I spent three weeks in the U.S. recently and ran across a few "only in
America" items...for instance, in the States you can now have the ashes of
your loved one compressed into a diamond mounted on a ring...you can take an
animal on board an airplane with you, if you have a doctor certify that you need it
for "emotional support." And airlines have had to up their estimate of passenger weight by ten pounds per person because so many Americans are obese (most
fast food places now let you "supersize" your order for only a bit more money).
Anyway, I hope the following will be useful...
1 . What would make your summer successful?
Often we define what success means to us in terms of our careers, but have
you stopped to think about what it means in the other aspects of your life?
How about what would make the next three months of your life an outstanding
period?
YOUR TURN: This is a good time to define what will make this a successful
summer for you. What do you want to do? When do you plan to do it? What will
give your summer a good balance of work and play? What pictures do you want to
have in your photo album in the Autumn?
2. Turning a potential weakness into a strength
Drew Hodges, Creative Director of Spot Design in New York, explained how he
was able to turn a potential weakness into a strength in the advertising
campaign for a Broadway production of "Chicago." The show was a
stripped-down
production, with platforms but no sets.
In an interview in "Creative Arts" magazine, Hodges said, "We often try to support a show's weak points...We had to find a way to own the show's minimalism...(We decided) let's make it look as if we always wanted it that way. Let's use black-and-white. Let's use fashion photography in which minimalism is an asset."
YOUR TURN: What is one weakness you know you have in your work (or another part of your life)? Brainstorm some ways you could turn it into an asset.
For example, let's say you're an introvert who finds it difficult to go to business
events to network. You could make up a list of people who you'd like to make aware of what you offer, and write them a letter that starts: "I confess! I hate networking events! But I'd like you to know what I offer, and to find out whether there are ways we might benefit each other. That's why I'm sending this letter..." I bet at least half the recipients will feel the same way about networking and will like the letter.
3. Are your eyes open?
When we travel, we tend to notice all kinds of things, maybe because we have a different mind-set when we're away from our usual surroundings. Can we do the same thing at home?
Artist Barbara Gordon has noted how one can tune in to the national psyche
anywhere: "Start by absorbing like a sponge. Read: read newspapers,
magazines, newsletters, books. Try to read all views, liberal, conservative, radical.
Make note of the popular songs, movies, TV series that are succeeding and those
that are failing. Go to seminars and meetings. Talk to friends, family,
clients, about their fears and aspirations. Talk to children, strangers about the
same things. Listen with an open mind to all points of view, and slowly you'll
see a pattern evolve. You'll have your finger on the current pulse."
YOUR TURN: Spend a day pretending you're a tourist in your own country and city. As you travel around, read the billboards, look at the store signs,
eavesdrop on the conversations. Find an excuse to talk to a few strangers
and ask them their opinions about where they live. You can take a camera along and
record the most interesting things you see.
4. What's your USP?
I've encountered the idea of a USP (Unique Selling Proposition) before. It
means the aspect of a product or service (or the person providing the
service)
that sets them apart from the competition. However, I was a bit surprised to read in International Artist magazine that it's just as important in the art world.
Art consultant Graeme Smith wrote, "When I was running my own gallery we
tried to identify the USP for each artist we represented...the more we
cemented the USP in the minds of our clients, the more easily they were
able to remember each artist and their work."
Here is Smith's advice on how to identify your USP:
1. Write down everything you do that is characteristic of you or your work.
2. Now go through your list and cross out all those points you have in common with other artists (or others in your profession). What you have left is your USP.
If you have crossed everything out, you need to consider what you'd like
your USP to be and then work toward it. Smith advises, "Don't allow yourself to
be sidetracked--you must be persistent...without (a USP) you are lost, you
won't even get noticed."
YOUR TURN: Do you already have a USP? It can be useful to ask colleagues what they think your USP is, and find out whether you are being perceived the way you'd like to be.
5. BIG IDEAS FROM SMALL PIECES
Related to the notion of a USP is the idea of identifying a niche market. In the book, "Niche and Grow Rich," by Jennifer Basye Sander and Peter Sander,
one suggestion is to look at how a big market can be broken up into smaller
ones. They give the example of an entrepreneur who saw the popularity of
frozen
meals for adults and came up with a line of frozen meals for kids. The
low-budget airlines are thriving now because they identified a sub-set of
the traveling
public, namely those who don't want frills if that means they can have
rock-bottom fares.
YOUR TURN: Within your field, what smaller chunks of the market might you serve? The elements you can play with include geographical location,
characteristics of the target audience, speed of service (remember Dominos
Pizza...), quality of service, exclusivity, and many more. This is a great exercise to
do with friends, especially if they aren't in the same field you're in--they'll bring fresh ideas to the table.
6. And last, but not least, a quote from Timothy Gallway from "the inner game of tennis":
"When we plant a rose seed in the earth, we notice that it is small, but we
do not criticise it as 'rootless' or 'stemless.' We treat it as a seed,
giving it the water and nourishment required by a seed. When it first shoots out of the earth, we don't condemn it as 'immature' and 'underdeveloped'; nor do we criticise the buds for not being open when they appear. We stand in wonder
at the process taking place and give the plant the care that it needs at each
stage of its growth. The rose is a rose from the time it is a seed to the time
that it dies. Within it, at all times, it contains its whole potential. It
seems to be constantly in the process of change; yet at each stage, at each
moment, it is perfectly all right as it is."
