This was the most difficult newsletter I’ve ever had to write. It seems that when you spend three weeks in Key West NOT thinking about business, coming up with business content is quite a chore. But no worries…thoughts kicked in just after my second cup of Cuban coffee.
Email Protocol
As part of all the email spam, Morning Brews and New York Times updates were a couple of introductions when I was cleaning out my email this week.
They were simple emails from someone I knew introducing me to someone I did not know. Harmless for the most part.
But it got me thinking? What’s the protocol for something like this?
Is a straight introduction okay? Should they have asked me for permission ahead of time?
It didn’t bother me that much, but I think I’d rather have been notified ahead of time. I think that is the proper formula…to email me first asking if it’s okay to do the introduction and before giving out my email to someone else.
What do you think is the correct answer?
Yes…But Differentiation
This week will be my last in Key West, Florida. I’ve had the best of times, made even better by a number of our closest friends coming down for a visit.
In the process, we’ve hit a large volume of bars, restaurants and other establishments.
What made a real impression on me was how many of the bars we returned to that are known for one thing in particular.
For example, The Green Parrot is best known for their live music.
The Whistle is where you want to go to people watch from the second floor over Duval Street (Duval is the main drag).
First Flight is the original headquarters of Pan Am Airlines.
Sloppy Joe’s is where Ernest Hemingway used to hang out.
Captain Tony’s is the oldest bar in Key West and the original Sloppy Joe’s.
The Boat House Inn has the best small plate happy hour.
Rick’s is where you go if you really want to tie one on.
What’s funny is that you can describe the place in the just a few words. Kind of an elevator pitch.
Mallory Square is where you go to see the sunset.
Celtic Conch is where you get grab a Guinness and are berated by the wait staff (in a good way).
Hank’s Saloon?…bring your dog and watch live music.
The list goes on.
It’s not that the other bars don’t do well, but the ones I listed really stand out. They seem the be the most crowded and the most talked about.
So you know where I’m going with this.
What’s your elevator pitch? How do people describe you.
For me, it happened after being intro’d a hundred times for speeches and then someone introduced me as the Godfather of Content Marketing. It stuck, and I became the content marketing guy. It was a bit of luck, but I picked that category of content marketing before it even existed and worked at it for five years until it stuck. Then it really paid off.
Too many content entrepreneurs stop at what they want to have expertise in that fills an audience need. That’s where you start, but it’s not enough.
Take it to the next level with Yes…but.
Yes, you are an expert in AI…but what makes you different.
Yes, you are an expert in HVAC equipment…but what makes you different.
Anyone can be an expert in anything today, but most are forgotten. Creating simple how-to content is truly anyone’s game.
It’s the Yes…but that makes the difference.
What’s your Yes…but?
Buying Property Redux
After sharing a few weeks ago about how I think owning less property is better, I started to reconsider. You see, I’ve fallen in love with Key West. Hard. Every available house we walked by down the streets of Key West was adorable in its own way.
I wondered if I was mistaken. Maybe I should consider buying a house here in Key West? We could live here a few months a year and rent it out the rest of the time. Yeah, that’s the ticket!
As I type this, there was a big flood in Key West yesterday. Nine inches of rain dropped in just a few short hours. Even a day later multiple streets around Old Town are still closed. Many houses, including the one we are staying in, suffered water damage. And our beloved home bar, The Dive Bar, located just a block away, was totally flooded. They’ve been closed since the rains hit trying to salvage whatever they can.
And just then I remembered another reason why I didn’t want to buy any more real estate.
By the way, the Southernmost Southernmost house in the continental United States is still for sale. I hear initial bids start next month between five and eight million and it should go for over $20 million. We passed by and both Pam and I figure it needs some major work.
You Are What You Think About
I listened to this very interesting podcast interview with Jay Shetty on the Prof G pod. Besides some valuable information on how Shetty built his incredible media empire as a content entrepreneur (his mission stuff is amazing), I loved what Shetty said about a person’s late-night thoughts.
For example, if you go to sleep saying you are tired, your mind will process that during the night and you’ll feel (or think you are) tired in the morning. That will continue throughout the day and the cycle continues.
But if you say you are going to have a very productive day tomorrow, you will wake up feeling productive and are more likely to do things that are actually productive.
Shetty says the best thing to do is to write down your intentions for the next day and review them before you go to sleep.
I can tell you first hand that these things work. I would add long-term aspirations to this as well. I’m not a neuroscientist and have no idea how the brain actually works, but what you tell yourself and read before you sleep impacts you during your sleep and into the next day. Try it and let me know if something changed.