Book Recommendations Continue...

I have a friend who is a media coach in LA; she gets actor, authors, movie directors and the like ready for doing interesting and compelling television appearances. She is having an interesting time with clients who are highly functioning performers, but have a hard time managing upwards or with people in power that are the ultimate customer in the game. When we spoke the other day, Love Is the Killer App (subtitled "How to Win Business and Influence Friends" by Tim Sanders immediately came to mind. This person needs to remember that hierarchy matters much less these days and that everyone is your customer (even if they are a pain in the ass).

The emerging new world order (no not that one) is one based on adding value such that all of your situations are ones that have much greater value with you inside than those without your involvement. We need to be ready to intelligently share our most prized intangibles with others to not only survive, but to thrive in today's (and tomorrow's) environment. Tim's first point is to share Knowledge that people can act from, while always learning. Then, share your Network; be willing to open your entire web of relationships if it adds value to the game. Lastly (and perhaps most importantly from where I sit), is to share your Compassion; reach out to others with warmth while having sympathetic awareness of their feelings, thoughts, and experiences; be both passionate and kind.

I resonated quickly with "Killer App" and still do; it is a simple and complete way for all of us to build our own sustainable competitive advantage. Build your personal brand, the shortcut people use to check their gut when sorting through all of the information and people in our worlds. Create an Experience and have people not only value the time they spend with you, but easily remember you and have a story to tell when they recommend you to others. Give (and get) Access to Attention, the most valuable commodity in our new century.

Tim now has a newer book out called The Likeability Factor. I am mid-way through it and am enjoying it and, although it is more of a remedial course for the unlikable, I am finding ways to continue to develop my L-Factor.

The True Joy in Life...

I came across this quote this morning as I was lying in bed recovering a bit from Friday night's INXS festivities with a strong coffee and a book (" The Last Word on Power" by Tracy Goss). A friend introduced me to it in 1982 and it really struck me at the time; it captures the spirit of what I do and why I do it, perhaps it will speak to you similarly.


"This is the true joy in life, the being used for a purpose recognized by yourself as a mighty one; the being thoroughly worn out before you are thrown on the scrap heap; the being a force of nature instead of a feverish selfish little clod of ailments and grievances complaining that the world will not devote itself to making me happy.
"I am of the opinion that my life belongs to the whole community and, as long as I live, it is my privilege to do for it whatever I can. I want to be thoroughly used up when I die, for the harder I work the more I live.
"I rejoice in life for its own sake. Life is no brief candle to me. It is sort of splendid torch which I've got to hold up for the moment and I want to make it burn as brightly as possible before handing it on to future generations."
- George Bernard Shaw