Take a Dog’s Lead and Take a Pause

As I was putting the final touches on that last blog post, I noticed my dog leaning against my backpack penetrating me with this dreamy look.  That “look” that says, “I’m exactly where I want to be — right here with you.” Kiai (key-eye) walks, smells and marks with me to work almost everyday.  That roundtrip from…

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Professionals: Blend Offline Reputation With Online Visibility To Drive Business Development

Blending your offline reputation with visibility online helps you drive your business development across your weaker social ties. Once you have built up a strong following, you should begin to see the networking opportunities expand, allowing you to help grow your business. —Erik Qualman For a professional, visibility online is about cultivating a presence that drives your niche narrative. I…

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Leaders: Turn Negatives Into Positives

My leadership coach and I shared time and breakfast today. His name is Bob Burgess. As we left the restaurant, with a twinkle in his eye, Bob offered to send me a missive. A few minutes later, I found this passage from John O’Donohue’s Anam Cara: A Book of Celtic Wisdom in my inbox: “If you try to avoid or…

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The “No Urgency, Chaos or Drama” Zone

While proofing this post for Kevin, I was reminded of the first time I saw this sign: “No Urgency, Chaos or Drama”  I was interviewing. This sign hangs outside Kevin’s office. I thought, okay, THIS is where I want to work. This was opposite of prior work places which, unfortunately, I became skilled at navigating.…

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Blogging: Most Definitive Medium For Demonstrating Expertise On The Web

Do you think for a living? Do you rely on your education and experience to problem-solve? Do you face issues requiring “convergent, divergent and creative thinking?” Is your capital your knowledge, ideas and access to information? Are you a lawyer, engineer, architect, doctor, scientist, financial analyst, software engineer, teacher or technical writer? If so, then you’ll appreciate Dorie Clark’s “rich and…

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The Strength of Weak Ties in Social Networking: Seek to be Worth Knowing

According to The Pew Research Center, most Americans “networks contain a range of social ties that consist of friends, family, coworkers, and other acquaintances. This includes a handful of very close social ties and a much larger number of weaker ties.” In fact, the average Internet user has 669 social ties. That’s important research for generating word-of-mouth referrals. So how does my personal network operate?…

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The Power of Online Word-of-Mouth in the Social Networking Era (Ignore at Your Peril)

I realize that the concept of word-of-mouth happening online in a digital 24×7 world may feel messy and confusing especially for professionals. Still, the immense commercial value of billions of people connecting, engaging and sharing across massive, fluid networks can’t be overlooked. Online word-of-mouth via a Blog, Twitter, Linkedin, Facebook, Google+, Pinterest, email, list services, chat rooms or instant messages…

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When the Customer Experience and Marketing Intersect

Sometimes the fewest words make the strongest point.  For instance, No amount of marketing genius will correct a bad customer experience. Large or small, virtual or face-to-face, what your market experiences in connection with your product or service IS your marketing. —Eric Fletcher Powerful, right? From that post, Eric goes on to say: “For every business, customer experience and marketing…

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Your Future Clients Are Looking For You Online: Are You Visible?

Why should I care that 52% of the world’s population is under the age of 30 or that Gen Y outnumbered baby boomers back in July of 2010? I care because these people are my future clients and if you’re a professional (lawyer, accountant, consultant) these young folks are also your future clients. Here’s what not to do: Don’t be that fuddy-duddy who…

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A Leader’s Duty to Act: Untreated Addiction and Chronic Stress in the Legal Profession

If you’re collapsing under chronic stress then you’re not alone. This happens to water towers too:http://www.youtube.com/embed/ggg3C87UVCY?feature=oembed I hope those crumbling towers ignite a chuckle and lighten the moment for you because laughter reduces stress and that may just make you more receptive to this message: “Lawyers have twice the addiction rate of the general population and almost…

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