Veronica stopped by my desk with this book in her hands. “I know you’re busy, but you’re going to want to read chapter four,  it explains why paying for referrals doesn’t work–the altruistic part of the brain and the work part of the brain are in two different areas. And you might want to look at just this part in chapter 7 . . .”
She had me at read.

We are in the middle of a massive project right now, so the book traveled in my extra bag—back and forth from the loft to the office–then down to Florida and back–and then one day when I couldn’t make it to the gym I hopped on the Airdyne and brought Sway (and a diving magazine, and a pen catalog) along for the ride.

She was right, I wanted to read it.
Starting with page 47 I got empirical support for the script I use to close InfoMinute Seminar.

You might want to read Sway

• for validation that it is the fear of loss that makes us give a list (not the reality of profit) check out page 28.  (And stop listing.)
• to remind yourself not to share what didn’t happen (only what could have) look at page 104. (And start smiling more.)
• to justify the effort and time, and the hard work of thinking, that you put into preparing and perfecting every word of every marketing message, look at page  72. (I had typed 84, and 119, and 72, before I remembered the rule about the list.)
• to give yourself hope and motivation in the pursuit of referrals, check out page 171. (Stay the course. It’s worth it.)
• for leadership tips, page 28. (Get the exact results you want.)

The video Masters of Persuasion illustrates the power. I’m eager to hear your thoughts.

Every review I’ve read compares Sway to Predictably Irrational, Blink and Nudge. If you like those, along with Wisdom of Crowds, SuperCrunchers, and Freakonomics, you want to read this, too.

<deep, deep, deep breath>

Just finished the chapter on leaving a group profitably
for my new book
Exceptional Networking: Get In Touch, Stay In Touch, Make It Count

Click here if you’d like to play.

• Download the .pdf. 
• Read.
• Come back here to comment.

I’m up for every kind of feedback.

1. Tell me what isn’t clear; what you had to re-read.
2. Let me know what questions aren’t answered.
3. And yes, let me know if you find typos.
   

This chapter is at the stage where every form of feedback is valuable.

<deep breath>
Let me have it!

Gratefully,  W!

A couple of years ago Scott Tufford called to tell me about a seminar he’d attended the day before. The presenter, he enthused, was teaching Realtors how to be more effective salespeople based on the shape of their clients’ eyes and ears.

It sounded . . . interesting (and a little bizarre, which is always interesting to me) so I added You Can Read A Face Like A Book to my que. It’s a long list. I hadn’t gotten back to it.

Thursday George came back from BBA with a book, for me!
And since a book on the desk is worth 171 on the list,
I popped it into that bag o’ stuff that travels where I do.

What Shelle Charvet did for communication with words Naomi Tickle has done with faces.

And as usefully.

One trait at a time, at first, (whether someone is able to sit at a desk for long periods or needs to be active during the day) then comparing traits, (the difference between liking to analyze or preferring to get right to the point) Naomi teaches three things:

1. How to identify the characteristic
2. How to use the knowledge about yourself
   
3. How to use the knowledge with children and others.
   

Today we got the invitation for my Aunt and Uncle’s 50th anniversary celebration, sporting their wedding picture and my Aunt Marcia’s distinctive eyebrows.  I remember being fascinated by her eyebrows as a very young child. Now I know they signal the Design Appreciation trait. Initially this didn’t jive. I wanted to find a picture of George’s Mom, who, had she been born 50 years later, would certainly have become an architect. Aunt Marcia doesn’t seem to have  . . .

“The Design Appreciation trait indicates an innate appreciation for
how things are structured. An individual with this innate ability
has a sense of the overall structure of whatever interests him or her.”

Well, that describes Aunt Marcia.

• Before I was in first grade she taught me how to make potato chips.
• After college she taught me how to read a story to a baby.

And how helpful it would be, if I were trying to sell her something, to know she will want to understand the how and the why of the system before making her decision.

Last week included a funeral service. Of the 98 people in my line of sight only one had Backward Balance, a time orientation trait indicating that decisions will be made based on what has happened in the past more than what is happening in the present or what could happen in the future.

Only one.
Of 98.
Yet, it’s common sense to describe our past success to to prospects.

Could common sense be wrong?

I’ve got a feeling this book will travel in the bag o’ stuff
for a while yet before it finds a home on a shelf.
(You could have known that from the shape of my lips.)

Exceptional Networking: Get In Touch, Stay In Touch, Make It Count is a hands-on, here’s how book.

I have so many books
swirling in my head right now!

Everything else is the answer to the
questions that comes from this one.

And I have so much research to do,
(I love research!)
but right now I’m shaking with
eagerness to get this out.
(oh, maybe that’s hunger!)

Filled with gratitude for those of you who are reading,
and giving me eyes-on-the-page feedback,
here is the second section:
Stay In Touch

(The first 11 pages are the same as last night,
no major revisions. – well, check for yours!)

The link above takes you to a snazzy book reader thingy (that’s the technical term: thingy) If you’d rather download the .pdf file click here.

The book is titled Exceptional Networking: Get In Touch, Stay In Touch, Make It Count and I offered a sneak peek download yesterday, here.

Today I worked on the first 11 pages of the Stay In Touch section. I’ll trade you a look for your feedback. (You’ll notice several changes based on yesterday’s comments.)

Click here to read.

Waiting eagerly for your thoughts in the same three areas  -
[1] What did you already know, that I can leave out.
[2] What is written confusingly, and needs a re-write for clarity.
[3] What questions are still unanswered?

Gratefully,  W!

It’s Labor Day Weekend, and Veronica scheduled five precious days off on my calendar.  No appointments from Thursday morning until Tuesday morning.  Five days to write!

I woke up yesterday at 4:57, without the alarm, and set to work, in the dark. (My screen is lit, I know where the keys are.) Fourteen hours later, a solid foundation. More than half of the first third of the book is laid down. Now the troweling, sanding, smoothing . . . but before that

If you would like to play, [1]  Download this first draft.  (I can’t tell you how long it will be up here, but you’re welcome to forward this link to friends while it is.) Exceptional Networking: Get In Touch – Draft 1
[2] Read. (as much, or as little as you would like)
[3] Comment – (right here, for God and country to see) - there is a restriction: Please give me comments in these three arenas

[First Approved Comment Arena]
Tell me what information was, in the words of my nephew Michael,
“Zoinks. Everybody knows that.”

[Second Approved Comment Arena]
Tell me where you had to re-read a sentence, or a paragraph,
because the meaning wasn’t initially clear.
(Please reference by page number)

[Third Approved Comment Arena]
Tell me what questions you still have,
that weren’t answered by the material.
{you’ll see *** where there will be appendices,
but I haven’t written those yet,
so go ahead and list every question now.}

“And what”, you might ask, “do I get in return?”
I need some real life examples in the book.
If you comment you’ll get press; I’ll promote your business!

Gratefully, and with no small amount of trepidation, W!

I bought Doing What Matters based on title alone.
I thought it was a time managment book.

If I could just get everything done—all email answered, all phone calls returned, all tasks completed—then I could do the really important stuff. {wry grin}

Turns out I was wrong in my favour.

Kilts is the guy Warren Buffet approved to lead the turnaround at Gillette. This is the story of

1. why he accepted the assignment (in his own words, his financial situation did not require him to continue working)
2. what he did to prepare for the assignment (assembling a research team, preparing communications to employees, and deciding what, in fact he would do to stop and reverse the hemmoraging.)
3. what he did on day one (a three-hour strategy session with top executivesw,  to let people know he was there to work, and expected them to work too.)
4. what he did for the first 100 days (action, action, action)
5. how the weekly meetings were structured (mandatory Monday meetings with both a 15 minute and a 3 minute report. Execs say they started prepping on Wednesday. Everyone’s briefs were distributed Friday. It took at least a hour to read, more to process, over the weekend. Meeting Monday, which gave part of Monday and all of Tuesday before the process began again on Wednesday.)
6. how he went toe-to-toe with Wall Street for Gillette’s benefit. (and went head-to-head to combat internal sacred cows.)

I am perhaps most amazed at the correlation between Gillette, (acquired by P&G for $55b in Q4 2005) and the small businesses and Teams I work with. (Often under $1m. Sometimes well under.) This may be due to the skill of the writers Kilts selected, or his own business accumen, or simply the fact that principles are universal.

Would I have selected this book, in the genre with Good to Great, Built to Last, The Myth of Excellence, Execution, and The Rule of Three, if I’d know what it was about?
Probably.
Would I have selected it this week.
No.

So glad I was wrong!

It’s not news, of course, that small things make a big difference. The wording on a survey affects answers, and on test questions, and on the forms we’re required to complete.

So the question becomes where should we nudge, and how much.

Thaler and Sunstien promote a concept called Libertarian Paternalism.  Libertarian, meaning everyone ultimately has the opportunity to choose for themselves. Paternalism meaning the nudge is in the “right” direction.

Cass Sunstein is the most-cited law professor on any faculty in the United States (and probably the world). He is a professor at the Harvard Law School where he directs the Program on Risk Regulation.

Richard Thayler is Professor of Economics and Behavioral Science at the Graduate School of Business, University of Chicago

This is Dave Balter’s second book, (hence the Volume II) his first was Grapevine (yes, he knows).

Lee Kantor turned me on to Grapevine, where Balter shared the surprising information gleaned from his business, BzzAgent, the first word-of-mouth marketing company.

In The Word Of Mouth Manual Volume II

Dave continues sharing incredible value.

The book itself is unlike any other – remember the Volume II? that’s the least remarkable feature. The size, paper, placement of title, author’s name and photo, and the price ($45!) are all singular.
On page 71 he covers the reason why paying for word-of-mouth doesn’t work. (Same principle as Dan Airely, different logic.)
On page 77 Balter references Duncan Watts research at Columbia University, which shows that marketers should focus less on people who influence and more on how people are influenced. (That would be InfoMinute technology.)
On page 94 (there are only 119 4″ x 5″ pages!) Balter uses a rolling the dice metaphor to explain the difference between viral marketing and word-of-mouth.

I’m looking forward to having that same discussion with him about the relationship between word-of-mouth and referrals.

Until then, I’d love to discuss it with you. Which is possible because Balter is giving the book away by .pdf! (He calls this the non-waterproof version.)

Can’t wait to hear what you think ~ W!