30
Apr
Case One:
I took part in my very first “Tweetup” the other day. (For those not in the know, a tweetup is an conversation on twitter with a group of people around a specific topic). The guest of honor in this conversation was Scott Stratten, author of Unmarketing. Here’s a well known and respected author, spending an hour answering the questions of the masses.
Case Two:
I’ve now conducted 30 in person interviews with some of the most celebrated business book authors of our time. Ok, sure, after the first few, it was a little easier to get time with these people, but the first couple? ActionableBooks.com was cruising around 150 unique visitors a month – a nothing. And yet Seth Godin and Gary Vaynerchuk were good enough to take time out of their (very) busy schedules to have an on camera chat.
So here’s my question – if these guys are making themselves available to the public, what are you doing? Can your clients contact you? Your fans? How “accessible” are you?
25
Apr
We want to know which of these brand new books you want Actionable Books to summarize next! Cast your vote here. Voting concludes Monday, April 30, 2012 at 12pm EST.
1. Living in Your Top 1% by Alissa Finerman
Regardless of where you are in your life, LIVING IN YOUR TOP 1% will give you the framework you need to turn your vision into a reality. In this empowering and thought-provoking book, Alissa Finerman shares the most powerful ingredients for success and translates them into nine simple and easy-to-implement rituals. Combining research from the best thinkers in the field with a collection of compelling stories, Alissa has created a comprehensive guide to reaching your true potential. The book helps to assess where you currently are in your life, identify the areas that you would like to excel in, and develop your own personal roadmap to get there.
2. Imagine: How Creativity Works by Jonah Lehrer
From the New York Times best-selling author of How We Decide comes a sparkling and revelatory look at the new science of creativity. Shattering the myth of muses, higher powers, even creative “types,” Jonah Lehrer demonstrates that creativity is not a single gift possessed by the lucky few. It’s a variety of distinct thought processes that we can all learn to use more effectively.
3. Liars and Outliers: Enabling the Trust that Society Needs to Thrive by Bruce Schneier
In this insightful and entertaining book, Schneier weaves together ideas from across the social and biological sciences to explain how society induces trust. He shows how trust works and fails in social settings, communities, organizations, countries, and the world.
4. Flip the Funnel: How to Use Existing Customers to Gain New Ones by Joseph Jaffe
Using [the] new “flipped funnel” model, together with a set of new rules of customer service and a revolutionary customer referral and activation process, you’ll learn how to transform your existing customers into your best salespeople. In addition, Jaffe will explain how to best introduce and combine both digital and social media tools to boost your loyalty arsenal, deploy “influencer marketing” and implement word-of-mouth strategies that inspire your loyal, opinionated, and most vocal customers to become credible, persuasive, and influential endorsers of your products and services.
21
Apr
I live in a city of over 3 million people – a stat that always pops back into my head when I come across yet another connection of two seemingly unconnected people in my network. It’s remarkable to me how I seem to constantly be running into people who know someone else I know – someone I’ve worked with, socialized with, or even just met in passing. Even in a major urban market, it really is a small world.
Which is why authenticity is really the only game in town. I don’t honestly care what your values are or how you see the world, but I sincerely encourage you to live by those values every minute of every day. The people you interact with are, simply, too interconnected for you to show one face to one person, another face to another person, and not expect that someday, they’re going to hear about it. And they’ll be disappointed. Because what we really want to know is that you are who you say you are. Who you act you are.
I’d rather know where you stand and disagree with your values, than find out afterwards that what we agreed on was nothing more than an act for you. I think most of us feel that way.
So be you. And if/when you slip up, apologize for it. Let us know it was out of character, and that you’re willing to admit your mistake. I’m in for the long term relationship build, and that only happens when I know who I’m dealing with.
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