Bill Baren Blog

Conscious Capitalism is based on the triple bottom line of people, planet and profit. Seth Godin reminds me today that it’s also about integrity. It’s not enough for integrity to be part of the personality of your business. Integrity must be a part of its essence.

Systems are always going to be manipulated by some. That’s inevitable. What’s happening today is that manipulation has become part of the system. How unfortunate it is that the people that choose not to manipulate are the ones going against the grain. Integrity is going against the grain. How sad is that?

We don’t have to play the game, we can, we should, we must create a new game. Integrity is a choice. It’s not an easy choice. Conscious Capitalism is about making conscious choices.

*** Thank you Andrea for such an appropriate post…

Business is unpredictable. Sometimes things happen that will blindside you. It’s inevitable. At the same time, it’s important to do what you can to minimize the risk of a disaster occurring.

Over the past weekend, my computer hard-drive failed. And yes, there was no recent back-up. I had not realized, until I spoke to a few drive doctors, how often this occurs in the business world. The on-line version of ER docs often have to go to extraordinary measures to bring back not only computers, but entire businesses back from the dead.

We are living in the information age. This weekend I was reminded that my business IS information and that perhaps I should protect it just a bit more.

What I learned is simple. Now let’s work on the execution part of it.

• Have a system for regular back-up of all of your computer information.
• Make sure that you have back-up in a remote location in case, there is a fire or a burglary of your office.
• It’s good to not only have a back-up of files, but also of the entire hard-drive so that you can get back to business much faster

I was in the middle of having an email discussion about procrastination with a friend and Coach Talk ezine reader of mine. In the middle of writing the email I noticed being inspired to write a blog post regarding this topic. So here I am happily writing. I was inspired. I caught and noticed the inspiration. I acted on my inspiration.

One simple way to avoid procrastination is to:

1. Get inspired (remember and feel why you want to do something in the first place)
2. Notice and catch that inspiration
3. Use the energy of the inspiration to do something about it NOW.

Inspiration gives us the energy for action that requires minimal effort and maximum flow.

• In the moment when you are inspired to write — write
• In the moment when you are excited about your marketing plan — execute the plan
• In the moment when you feel gratitude towards your clients — call a perspective client
• In the moment you get the urge to exercise — go for a run
• In the moment you feel love for someone — call them and let them know

Seize the moment of inspiration as it creates the intersection of wanting and needing to do something.

The practice of using popular keywords to describe our products and services is considered the smart thing to do in the world of internet marketing. We are told that we’ll get more traffic flowing to our sites and we’ll sell more products.

What we often forget is that when a word or a phrase is over-used, it loses its power and often its meaning, as well.

Organic is losing its meaning - Organic Cheetos clinched the deal
Thinking outside the box is only used by people thinking in the box
The tipping point has tipped and has spilled over
Porn well, it’s still porn and somehow still sells without losing its meaning

We are so often reminded to be innovative with our products. I want to remind you to be innovative with your language. Meaning is more important then a keyword.

* At the risk of losing the meaning of Seth Godin, I want to once again thank him and his post for inspiring this thought of mine.

Connie Chung strays so far off her Zone of Genius — it hurts. This is a reminder that action motivated by our ego rather then our true Zone of Genius can have disastrous results.
Warning!!! This clip will hurt.

Thank you, poplicks, for the heads up…

The gap between cheap and expensive is widening. According to Seth Godin, the price of a cheap bike used to be $39 while an expensive bike was $300 (8:1 ratio). Now a bad bike costs $69 while the top-of-the-line model goes for upwards of $8000 (116:1 ratio on the premium model).

I find it that many of my clients are often afraid of raising their prices or setting their prices at a premium in the first place. It’s impossible to compete on cheap for a boutique operation. It’s more fulfilling AND profitable to sell something remarkable and charge a premium for it.

_______________

• What’s remarkable about your product or services?
• Are you currently undercharging?
• How can you repackage what you already market or sell to get more of a premium for it?

Singularity of purpose, clarity of vision and lack of any doubt is what we expect of our leaders. They are either pro-environment or pro-business, pro-choice or pro-life, fiscal conservatives or social progressives. We like it that way. It makes us feel RIGHTEOUS. — Econtrario

We all have our unshakable beliefs. How do they serve us? What do we gain from limiting our perspective? Can passion come from the grey area of the black & white spectrum?

I am committed to my evolution to not only see grey, but to lead from that flexible stance. I want to be powerful and flexible at the same time and I know it’s possible.

I want to thank Econtrario for inspiring me

The best way to market your services is to first understand what exactly you are marketing.

Robert Middleton suggests to combat flabby marketing by writing. Answering the questions below will get you a better understanding of your own services or products:

- What exactly is your service and why should I be interested?
- Is this service for me? Will it work for me and/or my business?
- What kind of results can I expect with this service?
- Who else has used this service and what were their results?
- How exactly do your services work? What’s the process and structure?
- Are you credible? Do you have the experience to help me?
- What do I have to do next to get and use your services?