Marketing and Life

Marketing happens whether you are selling a product or attracting a mate; building an empire or managing a household.  What do you understand about this ubiquitous thing we call marketing?

Consider this –

Marketing Is:

The person answering your phone and how they do that

The shirt and tie or lack thereof every day of your life

The shine on your shoes

The shoe laces that are either tied or not

The smile or lack thereof

The tentative approach or the bold step up to the plate

The direct eye contact or the looking away quickly

The inappropriate joke

The color of your business card and how clean it is

Your breath, good or bad

Your speaking volume

Your memory in critical moments that matter to others

You surely see by now that everything we do lends itself to the marketing of our interests and needs. 

We are “ON” every moment of every day, whether we like it or not. 

I suppose we get to decide how important our marketing is in every facet of our lives and then make whatever moves we wish to sell the message we sell.

Just some thoughts to make us all think.

P Michael Biggs

Up-Words Web Site

Offering Hope

Encouragement Inspiration

One Word at a Time

Make Something

If I had a wish for you it would be this …

I hope that you will make something.  Make art, make music, write a song, knit a sock, bake a pie, add a dash of vanilla flavoring to your favorite recipe … do something original and creative just because you can.

I hope you might dare to dream outrageously.  Dream like never before.  Take the blinders off your dreams and dream big and in color and larger than life.

Don’t let the bound of this earth stop you. 

Don’t let the small minds of others stop you.

Don’t listen to the naysayers.  Listen to your own heartbeat.

Go!

     Be!

          Do the spectacular.

               Do the unusual.

Do the different just because you see the possibilities.

I hope you will go and make something that never existed before.  Even for one fleeting moment. 

I added vanilla to my French toast this week.  It was yummy. 

Occasionally I add a small teaspoon of cinnamon to my coffee grounds before brewing them.  Love that one too.

P Michael Biggs

Up-Words Web Site

Offering Hope

Encouragement Inspiration

One Word at a Time

I Sell

Every time I open my mouth, I sell.

Every time I buy in a store or order off the menu, I sell. 

Every time I talk with my wife, I sell.

And so do you.  What are we selling?

Only a bit of our integrity, our kindness, our people relationship skills and our nature at its core.

I also sell my own self-confidence, my believability in self, and a bit of my self-esteem.  And believe it or not, I sell my intelligence with each transaction.  Oh yes. 

Also, the core beliefs that I hold are either bought with every transaction or not.  My core beliefs are honesty, reliability, truthfulness, trustworthiness.

And do you know what else?

You also sell all of these character traits.  Every day – Every time.

Think about that one.

P Michael Biggs

Up-Words Web Site

Offering Hope

Encouragement Inspiration

One Word at a Time

Drive Time

Carolyn and I have found a fun way to add interest to our drive time.  She reads to me.  Even on the short ten minute jaunt to our health club, she reads. 

Thus far, here is what we've accomplished in the last few years.

The Chronicles of Narnia (all 7 volumes)

The DaVinci Code

Angels and Demons

2 Volumes of Sherlock Holmes

Jobs (Steve Jobs Bio)

Thomas Jefferson bio

Various Christmas titles

Currently we are on book six in the Harry Potter series.

I highly recommend this as a shared drive-time activity.

And it expands your reading life.

P Michael Biggs

Up-Words Web Site

Offering Hope

Encouragement Inspiration

One Word at a Time

Shedding

Snakes shed their old skin.

Children shed their baby teeth for permanent ones.

Pets shed hair.

My wife cleans out my closet from time to time because a sweater or shirt is beyond suitable to wear. 

Sometimes I like shedding and sometimes I miss the old.  But mostly I like to shed.

Mel Robbins asked a probing question in the October 2010 issue of Success Magazine:

“What are you willing to shed to become who you were meant to be?”

I love that from an intellectual point of view.  We all can get bogged down with what Zig Ziglar called “stinkin’ thinkin’.”  That is the kind of thinking that we incorrectly picked up along the way that no longer holds merit.

Remember what map makers once did?  When they drew a map of the then-known world, on the borders they would pen these words …

“Beyond this, there be dragons.”

Everyone today knows that is old thinking.  I’m so glad we shed that thought.

Also, we are very glad we got over the fear of flying and space travel, and using a quill and ink bottle to capture our thoughts.

There are dogmas, philosophies, rules, laws and the list goes on, that along the way we have had to shed in order to grow and become better, smarter and more expansive in our thinking.  

In this ever-changing world it seems we shed something every day for the next new and better. 

Do you remember rotary dial phone?

How about black and white TV?

What have you shed lately?

P Michael Biggs

Up-Words Web Site

Offering Hope

Encouragement Inspiration

One Word at a Time

The Push

I want to tell you a funny story that makes a great point.

A man and his wife were awakened at 3AM by a loud pounding on the door.  The man got up to see what is up and he saw a drunken stranger standing in the pouring rain,

asking for a push.

“Not a chance,” said the husband.  It’s 3 o’clock in the morning.”  With that he slammed the door and returned to bed.

His wife asked, “Who was that?”

“Just some drunk guy asking for a push,” he answered.

“Well did you help him?”

“No I did not.  It is 3 in the morning and it is pouring rain out there.”

“Well, you have a short memory,” she said.  “Can’t you remember about three months ago when we broke down and those two guys helped us?  I think you should help him, and you should be ashamed of yourself.  God loves drunken people too.”

The husband recognized the wisdom in his wife’s words, got up, got dressed and went out into the pounding rain.

He called out in the dark, “Hello.  Are you still here?”

“Yes” came the answer.

“Do you still need a push?”

“Yes, please!” came the reply from the darkness.

“Where are you?”

“Over here on the swing set,” replied the drunk.

The end …

However, the moral of the story stands.  Sometimes we need to give a friend, a neighbor or co-worker a push. 

A “push” in this context – well, it is nothing more than a word of encouragement.  Perhaps it is a bit of advice to set one on a better track for his/her life.  Sometimes it is a lesson that one learns to benefit their life for the rest of their life.

It is encouragement.  ENCOURAGEMENT.

We all need it.

We all crave it.

So, let’s give it – in bushels and buckets

Now this is the end.

P Michael Biggs

Up-Words Web Site

Offering Hope

Encouragement Inspiration

One Word at a Time

Struggling for Love

If you suffer with feelings of lack of love, let me offer you some encouragement.  Unfortunately this is a common malady that plagues many in today’s world. 

To whom do we turn?  Where are the answers?

I’m going to use as my source the words of Brene Brown and her book Daring Greatly. 

When we consider this subject, we are clearly divided into two groups.

Group One consists of those who do feel a deep sense of love and belonging.

Group Two is peppered with those who feel a great lack of self-approval, self-acceptance and self-love. 

It is the Group Two gang to whom I speak.  My first suggestion is to find some great books that will address the self-esteem and self-love issues.  Self-esteem is in its simplest form a healthy respect and acceptance of self as you are this very moment. 

You may not have the best of everything, nor be in the top echelon of society, yet you are still a worthy individual.  You have worth, talents, skills, and contributions that you can make unlike any other human being on earth.  Perhaps it is time to take control of your thought processes and change your mindset from “can’t and lack” to “can-do and able to do”. 

Do you approve of yourself, today, right where you sit?  If not, why not?

What is keeping you from self approval?  Who told you you are not worthy of approving self? 

Today could be a new day for you.  It was for me a few years ago.  I discovered this phrase in a magazine and knew I suffered from lack of self-approval.  I immediately created a business-card size pocket motivator that stated “I Approve of Myself”. 

I remember pulling that out and reading it dozens of time every day for months on end.  Soon, the seeds of this one powerful thought began to grow inside of my heart and mind. 

You see, approval and self-love go hand in hand.  If we feel we don’t approve of self, how can we truly love self? 

This is not egotism speaking when you use this phrase.  It is a healthy dose of self-acceptance. 

Your world will start to change when you begin to believe you are worthy of love and acceptance,

Here is an excellent excerpt you need to know, believe and understand.

“Two groups – those who feel a deep sense of love and belonging and those who struggle for it – there’s only one variable that separates the groups:  Those who feel loveable, who love, and who experience belonging simply believe they are worthy of love and belonging.  They don’t have better or easier lives, they don’t have fewer struggles with addiction or depression, and they haven’t survived fewer traumas or bankruptcies or divorces, but in the midst of all of these struggles, they have developed practices that enable them to hold on to the belief that they are worthy of love, belonging, and even joy.”

~Brene Brown

Daring Greatly

Many fine counselors and therapist are in every town, village and large city to help you walk through this process as well.  Take advantage of them.

P Michael Biggs

Up-Words Web Site

Offering Hope

Encouragement Inspiration

One Word at a Time