It's not alway what you say - it's how you say it

A gravity coffee billboard has a dig at the quality (or lack) of a well-known international coffee chain.

It's an excellent example of how a well developed advertising campaign can capture peoples attention and convey an effective message.

What is copywriting?

It's easy to get caught up using jargon when we are too close to our own industry.

Recently I've been helping develop material about insurance and its been an excellent learning curve as I create & then edit information so it is easy to digest.

I have recently been reading about copywriting which I find interesting, but what actually is copywriting?

It seems to be a catch-all to describe a range of writing.

In my view, good copywriters should be able to describe who their target audience is, what issues they are experts in solving and how they can develop effective solutions.

What is success?

I felt despondent when I failed to achieve my goal of running 5kms in less than 25 minutes recently.

Today I decided to set new goals for my run.

Goal 1 - Run 8kms.
Goal 2 - Run the first 3 in less than 15 minutes.
Goal 3 - Say a cherry hi to people I saw.
Goal 4 - Feel good.
Goal 5 - Be in touch with my spiritual side.

I learnt that setting smaller milestone goals are just as satisfying as bigger goals.

Professional membership for Financial Advisors

On the 29th of February 2008, investment advisors in New Zealand will need to provide a Disclosure Statement before giving advice.

It's a good idea for advisors to be a member of a professional organisation.

There are a number of organisations to choose from. The links below take you to the membership application areas of each organisation.

Australian and New Zealand Institute of Insurance and Finance (click)
Their website describes the organisation as the leading membership body for insurance and financial services professionals in the Asia Pacific region. Institute members belong to a community of more than 12,000 insurance and financial services professionals who are respected for their up-to-date skills and knowledge and integrity.

Institute of Financial Advisers (click)
The Institute of Financial Advisers' website states that they are the professional body for insurance advisers, investment advisers and financial planners. The Institute is an industry leader, representing over 1400 financial advisers throughout New Zealand.

Life Brokers Association of New Zealand (click)
Their website states that this organisation represents professional independent life insurance brokers in New Zealand and facilitates the professional development of life brokers and sets a standard of excellence within the industry.

Professional Advisors' Association (click)
According to their website, the PAA's primary purpose is to provide a full range of Professional Association services to its members (life insurance, investment and mortgage advisers).

Society of Independent Financial Advisors (click)
Their mission statement is to ensure members of SIFA provide the public with independent financial advice while upholding the highest professional and ethical standards.

In addition to these organisations, there are also industry bodies and associations.

Live while you're alive!

Peggy Bourne is best known as the widow of the rally champion Possum Bourne, who was killed in a car accident in 2003.

Today I heard her story about her journey.

A child growing up with missionary parents in Africa.

Her marriage to Possum.

Her life after his death and the struggle to cope to take back her life.

She shared some of her life lessons, such as:

- Acknowledging mistakes & moving on.

- Live while you are alive.

- The strength her faith has given her.

I really enjoyed her story & learnt to appreciate life a little bit more.

The power of GOALS

The more goals I achieve, the more I believe in the incredible (& sometimes scary) power of setting goals.

For me, GOALS stands for:

G = GAME. It has to be fun, like a game.
O = OBSTACLES. I need to know what stands in my way.
A = ANALYSE. I need to know where I've been, where I'm going & how I'm going to get there.
LS = LASER SIGHT. As in keep focussed on my goal like a laser sight on my target.

Steps to success in 2008 and in life

The team from Red Hot Business Coaching spoke about it.

Rex Pemberton, the youngest Australian to conquer Everest, spoke about it.

The power of setting goals.

The really interesting thing is that they don't need to be realistic or achievable. They can be outrageous, unattainable and scary! The tougher the goal, the more inventive we become at how we might approach it.

So, step 1 is to set the goal.

Step 2 is to identify obstacles & develop strategies for overcoming them.

Step 3 was to know what we are passionate about because this will provide the fuel to attain the goal.

The next step was to develop the plan with milestones to achieve the goal.

Finally, get started! A journey of a thousand miles starts with a single step - Lao-tzu