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Showing posts from October, 2017

Maintaining a Work/Life Balance: Why Perspective Is Key

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Work/life balance? No problem, right? But then those daily tasks start to add up and your nights start getting longer. You start going in on the occasional Saturday, then the "frequent" Saturday. Pretty soon you're so bogged down with your "to-do" list that you can't even think about taking that vacation with your family. Maintaining a proper work/life balance is a challenge, sure - but it's also a lot easier than you might think. Enjoying Life is a Task, Too When the pendulum that is your work/life balance begins to swing decidedly in the direction of "work, work, work," you start to encounter a few key problems almost immediately. You're trying to do too much at the same time, and the quality of work tends to suffer. You're also getting burned out, which leads to less getting done because you lack the motivation to push on when you need it the most. This is a large part of the reason why experts agree that you should l

3 Signs to Help You Identify if Your Market is Changing

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So much of your marketing success depends on your ability to get the right message in front of the right people at exactly the right time. To accomplish this, you need to know your audience - and the market that they inhabit - as intimately as possible. But what happens if one day, suddenly and without warning, that market begins to change? Worse yet, what happens if this trend started while you weren't necessarily paying as much attention as you should have been? The answer is both unfortunate and straightforward: you'll be stuck playing "catch up." This is a situation that you do NOT want to find yourself in. Here are a few key signs that indicate a market change may be taking place. Product Innovation Is No Longer a Key Value Driver You've worked hard to build a robust and stable business and nobody offers what you do in quite the same way. You've had a tremendous amount of success relying on this type of innovation up to this point as a res

Print Advertising Feels Like Printing Money

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Wouldn't it be great if you could print your own money? Life would be so much easier, right? Well, maybe not, but here's a little secret that feels like printing money: print advertising. Print Advertising is Like Printing Money Good advertising can go a long way for your business. Sometimes it's hard to explain what good advertising is, but you know it when you've seen it. Whether it's a heartfelt image or a tagline that makes you think, there's just something about incredible advertising that has a way to move and motivate you. Good print advertising can inspire you to make a change, donate to a cause, or purchase that cool, new tech device. It provides everyone who passes it, holds it, or takes it out of a mailbox the chance to see that printed information. And, since print advertising is often locally targeted, it means that you can create a far more personal connection to your community than you can with digital ads. Every time someone sees

Want to Be Successful? Take Time to Dream

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One of the most famous dreamers of our time is Steve Jobs, the Co-founder and CEO of Apple, an iconic visionary who believed so deeply in the power of his dreams that he was able to bring them to life for millions of people. Jobs believed that the era of mediocrity was over and that you should put in the work on every project to make it great. His famous recommendation to a Disney retail executive to "Dream bigger" when it came to Disney stores resulted in a new type of store experience that continues to delight children of all ages. How can you leverage these same tactics and take the time to dream big in your own life? Dream Fearlessly Individuals often lose confidence in their dreams because everyday reality creeps in and has a way of tamping down your passion. Big dreamers are different. Even if you think they're relentlessly optimistic, it requires constant hard work and commitment to make dreams come true, and a fearless need to be successful. Believe in

What Leadership Really Means in the Era of Working Remotely

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More employees are working remotely than ever before. According to research conducted by GlobalWorkplaceAnalytics.com , roughly 50% of the workforce in the United States holds a job that is "compatible" with at least partial telework. Of those people, about 20 to 25% of them actually do work remotely at some frequency. More than that, a further 80 to 90% say that they would really like to work remotely at least part time - pointing to a trend that is only going to get more popular as time goes on. Employees who are all able to work from home (or wherever they'd like, really) sounds fantastic... if you're an employee. But what if you're an employer? More than that, what if you're a leader? How do you continue to do your job of bringing people together to benefit the greater good if they're all spread out over a potentially massive geographic area? The Job Hasn't Changed... The "good news" is that the leadership qualities requir

The Private Life of Mail

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You know how your marketing pieces are born. You have an intimate knowledge of how they are designed, produced, and mailed. But what happens once they reach your customer’s door?  Thanks to an 18-month research project that included field research, ethnography, and quantitative and neuroscience research, we know what actually happens to mail once it enters the customer’s home.  In “The Private Life of Mail,” 1 researchers found that while we live in a fast-paced digital culture, we are still physical creatures who thrive on human contact and stimulation. “Giving, receiving, and handling tangible objects remain deep and intuitive parts of the human experience,” the research concludes.  Here are some detailed results...  3 9% of Consumers Display the Mail Thirty-nine percent of consumers say they have a dedicated display area in their home where they put mail. This reinforces the value of great design. The takeaway? Design something creative and fun, and it will g

The Persisting Power of Loyalty

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What is loyalty? Loyalty is words combined with actions. It is devotion tested by time. It is steadfast security that grows from a most prized character quality. Theodore Roosevelt said, "It is better to be faithful than famous." American author Elbert Hubbard agreed: "If put to a pinch, an ounce of loyalty is worth a pound of cleverness." Relationally, loyalty builds trust, security, affection, and the ability to thrive. The same is true professionally - only as we build loyal customers and employees will we begin to see business prosper and flourish to its fullest potential. So how can you grow something so intangible, yet so critical, to the foundation of your organization? Three Primary Pathways The good news is, you already have buy-in at some level. Whether you have a small business or thousands of employees, customers and co-workers have entrusted you with their money, their well-being, or their future. And people who have "bought in" ar

Your Company's Waste Makes This Man Rich

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Matt Malone would probably be considered an odd fellow and maybe even mentally ill by those seeing him on the street. However, for those who know Malone personally, they might think that he's a genius. Malone is, in modern terms, known as a dumpster diver . That involves essentially going into large dumpster bins and rummaging around to see what people have thrown away. Malone was first introduced to the practice by accident when working in a company that got rid of far too much valuable, working equipment. What he realized at first was that the items were still usable, valuable, and most importantly, functional. However, when he took them home and started making inventions with the items, he realized something more - people wanted what he was finding and were willing to pay real cash for the items. Diamonds in the Rough Today, Malone is at an expert level, finding gems in the rough and converting them into sales of hundreds and even thousands of dollars. In fact, h

4 Productivity Tools That Will Give You Back Your Sanity

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Whether you're working from home or the office, distractions happen, and they can be a productivity killer. Nearly everyone has an example of weeks that you look back on and wonder "What happened? I know I was busy . . . " while still feeling as though you've accomplished nothing. With deadlines crashing down on your head and the constant demands of family and work, it's important to be as productive as possible to maintain your sanity. These productivity tools are vetted by experts to help bring balance back to your life -- while still getting things done. 1. Time Trackers Even if you're not a fan of tracking every task that comes across your desk, a time tracker can provide a valuable way to give yourself mental freedom from specific tasks. For instance, what if instead of tracking the time you're doing something, you track the time when you're not doing something -- like checking email? Set a timer for three hours and (gasp!) close your emai

4 Ways to Incorporate Humor at Work

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Nothing is more embarrassing than telling a joke and having it fall flat at work, but don't let that stop you from adding appropriate humor to the workplace, as it can be a great way to reduce tension and improve overall relations. Having fun with the people you spend at least 40 hours per week with can raise your mood and boost camaraderie throughout your office. Here are some of the top ways you can incorporate humor at work: 1. Hire for Personality and Cultural Fit When you're the hiring manager or simply someone able to have input into hiring processes, try to look for someone to join the team who approaches work seriously, and themselves lightly. This could come in the form of an easy smile, a little self-deprecating humor, or the ability to find the amusing side in everyday situations that others may consider stressful. When you have someone on your team who can inject some fun into the workplace, it gives others permission to crack a smile as well. 2. Enc