Month: March 2023

The important event happening today that most people won’t see.

There is a cute story about 2 young fish who are just hanging out when an older fish swims past. The older fish says to the younger fish, ‘Hey boys! How’s the water?’ The younger fish smile and wave. Then, after the older fish passes, the younger fish turn to each other and ask, ‘What is water?’

It is a reminder that we often miss the things that surround us. In human life, it is not the water that we miss. And it’s not really the air either. Unless you are hiking at altitude. Or have emphysema.

The thing that humans don’t recognize is life itself.

I try to remind my family and friends of this regularly. When good, fun, beautiful and interesting things happen I take a moment to say, ‘This is your life.’

It is my way of saying, enjoy this. Recognize that this moment is life. Because your life is really just a collection of moments. Some are small. Some are large. But all are valuable.

Your life is not about what is coming. It is not about your hopes and dreams. It’s not about someday when you’ll be living in a big old city with Taylor Swift.

Your life is not the destination at the end of the journey. Because, spoiler alert, the end of the journey isn’t that great. Just ask Steve Perry.

If you don’t take a moment to recognize the moments of your life, as your life, the whole experience will pass you by without you even recognizing it.

Don’t let that happen to you.

Key Takeaway

Your life is happening right now. Don’t miss it. Awareness enables you to enjoy and appreciate the great things, large and small that make up your experience. Don’t waste this gift. Don’t settle. Do the things you have always wanted to do now. There is no other time.

*If you know someone who could benefit from this message, please share it with them.

+For more of the best life lessons I have learned check out my book, What Does Your Fortune Cookie Say? from Ripples Media.

Why it’s important to let people know how great you really are.

There is no shortage of great people, products, or services. But far too few of those great offerings are known by those who could really use them. In many cases, growing your business isn’t about creating a stronger offering. It is about publicizing the great offering that already exists. So as Billy Joel said, tell her about it. And to be non-gender biased, tell him about it too.

Advertising!

Make sure that your greatness doesn’t go unnoticed. That is why advertising and marketing are so important. And why this post is advertising the importance of advertising. Which is totally meta. But not like Zuckerberg.

Send Your Invitations

Creating an excellent product, service, or experience but not marketing it, is like throwing a party and not sending out invitations. No one will ever know they were missing out on a good time. No one will come down with a bad case of FoMo. And worst of all, you won’t make any money. But it’s your party and you can cry if you want to.

Promote Yourself

The same holds true for people. If you are great at what you do and no one knows about you or your skills, your talents are wasted. You have to promote yourself, your abilities and your potential. In a challenging economic environment, this is even more important.

If you are a new graduate or soon-to-be new graduate you MUST promote yourself. Or you will end up in a job that you didn’t need your education to perform. All while living in a van down by the river.

The Weaponry

Nearly 7 years ago I launched the advertising and ideas agency The Weaponry to help brands promote their great products and services. The advertising we do every day makes our clients money. Which is why The Weaponry grew by 50% in 2022. But if I hadn’t told you about our year-over-year growth you wouldn’t have known we were really good at what we do. And if I hadn’t told you that we are an advertising and ideas agency you might have thought we sold catapults. Although metaphorically, you would have been correct.

Key Takeaway

You have to tell people about your great stuff. It’s not bragging. It’s necessary. It is often the missing link between failure and success. Or success and wild success. So share your own story. Talk about all of the stuff you are good at. And you will naturally write your own happy ending. That is the power of marketing.

*If you know someone who could benefit from this message, please share it with them.

+For more of the best life lessons I have learned check out my books, What Does Your Fortune Cookie Say?  and The Culture Turnaround, from Ripples Media.