Art Of Branding

Help Eradicate Death by PowerPoint

Every day, people make tens of thousands of business presentations and business pitches,
all around the world.

Most of them are very boring with way too much information.

That’s a lot of misery - on a global scale.

Yet despite the evidence, the blank eyes and fidgeting movements, most business
presenters turn on the PowerPoint, dim the lights, and put slides with tons of words on the
screen. There is no emotion in lots of bullet point facts, just too much information.

When Your Networking is Working, You’ll Know It.

When you have the right network in place, you’ll know it because:

You’ll be doing favors for others in the networking economy.

Many new networking acquaintances will become friends.

You will be able to build your visibility with finesse because you’ll be doing it
without seeming to be doing it.

Get in Front of a Bad Story

If you are about to get caught in a PR nightmare, try to take control of the story.

The old PR saying goes, “Tell them everything and tell them first.” If the news gets out in
front of you, thee are still things you can do, starting with an accounting of your side of
the story.

You have to give something up so that the news gets out of the news cycle.

When You Lose Your Reputation, You Lose a Lot

You have a lot to lose.

The name you spent a lifetime building, can be tarnished or even torn down very quickly.
Studies show that it takes a lot of promotion of “good acts” to build a reputation, yet a
only a little promotion of a “bad act” to tarnish it.

That’s why it’s wise to adopt the mindset that there are no secrets and that people will
find out everything.

So if you’re presented with something that would be truly destructive if it were known,
let that “opportunity” pass you by.

More than possessions, losing your reputation can severely damage your self-brand
identity.

Guard Your Reputation

Often people at the top of their game get a false sense of invulnerability.

In fact, the opposite is the case. You are more vulnerable.

Realize that when you become a bold face name, you will be living in a fishbowl.

People will be scrutinizing what you say and do more closely than when you were not
so well known. Some will be looking for mistakes or questionable activities. Jealous
competitors may try to take pot shots at you.

And as much as the media likes to build people up, the media likes to take people down.
The story of Ms. Big’s fall from grace sells. Or the juicy scandal that Mr. Big got caught
up in. It appeals to people’s schadenfeude - delight in the misfortune’s of others.

Why You Need to Say, “I Just Got Lucky”

People who achieve great things work smart to achieve what they do, often with the help
of business coaches, branding experts and public relations specialists.

But to say you planned your success goes against the grain of most people. It isn’t as
dramatic as emphasizing that bouts of serendipity you had and compressing all the years
of struggle and hard work.

But if you say, “Gee, I just got lucky. They needed an architect to design the new arts
center, and I guess I was in the right place at the right time.” Or, “I accidentally bumped
into an old school chum on Champs Elysees in Paris, and we got to talking…” Or “I
dropped my sandwich into the Petri dish and….”

Then your story has all the ingredients for success including a dollop of luck.

The Reality is that Desire and Planning Have More to do with Achievement than

Many people think it is “wrong” somehow to go after success.

It just isn’t “right.”

Our motives should be more noble such as changing the world for the better. (And they
might be that, too!)

The reality in almost every case is the opposite. Almost no one achieves great things or
becomes a well-known brand without wanting it and working very hard toward it.

Strategy, creativity and persistence have more to do with achieving success than luck.

Cast a Role for Lady Luck

Luck is the big white lie behind most professional success stores.

While I believe that you create your own “luck,” that doesn’t mean you can’t add a
dollop of luck to your story.

People attribute their success partially to luck, because it goes over much better
that way than telling people the truth. Namely, that you have been working 24/7 on
building the business and have suffered every hardship known to mankind.

Luck is a key element in most stories of achievement. Luck makes people look like
they had not “planned” their success or used PR or managers to promote themselves.

Cast a Role for Lady Luck

Luck is the big white lie behind most professional success stores.

While I believe that you create your own “luck,” that doesn’t mean you can’t add a
dollop of luck to your story.

People attribute their success partially to luck, because it goes over much better
that way than telling people the truth. Namely, that you have been working 24/7 on
building the business and have suffered every hardship known to mankind.

Luck is a key element in most stories of achievement. Luck makes people look like
they had not “planned” their success or used PR or managers to promote themselves.

Leadership Has a Halo Effect

As in the product world, personal leadership comes with a halo.

When people view you as a leader, they bestow you with a host of positive attributes—
and that can be a self-fulfilling prophecy.

The perception of success actually brings about more success, because, after all, you must
be better than others—you’re a leader!