Still Wearing Your Green?

Did you remember to wear something green yesterday?

I was tickled when my daughter told me one of the morning announcements at school yesterday was that the students couldn’t pinch others who weren’t wearing green. When I was in school, receiving the pinch was almost a “badge of honor” to this Irish kid, as I was being recognized from standing out from the crowd.

Are you still wearing green today? We’re all wearing a little green these days. By that, I’m referring to the fact that many of us are “greenhorns” in today’s ever-changing environment. Changes in the economy. Changes in the workplace. Changes in required skill sets.

We’re “green” in the sense that many of us are newcomers in new ways of doing business, or in a new industry. Or perhaps it’s just time to “sharpen the saw,” as Dr. Stephen R. Covey notes as the seventh habit in his classic book, The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People.

In today’s information age, there is no reason why we cannot convert the car into “Automobile University.” I picked this term up from listening to a Zig Ziglar podcast, in heavy Atlanta traffic.

There are so many podcasts out there, so many Internet sites, so many Audio Books – so many resources at our fingertips!

As the old Irish saying goes, “There are fish in the sea better than have ever been caught.”

Each day serves as a valuable opportunity to ditch some of the “green” for as we do, we get much closer to the “pot of gold” mentioned in Irish lore!

Keeping Social Media Social

Of all the Social Media tools available for communicating today, Twitter is my favorite (tied of course, with Blogs). Many of my friends would think this is strange since my “old school” Nokia phone doesn’t have the capability to do much more than handle phone calls and text messages.

So what is it that I like so much about Twitter? The ability to communicate! I enjoy the interaction that takes place on Twitter, in “real time.” I’ve called friends whom I first met on Twitter. I’ve run into people that I’ve been following and vice-versa, in social settings around Atlanta. I’ve even had someone come up to me who knew my name, based upon my Twitter background and say hello. And of course, there are the “Tweetups” where people can bring Social Media relationships to real time. Quite simply, I enjoy the communication!

I enjoy the ability to get a sense for what others are saying and what is important to them. For that reason, I typically “listen” on Twitter much more than I “tweet.”

A few days ago I came across a new post by Scott Stratten, on his Un-Marketing Blog. In his post, Scott discusses why he believes automated tweeting is not a good thing and refers to the practice as “Mannequin Marketing.” I laughed out loud, as I typically do when I read Scott’s cleverly written posts! I could not have agreed with him more!

Perhaps it’s the BtoB Marketer in me who values the interaction. I believe that engagement is critical in sales and marketing. Without engagement, we cannot learn what it is that the customer needs and cannot handle any of the customer’s objections.

Without engagement, the opportunity to learn is lost!

I have to confess, I’m not totally pure when it comes to my belief, since I use SocialOomph to send automatically generated welcome messages to others as they follow me.

However, I’m not in favor of automatically generated tweets. In fact, I can typically tell which tweets have been “scheduled” to run, since they typically offer no value to me and are used to “tweet the horn” of the Twitter user. I don’t have enough time to read through these types of messages, so like a billboard, the effectiveness is lost on me after the first couple of times I see something from the sender.

Social Media has provided such a valuable way to interact with others, share ideas and promote brands (both personal brands, as well as the ones we purchase in the marketplace). I believe that it’s a mistake to desensitize people with a message that gets lost before it can ever be “scheduled” to run.

Simply put, I believe in keeping the “Social” in Social Media.

This doesn’t mean I spend many hours on Twitter, or get up in the middle of the night to reach people halfway across the globe. When it comes to relationships, I’ll take quality over quantity any day.

When I retweeted Scott Stratten’s blog post, someone responded to me in disagreement and mentioned that he/she didn’t see any harm in automated tweets. I understood the points that were made to me. The good news is that we had an interaction – precisely what I enjoy about Twitter!

I would enjoy hearing what you have to say. Drop me an e-mail if you have a chance, or of course, you can always send a tweet to @wolfejeff

A Time to Stand Up

Two weeks ago, I hung up the phone after speaking with a good friend that I used to work with. I was totally shocked and saddened to learn that someone we both knew had just taken his life. The gentleman worked for a competitor and was very well known and respected in his industry. I would go so far as to say that everyone who ever met him, liked him immediately. At least I did. We met once at a customer’s site and I was immediately struck by his presence and vitality. Now he is no longer with us.

This was the second instance of its kind that I had heard about that week.

Earlier this week, I had the pleasure of attending the first on-site meeting of Christian Professionals of Greater Atlanta. The group was formed on LinkedIn, as a subgroup of Christian Professionals Worldwide. I always enjoy opportunities to bring Social Networking to real time by meeting people in person. I had a great time meeting so many wonderful people at this event.

During the course of the evening, Peter Bourke, volunteer Chairman of Crossroads Career ® Network (www.crossroadscareer.org ) and Principal at The Complex Sale spoke to our group. He made several references to his newly published book, A Better Way to Make a Living… and a Life during the course of his powerful presentation. To learn more about Peter Bourke’s book and his purpose for writing it, you may visit www.betterwaytomakealiving.com.

The messages that I send in this blog post are inspired by the content of Peter Bourke’s presentation.

Message to Career Seekers:

Stand tall and remain strong! You are still who you were before – perhaps even better!

While times may seem difficult now, this too shall pass.

One may ask what gives me the right to say these things? It’s quite simple – I too am in transition. My last day with my previous employer was December 18, 2009.

I believe that I am even better now than I was then and am using this time to seek out an opportunity to serve a new organization. In the meantime, I’ve created an LLC which I intend to use to provide value to clients seeking to bring their sales and marketing efforts to the next level.

I have been abundantly blessed by the support of my family and friends during this time of transition. My time of transition has been made much less difficult by knowing that I can pick up the phone and call my family or friends and they will be there to listen and offer guidance.

Is this the time for you perhaps pursue a dream that you may have of starting your own business? My response is a resounding yes!

Message to People of Faith:

We are called upon to serve and rise up in the name of our creator to help others. While I approach this topic from a Christian perspective, I know that every religion professes to have this mission. The time for us to proactively reach out, lend an ear and provide positive words to others is today and everyday.

People are hurting all across the world today and are looking to People of Faith to see whether we walk the walk, or just talk the talk. Join me in walking the walk and reaching out to others. I know that when I walk the walk, Jesus Christ is right there beside me.

Does this just pertain to reaching out to career seekers? Absolutely not! Peter Bourke references the fact that there are seventy-five million people working across the US today who are “chronically miserable” in their work.

Add to that the fact that many people have become underemployed or have received drastic cuts to their salaries.

In fact, the two people whom I mentioned earlier were both employed at the time that they took their lives.

If you are one of the “chronically miserable”, I challenge you to change your situation by reaching out to others. It will make a world of difference in the lives of others, as well as your own life.

So, let’s get out there and do what we are called upon to do! Let’s reach out, reach up and stay in the game!

I challenge everyone to use this time to draw upon your faith, as we are called upon to do, and become a difference maker in the lives of others!

Battle of the Titans

It’s that time again, when everyone is talking about the big game! The Indianapolis Colts, led by future Hall of Famer Peyton Manning battle against the New Orleans Saints, who appear in the Super Bowl for the very first time. Both teams have potent offenses. Both teams will be playing on the “Big Stage” for the right to walk away as NFL Champions.

Another Battle of the Titans will be taking place tomorrow. While some will talk about the “two minute drill” at the end of the game, others will talk about the creativity displayed in two minute increments, while the game is not taking place.

I dare say that more people will be talking about the Super Bowl Commercials around the water cooler on Monday, than will be talking about the actual game.

Which Super Bowl commercial was your favorite, and why?

I would love to hear your thoughts.

The Favre Factor

I rarely have time to listen to sports talk radio, but I was running some errands yesterday and the radio was set to the radio station from the day before. On Sunday I listened to part of the AFC Championship game on the way to one meeting, or another.

Yesterday, the commentators were discussing their opinion as to whether the Minnesota Vikings made a mistake or in signing Brett Favre to a contract for the 2009 season. Those who thought it was a mistake pointed to the fact that the team had just missed the Superbowl and that there is speculation (again) that Favre will not return next year.

Let’s take a look at this scenario:

Downside:
The Vikings did not make the Superbowl due to several turnovers, a penalty at the end that took them out of field goal range and a pass that should never have been attempted (resulting in a turnover and the end of the Vikings chances to advance).

Upside:
Brett Favre enjoyed one of his better seasons in a storied carrier, with 33 touchdown passes and only 7 interceptions. His leadership provided a boost to a young team that enjoyed a memorable season.

I applaud the Vikings for signing Brett Favre. While they took a chance for the long term, they decided that signing Favre for the 2009 season would give them a good chance to make it to the Superbowl – and they were right. While the outcome was not what Viking fans would have liked, they were one play or so from getting back into the Superbowl for the first time since 1977.

While Sunday’s game is not important in the scheme of things, the decisions that we make to act or not act are much more important.

How often are we just one ingredient away from success, only to talk ourselves out of taking the chance?

If we take the right risks in life, we give ourselves at least a fifty percent chance of success, if not greater. However, if we fail to take the right risks and don’t believe in our abilities, we have a one hundred percent chance of not succeeding.

So my advice to anyone taking inventory of what they’re lacking to take their game to the next level is as follows:

Decide what you need…Go get it…..and give it your all!

It’s important to remember that “Monday Morning Quarterbacks” are always out there and have seldom suited up for battle.

Reflecting on The Dream

All across America school was out today. It seems like there are so many days off from school these days, between holidays and weather related closures. This day was different. This day was necessary.

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. dared to dream in the teeth of fierce resistance. As a result, he received threats, jail time and sacrificed his life. He could have lived a quiet life, settling for the status quo, but he dared to lead others.

That is why I use the holiday each year as a valuable opportunity to discuss the life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. with my children and to reiterate the importance that I personally place on service. We talk about the importance of serving many times throughout the year, but because the school system takes a pause, I believe that it places a little more impact on my words. As many of you know, children do not always take the words of their parents at face value…

This past week, ‘American Idol’ viewers were treated to a performance of the song “Pants on the Ground” written and performed by General Larry Platt. Not Larry Platt, as he reminded the judges gently, but General Larry Platt.

Many may have wondered when General Larry Platt served in the military and which campaigns the sixty-three year old may have been a part of. Thankfully, the power of Google allows us to take a closer look at the life and times of General Larry Platt.

Which campaigns did the General serve in? He proudly served in the Savannah, GA and Selma, AL campaigns. For you see, General Larry Platt received the nickname “General” from the late Rev. Hosea Williams for his dogged determination to the Civil Rights movement. He helped to organize SCLC sit-ins across the South and suffered battle wounds on the Bloody Sunday march from Selma to Montgomery.

September 4, 2001 was proclaimed “Larry Platt Day” in Atlanta because of "his great energy and commitment to equality and the protection of the innocent and for his outstanding service to the Atlanta community and the citizens of Georgia."

The United States and the world are better off today because Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. dared to dream and dared to lead. We owe it to ourselves to share the story with our children, as they may also dare to dream and make a difference in their world and for generations to come.

The Time to Act is Right Now

The images from Haiti are often too difficult to look at and the statistics are too difficult to comprehend. How does one fathom an earthquake with a 7.0 ML rating on the Richter scale that originated perhaps five or six miles underground? How does one grasp the sheer number of casualties? While it’s too early to count the deceased, it has been said that at least 100,000 people of Haiti will have lost their lives in Tuesday’s earthquake. Many think the number will be much larger, since 3 million people (approximately one third of Haiti’s population) have been affected.

While it is disturbing to see some of the footage and difficult to get a feel for the severity there is one thing that is abundantly clear to me – the mission is critical and the time to act is right now. Lives are on the line!

As always, many individuals will reach into their wallets to provide some much needed assistance to charitable organizations on the ground in Haiti. The American Red Cross reported that as of 8am this morning (January 14), people have donated $3 million to their relief efforts by texting ‘Haiti’ to 90999. The donations came $10 at a time and will be added to the donor’s phone bills. The Red Cross fund will continue to grow as well as funds by various other charitable organizations due to your generous support.

According to a report on CNN, many companies and organizations have stepped to the forefront to help rescue and relief efforts in Haiti. These organizations are worth noting:

Coca-Cola
UPS
Lowe’s
Abbott Laboratories
Bank of America
Wal-Mart
GoDaddy
Western Union
The New York Yankees

While the list is preliminary and many organizations are probably putting plans into place to assist with funding and materials, I can’t help but think that there should be a construction equipment manufacturer or two included. Given the state of our economy, it is clear that inventory is available.

I know all of the arguments and questions for not providing equipment and supplies. The list is lengthy, and includes some of the following:

Who do we reach out to?
How do we secure our property and ensure it’s not destroyed?
Who is going to head this up, given that we have limited personnel?

I also know all of the rewards of stepping forward, having led an effort to provide equipment to support the needs of residents living in Biloxi, Mississippi after Hurricane Katrina.

While it was difficult to get upper management to fully understand the benefits initially and while it was difficult to find the right group of volunteers (people who knew how to operate the equipment who would not charge the residents for their help) and while it was also difficult to get consignment agreements in order and coordinate the logistics -- it certainly was worth every bit of effort.

By partnering with a group of volunteers from around the country (mostly from the Western part of the United States affiliated with Burning Man), Doosan Infracore was able to make a difference in the lives of many people living in Biloxi by donating the use of an excavator, a wheel loader and a lift truck.

Along the way we received the heartfelt appreciation from people looking for a way to get their lives back to a form of normalcy and of course, some excellent press coverage. In addition, our participation provided a strong sense of internal pride within the organization.

So, regardless of whether an effort is undertaken in order to receive favorable public relations, enhanced goodwill in the community, or benefit people who are in desperate need of assistance, the time to act is now.

If you or your organization is sitting on the fence in regard to lending assistance to the people of Haiti, I urge you to take a second look at the upside.

The time to act is right now.

Note: Since uploading this post on January 14, I've learned that JCB is in the process of sending backhoe loaders to Haiti and Hyundai Construction Equipment is coordinating with a relief agency to send over equipment. Great moves by a couple of outstanding companies!