Duane's Dartboard

Classic Countdown — In the month leading up to the fourth anniversary of this blog’s launch, I am sharing my favorite posts. This was published on Sept. 23, 2011.

This weekend I will be missing my high school reunion.

There in the brisk, rarefied air of Colorado, my former classmates will come together on the site where we once ruled the world. All weekend—especially late into Saturday night—my friends will reminisce about those Camelot years, that special time we now call “the good old days.”

I wish I could be there for three reasons. First, I really like the people I went to high school with. Second, I would find it reinvigorating to relive those special days that were filled with so much fun. Finally, I feel a need to defend my reputation when Kenny, the quintessential storyteller, regales our alumni group with wild stories that are always embellished and often fabricated.

Yes, those were the good old days, and they were good for the following reasons:

My selective memory

I am certain those high school days were not as wonderful as they now appear when relived through filtered memories and creative storytelling. Having a selective memory helps me to forget the bad and focus on the good. I prefer it that way.

To make today one of tomorrow’s “good old days” I will deliberately focus on the positive and minimize thinking about whatever might be lurking in the dark, sinister shadows.

Our teenage innocence

It felt like a simpler time back then. We didn’t know what we didn’t know, and that innocence made the world seem safer, warmer and even more colorful. Back then we were not saturated with 24/7 television “news” channels, nor did Twitter trends feed us with unending access to breaking news.

To make today one of tomorrow’s “good old days” I will regularly find quiet times when I can withdraw temporarily from the chaos and terror that threatens to destroy our world. Read the rest of this entry »

Classic Countdown — In the month leading up to the fourth anniversary of this blog’s launch, I am sharing my favorite posts. This was published on Aug. 20, 2009.

Having earned a master’s degree in marketing, I feel confident in asserting that marketing is not really all that complicated.

When I taught marketing at a local university, the CEO of a major company invited me to speak at the planning retreat of his regional managers. He sheepishly asked, “Can you condense into 15 minutes everything you teach in a 16-week class?” Tongue-in-cheek, I replied, “Actually, I only have 15 minutes of marketing knowledge. The hard part is stretching that over an entire semester.”

In more than 20 years of working on projects and coaching others as they engaged in their own marketing endeavors, I have learned the following 10 things about marketing:

1. Marketing is based upon common sense, though such sense is uncommon.
2. The social media revolution is the best thing to happen to marketing in a long, long time—even though the rules for marketing success are forever changed.
3. Old-school marketers who try to tightly control the message will become increasingly frustrated, disoriented and ultimately obsolete.
4. If you’re not creating community and engaging people in conversations, then you’re still living in a 1.0 world—even if you are using 2.0 tools and technology.
5. Communications comes at the end of the marketing process, not at the beginning.
6. If you aim your message at no one in particular, don’t be surprised if no one in particular responds.
7. Marketing will always flounder when not in pursuit of a measurable goal.
8. If a product, service or person cannot be differentiated, it cannot be marketed.
9. Without a quid-pro-quo exchange, you’ll never have a solid marketing program. After all, marketing is the exchange of something of value for something you need.
10. Value can be defined only by the customer, not the company producing the product or service. (Nonprofit organizations especially have trouble with this.)

From your experience, what additional observations can you share? Can you elaborate on any of these axioms? Do you disagree with any of them?

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Classic Countdown — In the month leading up to the fourth anniversary of this blog’s launch, I am sharing my favorite posts. This was published on Aug. 19, 2009.

Helen Keller was right when she said, “The most pathetic person in the world is someone who has sight, but has no vision.” It seems like everyone talks about the importance of vision, but very few people have a vivid image of what they hope their future will look like.

Following are 10 things I’ve observed during more than 20 years of work experience:

1. Where there is no vision, people perish.
2. In the land of the blind, the one-eyed man is king.
3. Tactics not tied to strategy are nothing more than busywork.
4. When you and I are not pursuing the same goal, then we’re not on the same team.
5. When you and I focus on the same goal from different vantage points, we have stereoscopic vision that gives us better depth perception.
6. The effectiveness of a vision statement can be measured in its ability to inspire people to rally around a shared picture of what can be—and must be—their new reality.
7. A compelling vision is future-focused and usually threatens those deeply vested in the status quo.
8. Progress always requires change, but not all change is progress.
9. Every project can be improved by periodically asking, “Why are we doing this?”
10. As Stephen Covey says, it is essential to “begin with the end in mind.”

What would you add? Have you been inspired by someone who had an exceptional vision for the future? What did you learn from that person? How did he or she inspire you?

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Classic Countdown — In the month leading up to the fourth anniversary of this blog’s launch, I am sharing my favorite posts. This was published on Aug. 18, 2009.

One of my favorite songs is Louis Armstrong’s rendition of What a Wonderful World. It reminds me that our time in this world can be a wonderful adventure, especially if we don’t take ourselves too seriously.

Together we share life’s journey, though we may be at different places along the path. I’ve traveled quite a few miles, and though I’m no philosopher, I’ve learned a few things along the way. For the benefit of my fellow travelers, I share the following observations:

1. Everything happens for a reason.
2. Meaning and purpose can always be found in the midst of chaos.
3. Knowing some of the questions is better than having all of the answers.
4. Every thought, every choice and every action has consequences.
5. What one focuses upon in life expands.
6. We live in a world of abundance where there’s enough for everyone.
7. In a win-lose situation, there are usually no winners.
8. Diversity divides when we only focus on differences, but it enriches when we build on those things we share in common.
9. No matter how good the “good old days” may have seemed, we’ve got to believe that our best days are yet to come.
10. Life only makes sense when viewed from an eternal perspective.

Okay, that’s my initial list. What do you think? I’d like to hear what you’ve learned from your own, unique journey.

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