What inspires you about those you admire?
I was thinking about this, and I think it has something to do with being aspirational. In other words, you aspire to be more like the person that inspires you. But, what is it that inspires you about that person? If you can’t pinpoint one, two, three, or more specifics things then how can you aspire to be more like them? Just like you, I’ve had some bad bosses and work experiences in my career, but I’ve also had the pleasure of working for some really great bosses who made my work experience at that organization more than worthwhile. Those good bosses were inspirational, and I aspire to be more like them. They genuinely valued my work. They had real interest in me as a person, and as a result, I wanted to give them my best effort. Meanwhile, the effect of the inspiration / aspiration continuum is helping me give myself my best effort, which serves me and my own career well. So, it made me realize that I wanted to aspire to genuinely value the work of those around me and have real interest in what’s going on in their lives, and by doing so, perhaps I can inspire others to be aspirational in a positive way that showcases their best version of themselves...for themselves and others around them. growloop it’s easy to get frustrated with all of the little things that seem to wrong throughout the day.
When things don’t go exactly as planned the slippery slope of negative self-talk ensues. So the coffee spilled in the car because you were in too big of a hurry. That doesn’t mean you need to tell yourself how dumb you are for allowing that to happen. Negative emotions and experiences tend to be remembered far longer than positive ones. However, the positive ones hold the most power to improve your mood, outlook, and mindset, which is why it takes consistent practice to stay in a positive mindset. Regularly examining the positive things in your life helps build the “positivity habit” (aka: gratitude). This habit can help you feel confident and competent to take on whatever life throws at you. For every negative thing you can list on a sheet of paper today think hard and list two things you’re grateful for. Then see how you feel afterwards. growloop There is something very vulnerable and invigorating about being naked in front of a crowd.
I don't mean that kind of naked. I'm talking about busking as a musician. In this case it was just me and my acoustic guitar -- no microphone or PA system to amplify the sound for the outdoors. Totally stripped down and naked...at least as naked as I prefer to be in public. I had a great experience busking recently at the Hilldale Farmers Market this past Saturday morning. It was a rather hot summer day, but worth enduring the heat. I played my tunes in a stripped down fashion without any amplification for those milling about to each vendor's booth buying fresh produce and baked goods. As a musician, busking feels a little awkward at first because you're not really the main attraction, it's not necessarily your show like at a club venue where people come specifically to see you perform. In some ways you feel like you're interrupting the market attendees' shopping experience. However, as soon as you start playing that feeling subsides and it's replaced with a feeling that you're actually enhancing their experience. It's kind of like going to a store to shop and they have music playing over the speakers while you browse the shelves for items you want to purchase. Only, in this case, it's a live musician, which is more engaging. Busking is fun as a musician because you can quickly tell if people have interest in your music. When they're interested they typical stop to listen for a while or you can see people bobbing their head to the rhythm of the song you're playing. A really nice indication that they like your music is when people drop a few bucks into your tip jar. When this happens, as a musician, it's important to thank people for giving you a tip even in the middle of the song you're playing, or at least give them a nod to indicate that you saw them give you a tip and that you appreciate it. In college I used to busk regularly downtown especially in the fall when the new school year started and there was a lot of people around (I live in the college town of Madison, WI). As a young college student coming into my own as a singer/songwriter, busking was a great time to work out the kinks in new songs. It's like practice with a live audience, and because people are going about their business most are only partially listening so if you make some mistakes as you play no one but you would likely notice. If you're a musician working on your chops I recommend busking somewhat regularly as a method of practicing. If you pay attention you'll be able to spot which of your songs resonate well with audiences, you can work out set list orders and simply practice your songs. You'll probably even make a few bucks too. I remember as a poor college student busking was always a way to make some quick cash. Busking for a musician is like conducting market research or utilizing a focus group to perfect your product -- your music and performance -- for your audience. Busking falls into the "honing" portion of honing one's craft. Truth be told, you have to put in the work to get better and better, and if you do, it will be obvious to others. Thanks for the great experience Hilldale Farmers Market! I hope to be back soon. Next stop on my summer of shows, I'll be performing at The Steaming Cup coffeehouse in my old stomping grounds of Waukesha, WI. Sat. Aug. 11, 2018, beginning at 7pm. Be sure to come on out. posted by Nick Venturella "Do what you love and the money will follow," they say. "Find your bliss and just do that for a living," they say. They make it sound so simple. I wonder how many of them actually work as if it's play with any consistency? I consider myself fortunate to have several creative, strategic and entrepreneurial interests and paid work that often infuses those interests. I mean, not everyday does work feel like play. In fact, most days it's just a grind. But the small victories, and larger victories over time, really do make it worth the effort. However, I do get to be creative everyday, I do get to be strategic everyday and my mindset is always entrepreneurial, so I have that going for me. So, even though I don't make my entire living as singer/songwriter, I do have the good fortune of having periodic paid performances. And, I also have the good fortune of being gainfully employed where I can use my writing and graphic design skills strategically toward real business outcomes, which is appealing to me. Plus, I have a great newsletter following that helps create community for me and others like me who subscribe, which brings those fun, thought-provoking aspects of what I do, and what all my subscribers do, to one another in a way that resonates in our lives. All this is to say, that while I don't have one profession that simply and easily encapsulates my 'doing what I love for a living,' I'm making a good living and infusing what I love into the work I do, consistently. This is, perhaps, a more realistic approach anyway. This Month, in May, if you find yourself in Verona, WI or Wales, WI come check out one of my music performances: Feel free to check out some free streaming/downloadable music at NickVmusic.net
Have you ever recommended a good movie you saw to a friend? Then, after your friend saw the movie she thanked you for recommending it? That’s customer advocacy on a basic level. You, the customer who saw the movie and liked it, advocated on behalf of the movie by recommending it to a friend you knew would likely enjoy it too. That customer advocacy can scale too… Say the movie was part of the Star Wars series of movies. There is an entire fan ecosystem around those movies. The producer of those movies (Disney) interacts and engages its fans with special events, fan websites and communities, contests and even opportunities for fans to share their thought leadership on various Stars Wars-related topics. It’s true, you can check it out at StarWars.com. What ends up happening is that the Star Wars franchise has helped individual Star Wars fans feel valued for their interest and participation in the Star Wars community. Fans have even been rewarded and recognized for their Star Wars thought-leadership contributions to the community. In this example, Star Wars/Disney makes their franchise about the fans, and as a result those fans continue to advocate on behalf of Star Wars providing that franchise with more promotional power than Disney alone could produce. What’s the ROI of Disney putting their Star Wars fans first? According to a Fortune Magazine article from a few years back, it was nearly $42 billion. That’s billion, with a B. Not bad for a few sci-fi fantasy movies. Here’s the thing, these same Star Wars advocacy fundamentals can be applied to B2B Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) tech businesses, and it just so happens that I personally know the Yoda and Obi Wan Kenobi who can share the ways of the Customer Advocacy Force... Join the webinar - Customer Success + Marketing: How to Team Up to Boost Advocacy. February 22, 2018 @ 10 am (PT) / 1 pm (ET) Join Howard Tarnoff (Founder & Managing Director of Customer Success LLC) and Carlos Gonzalez (Vice President of Customer Success Operations at Ceridian) as they reveal the advocacy playbooks they respectively use to:
Post by: Nick Venturella
When you’re working with customers, or your audience on social media or even your email distribution list, remember those you’re trying to reach with your message, opportunity or solution will only continue to give you their attention if you continue to provide them value.
A harsh truth is, your audience likely doesn’t care too much about what you want them to hear/read as much as they care about whether or not that content actually provides them solutions to problems they have, or stops them in their tracks to change their perspective about your solution to a problem you’ve helped them finally identify that they have (an aha moment, if you will). You can continually provide your audience value if you stop trying to be the hero of their story and guide them, so they can be the hero of their story (notice the italics for emphasis). Recently, I was introduced to Donald Miller’s Building a Storybrand blog and podcast (thanks Beky, co-owner of Montae Creative), and I like the way he describes things. Miller’s approach, which I agree with, is that your audience, or your customer, is the hero in their journey toward a solution and success. You are not. Here’s one reason why you are not the hero in your customer’s story… Your customer, let’s call her Janey, has her own job in the company she works for, and if she brings you and/or your solution in to help the company she works for and you steal the glory of being the hero, then why does the company need her anymore? Now that’s an extreme example that doesn’t necessarily take into account other factors, but the emotional response is the same in practical application, and if higher ups at Janey’s company think you’re the hero and they can minimize Janey’s role to save a few bucks now that your solution is in place, what’s really stopping them from doing so? However, if you come in with your solution and you position Janey as the thought leader who helped drive the decision to seek and implement this solution – and you partner with Janey to ensure she can maximize your solution and show positive results – then you’ve just helped Janey become indispensable. Yes, your solution helps Janey realize success, but so many things that Janey and her company are in control of are what will make them successful or not. As for your solution, it likely only helps them to reach that success more easily, quickly and efficiently. In other words, they may have reached success without your solution, but by partnering with Janey and her company your guidance helped accelerate their success. And…this isn’t a one-sided scenario. You and your solution or brand or company benefit too. Actually, you will benefit more than any success you might have achieved if you were trying to be the hero because you’ve fostered a positive relationship with Janey and her company. You’ve built trust by proving their success is paramount. When you do that, your success is inevitable because you have created a positive advocate on your behalf. Janey advocates on your behalf because she is someone who has gone through the work it takes to be successful under your guidance. Then, as Janey tells her industry colleagues about her success and your solution, the perceived value of your solution goes up. Even more importantly though, the true value of your guidance skyrockets, and that, will attract more Janeys. posted by: Nick Venturella
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(this content isn't available anywhere else) "What do you do when you're just feeling like you're in a funk?" "What do you mean?" "I'm just not feeling excited about much in life right now. I'm actually feeling a bit overwhelmed and stressed. I feel like I can't get past the obligations in my life to reach the goals I really want to pursue. I'm just down and irritable." "Ahh, I get it. That's no fun. I can tell you though, you're not alone. In fact, I often feel those things too." "So then what do you do to push through it? You seem like you have your stuff together." " I address it. Specifically, I write about it in a daily journal." "Journaling!? Like keeping a diary?" "If you want to call it that, then sure. It's just an opportunity to spend some time gaining some personal self-awareness by putting pen to paper and writing out what's on your mind. The simple act of writing out what's on your mind makes you feel better because you've gotten it off your chest, so to speak. Although, the benefits go far beyond that, and you can actually alter your mindset and positive outlook by doing it daily and identifying things you're grateful for in your life." "I'm not convinced. I don't have time to even eat lunch every day let alone write in a daily journal ." "Yeah, but I would argue that if you try it for two weeks and only spend 10 to 15 minutes writing per day, you'll notice a positive difference in your mood, outlook, energy and productivity." Have you heard anything about the benefits of daily journal writing like that depicted in the scenario above? Well, there is actually proven science that says that daily journal writing can not only improve your mindset, but it can promote other physical health benefits too. Here's an article that explains some of those benefits. As a musician/artist/writer I tend to journal a lot to foster my creative process, but lately I've been more cognoscente about my journaling. Specifically, I've been identifying things that bother me or cause me anxiety as well as things I'm grateful for and actions I know I need to take to reach goals of mine. In doing so, I've noticed my mood and energy level has increased and I'm more present, engaged and productive with whatever I'm working on in any given moment. So, I built a specific journaling system help others use daily journaling to meet goals and improve their mood and mindset over time. The idea is to nourish the mind, body and soul through daily writing that gives you brief guides related to how you can make this work for you and measure your progress/mood over time. It's called the Provision Journal, which is a proactive daily journaling system for achieving a better vision and version of one's self. If that sounds like something of interest to you, here's how you can get it.
Posted by: Nick Venturella
Does what you wear to work seem to help you feel relaxed enough to be productive?
Or, do you feel restricted and limited by what you have to wear to work, thus your productivity is limited? I’ve personally always tried to be as productive as possible in whatever role I find myself in, however, I definitely feel restricted when I have a required dress code for work. For me, that required dress code has usually been in some sort of professional office setting, so as a man, that required a collared shirt and tie sometimes a suit, or at least a polo shirt. I really don’t like to dress up. I understand it looks nice, and I respect the polished persona it helps to realize, but that’s just not who I am. Let me rephrase that. I can be polished for sure, but I’m going to exude more confidence and even better polish in my communications if I’m feeling comfortable in say, jeans and a t-shirt. Now that I no longer work in an office but rather from home, I wear jeans and a t-shirt most every day. I still get up and shower and get dressed as if I’m going to go into the office, I just wear whatever feels comfortable as I walk downstairs to my office at my house. I have to say, my productivity has never been better. I think, that relates to my feeling comfortable. I’m more confident in my skills and abilities to do the work that I need to do. That allows me to put my best foot forward in terms of the work I produce, and my ability to be productive in producing that work. When I used to go to an office and wear a shirt and tie I always felt restricted as if that tie was a noose around my neck. My confidence was stifled and my productivity was not as high as my potential. The point of all this is, self-awareness. It’s not only important to know what you like to do to find work that plays up to your strengths, but it’s also extremely important to understand how you achieve peak performance in what you do. What you wear to work and how that relates to your productivity is just one element of being aware of how to reach your peak performance. ----- Posted by: Nick Venturella
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There’s something about the season of autumn that sparks creativity for me.
I’m learning that I am not alone in this idea. I have heard from others that fall is their favorite time of year for creative activity and innovation. Part of me wonders if it is that from a young age, we’re constantly starting a new school year each fall. Each school year brings about the excitement of something new as well as something old/familiar; often reconnecting with school friends that one hasn’t seen since the last school year. That combination stirs up electric energy that makes my mind wander, in a good way. Then once the leaves on the trees start to change from green to red, yellow and brown, that spectrum of colors fuels my creative energy. Some of my most favorite past falls were when I was in college studying art and design and immersing myself in all of my inter-related music creations, and really combining all my creative outlets at a time of formidable growth and independence in my life. I always recall that sense of freedom and energy and try to figure out how to capture and sustain those moments as much as possible. As an interdisciplinary creative professional some of my best songwriting concepts for albums came to me in the fall. Some of my best creative marketing promotional ideas have come to me in the fall. Some of my best writing took place in the fall. To the extent I’m able I journal (not just in the fall, but especially in the fall) to somehow capture these thoughts, these ideas and these emotions from this season that enamors me. I do so to be able to go back and reflect and even repeat successful creative processes that I’ve documented from past years. Often the fall season provides enough creative ideas to keep me busy with projects the entire year. Autumn is my annual creative harvest. How does fall affect your creativity? Is it a time of innovation for you? Does your creative energy run hot, fast and furious in the fall? How do you harness that energy? In past years what have you accomplished with it? What do you hope to accomplish with it this year? ----------------------- Posted by: Nick Venturella
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Sign up for the Nick Venturella eNewsletter. Have any of my fellow musician friends out there found themselves in this situation: you now have young children that you are raising and as a result you find you're not able to practice as much, and/or play as many shows as you used to?
Don't take this the wrong way, I love my kids and I want to be around for them, and I have been. However, when you go from playing shows regularly to not really being able to book anything for a year or more in some cases, a lot of pent-up performance energy that needs to be expressed musically is backlogged and needs to get out. For me personally, it is getting better as my littlest guy just turn 2 so I feel like he's old enough to at least carry a couple pieces of gear to the next show. Well, maybe not quite, but our family situation is getting to a point where I can start to book more shows again and I plan to do so. However, I need to practice and build up my skills again because they've been a bit dormant for the level of professionalism I like to play at. So in this interim I am considering using things like Concert Window, or even more simply, Facebook Live to stream live performances that I'm doing from my home studio. This provides me convenience of not having to leave the house so I can be around for my family, but still get the one-shot-to-get-it-right kind of performance atmosphere that one would get with a live show. No, I haven't really done live streaming of a musical performance before, so I'm not sure exactly what to expect. I know that some audience interaction can take place, however I'm not sure logistically how easy it is to do that if you're performing – perhaps, between songs. Anyway, this post is more of a stream of consciousness exploring an idea publicly in hopes that I might get some feedback from all of you out there, or anyone who has done this before... Or, this post might plant the seed for other musicians in a similar situation to have a more at-home-convenient avenue to put on some live shows. If you'd like to provide feedback, contact me here. Thanks . Posted by: Nick Venturella |
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