Two years
and more ago (June 19 2018) I posted a Viva La Difference blog of a speech I
gave to Lancaster University’s Council, outlining 15 ideas to make a
difference.
Rereading
them last weekend, I thought I might give them another outing. Here they are.
1) Be Soft
Soft
is strong. King Kong (and its director Peter Jackson of Lord of the Rings) are big softies.
And a kangaroo can’t jump unless its tail is touching the ground. The future will belong to soft
connections. Emotion not reason. Software not hardware. Soft not hard power. Soft is transparent. Soft is enabling. Soft is flexible. Soft is inclusive. Soft is slow Cumbrian food not fast fat
food. (Try Ambleside’s Old Stamp House
and The Lakeside Kitchen.)
2) Be in Spirit
To
be inspired means to be ‘in spirit’. To
be an Inspirational Player, a radical optimist, wherever you stand or
fall. Remember the return of Steve Jobs
and Apple’s ‘Think Different’ campaign?
Said Jobs: “That ad was to remind us of who our heroes are and who we
are”. Want to be in spirit? By the end of this month pass on the best
piece of advice you’ve ever been given to 10 people under 20.
3) Be Sensuous
Touch. Sound.
Scent. Sight. Taste.
Designing products, services and experiences around the five senses
calibrates a better world. Holistic is
the new reality. In the food
business? Sell all fruit with leaves
attached so consumers see it’s fresh.
With all five senses put on high alert, magic happens.
4) Simply Sustain
Jeffrey
Sachs’ UN Millennium Project Report
on poverty is required reading. An
aperture is opening. A beam of light
shines, one energised by low-cost simplicity.
In The Lakes, join the Cumbria Community, donate to the Herdy Fund. Make a difference to those in need in
Cumbria.
5) Sleep
Joan
Klempner said: “To achieve the impossible dream, try going to sleep”. With 24/7 lifestyles, we’re getting less and
less sleep. Yet for success,
achievement, and happiness, sleep is fundamental. Now science says our best ideas surface when
we drift into sleep. Anytime sleep is
pure competitive advantage. Walt Disney
got it right “If you can dream it, you can do it”.
6) Go Loglo
The
local/global debate is the soap opera of business. ‘Should I be thinking local?’ ‘Should I be thinking global?’ … ‘Should I be
glocal?’ Start with action in Cumbria,
in the local (there are no global consumers!).
Then cross boundaries. Wherever
you are, export is the way to go. It’s
not about thinking. It’s about acting,
and going. Act local; go global. Go LoGlo.
7) Learn to say: ‘ni hao’
Unlike
other Asian countries China was ‘born global’.
The dragon opened up and ventured out simultaneously, putting the globe
in a spin. China is an Aladdin’s Cave
for enterprise. Open it! Learn to say in Chinese: ‘Hello’, and
‘Welcome to The Lakes’.
8) Invent and Innovate
The
difference? World changing. Arno Penzias, a Nobel Prize winner in
Physics, makes the distinction. An
invention is the product of a creative or curious mind. Born not made. Innovation changes customers’ lives in some
way or the world in which customers experience things – and is something we can
learn, practice and do!
9) Be Irreplaceable and Irresistible
Hating
America while loving all things American is the 21st century paradox
says Louis Chunovic. Wherever you stand
(and despite President Trump), America’s innovative spirit remains irresistible
and a beacon for modern enterprise. Make
your Business bigger than a Brand.
Create loyalty beyond reason – just as America has.
10) Don’t be a Polar Bear
Polarisation
of values – cultural conflict – is as big an opportunity as a threat. Businesses that take sides will lose. Businesses that listen and bring sides
together can become Lovemarks. In the
US, stone barricades erected near government buildings post-9/11 have been
replaced with stone containers filled with plants. Lovemarks are part of a human
conversation. They make the world a
better place.
11) Join the Consumer Republic
Manufacturers
and retailers now work for consumers, not vice versa. Technology has given power to consumers. We’re in the Consumer Republic, at last! It’s a time of instant connectivity,
transparency and accountability. Message
to marketers? Stimulate me, surprise me,
intrigue me, involve me, entertain me, love me, just don’t bore me.
12) Touch Technology
Smart
objects like adidas smart shoe. Content
co-creation like blogging. Customisation
like iTunes. All are part of this power
and control shift to consumers. Question
du jour: does technology make people happy?
No. Does it make people
happier? Yes. Let’s get over this one and move on. It’s technology and happiness. It’s And/And, not Either/Or.
13) Build it, they will come
Globally,
the supermarket experience is a 20 minute dash through hell. Radio, lighting and air-con should be done
for assault. The store where lots of
purchase decisions are made, is still the biggest opportunity in business today. Solution?
Drip it with Mystery, Sensuality, Intimacy. Build a theatre of dreams. Go to Booths.
Go to Herdy.
14) Build Windmills
A
Boeing 747’s wingspan is longer than the first flight of the Wright
brothers. You can resist change and go
backwards or embrace it and go forwards.
When hurricanes come, build windmills!
Pursue failure, you discover your limits when you crash up against
them. When others zig, zag. Fail Fast, Learn Fast, Fix Fast.
15) Surprise with the Obvious
The
most popular first name in the world is Muhammad. No piece of paper can be folded more than
seven times. The stall closest to the
door in a bathroom is the cleanest, because it is the least used. Obvious.
Overlooked. For cut through
innovation, communication, surprise with the obvious.
KR