Memorable copywriting

I came across an extraordinary piece of written art that has been stuck in my mind since I saw it a few days ago.

It was in a blog entitled "I still wish I had written this" by Drew McLellan

If you have anything to do with advertising. marketing or the written word - I suggest you check it out.

Thanks Susan for the link.

The secret of longevity

My son received a birthday card from his 90+ year old Great Grandmother today which contained excellent advice.

The card read " The secret to a long life is ... to keep breathing".

She added " It's working for me so far".

It made us smile!

Today I joined Saatchi & Saatchi

I am an active member of a number of on-line communities:

• Flickr
• Blogger
• 43 Things
• Old Friends
• Trade Me
• E Bay

Yesterday I was invited to join Facebook, which I had heard of but hadn't investigated.

The networking aspect of Facebook attracted me & I have joined some groups, including Saatchi & Saatchi. Already I have found some interesting information that makes me feel part of this new community.

A challenge will be to manage my on-line time so I still have an off-line life!

The CEO on reception

Today I had the pleasure of meeting a CEO on reception.

This CEO stood for Customer Engagement Officer. This staff member was not just pleasant & courteous, but genuinely cared.

I know the quote that says once you can fake sincerity you've got it made, but this CEO really was sincere.

I think many people could learn from this CEO by engaging with their customer and making them feel really special.

Perception is reality

Today I realised that this should really be "Perspective is reality".

Different people have different perspectives of the same event.

Stephen Covey, author of The 7 habits of highly effective people, devoted a chapter to seeking first to understand before seeking to be understood.

In my view, to say the perception is reality is flawed (and can be dangerous). I suggest using the saying "Perspective is reality" to understand where others might be coming from.

I blame the All Blacks

Things haven't been the same for me since the All Blacks lost to France and were sent home early from the rugby world cup.

Rather than accepting personal responsibility for what happened, maybe I should blame the All Blacks loss?

The reality is though, I went off the rails and got unbalanced and less organised. I'm not saying I was a complete disaster, but gradually various parts of my life began suffering.

Sometimes it seemed too hard to get back on track, because so many parts of my life felt out of balance, however by changing one small part of my life, the rest is starting to fall back in line again too.

I need to maintain balance and focus, not by blaming external factors (like the All Blacks), but by being personally accountable for my life.

All Blacks lose their quarter final against France

"It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better.

The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly; who errs and comes short again and again; because there is not effort without error and shortcomings; but who does actually strive to do the deed; who knows the great enthusiasm, the great devotion, who spends himself in a worthy cause, who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement and who at the worst, if he fails, at least he fails while daring greatly. So that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory nor defeat."

~ Theodore Roosevelt (1858-1919)American statesman (26th US president: 1901-09) from "Man in the Arena" Speech given April 23, 1910