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Monday Morning Motivators – July 7, 2008
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Enjoy your java with an eclectic collection of tips and ideas to use today and to get energized for the week ahead. Subscribing and unsubscribing at www.mondaymorningmotivators.com
“Mind the rudder or meet the rock.”
-- Captain Fatty Goodlander
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Table of Contents
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1. Where’s Your Paddle? - Linda Fayerweather
2. Interesting factoids about Baby Boomers - Rebecca Booth
3. You are an Environorganism - Pat Altvater
4. Part 1: Adventures in On-Line Communities – Paula Frazier
5. To Do This Week
6. Fine Print
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1. Where’s Your Paddle?
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summer here in the Midwest, so imagine yourself floating down a lazy river in your canoe. You might get snagged by a rock or tree branch or you could just float from side to side and eventually you will get somewhere. When businesses are looking for customers, they often take a similar cruise. They float around in the market place offering products or services not really paying attention to what the customer wants. The eddies, snags, rocks and other canoeists are always part of the business landscape; dealing with them is the difference between surviving and thriving.
When lean businesses look for customers, they usually make sure that the customer wants, needs, demands what they are selling. This is a pull system where we as customers are better able to get what we want. Technology has helped us all “mind the rudder” so that we have more knowledge of where the rocks are in our business or the economy. We can’t control the rocks, but with a paddle (think of a plan) we can navigate to the place were more customers want what we provide so well!
Copyright 2008 Linda Fayerweather
Planning IS Change
Changing Lanes LLC
www.ChangingLanes.biz
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2. Interesting factoids about Baby Boomers
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In a recent edition of the AARP Bulletin, AARP cited that there are 218 million Americans online. For now, kids make up the majority of users, but baby boomers are closing in on the digital divide. So, who’s doing what online? Here’s what AARP has found:
Research All Adults 50-64 65+
Hobbies 83% 77% 62%
Don’t Like to
Share Personal
Information 75% 79% 82%
Buy Products 66% 23% 6%
Visit Video-
Sharing Sites 48% 30% 16%
Use Broadband
At Home 47% 40% 15%
If baby boomers are your target market, keep in mind what these facts are telling you. The AARP article also wants you to keep in mind that while older users are frequenting social networking sites, they are really not interested in the Facebook and MySpace-type sites, instead they’re looking to social networking sites to help them improve themselves or help them to understand the emotional/physical toll of a disease.
Copyright 2008 Rebecca Booth
Marketing Goddess
Imagine That!
419-855-3399
www.rebeccaboothmarketinggoddess.com
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3. You are an Environorganism ============================================================
The Third Principle: You Are Not an Organism in an Environment:
You are an Environorganism. According to Dyer, we can not separate ourselves from our environment while we are in our physical body. Current scientific research supports Dyer’s theory that we are energy, just like everything in our environment. So we are not separate from the external world we see.
Our ego tries to convince us that we are separate, but Dyer says that whatever appears to be lacking in our lives is really due to our having been misinformed when we were taught that what seems to be missing can be found outside us. He indicates that we are all simultaneously our own being and all that is outside of us as well. That’s a hard concept to grasp.
To develop understanding of the oneness of all, you can:
1. Make a conscious effort to imagine yourself as part of all you see.
2. Become aware of how your judgments of others keeps you from connecting to them. Use the phrase “I am that, I am” instead of judgmental thoughts.
3. Spend time alone in silence and meditation.
4. Concentrate and observe the life force (called chi or prana) within yourself and others.
5. Trust in the wisdom of your feelings.
Pat Altvater
Chief Wizard of WOW
www.transformationsinstitute.com
Author, Journey to WOW – Ignite the Power Within
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4. Adventures in On-Line Communities – Part 1
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Technology is amazing, and frustrating, and unpredictable and ever evolving. For all those reasons I realized how important it had become for me to explore and engage the on-line business community as a way to compliment my current marketing efforts. I could either catch up with the times or get left behind. While I’m a great team player, I’m not much of a follower so off I went to delve into my own uncharted territories.
About a year ago, I asked the experts in my industry which communities they recommended and then proceeded to set up my profile on the top three. Talk about sharing information on the fly!!! I immediately began receiving notifications that my profile had been viewed. Many times it was followed by an announcement that someone had left a message for me. Then I really got tested when I received an overwhelming number of opportunities to “connect” NOW.
Please understand that I am clueless regarding on-line etiquette. Do I connect? It would be rude not to – right? I consider myself to be incredibly decisive. Not so much when it comes to establishing new relationships in the virtual realm. What I did know was that the worst thing anyone could do in any of their marketing efforts was send a message and then disappear. Because I was completely paralyzed I chose to disengage until I learned a lot more about this incredibly powerful population.
My research regarding on-line communities taught me that profiles, bios, messages, testimonials and blogs were continually being composed and updated. It became obvious to me that leaders in the on-line arena did a lot of writing. I never considered writing to be a natural talent for me so I was very fortunate to become a writer mentee of Dr. Ivan Misner, a bestselling author and world’s leading expert in referral marketing.
He encouraged me to develop my skills by writing business networking articles on a regular basis. That led to getting published weekly on various e-zines with the occasional article getting picked up by second parties. Some have even made their way to print. Now we’ve graduated to blogging. Next step . . . best selling contributing author!
I share this because I initially viewed writing as a vehicle to establish my on-line presence. It served that purpose and inspired a new passion. Writing brought me full circle. Thanks to those efforts, one year later, I have an on-line presence and it’s up to me to control it through writing.
Copyright 2008 Paula Frazier is a referral marketing trainer, coach, consultant and keynote speaker. She is an Executive Director for BNI and part of a select team of Master Trainers for Referral Institute. She is also acknowledged in the New York Times best seller, Truth or Delusion – Busting Networkings Biggest Myths. Check out #33, Delusion with a twist! Paula can be contacted at paula@referralinstitute-va.com
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5. To Do This Week
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Half the year is over – review your business plan.
