The Value Conundrum

When I was growing up, my mother tried selling various products from home to earn extra money to support our family. I remember cookware and cosmetics being demonstrated to small groups of her friends over cups of tea and homemade sponge cake in the living room. From day-to-day, Mum used the same old pans that…

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Your Goal Is To Matter To The People You Serve

I once worked with a startup in the financial services industry. The foyer of their office building was all polished floorboards, high white walls and minimal seating. Inspirational magazines were strategically arranged on low tables, next to the espresso machine. The walls were completely bare apart from a big decal that declared how many customers…

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Are You Ready To Find Your Voice?

Eleven years ago, as I was pivoting my business, I began reading a new book. I was barely two paragraphs in when the following sentence stopped me in my tracks. ‘Either you’re going to tell stories that spread, or you will become irrelevant.’ Those words, written by my friend and colleague, Seth Godin, over a…

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Why Should They Care?

The ‘For Lease’ sign attached to the first-floor window of the shopfront is one of half a dozen along Gertrude Street. And the sales copy on each of them does nothing to differentiate one premises from the other. The signs give us dimensions, details about the facilities and ‘good natural light’. They don’t for a…

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Listening To Lead

The promise of the digital age was the ability to more cheaply and rapidly raise awareness of our value, our message, or our cause. Digital media levelled the playing field and gave all of us the chance to spread our ideas. In some cases, the desire to quickly spread ideas has led to the misbelief…

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Consistent, Persistent And Patient

The slim woman dressed in activewear, in line at the cafe next to the gym, orders a black coffee. As she’s handing over her card when the barista asks her the question he’s asked every single customer who ordered a takeaway coffee that morning. ‘Would you like a glazed doughnut for just $2 to go…

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Perfect Timing

An ideal audience isn’t just one that’s available—it’s one that’s receptive.
When we say something is just as important as how we say it.

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Nurturing Growth

When we begin to think in terms of nurturing (protecting something while it grows), we are compelled to be more intentional about how we grow—and focusing on how makes all the difference.

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Showing Value

We can all benefit from learning to demonstrate, not just explain the value we create. Marketing and sales are about showing and telling.

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