Tim

How To Let Controversy Suck The Life Out Of Your Business

Controversy View Comments
Jun 272011

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Is controversy consuming your life?

We have all heard it before – Scandal, shocking news, and controversy is good for business.  All press is good press, whether good or bad.  Controversial topics are the most popular articles for bloggers.  If someone disagrees with you it doesn’t mean they hate you, maybe they just have an opinion!

The lists of “truths” about controversy goes on and on.  Is controversy really good for business?  Maybe.  It’s a way to spread ideas and sway opinions with healthy debate.  How boring would it be if everyone agreed?  No room for innovation when that happens.  There are many ways to look at an issue.

But what about the motives behind controversy?  Are there people who attack others just to get attention… at your expense?  YES!  If you happen to be the one being attacked, it’s easy to get pulled into the drama and have the life sucked right out of you or your business.

The Incident
On November 24, 1997, Fox Network in the U.S. aired a show Breaking the Magician’s Code: Magic’s Biggest Secrets Finally Revealed.  It was the first of a four part series of TV shows that explained the methods behind magic tricks and illusions.  The masked magician was supposedly a well-known magician who wore a mask to avoid the backlash from fellow magicians.

Within hours of airing the show, all hell broke loose within the magic community!  I have been hanging around magicians and street performers for over 20 years and have NEVER seen such strong reaction from magicians. They were pissed off!  The first rule of being a magician was broken – the promise of magicians to never reveal the secret workings of a magic trick or illusion.

The Motive
Fox saw an opportunity to get an increase in viewer ratings by creating controversy within the magic community.  They counted on the fact that working magicians would protest.  It worked like a charm for Fox.  I’m sure the man behind the mask came out with a bundle of cash. :-)

The Reaction
The magic forums exploded with activity.  Everything from anger to disbelief to preaching right and wrong was covered.  Outrage and disgust were at the forefront of the discussion.  The major Magic organizations from around the world jumped
into the debate.  There were a lot of pissed off people that wanted to have their way with the masked man.  After all, he just destroyed the careers of top performing magicians.  Bullshit!

The only “harm” he did to the performers was to successfully draw them into believing that trick methods were the real “secret” to their career success.  That’s just not true.  Showmanship is what sells tickets.  An audience comes to a magic show to be entertained.  Many magicians mistakenly believe they are successful because they utilize secret methods that no one in the audience could possibly do themselves. I challenge any magician to walk into a magic store, buy a new trick  and put it into their show that night.  It won’t work.  Knowing the secret to the trick itself doesn’t make for a good performance.  Stagecraft, practice, and presentation are what is most important.

The Result
Magicians screamed like never before. Hatred and outrage consumed them. Not everyone, but the vast majority did.  Then the excuses came.  There were countless stories of performers complaining their career was ruined.  How could they possibly expect an audience to come to their show if they knew the methods?  It was the end of the world!  I wonder though, how many people actually saw the show, and did it really matter to them anyway?

New organizations were formed to protect the secrets of the craft.  Magicians were encouraged to write the TV network with threats.  Advertisers were asked to pull their ads from Fox. Self-proclaimed ‘protectors of the magical arts’ began preaching ethics and demanding all magi follow the rules.  A new wave of policing the magic forums, hunting for people that supported exposure.  It. Was. Wild!

Fox got exactly what they were looking for, and most magicians were none the wiser.  Three more episodes aired over the next eight months.  Now the ball was rolling!  Fox was getting results at the expense of the magic community.  In 2002, they cranked out another 13 episodes.

Magic careers were apparently being destroyed.  And whose fault was it?  It wasn’t Fox.  It wasn’t the masked magician.  Then who?

Magicians Were Letting Controversy Consume Their Life
It was their own damn fault.  A large percentage of working magi spent most of their time whining when they could have been focusing their efforts on being the best they could be for their audience.  Looking for new marketing.  Developing new illusions instead of doing the same thing every other magician does.  It’s always easier to blame someone else when something bad happens.  Seemed like the complainers were possessed with being right.  They wanted everyone to think just like them.

Did Fox destroy the art of magic?  Did the masked magician kill the mystery of a good magic performance?  Nope. David Copperfield still performs almost nightly to sell-out crowds.  I still see magicians at convention booths gathering crowds for their clients.  The prestigious Magic Castle in Hollywood still sells tickets every night.  Criss Angel is in his 5th season with his TV show on A&E.  Most of my friends still book corporate work every week.  Magic is alive and well.  The people still getting work are the ones who decided not to get sucked into the controversy.

The Solution
If you are the target of controversy, you have two choices.

  1. Debate the issue until you win. (which may never happen)
  2. Debate the issue until you realize it’s better to agree to disagree and move on with your business.

It’s really not what happens to you when something goes wrong, it’s what you do about it to keep moving forward.  Why not just learn from it?

Just so you know, when the masked wonder boy hit the scene, I was mad!  I wanted to go after the guy and frankly, I thought I had a pretty good plan to do so.  Then I realized I didn’t need to be the moral police that tried to stop something that could not be controlled.  Instead, I got together with my close friends in magic to work out new ways to book gigs and improve my show.  I let the haters hate, and the exposers expose… cause that’s what they do.

Hey, I may not always be right… but I’m never wrong!

Has this ever happened to you in your business or personal life?  How did you choose to deal with it?  Please share your thoughts in the comment section below.

Posted by Tim at 3:35 pm Tagged with: , ,

Do You Think Like A Magician?

magicians View Comments
Jun 062011

Think like a magician

Magicians are expected to perform the impossible. If you are a business owner, it’s probably no different for you. It just means we are expected to solve some type of problem for our customers. Every business is about problem solving. You constantly come up with solutions for your customers, employees, your vendors, your advertisers.

Let’s take a look at the process a magician uses to develop creative solutions and how you can do the same. It can be broken down into two simple steps.

The Effect

In any magic book that teaches tricks, the first section of the instruction talks about the effect. What does the spectator see? What do they experience? What is the desired outcome? For example, the Vanishing Coin Trick effect might read: “Magician borrows a coin. With his right hand he slowly and deliberately places the coin in the left hand which closes around the coin. He shows his right hand empty, blows on his left hand, slowly opening it to show the coin has vanished. Both hands are shown empty. The audience goes crazy.” :-)

In this example, there is no question what the audience experiences. The objective is clearly defined. Anyone who saw the trick can easily describe it to someone else. In traditional business, this is not always the case. Business owners do not always spend the time necessary to clearly define their objective. Have you ever watched a TV commercial and wondered what in the world it was supposed to be about? Was it clear what the product does? Were you asked to take some action? If your customer is confused, you lose the sale.

The Method

Once you know the desired effect, the method is defined. A solution must be developed. Magicians usually don’t care how they get there as long as they create the desired effect. They fool you by forcing you to make certain assumptions. In the coin trick, the audience assumes the coin really was placed in the left hand when in fact, it was not. Since the performer understands how the audience thinks, he can create a moment of astonishment (the effect).

In business it is important to understand your customer’s assumptions. What is true today may not be valid next week. Blue widgets may be your best seller today. What if next week they really want a red widget? It’s important to challenge assumptions on an ongoing basis. You do this by asking questions, probing, surveying, watching trends, etc. When you understand the assumptions you can start creating solutions.

Business owners can save a lot of energy and avoid ‘busy-work’ by clearly defining what they offer and create solutions that their customers really want.

Do you think like a magician?

Posted by Tim at 3:35 pm

What Exactly Is Marketing?

Marketing View Comments
May 012011

Why is marketing important for an entrepreneur’s success? What exactly is marketing, anyway? Business owners tend to over complicate it’s simplicity. Marketing includes everything you do that places your product or service in front of your prospects. It includes sales, advertising, pricing, packaging and delivery. All these activities are coordinated into a strategy that allows you to receive fair compensation for supplying a good product or service.

So what’s the problem? The focus many times starts in the wrong place. S.H. Simmons, a writer and humorist explains with a funny story about relationships. I’ll paraphrase what he said…

  • Marketing – A man praises a woman by showering her with compliments. He says all the right things to the right person.
  • Advertising – A man tells a woman everything about himself and how successful he is.
  • Public Relations – The man’s friend tells the woman all about the man and how smart and successful he is.

The point Simmons makes is that marketing should focus on whatever the customer needs, wants, or requires. To do that successfully, you have to constantly look at what those needs are. They change all the time. What is true today may not be valid tomorrow.

You can have the most brilliant strategy to get your products into the right hands, but it will not earn you a penny unless it is built around your customer needs. Bottom line, marketing does not begin with a great product. It begins with customers. It begins with people who want or need your product and are willing to actually buy it!

I remember spending months and months putting an educational program together for elementary schools kids. It was a program to help kids identify their special talents and the importance of education. It was very proud of what I created. It was going to change the world! I was disappointed when I found out no one wanted it!!

I think that happens to many entrepreneurs. They get so wrapped up in their ideas, they naturally assume everyone else will too. I know I did. The bad news – It just doesn’t work that way.

Marlon Sanders, a modern day marketing wizard, illustrates this perfectly in one of his videos. A struggling marketer who couldn’t seem to come up with a successful product asks Marlon “No one is buying my stuff. Why are you so successful?  What are you selling?” Marlon answers, “I’m selling whatever they’re buying.” Bingo!

The hard lesson a marketer needs to learn is that the most creative ideas, the greatest product features ever imagined, or the most superior service only succeed when you market within the context of what people want. People really don’t buy your “product”, they buy what it’s going to do for them. Before you invest your life savings into a new venture, take the time to find out who your potential customers are. That is being a smart marketer.

Are you marketing, or are you only using advertising and PR?

Posted by Tim at 7:58 am Tagged with: ,

Everything You Know Is Wrong

Controversy View Comments
Apr 102011

It must be true.  I hear it every day.  People tell me I’m wrong all the time.  I’m told it will never work. You’re too old.  That will cost too much.  No one will buy it.  It’s too soon.  It’s too late.   Give me a frickin break!

Shut Up, Stop Whining, & Get A Life

That’s the title of one my favorite books by Larry Winget.  It’s also something I’ve been saying to people a lot lately.

It’s Time For A Rant

I mean a really big one. Stay with me though.  I have a solution.  I won’t scream and then leave you wondering what to do about it.

I don’t know what’s going on but for the last week or so I have been hearing a lot of people tell me how I’m supposed to be running my business and conducting my personal life.

Bloggers are telling me the ‘correct’ way to use Twitter.  I see readers tell bloggers it’s unethical to make money online.  Magicians tell me you can’t make money with a 15 minute show.  A neighbor tells me I shouldn’t be a Duke fan because their coach is evil.  In other words, everything I know is wrong.

I May Not Always Be Right, But I’m Never Wrong

Seriously.  I get to decide what is right… for me. You get to decide what’s right… for you.  That sounds so easy.  Then why is it so hard to do?  People mean well, right?  They just want to help, right?  At least that’s what they tell you.  Sorry.  I’m just not buying that crap any more.

I wrote an article last week about controversy.  Is it good or bad for business?  I used an example about a magician who went on television and exposed the secrets behind common magic tricks.  The magic community was furious.  I offered a solution for how to handle the controversy and invited comments.  Some very angry magicians sent me email demanding I stop endorsing exposing magic secrets. They clearly did not read the article, entirely missed the point, but still thought it was OK to tell me that I was wrong and that I’m destroying the sacred art of magic.  Again, everything I know is wrong. The self proclaimed protectors of the art know exactly what is best for all magicians.

I made a decision to unfollow Twitter users that I have little in common with.  The internet marketing experts came out of nowhere to tell me what an idiot I am and how my business is doomed to failure. I’m on a roll!  Maybe these people are right.  Maybe everything I know really is wrong.

March is my favorite time of year.  I get to watch countless hours of college basketball.  I just found out I’m a terrible basketball fan because I like Duke university.  Yep, I shouldn’t like Duke because their coach secretly has ties with the referees.  The officials are being paid to help his team. I guess it’s true then.  I really don’t know shit about anything!

OK so now what?

Ask The Right People For Advice

Someone tells me a red widget will never sell, blue is the way to go.  They tell me this because they tried selling red widgets once and failed miserably.  Thank you but I’m going to ask my customers what color widget they prefer.  Turns out they like purple.  Not blue.  Good thing I listened to the right people.

Filter The Input – Take The Best, Leave The Rest

Most advice seems to come unsolicited.  People will give you advice whether you ask for it or not. Many times it’s because they feel they know what’s best for everyone. Too often I will listen to the advice.  Sometimes because I think the person talking is a guru.  Sometimes because I feel they have been-there-done-that.   Sometimes because I just can’t come up with my own solution.

A leader consults with team members to brainstorm solutions to a problem.   He then takes the information to make a decision.  In the same way, I get to decide how to move forward.  So do you.

Consider The Source

A magician on a popular magic forum said a 15 minute show is a thing of the past.  No one will buy such a show.  Really?  That happens to be the type of show I book all the time.  He obviously only speaks from his personal experience and knows nothing about what’s really happening in the market.  I would no sooner take advice from someone who has never booked a 15 minute show than I would listen to an overweight doctor trying to tell me how to lose weight.

Reduce Information Overload

How many people do you really have to listen to?  How many articles do you have to read to find a solution.  Information overload will waste your time to the point you may never get anything accomplished.  Stop listening to everyone!  Make a decision and then make it right.  If you make a mistake, fine. Move on.

Conclusion

I decided I know more than I give myself credit for. So do you.  I’m committed to being more self sufficient and not worry whether someone else thinks I’m doing it “right”.  I’m going to be more cautious about the advice I get, especially if I didn’t ask for it.  I’ll listen to just enough to learn something but ultimately decide what’s best for me or my business.  I hope you will do the same.

You may find this hard to believe but I really don’t want everyone to agree with me all the time.  If you think this rant is a bunch of crap, tell me so.  Just tell me why. Otherwise I may just ignore you.   I’m willing to learn something.  I’m opening the door for any comment you have.

Posted by Tim at 12:33 am Tagged with: , ,

What Exactly Is Success?

Success View Comments
Feb 162011

“Success is the progressive realization of worthwhile, predetermined, personal goals.”

~Paul J. Meyer

That is the best definition of success I have ever seen. Paul Meyer knew the score!

I hear success defined in many ways. Some people say it’s having money. To others success is having a big house, healthy family, and a comfortable retirement account. You might consider yourself successful if you are able to get out of bed in the morning! Whatever the definition, success is whatever it means to you.

If you run a business you MUST define what success means for you and your business. You have to know when you have “made it”. When you determine up front exactly what criteria determines your successful business, everything else falls into place. Every action you take in your business should be based on getting closer to that criteria.

Let’s take a closer look at the quote and how it relates to running a business.

Goals

What is the ultimate goal of your business? What has to happen before you consider you business successful? If you own a brick-and-mortar business, your goal might be to have 100 locations in 10 years.  A consultant may want to have branch offices in 25 states. An online marketer may want to do 100 informational seminars a year during the next 5 years. A good way to look at the ultimate goal is determine what has to be done to build the business with the intent of selling it when you are finished.

Progressive Realization

Have you heard the expression “It’s not the destination, it’s the journey”? You don’t necessarily have to reach your destination to consider yourself successful. A lot could happen on your journey. As you build toward your goal you may find an end result you never considered.

For example, the internet marketer has a  goal to do 100 information seminars a year in major cities around the country.  As he builds the business towards that end he discovers a way to get his information in front of more people, a much larger audience by doing online webinars instead. Did he change his mind, is he now considered a failure? Of course not. He still presents his information to the masses. There will always be detours. What is true today may not be valid tomorrow.

Worthwhile

A business can only be profitable if you provide solutions that are worthwhile to your customers. Your products must have benefits your customers want.

Predetermined

The ultimate goal of your business should be determined up front. You’ll need a clear vision of what the business should look like from day 1. Then you can prioritize every task you do by asking ‘ does it get me closer to my goal?’

Personal

Finally, the overall goal must be meaningful to you. It has to be what you want. It’s not personal if you build a business based on what other people think you should do. Think about it. How can you possibly be successful doing something you don’t want to do?

Conclusion

I think Paul Meyer’s definition of success can be applied to any business or personal  undertaking. If you know from the beginning what your business will look like, and you enjoy providing a service that people want,  consider yourself successful as you grow your business to it’s ultimate goal.

How does this model of success fit your business? Please share your comments below.

Posted by Tim at 6:55 am Tagged with: ,
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