• How Do You Deal with Failure?
    25/02/16 Personal Juju # , , , , ,

    How Do You Deal with Failure?

    Today, I was interviewed by a friend and colleague, Mihai Herman, for a piece he’s featuring on his business coaching blog. And he asked me an interesting question:

     

    “How do you deal with failure?”

     

    It was a surprise question, and I’ll admit, for a moment it gave me pause.

     

    All kinds of thoughts ran through my head: How DO I deal with failure? I suspect I don’t do it very gracefully.

     

    But as I answered the question, I came to the realization that my definition of failure has changed over time.

     

    And it’s not so much how I get over the failure – but what I refer to as failure – that’s been the mark of progress, and a move toward happiness, in my life.

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  • Whiteout Conditions. But I Can Still See the “B” Everywhere I Look.
    18/02/16 Badass Juju -- Brands We Love , How to Brand Your Juju # , , ,

    Whiteout Conditions. But I Can Still See the “B” Everywhere I Look.

    I’m blessed to be at Mammoth Mountain in northern California this week. It’s “ski week” for schools in California (no… that is NOT a joke), and our teenager, like so many others, is drawn to snowboarding like moth to flame. I grew up skiing, and then outgrew the urge. I tried snowboarding, and it was an unmitigated disaster. These days, I spend my time in Mammoth like a “brand detective,” watching, listening, and learning about what sells.

     

    And what an amazing place for brand-watching this is.

     

    It snowed 18 inches last night. There are 25-mile-per-hour winds. You can hear the cannons on the mountains, starting safe avalanches to avoid disasters. It’s a cold mess. But even in whiteout conditions, I can clearly see the Burton “B” everywhere I look.

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  • Do You Suffer from Low Brand-Esteem?
    09/02/16 Good Juju and Brands that Have It , How to Brand Your Juju # , , , , , ,

    Do You Suffer from Low Brand-Esteem?

    Recently I hosted two live webinars where I talked with hundreds of business owners about the 7 common mistakes I see in branding, and a “Flub-Proof” formula for building a great brand. (You can watch a replay here.)

     

    In the chat box during the webinars, I saw these comments (or iterations of these comment) again and again:

     

    “I don’t have the confidence I need to ask for the business. “

     

    “I need to be more courageous in promoting my brand.”

     

    “I’m afraid to put myself out there.”

     

    Confidence. It’s a loaded word, isn’t it?

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  • Tell Me All About Your Business. In a Single Sentence.
    06/02/16 Uncategorized

    Tell Me All About Your Business. In a Single Sentence.

    “Just do it.”

    “When it absolutely, positively has to be there overnight.”

    “It takes a licking and keeps on ticking.”

    “This is your brain. This is your brain on drugs.”

    “It’s the real thing.”

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    63 responses
  • How to Breathe Life into a Paper Doll
    01/02/16 How to Brand Your Juju # , , , , ,

    How to Breathe Life into a Paper Doll

    Shallow and meaningless.

     

    Looks great on paper, not so interesting in real life…

     

    Just another pretty face.

     

    Skin deep.

     

    Superficial.

     

    Empty. Devoid of character.

     

    Arm candy.

     

    Does this sound like someone you’d hang out with? Make a connection with? Follow to the ends of the Earth? Is this a person you’d share your money with? Invest in? Believe in? Tell your friends about?

     

    Not one bit.

     

    But here’s what’s interesting: I meet brands like this every day.

     

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  • Why Moments of Clarity In Business Are Way Overrated
    28/01/16 How to Brand Your Juju # , , ,

    Why Moments of Clarity In Business Are Way Overrated

    You know that moment when you see things in your business for exactly what they are? When everything lines up for you and you understand JUST how things work? When you really GET something? When all of the sudden it occurs to you that you’ve been after the wrong customers, or messaging from the wrong angle, or branding yourself entirely the wrong way?

     

    When you say, “A-ha! OMG! Eureka!” and you smack yourself on the forehead?

     

    You know when you have those moments of clarity about your business?

     

    You shouldn’t be having them.

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    12 responses
  • The Dangerously High Price of Poor Strategy
    25/01/16 How to Brand Your Juju # , , , ,

    The Dangerously High Price of Poor Strategy

    If you’ve been around my blog, my website or my Facebook page for long, you’ll know that I’m a stickler for strategy. I love a good plan. I’m wild about doing things for a good reason. And where branding is concerned, I don’t make a move without a sound strategy.

     

    But you know what? Oddly enough, this is a very UNCOMMON position in the world of entrepreneurs and small businesses. “Strategy first,” has a bit of a bad rap.

     

    And that’s a shame. Because “strategy first” is really the only way to go.

     

    Every day I watch people – in and outside the world of branding and marketing – pay for tactics and forego strategy. They’ll buy the tangibles (the things they can see and touch) but they won’t invest in the strategy that makes those tactics successful.

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    6 responses
  • Old Broad, New Tricks? Oh, yeah.
    14/01/16 Personal Juju , Uncategorized # , , ,

    Old Broad, New Tricks? Oh, yeah.

    I was a sophomore at the University of San Diego when I decided to declare my major as English with an Emphasis on Writing. I knew my dad, who was paying my tuition, wouldn’t be completely thrilled. His idea of “career” and mine were two different things.

     

    When I told him about my choice, he said this:

     

    “Writing? That’s great honey. Why don’t you come on down to the dealership and learn the Finance Department… just in case you’re not Hemingway?” (My dad had a way with words.)

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    2 responses
  • The Devil is in the Discount. Why You Should NEVER Lower Your Rate.
    11/01/16 How to Brand Your Juju , Uncategorized # , , , ,

    The Devil is in the Discount. Why You Should NEVER Lower Your Rate.

    In the late 90’s, I was managing a premium brand for Jacuzzi and we had a giant web project up for bid. It was a complicated project, requiring the development and management of standardized websites for franchise hot tub dealers in 63 countries.

     

    I had a brilliant young woman submit a proposal for the job, and I knew I wanted to hire her. She was sharp and determined and her solutions were creative and well-strategized.

     

    But her proposal was out of my budget range.

     

    I asked her to come to my office to discuss the proposal – to see if there was a way we could work together within my budget. I knew in my gut that she was the best solution for our issue at hand, and I intended to hire her. I was fully prepared to give up some of the services in the proposal – to minimize the bells and whistles – in exchange for the peace of mind I would receive in working with a true professional who was highly motivated to do the job.

     

    She wanted the job.

     

    I wanted her work.

     

    When we sat down at the table and I presented my budget limitations, her automatic reply was:

     

    “I can give you a 25% discount. I’d really like to work with you.”

     

    In a split second, it changed the way I felt about her. I wondered – if she would give up so easily on her hourly rate – whether or not she really had other clients, and why she was clamoring for work.

     

    I wondered if I’d misjudged her value.

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    67 responses
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