether you’re thinking about starting your own company or already have one, Delivering Happiness is a great source of information on the importance of great corporate culture and how to start building a successful team around you and your business.  Is the Zappos culture a little too quirky for your business model? No problem.  The book provides the theoretical building blocks, leaving you to customize your own cultural expression.

It gets to the core of business: Core values. Not only does Tony focus your attention on the importance of establishing clear core values, he also gives you step by step instructions on how to develop your own. Use them as a measuring stick for all that you do (and when you’re hiring new employees in particular).

In the end it’s all about delivering happiness — to himself, his employees, his customers.  And really, couldn’t we all use a little more of that?

Buy the book here, and start delivering a little happiness of your own.


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Just a person with a pen

Colleen Clifford

Write

I find that I write best in public.

Preferably in the park on a warm summer’s day, but the back patio will do in a pinch. On rainy or cold days a bookstore or coffee shop will do.

There’s something about the anonymity of public spaces that makes it easier for me to get past the self-consciousness of writing. I become just some person with a pen, not Colleen struggling over words in my living room.

Maybe it’s the simple act of removing myself from the things that I can too easily distract myself with — television, the laundry, sorting through that big pile of papers on the kitchen table. Maybe it’s the psychological stranding of myself that does it. I’m sitting here with a pen in my hand — either I can write and look purposeful, or I can sit here staring at a bunch of strangers. Right, let’s get to it then.

 

Who knows.

 

What I do know is that it works, or at least it does for me. I think everyone needs a creative space (physical or mental) where we can do our best work.  A place where we can lose ourselves in the creative process.

 

I’ve found mine. Where is yours?

 

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Make a wish. (Or two.)

Colleen Clifford

Dandelion seeds (Taraxacum officinale)

When my son and I take walks we look for dandelion heads to “blow wishes.” While we were out the other day I picked mine and asked, “should I wish for something I really-really-really want, or something I’m pretty sure I can get?”

And then it occurred to me that I should pick two and wish for both.

I sometimes think that our wishes are the very things that hold us back. We too often wish for the seemingly impossible, something so far out of today’s grasp, that we don’t even try to grab for it. It’s an impossible wish, right? We’ll never get there, right?

Well, maybe. So why not make two wishes?

First go ahead and wish for the seemingly impossible. Set the bar ridiculously high.  Higher than you can achieve today. Higher than you can achieve next year, in 5 years, maybe in a lifetime. Go for an all-out, break-the-bank, a this-would-be-utterly-bleeping-amazing-if-I-got-it kind of wish.

Now wish for something that isn’t too far from your grasp. (Go ahead! Really, this isn’t cheating in the wish department. I promise.) Make a wish for something that you’re pretty sure you can achieve today, or in the next 6 weeks, or in the next 3 months.

Wish, achieve, repeat.

A decade from now look again at your big wish. Did you achieve it? Maybe not. But look back on all the little wishes and see how far they have taken you. Sometimes big wishes are exactly that — big wishes. But more often than not the little wishes become reality, and a sweet one at that.

Leo Burnett once said,

When you reach for the stars you may not quite get one, but you won’t come up with a handful of mud either.

He’s right.  So make two wishes.  Go.

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Rockin’ it out

Colleen Clifford

This morning I had the most incredible experience.

 

After breakfast my son and I cleared the table, I turned on some punk rock (even at 5 the little one is a huge fan of the Replacements and the Ramones), turned up the volume to sufficiently disturb the neighbors, and we danced.

And I mean we really danced.  We completely cut loose. We jammed all over the kitchen and the living room, taking turns with a play broom as an air guitar.  We jumped in the air and wiggled side to side, being serious rock gods one minute and laughing ourselves silly the next.

And it felt good.  No — it felt AMAZING!

And then it occurred to me that I really don’t dance enough.  That, despite having such a completely joyful experience that’s completely free and at my disposal at any given moment, I just don’t. But why?

Because just like you, I’m a little afraid. I’m afraid that I don’t dance well. I’m afraid that people will laugh or judge. I’m afraid of putting myself out there.

Nobody cares if you don’t dance well. Just get up and dance.  ~ Dave Barry

He’s right, you know.  Nobody else really cares. (They’re probably too worried about what people will think of them to pay much attention to me.)  If nothing else, I owe it to myself for the health benefits alone—it’s good for the body as well as the soul.

So today I hereby give me (and you) the permission to crank up the music and go ahead and dance. In the living room. At the wedding reception. Down the aisle in Target if we want to. Is someone watching? Ask them to join in. Is someone laughing? Good for them —they just got a health boost as well.

Why let a little silly fear rob us of our joy?  It just feels too good not to indulge in it more often.  So go ahead.  Give yourself over to the music.

Go ahead and dance.  My kid and I will be right there with ya.

(Here’s a sampling of our playlist to get you started.)

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BOOK REVIEW: Rich Dad, Poor Dad – by Robert Kiyosaki

Colleen Clifford


Robert had the unique opportunity to grow up with a “traditional” middle-class dad, and his friend’s dad who was wealthy. This book details the comparisons in their advice, and how his “rich dad” taught him to think about money in a completely different (and much more productive) way than most Americans. Another good book on how to think about money, and how to get it to work for you instead of you only working for it.

Click on the image to purchase book through Amazon (affiliate link)

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BOOK REVIEW: ReWork – by Jason Fried & David Heinemeier Hansson

Colleen Clifford


The rules of business are changing, and the authors of this book smartly and succinctly cut to the core of what those changes should be to make your office a more sane, productive and tolerable place to spend your days. I say this is a must-read for today’s business owners, no matter how big or small your operation is.

Click on the images to purchase book through Amazon. (affiliate link)

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Storytelling

Colleen Clifford

Sharing stories in the shade

When you think of stories, what comes to mind?

Children’s fairytales? Hollywood blockbusters? Both are examples of it. But do you know how important stories really are to us as a species?

The art of storytelling has been around literally as long as we have. Humans are a storytelling animal – it’s hardwired into our DNA. In fact, every culture that exists or has been known to exist has had a strong central storytelling component. The first known incidence of recorded storytelling is circa 15000 BC, found on the cave walls of Lascaux in the Pyrenees.

Children are especially drawn to stories, and love to hear them repeated over and over (if you doubt this, ask the parent of any preschooler). Don’t have one to tell them? Well, then they’ll just make up their own. That’s how much we as a species need them.

So what’s so important about stories?

Stories are the creative conversion of life itself into a more powerful, clearer, more meaningful experience. They are the currency of human contact.
–Robert McKee

Storytelling is core to our cultural experience; it’s used for entertainment, education, cultural preservation, and the instilling of cultural values. It’s how we hand down our cultural identity from one generation to the next. Shared stories create solidarity among members of our social group; those stories become a part of our self-identity.

And this is precisely why children are drawn to them – as they begin to learn about the world around them, stories teach them what is culturally acceptable to believe, and who they are within the culture. They teach values, how to behave in specific situations, and what to aspire to.

Stories give us a framework that helps convey information in a meaningful and memorable way, much more so than facts and figures alone. It gives us a framework through which we can make sense of the world. Good stories are compelling. They are made for sharing. They endure.

Because storytelling is such an integral part of human existence, storytellers have the capacity to shape the way we think. They create realities. They can sway our opinions. They can make us believe.

By nature we are all storytellers. What stories do you tell?

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Much ado about nothing

Colleen Clifford

dolce far niente

Today was a gorgeous day — blue skies, sunshine, and the first real warmth we’ve felt around here in a while. Way too nice a day to spend cooped up in the office, even with the window open.

So gorgeous a day that I decided to sneak out a little early (shhh!) and indulge in a little dolce far niente.  I threw on a t-shirt, grabbed the iPad and a beer, and headed out back to do absolutely nothing of importance or lasting value.

Dolce far niente — “sweet doing nothing.”

And it was sweet. After an hour or so of being deliciously idle I felt much more relaxed.  Much more focused. And, most surprisingly, I became much more productive for my lack of effort.  After a mere 60 minutes of unadulterated “me” time, I jumped in and got more done than I probably would have on any other given night.

Hmm… Makes me think that I should do this more often.  Maybe we all should.

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