Welcome to the latest issue of Write for You
News & Notes
with some words of wisdom on
writing, business, and life. If you'd like to
share any books or favorite links with our
readers,
send us an
e-mail. And be sure to check
our website
for ways that we can help you
with your
business. Remember -- when you need words that work for you, I can write for you!
Nancy Passow
Perfection is Overrated |
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Recently I read a great blog by one of my favorite marketing people,
Dianna Huff (DH
Communications), about the myth of perfection. She talks about what
she learned in Seth Godin's book Linchpin,
in which he says "Art is never defect-free" (the title of Dianna's
blog). I decided it would make a great topic for my next e-letter. Of
course, after sending out my August e-letter, I made a discovery. In my
haste to send it out, I never changed the subject line, so it went out
as the "July Newsletter". I imagine some of you didn't bother to open
it because you knew you'd already read my July e-letter. (A big thank
you to all of you who took a chance and found out it was the August
newsletter.)
Dianna said in her blog, "I am not perfect. Especially when it comes to
writing typo-free content. When you get something written from me, it
might have a typo in it. Or two. Maybe even three. This is not to say I
don't care about my work. I do care. Deeply." She goes on to explain
that although she proofreads and edits and does all the right things a
writer should do, the real focus should be on the creative process.
Which leads back to what Seth Godin said. (Read Dianna's blog here.)
I suffer from the perfection syndrome even worse than some due to my
technical background. Having been trained as a chemical/environmental
engineer, I do tend to work things to death. Given the opportunity, I
will rewrite and rewrite. My monthly e-letters are usually done over
the course of a week, allowing ample time for re-reading and rewriting.
However, in August we were on vacation at the Jersey shore and I did
the e-letter in just an hour or two. (I did think about the articles
ahead of time, including while out kayaking, so I knew what I wanted to
write). And it worked fine . . . except for the subject line of the e-mail.
What is the biggest problem with the quest for perfection? Never
accomplishing anything. Because you worry about not being perfect, you
never complete the project. Sometimes you never even start it. I'm not
advocating not proofreading and editing, I'm just saying that you need
to pick a point when you're done and then just let go. And I'm also
suggesting that we make sure to recognize what's good and creative,
before we point out what's wrong.
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Can You Hear Me Now? Part One |
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I don't have a smartphone. As
a matter of fact, my poor little phone could be considered a "dumb"
phone -- it makes and receives phone calls. If I really wanted (and
paid extra) I could text. I've been looking at smartphones -- android
phones to be exact. Now that I'm using social media, I really do need a
phone that handles it. And some of the apps are cool (I've already
fallen in love with the one that collects all of your store loyalty
cards so you can empty your wallet and just scan the phone!) But, as
usual with new technology, I've been hesitating (too much money, too
much change, how will I ever figure out how to use it!) However, the
universe is sending me messages -- first the little clip on one side of
the charger plug fell off, then my hands-free headset stopped working
(just in time for a teleconference I was going to participate in while
driving home from Virginia.) Obviously I'm not going to pay to replace
them. So, I guess the time has come. Hopefully in next month's
newsletter I'll be telling you how wonderful my new phone is.
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E-mail Marketing/Constant Contact Solution Provider |
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Are you interested in trying e-mail marketing? I am now a Certified Constant
Contact Expert and a Constant
Contact Solution Provider. Which means I can
help you with your e-mail marketing --
whether it's helping with set-up, writing the
content, or doing something more advanced. I
can even set up your contact lists, help you
choose a template, and develop your e-mail
schedule. To learn more, click
here.
E-mail marketing is a way to stay in front of your customers. Whether it's an e-letter (like this one), notice of a special event or sale, or just a holiday greeting, e-mail marketing should be a part of your marketing package. Let me help you get started.
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Book of the Month . . . Switch |
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Switch -- How to Change Things When
Change is Hard, Chip and Dan Heath's follow-up to Made to Stick, looks at not only
how we can change the way we do things but how we can change what other
people do. The Heaths start by borrowing a metaphor to describe our
rational side and our emotional side -- a rider on an elephant.
Successfully making a change requires directing the rider, motivating
the elephant, and shaping the path they follow. Each of these steps is
explained, with plenty of examples. The Heaths explain that an
important part of directing the rider is pointing to the destination. This leads to one of my favorite quotations, a true "duh" moment: "When you're at the beginning, don't obsess about the middle, because
the middle is going to look different once you get there. Just look for
a strong beginning and strong ending and get moving."
This book will
truly change the way you approach change! To learn more about Switch and the Heath brothers, visit their website.
Quote of the Month: "I would rather regret the things I have done than the things I have not." -- Lucille Ball
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