• A Crash Course in the Dream 100. Lesson #2: Influencing the Influencers
    17/01/17 How to Brand Your Juju # , , , ,

    A Crash Course in the Dream 100. Lesson #2: Influencing the Influencers

    Have you ever felt used? You know the kind of relationship I’m talking about. You meet someone, and they want something from you. Sometimes they’ll hit you up straight-away. Other times they’ll beat around the bush and attempt to manipulate you into giving them what they want by feigning interest or promising something that will likely never materialize. This is the old-school approach to “networking.” And for the most part, it just feels sleazy.

     

    Yesterday I introduced the concept of the Dream 100 (click here to check that out): a strategy of creating relationships with 100 influencers and thought-leaders, with the long-term goal of promoting your beliefs and values to your own prospects and customers.

     

    Today I want to talk about how you can positively influence those influencers. And while it may seem tempting to use them for your benefit, resisting that temptation and creating a win-win will be critical in establishing enduring connections.

     

    So, once you’ve created your Dream 100 list, how do you connect?

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  • A Crash Course in the Dream 100. Lesson #1: What and Why
    16/01/17 Uncategorized # , , , ,

    A Crash Course in the Dream 100. Lesson #1: What and Why

    “A dream you dream alone is only a dream. A dream you dream together is reality.”
    — John Lennon

     

    Everything about brands that transcend – and businesses that remain in business – is connected to connection. We no longer live in an economy driven by transaction. Today, our economy is driven by experience. And no experience is richer, more fulfilling, or more apt to lead to a next experience than one that includes REAL connection through shared values.

     

    If I believe what you believe, I wanna hang out with you, man. If you believe what I believe, you’ll be singin’ my song by morning. If we bond over what we both feel is true and right, it beats a pinky swear by a clear mile.

     

    Over the course of several days last week, I talked in broad strokes and specifics about how to connect with prospects and customers by sharing your values and beliefs. (If you missed those posts, you can catch the last of them, which includes links to all three, by clicking here.) And one of the specifics I mentioned was the cultivation of a Dream 100 list.

     

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  • Manifesto and the Magic of Connection
    13/01/17 Uncategorized

    Manifesto and the Magic of Connection

    Over the past couple of days, I’ve been talking about how your values and your beliefs can become the strongest differentiator for your business and your brand.

     

    I first outlined the danger that Mike Weisman of the Values Institute so aptly described as “capsizing in the sea of sameness,” that arises when we set out to differentiate our businesses solely on pricing or product features. (And how you can avoid that through a values-driven approach to business and branding.) If you missed that, you can read it here.

     

    Yesterday, I discussed how giving your customers something to believe in leads to enduring connections. And I provided Six Ways to Communicate Your Beliefs to Your Customers and Prospects to Facilitate True Connection. 

     

    And today I want to introduce you to the first and most powerful of those six forms of communication: the manifesto.

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  • Give ‘Em Something to Believe In
    12/01/17 How to Brand Your Juju # , , ,

    Give ‘Em Something to Believe In

    Yesterday on the blog, I talked about motive. More specifically, the underlying reason you jumped into business in the first place… beyond the cha-ching. If you missed that piece, you can read it here.

     

    In short, customers don’t bond with companies. Customers bond with ideals, beliefs, values, and world views.

     

    If you want to form real connections (and believe me, if you want your business to be sustainable, you want to form real connections), it’s not enough to get clear on your motives and beliefs. You also have to articulate them clearly to the world. And you need to communicate consistently, over time, so folks will come to see what you stand for, and that you’re seriously committed to it.

     

    One of the benefits of values-based connections that’s so often overlooked by business owners is the personal joy and fulfillment that comes as a result of working for a higher purpose. It’s one thing to have great sales numbers. It’s another to change lives or start a ripple in the world.

     

    Wanna jump out of bed every morning? Put yourself in a situation where you’re consistently serving others or serving the planet. And then spread the word.

     

    6 Ways to Communicate Your Beliefs to Your Customers and Prospects – to Facilitate True Connection

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  • Is Your Business Capsizing in the Sea of Sameness?
    10/01/17 How to Brand Your Juju , Uncategorized # , , , , ,

    Is Your Business Capsizing in the Sea of Sameness?

    Motive is a powerful thing.

     

    It’s even more powerful when it’s pulled from the shadows, clearly articulated, and shared with your customers.

     

    We’re taught to believe that motives lurk behind the scenes and hide in our subconscious minds. Movies and media stories are driven by secret or slimy motives for crimes, wayward political careers, and unintentional moments of truth that expose liars and evil-doers.

     

    Motives, my friend, have gotten a terribly unfair bad rap.

     

    When it comes to building a brand, a following, a customer base, or a reputation, your motive is your most potent and effective tool for differentiation.

     

    Small business owners and entrepreneurs so often find themselves in a crippling space of equivalence. We look and feel just like everyone else.

     

    Are you a coach among tens of thousands of coaches? A graphic designer in a never-ending list of design studio choices? A cookie company with access to the same butter, flour, raisins, and cranberries available to every other bakery in the world?

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  • What’s Love Got to Do with It?
    10/01/17 How to Brand Your Juju # , , ,

    What’s Love Got to Do with It?

    When it comes to branding… everything. Love has everything to do with it.

     

    Yesterday I read an amazing quote from Gary Vaynerchuk:

     

    The reason we love our parents is because they loved us first. Every single company should take this advice.

     

    I couldn’t agree more. That Gary V. is a dude after my own heart.

     

    After all, parenting is all about heart, right?

     

    When we parent, we constantly focus on four present and future states we want for our children:

     

    1. We want to see their HOPES nurtured and respected.
    2. We want to see their DREAMS fulfilled.
    3. We want to see their FEARS allayed or conquered.
    4. And we want to see their FRUSTRATIONS eased or eliminated.

     

    We do this because we love our kids, and ultimately, we want them to be happy. We want to see them master the universe and get what they want.

     

    When I build brands for corporations or teach branding to small business owners, this is the first place we begin. We ask the question: “What are the hopes, dreams, fears and frustrations of the clients we serve?”

     

    Where Gary V. hits the nail on the head, though, is WHY we do this. And this is the place I most often see branding and marketing go awry…

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  • Starting the New Year on Fire!!
    09/01/17 Uncategorized

    Starting the New Year on Fire!!

    What a kick in the pants it was to be interviewed by John Lee Dumas, of Entrepreneur on Fire.

    He asked me to share my greatest A-HA moment, and my worst entrepreneurial moment, as well as some other big value bombs. And I share with him the group of people I’m most fired up about in my career right now.

    Click here to give it a listen.

    From the heart,

    Juju

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  • The Stand-Out Gift of the Season for Women
    30/11/16 Uncategorized

    The Stand-Out Gift of the Season for Women

    Does your wife or girlfriend have a big BUT?

     

    Does she complain about her big BUT?

     

    Is she self-conscious about her big BUT?

     

    Does her big BUT affect her feelings of self-worth?

     

    Are you exhausted from having conversations about the big BUT?

     

    I’ve got great news. I’ve developed a solution. And it’s the holiday gift that keeps on giving.

     

    Allow me to explain:

     

    Over the past year, I’ve spoken with HUNDREDS of women about the “one thing” they’ve always wanted to do. And you know what? Every single woman has one. And most of them aren’t doing that one thing… at all.

     

    But they sure are talking about it.

     

    It sounds like this:

     

    “I’ve always wanted to write a book, BUT…”

    “I want to start my own business, BUT…”

    “Mary is so happy since she became a yoga teacher, and I’d like to be a yoga teacher, too, BUT…”

    “There’s a woman at work who’s running a marathon, and I know if SHE could do it, I could do it, BUT…”

     

    Do you have any of this going on at your house?

    And do these big BUT conversations leave you in a no-win situation?

     

    What if I could show you that the only way to deal with your girl’s big BUT, is to turn it into a badass?

     

    And what If YOU could show HER that you believe in her, that you see something in her that she can’t see in herself, and that you KNOW she is a true badass?

     

    Good news. You can.

     

    But first you need to understand that the ONLY way to effectively go from big BUT to badass is with a Permission Slip.

     

    Now, don’t get me wrong here. I’m not telling you to give your wife or girlfriend permission. That’s gonna make her mad. And it would make me mad, too.

     

    I’m telling you that you can support her in giving HERSELF permission.

    Because the only way she’s ever going to reach deep down inside and access the badass that’s in there, is to give herself permission.

     

    I know this, because I’ve experienced it first-hand, and I spent years hating and railing against my own big BUT. But those days are gone. And they’re gone, because I gave myself PERMISSION to do my great big thing.

     

    I’ve learned that there are three secrets to going from big BUT to badass, and I’ve addressed all of them in my new program for women (this year’s hottest holiday gift), Badass Permission Slip.

     

    >>>Secret #1: In order for women to eliminate the big BUT, they must give themselves an official Permission Slip, and it must include a 4-step SYSTEM of elements: ditch it, see it, own it, be it. (It’s not important that you become involved in these elements… only that you give the love of your life access to them.)

     

    >>>Secret #2: The reasons that women continue through life with big BUTs are 2-fold: “terrible toos” and “enough stuff.” It sounds like this: “I want to (insert big thing here), but I’m too fat, too old, too shy, too broke, too short….” Or “I want to (insert big thing here), but I’m not smart enough, experienced enough, old enough, brave enough…” Again, do you have any of this going on at your house?

     

    >>>Secret #3: As much as you want to help your wife or girlfriend with this, what she really needs is a group of women who are all going from big BUT to badass TOGETHER. She needs some badass friends, and some clear direction.

     

    I want you to imagine for a moment what it will be like when your wife or girlfriend ditches her big BUT and does the thing she’s always wanted to do.

     

    Imagine how happy she’ll be. How confident she’ll feel. How fulfilled she’ll become.

     

    And I want you to image how wonderful she will feel when you give her a gift that says, “I believe in you. I know you can do this. There’s nothing wrong with you. I see you for the amazing badass you have always been.”

     

    This isn’t something I imagined. My husband did it for me once, long ago.

     

    Here’s the thing: women can do this the hard way, or they can do it the easy way. The hard way is with them struggling through the “terrible toos” and the “enough stuff,” while at the same time searching for your support.

     

    The easy way? It begins with the people around her (hint, hint, that’s you…) giving her a gentle push, a huge hug, and access to a permission slip she can write for herself.

     

    I’ve created that Badass Permission Slip. And I created it to be totally empowering and an absolute BLAST, all at the same time.

     

    >>>It’s a six-week online program where she’ll meet an amazing private community of other women – all going from big BUT to badass together.

     

    >>>It includes a super fun, badass class each week that she can watch at her own pace.

     

    >>>It includes group coaching, where women can ask questions, share, and work through issues.

     

    >>>And it includes daily doses of badass, in her in box, to keep her motivated and moving forward, until that big BUT is gone… for good.

     

    It’s the only solution out there, designed specifically to take women from big BUT to badass in six weeks or less. And it’s the stand-out gift of the season.

     

     

    Click here to enroll the woman you love in Badass Permission Slip today.

     

    You could buy her another bathrobe or pair of earrings, but is that gonna make you a hero?

     

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  • 5 Reasons Women Over 50 Should Start Something Big, Bold, and New
    30/11/16 Uncategorized

    5 Reasons Women Over 50 Should Start Something Big, Bold, and New

    Last February I went to Mammoth, snowboarding with some friends. (To be totally transparent, they snowboarded. I drank Pinot Noir.) In the bar I met a couple of women who were pushing 50, with teenaged kids. We got to talking about life, and I told them that at 49, I’d packed up my successful business to become a motivational writer and coach.

    One of them said, “God, I wish I was as brave as you. I’ve always wanted to be a girls’ basketball coach. But it’s too late now. It just seems stupid. How would I even begin?”

    She felt what so many women who are circling 50 feel:

    It’s too late. That ship has sailed. If I was going to do it, I should have done it by now.

    Since that time, I’ve spoken to hundreds of women between 45 and 60. And I’ve found an alarmingly common thread:

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  • Why We Give Perfectly Horrible Gifts
    17/11/16 Uncategorized

    Why We Give Perfectly Horrible Gifts

    You know the feeling you get the moment you watch someone open a gift that you gave them, and they LOVE it?

    You see this kind of wave wash over them – a wave of love that you created? in that moment, they see how you really feel about them. They realize that you chose something JUST for them, because you know them, you SEE them, you understand them, and you want them to be happy.

    Man, I love that feeling of purposeful giving. I have always totally grooved on that feeling. I plan for it, hope for it, wait for it… relish it.

    But good lord, it gets all jacked up sometimes, doesn’t it?

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