The Person to See

Big Russ Puts It All In Perspective

If you have not read Tim Russert's tribute to his Dad entitled Big Russ & Me you are missing something special.

Here's some of Big Russ' favorite lines...

The world doesn't owe you a favor

If you are not on the field you can't recover a fumble

And my favorite...

What a Country

Treat yourself.  Go out and get this book and read it.

The Priceless Value of the Golden Rule

I am pleased to report that so far this year we have continued to have much success despite all the doom and gloom in the marketplace.  I think it has a lot to do with the fact that we invest in people not transactions.  Even if things should take a turn for the worst I don't expect the same disaster some have experienced.

One of the biggest mistakes I witness in the business community is the how poorly many business people treat others calling on them for business.  It amazes me how many people complain about how disrespectfully they are treated by their prospects and than turn around and treat their own prospects exactly the same way.  It happens with me and my own clients all the time.

Prospects will come to me and tell me about how they'd like it to be with people they are calling on and then I see them do exactly the same thing to people calling on them (sometimes me included and they don't even realize it!)

Every successful person I've ever done business with has told me the same thing, "You reap what you sow."  If you want to be treated like class than treat others the same way.

Personal branding has less to do with products and services and more to do with relationships and people.

The Priceless Value of the Golden Rule

I am pleased to report that so far this year we have continued to have much success despite all the doom and gloom in the marketplace.  I think it has a lot to do with the fact that we invest in people not transactions.  Even if things should take a turn for the worst I don't expect the same disaster some have experienced.

One of the biggest mistakes I witness in the business community is the how poorly many business people treat others calling on them for business.  It amazes me how many people complain about how disrespectfully they are treated by their prospects and than turn around and treat their own prospects exactly the same way.  It happens with me and my own clients all the time.

Prospects will come to me and tell me about how they'd like it to be with people they are calling on and then I see them do exactly the same thing to people calling on them (sometimes me included and they don't even realize it!)

Every successful person I've ever done business with has told me the same thing, "You reap what you sow."  If you want to be treated like class than treat others the same way.

Personal branding has less to do with products and services and more to do with relationships and people.

A Breath Of Fresh Air Amidst The Dirty Game Of Politics

A client of mine recently gave me Write It When I'm Gone: Remarkable Off The Record Conversations With Gerald R. Ford.  I highly recommend it to anyone who wants an inside glimpse of how to conduct yourself as a gentleman no matter the circumstances.

Write It When I'm Gone is a wonderful study of personal brand management in action. President Ford never lost perspective on manners, honesty and most importantly who he was even as he rose from a fairly modest Congressman to the highest office in the land.

An Ounce Of Your Word Is Worth More Than All The Gold In The World

I can't tell you how many times people give me their word only to back out at the last second, offering some half-hearted excuse as if it justifies their behavior.  Your word is all you have.  It is the one thing no one can ever take from you.  You can only give it away.

Guard it with your life.

As the economy presents new challenges there will probably be many opportunities for you to test yourself on the credibility of your word.  Will you honor your commitments no if's and's or but's or will you do what is good for you regardless of your word?

Tough times don't build character they reveal it.

At Least One Guy's Happy About The Mitchell Steroid Report

I was watching Sports Center the other day when I noticed a guy named Bobby Petrino signed on to coach the Arkansas Razorbacks football program.  I thought how funny that there are two guys named Petrino who coach football ( one who coaches the Atlanta Falcons and the other now the head coach of the Razorbacks).

Than I learned that the new coach of the Razorbacks was actually the same Bobby Petrino who coached the Falcons.  You see Petrino, the same guy who preached teamwork and the need to finish, actually quit the Falcons in mid season!

Being the class guy he is told his players he was resigning in a 70 word letter he left in front of their lockers which they discovered when they came to practice the next day.  What a sissy.

So what do you think Bobby Petrino's personal brand is?  Oh I'd say Quitter or maybe Coward.

Just the kind of guy I'd want coaching my kid.  NOT!

Sorry to be so negative but I was just so disgusted when I learned what Petrino did to his players.

A lesson We Can All Learn From

I was in Ralph's Supermarket the other day and had an experience that just blew me away.  Sadly, not in a good way.

I was standing in the check out line behind a woman who was talking on the phone and reading one of those tabloid trash magazines.  It was clear from her actions that all that mattered in the world to this woman were her own needs. 

The cashier, doing her job apparently rung the magazine up in the lady's order.  This woman seeing what the cashier did in an almost disgusted manner said, "I don't want this (referring to the magazine)."  Her tone also implied a "Why would you think I would want this magazine attitude?" as if the cashier should have been able to read the woman's mind.

I guess it never dawned on the customer that she freely used and presumably enjoyed the magazine and therefore should have paid for it.  But then again that would have necessitated her thinking about others.  Not her strong suit.

It gets worse.  Once her bags were packed she simply put the magazine down on that little counter where we swipe our credit cards and sign our receipts.  Two things struck me.  First, she obviously had no respect for the cashier and felt that this lowly serf should put the magazine back in its proper place.  Second, we mere mortals who were behind this debutante were insignificant fools and our need to move through the line swiftly and have an open space on which to swipe and sign for our groceries were inconsequential.

Man I was steaming when I left the store.  I am just so sick and tired of people who have this sense of entitlement.  You know why she acted the way she did?  Because she can.  Great brands do things that are right even if they can get away with not doing them.

You want to stand out?  Practice impeccable manners.  It is a rarity today.

Contrition Is The First Step On The Path To Redemption

Personal Branding is as much about brand protection as it is about brand promotion.  We will all make mistakes in our lives.  Whether our personal brand credibility will be tarnished will depend on how we respond to such adversity.

The fastest way to begin to put your mistakes behind you is to acknowledge your error, apologize and ask for forgiveness from your peers.  You don't have to grovel.  Just be sincere.

New England Patriots Coach Bill Belichick is a great case study.  This past week he got caught cheating.  Specifically, his coaching staff was caught videotaping the other team's in an effort to steal the other teams signals.  All in violation of explicit rules prohibiting such conduct.

Belichick's response was pathetic.  In a sense what he said was "I apologize if my interpretation of the rules...."  The guys a cheat plain and simple and until he acknowledges his stupidity and genuinely accepts that what he did was wrong the press should not let him put this behind him.

Let's see how much of a man Belichick is.  The extent that this continues to be a distraction to the team and the league depends upon the class or lack thereof of Bill Belichick.  My money is on the press for once.

Robert E. Lee's Personal Brand Saved The Union

You might be wondering how the General of the Confederacy, whose army killed so many Union soldiers could be responsible for saving the Union.  For the complete answer I strongly recommend you read Jay Winik's 1865: The Month That Saved America. A masterful analysis of the final month of the Civil War.

Winik set out to answer a very thought-provoking question: why didn't the American Civil War destroy America?  Winik's theory which is supported by substantial evidence is that when the end was apparent for the Confederecy, its military leader, General Robert E. Lee, rather than retreat into the countryside and fight a protracted guerrilla war that would wear down the Northern Army and most certainly destroy the Country, told his men "it was over and it was their duty to return home to their farms and be good citizens."

The greatness of Lee was his willingness to put what was right above his own ego.  Throughout the war Lee maintained perspective.  The war was about a cause, not he and his reputation.  That's why when Lee surrendered to Grant at Appomattox Lee's troops gave him a standing ovation as he returned to camp to officially announce the surrender.  More than money and fame, Lee had influence.

In sharp contrast, Jefferson Davis, the President of the Confederacy wanted to see Lee and his men "fight to the death."  Taking their cue from Lee, the other Confederate generals, Joe Johnston et. al. all surrendered one by one.

And thus, because of the credibility of one man's personal brand the the United States was saved from being savagely torn asunder despite suffering more than 650,000 deaths and more than 1,000,000 casualties.   

If You Want Your Personal Brand to Stand Out Today - All You Need to Do is Keep Your Word

The musical chairs which is going on in the college basketball coaching ranks right now is nothing short of pathetic.  It seems that one's word is essentially worthless when it comes to honoring one's contractual commitment.

Case in point number one;  Billy Gillespie, formerly of the Texas A&M Aggies now of the Kentucky Wildcats.  At the conclusion of Gillespie's record breaking season, the University rewarded Gillespie with a  seven year multi-million dollar contract.  In return, when offered the Kentucky job a couple of weeks later Gillespie jumped ship.

His justification.  It's an opportunity of a lifetime.  Tell that to the kids who relied upon Gillespie's fraudulent promises that he was at Texas A&M to stay.

Gillespie has company.  Bob Huggins, who was run out of the University of Cincinnati a few years ago largely because of a pathetically low graduation rate was given a second chance by Kansas State. After leading K State to a respectable season record and an appearance in this year's NCAA tournament Huggins bolted on the remaining five years of his contract for his dream job at West Virginia.

You know, sometimes you just have to do the right thing, even if it means having to settle for a multi-year, multi-million dollar contract at a highly visible program.

The truth is these guys revealed their true colors.  Texas A&M and K State are better of without them.