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Stay Positive

As someone who loves to write and seems to have a gift for connecting dots in a few short paragraphs, I utilize my talent by creating marketing copy for some of our clients. It’s a great way to keep my skills sharp – and, as I like to say, pays the lease on our college student’s car.

Earlier today I received an email from one client regarding the e-newsletter proof I sent him last week. Over the previous 30 issues, only once has he said, ‘This one doesn’t work for us,’ and I quickly had to turnaround a rewrite from scratch. So when today’s message was: ‘Let’s talk about the newsletter this morning,’ my first thought was, ‘Guess I missed the mark again. Now I’m going to have to make time I don’t have today to redo it.’

I called him and the first thing he said was, “I’m sorry, my knee flared up last week and I haven’t had a chance to take a look at your copy. I just wanted you to know I hadn’t forgotten about it.’ There’s a good chance he felt my sigh of relief, even though he’s 1,800 miles away.

The psychological term for thinking the worst before knowing the facts is negative anticipation… and it’s something I have to continually remind myself to avoid. While I am typically a positive ‘glass half full’ guy, when it comes to my children being out at night or Texas football games or cryptic emails, my amygdala sometimes runs away from me, and I have to tell it to keep quiet. That part of the brain is a tricky one… and if you’re not careful it will convincingly lead you down the wrong path.

One of the announcers I worked with back in my television days told me, ‘Kid, you’re like a quarterback who’s afraid to throw an interception. If you’re not willing to fling it downfield, you’re never going to throw a touchdown pass.’ That’s wisdom worth always remembering.

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Beholder’s Eye

Imagine being a marketing executive for Budweiser or Doritos or Pepsi – and having the pressure to deliver a Super Bowl ad that’s more entertaining and effective than last year. You might come up with the memorable ‘Weego’ featuring a dog that fetches Bud Light when you call its name or create the clever ‘sling baby’ that snags a bag of chips out of big brother bully’s hands. Then again, you might have a distorted opinion that your audience is moved to make a purchase because you show Danica Patrick scantily clad or David Beckham in his briefs.

Sometimes I wonder who has more pressure in ‘America’s Biggest Sporting Event’: the players and coaches or the advertisers. Yesterday’s game really didn’t have a clear winner in the ‘what happens during timeouts at $3.5 million every 30 seconds’ category. I heard a radio announcer this morning say, “We kept waiting and nothing outstanding ever appeared.”

The challenge with trying to top your greatest hit is it’s difficult to keep raising the bar. (Think about Madonna’s new single as compared to some of her best-known releases.) That’s why some are questioning Tom Brady’s legacy today… as if taking his team to five Super Bowls isn’t enough of a career accomplishment. On the other hand, experts are talking Hall of Fame for Eli Manning. What a difference a couple of minutes make at sports’ highest level.

For the rest of us mere mortals, perhaps it’s best to just try and be a little better each day. Over time that makes a big difference in the results of your company. Most of all, thank your stars there aren’t 80,000 people and a billion more around the world watching you work right now.

For the record, at the Super Bowl party I attended, laughs were loudest for these five spots:

M&M’s – ‘It’s that kind of a party’
Doritos – ‘Dog buries cat collar’
Skechers – ‘Mr. Quigley dog racing’
ETrade – ‘Speed Dating’
Acura – ‘Jerry Seinfeld’

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Unique Opportunity

Listening to ESPN Radio in the lead-up to Sunday’s Super Bowl, I heard several former players talk about their career experiences. The Patriots’ All-Pro linebacker Teddy Bruschi mentioned playing in five championship games over 12 years. When he said it was no fun losing two of the Roman numeral classics, an ex defensive tackle – who never got there in a decade of chances – said, “I’m not feeling sorry for you.”

The Super Bowl, of course, is the biggest thing in American sports, with the nation – and many around the world – stopping to watch the plays, see the halftime performance and check out the new commercials. It’s become a tradition to gather with family and friends each February for cheering, celebration and critiquing… and a lot of good food.

My personal brush with greatness that is the Super Bowl happened 30 years ago this month. As a 21-year-old producer of sports at a local television station in Dallas, my heart was ripped out when Dwight Clark out-leaped Everson Walls to beat the Cowboys in the NFC Championship and send the 49ers on to Detroit where they won the first of their five titles. I was standing just yards away when he made what came to be forever known as ‘The Catch.’ Unfortunately, that’s the closest I’ve come to making it to football’s summit.

So when you watch the Super Bowl, regardless of which team you’re rooting for, think about all the players who will only have this one opportunity to perform on that stage. It takes years of hard work and dedication to make it in the NFL, and a few athletes will never again experience such lofty heights. Here’s hoping it’s a great game… and some unheralded player turns in the performance of his life.

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Look Inward

Over the weekend a Focus Group I facilitate met in Naples, FL to once again take an in-depth look at the financial, marketing and operational sides of their businesses. Many of these seven franchisees rank among the sales leaders in their system, yet they value the importance of getting together each quarter to share, challenge and learn from one another.

Among the key metrics tracked and reviewed are Percentage of Salaries compared to Sales and Sales per Employee. One member has lagged in these categories for a while, so the group recommended it’s time to address the situation by either changing the makeup of the workforce, reducing headcount or increasing sales to make the ratios fall into line.

Not surprisingly, there was pushback to this suggestion, with the franchisee saying things like: “In our market we wouldn’t get a single resume if we advertised for anything less than what we currently pay,” “We couldn’t get out the door this much sales without the skills these folks bring” and “If we were to reduce salaries even slightly, there would be an uprising.”

Of course, the other owners and me countered with: “How will you know until you try?” “Might it be possible bringing in new energy in a few positions might give you more capacity?” and “So you’re happy with your employees maintaining their income while yours continues to fall as health insurance and other expenses rise?”

Owning your own business means you take all the risks. You cover mistakes out of your profit. You pay yourself last. Every franchisee or small business owner I know previously worked for someone else at some point during their career, so they’ve seen both sides. It may seem cold-hearted to make tough decisions about your employees, yet it’s part of the responsibility that comes with being the boss. As one of my first clients told me nine years ago, “The only place a business will run itself is into the ground.”

When the numbers don’t add up and cash flow is tight, you have to make the difficult call to protect the organization. Otherwise, one day you may wake up and be out of business.

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Lessons Learned – #1

For the past 10 days I’ve shared the top things I learned during 2011… from our December e-newsletter. Number one focuses on an organization that’s doing good things. (Remember, there are still a few hours remaining to make a donation and get that year-end tax deduction!):

Helping Others – Finally, if you’re looking to support a worthy cause at year-end, consider Helen Keller International, which operates in 22 countries and puts 85% of donations to work for those in need. Founded nearly 100 years ago by its famous namesake, HKI seeks ‘to combat the causes and consequences of blindness and malnutrition.’ A $25 contribution will provide prescription glasses for a child. Blessed by your generous gift of vision that youngster might grow up to impact the world.