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Accountability: It’s Harder Than You Think
by Jacob Smith On April 10, 2012
“It’s not my fault.” “It’s not my responsibility.” If these phrases are commonly heard in your organization, you’ve got a problem. Accountability is more than a word you throw around to sound credible. Rogue management consultant, Steve Smolinsky, from Benari LTD, believes it’s crucial to the optimal functioning of your organization. “It’s one of the … Read More
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Chronicle of a Dangerous Conference Call
by Jacob Smith On April 4, 2012
A week or two back, I teased Jennifer Fleming (our content maven) with the title of this blog by starting a draft in our WordPress admin. She simply *had* to know more about it! This incident tells you two things about my blogging process: The best part of my blogs are the titles. It takes … Read More
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Feeling Distracted? Get Focused!
by Jacob Smith On April 3, 2012
How crazy busy is life these days? If you’re like me, you’re constantly being pulled in different directions with many “things” competing for your attention. So, how do you get the necessary focus to get the big picture items done? Someone quite wise on this topic is Steve Smolinsky, who I describe as a rogue … Read More
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This American Life Retraction Insights
by Jacob Smith On March 23, 2012
I’m a big fan of the radio show, This American Life. Each week, Ira Glass and his team pick a topic and examine it from several perspectives. Like a play, there are several acts that illuminate a story in fresh and surprising ways. It’s long form journalism through voice and week after week, it delivers … Read More
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Saying Goodbye to a Client
by Jacob Smith On March 20, 2012
Sometimes, clients leave. Usually this is not a bitter divorce as much as an amicable parting of ways, often inevitable in the best of working relationships. The reasons are as varied as the clients we work with. Building a professional relationship includes planning for the end so that moving on leaves everyone feeling good about … Read More
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Effective Marketing Tactics: Lessons From Teen Soft Drink Study
by Jacob Smith On March 16, 2012
Psssst. Want to find out how to get people to do what you want? Silly question. Of course you do. Most of us want to influence behavior in some way – be it increasing web traffic, getting people to buy from you, or to take the action you want. Psychologists and advertisers have created entire … Read More
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Think Outside the Box
by Jacob Smith On March 9, 2012
Yes, it’s harder to get people’s attention these days, and I generally have two responses. The first is despair at how difficult it is to break through all the noise. But then I remember I can also view this noise as an opportunity – to become even more creative. And think outside the box. I … Read More
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“Like” Me. Buy My Stuff. Yeah, right!
by Jacob Smith On February 28, 2012
Every day, I read a lot of blogs and articles and it amazes me which topics are ‘re-purposed’. I take my hat off to Brass Tack Thinking for their post titled, “Social Business: Far Beyond the Like”. The sentence that really resonated with me was – “All of the presence tools are the visible tip … Read More
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Big Decisions, Short Attention Spans
by Jacob Smith On February 24, 2012
I was flicking through a book (I know, how old school) by Eric Knight called ‘Reframe’ and enjoyed reading about a classic psychological test. Created in the 1930’s by Karl Duncker, the test features a box of wall tacks, a candle and box of matches sitting on a table. The task? How to fix the … Read More
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Vitamins or Painkillers?
by Jacob Smith On February 17, 2012
Is your product or service a ‘vitamin’ or a ‘painkiller’? Let me explain. Vitamins are ‘nice to have’ whereas painkillers are a ‘must have’. People pay for painkillers. I know the analogy is a little shaky because vitamins are thought of as ‘good for you’ whereas painkillers are potentially addictive. But the terminology is arresting … Read More