Urgencies

Add up enough urgencies and you don't get a fire, you get a career. A
career putting out fires never leads to the goal you had in mind all
along.

I guess the trick is to make the long term items even more urgent
than today's emergencies. Break them into steps and give them
deadlines. Measure your people on what they did today in support of
where you need to be next month.

If you work in an urgent-only culture, the only solution is to make
the right things urgent.

... Seth says.

http://tinyurl.com/384ay5

ER - Elkhorn #1 of 3 - Marketing Emergencies

We were headed down to Elkhorn last weekend for Sunday Brunch with my nieces.

I did the Google maps search and narrowed the search with the term Restaurants.

Among the many that came up were Fiddlesticks Cafe, Sugar Creek Inn,
and Wild Flower Cafe.

The Fiddlestickscafe.com website has 4 text links for Location,
Breakfast Menu, Lunch Menu, and Dinner Menu - all broken. When you put the mouse over the 'button', the address for the link shows that each file is located on the web designer's F drive, not on the internet where it belongs. Also, they are using a Hotmail account as their main email address. Seems they could use something like info@fiddlestickscafe.com.

We went to Fiddlesticks because Sarah had been there once. She said the food was fine. It was brunch time. We ate from the breakfast menu.

Sarah had a caramel apple waffle - I think. Tasty. Pat had Bananas Foster which were very good. Emily had a bacon burger which I was not able to taste. It must have also been very good considering the way she was hanging on to it. And I had the Riviera; a Spanish omelette.
I would order it again. That good.

I also had printed out the problem with their website and included a business card. It was a little busy and i was not able to meet the owner. Perhaps next time.

ER - Elkhorn #2 of 3 - Marketing Emergencies

Sugar Creek Inn, as represented by foodspot.com/sugarcreekinn, has a
paragraph where the spaces that should be between the words are
filled with "&nbsp", as in:

"Amenities: Banquet Facilities,&nbspChildren's Menu,&nbspFish
Fry,&nbspGift" On and on it went.

And, Sugar Creek Inn is just 4 miles off the interstate highway -
just not the highway shown on the map. It should be I-43 not I-94.

Not that I couldn't have figured it out.

You can be sure that I will update someone besides you, dear reader.

It's my job.

Elkhorn #3 of 3 - Marketing Emergencies

From the Google restaurant searches in Elkhorn, WI.

Wildflower Cafe‎

www.wildflowercafeelkhorn.com/
Error 404 - Not found
Your browser can't find the document corresponding to the URL you
typed in.

Fiddlesticks.

That's where we went instead of the Wildflower.

Fwd: Web sites are opening up college classrooms

>
> Tim,
>
> Last time we met I told you about the article I read in the Journal.
>
> Web sites are opening up college classrooms
>
> Here it is http://tinyurl.com/2umh3d
>
> Thought it mght be interesting.
>
>
> dlw
>

Portfolio

While most of my current writing samples appear as Samples here on the blog, I also have a couple pdf's that you can look at here: http://yourmessagedoctor.com/portfolio.

Do not add to the clutter, add to the community.

About two weeks ago I caught a link to Seth Godin and read a little something. I clicked up the CountyCat library system and ordered All Marketers Are Liars. I also noted that many, if not all, of Seth’s books are in the Milwaukee County Library system. Yaay Milwaukee.

Since that time (two weeks), I have read another 5 books. They are short and fast. There is some repetition, though not too much. Reading them went fast. Digesting them, assimilating them, putting them to good use is another story. Perhaps a self-styled study is in order. I took a few notes and pulled a few quotes. And before I put them back on the shelves I will scan them again.

Seth is talking marketing. He puts together great stories that bring the history of marketing and advertising to life. And he shows the writhing, painful birth into new media channels.

He is talking about defining oneself by dominating your micro-niche. He is talking about being remarkable. After reading his words, I say "Do not add to the clutter, add to the community."

Naming Rights

I am looking for a word. The word will be the name of my newsletter - email and otherwise. (Yes, I know they say everything is going online, but there's still a little need for a leave-behind. Especially if it's fun, or funny, or useful, or ...)

I wish that the word were both a noun and a verb. It can be both a thing/event or process. It can be the way and the destination.

It can be a command or challenge, as well as the compensation.

And I would like it to be useful to my medical metaphor - that Message Doctor hat I wear.

I was thinking about the word Remedy. Here's a sentence using the noun form and the verb form.

One way to remedy the situation is to discover a remedy.

Yes, well ... a trip to the old (new) Thesuarus might be helpful.

http://thesaurus.reference.com/browse/remedy

Mind you, these noun verbs below came from clicking around in the thesaurus. They are not all covered under remedy.

Thinking about the noun and verb forms will be helpful as you read the list.

eyeball

chart

record

show

sketch

review

outline

update

draft

practice

survey

interview

digest

prime

stock

clear

notice

witness

watch

Some of these words, while meeting the first requirement of noun and verb, do not fit the medical thing very well.

We think of writers writing. We think of them publishing, marketing, selling. Research is certainly a rewarding part of it.

Have I solved my puzzle yet?

No. And, if you have thought of the perfect word, please do tell.

email - Help at Your Message Doctor dot com

What's new?

Some old ways do not work like they used to. What's new?

The old song says Evolve or Die. I say - evolve or not - we die
anyway - so play hard and have some fun.

The On-Purpose Person

Hi Steve,

We were talking about being too busy and what to do about it.

Remember - I said we could practice. I could ask you to do something
and you could say - "Aw, shucks." - or - "Thank you for thinking of me. I'm sorry I can't help you out this time." Or, similar. Praise the person and let them down gently. Just say no is unnecessarily brief.

We also spoke of organization and priorities.
I mentioned David Allen - Getting Things Done aka GTD.

And then I came across this fellow at http://zenhabits.net. I have
not yet begun to dig into it but it seems refreshing, simple, even
minimalist; a way to get things done without carrying around a
weighty set of rules.

And, I mentioned this book - here's the info. The book is in the
County library and you can call up local branch library and have it delivered there.

The On-Purpose Person
Making You Life Make Sense
by Kevin W. McCarthy

I am having trouble finding out what to call this system for
determining the winner. The tennis people call it a draw sheet.

One sheet of paper for each category. The categories below are as
presented in the book. The book says these are guidelines. You can
change the categories: rename them as you wish, have more or less of
them, etc. Write down everything you want to have, do, or be in each
category.

• Physical/Health/Recreational
• Financial/Material
• Family
• Vocational/Career
• Social/Community
• Spiritual
• Mental/Intellectual
• Other

I am having trouble finding out what to call this system for
determining the winner. The tennis people call it a draw sheet.
You've seen it before. Here it is again.

http://yourmessagedoctor.com/draw_sheet.png

Then, one sheet at at time you will do a run-off ... What thing,
outcome, or result do you want more than another?
Then do a run-off from the single result of each sheet.

Just another tool for the set. Use as necessary. Once a year. Once a
week.

You can read reviews about it on Amazon if you have the time.

http://tinyurl.com/2nzazg

Hmmm ....

"A company's best ideas mostly come not from the top, but from lower
level employees. "
– Inspired by Sam Walton

Simple Truths - Johnny the Bagger

A wonderful story about making a difference.
It's good for people. And, it's good for business.

It's not necessarily new unless you haven't see it yet.

http://www.stservicemovie.com/

George Carlin reads more blogs than you do

Catch him on HBO, like, right NOW.

"George Carlin: It's Bad For Ya"

http://tinyurl.com/256bc3

Can you describe your life in half a dozen words?

Memoir in six words

Can you describe your life in half a dozen words?

Here's a fun thing to think about and a few people who thought about
it already.

http://www.salon.com/tt/best/2008/02/29/best/