How to Conquer Your Greatest Creativity Killer
Issue #2276
- WEALTHY: Whose investment advice can you trust? (Andrew Gordon)
- HEALTHY: An antioxidant you can’t find in your kitchen (Craig Ballantyne)
- WISE: Peter Jennings on being cranky
ALSO IN THIS ISSUE:
- 3 ways to kick your bad mood out the door (Clayton Makepeace)
- An advertising lesson from a computer giant (Suzanne Richardson)
- It’s Fun to Know… about 10-gallon hats
- Add "nolens volens" to your vocabulary
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Rating the Raters
An "AAA" rating looks so safe and strong, especially when it comes from a "reputable" source such as Moody’s Investors and Standard & Poor’s. But these agencies screwed up royally when they gave certain debt instruments their highest ratings. That’s like shouting to investors "These bonds are absolutely safe to invest in!" As a result, banks and funds poured a huge amount of money into them. Now, it turns out that many were backed by subprime mortgages. They weren’t so safe, after all. And the banks stuck with these debts are writing off hundreds of millions of dollars. It’ll soon be hundreds of billions.
Originally, it was the investor - not the borrower (or issuer of the bond) - that paid the agencies for their ratings. That changed in the 1970s, making investors the victims of a conflict of interests. And it’s still going on.
Insiders get early information. Outsiders get the wrong information. The next time somebody gives you investment advice, make sure you know the source. And still do your own double-checking. This is your hard-earned money. Do you really know who’s whispering in your ear?
[Ed. Note: ETR’s Investment Director, Andrew Gordon, is the editor of INCOME, a monthly financial advisory service that uncovers income-generating stocks that promise safety (first and foremost), along with much-higher-than-average profit potential.]
"There will be good days and bad, which means that some days I may be cranky and some days really cranky !"
Peter Jennings
How to Conquer Your Greatest Creativity-Killer
Despite all the great things going on in my life, I began feeling a little down in the dumps last week.
That’s not good. For creative folks like me - and for all marketing pros - depression can be a career killer.
When you’re depressed, your energy flees, your focus fuzzes up, your creativity goes AWOL - and if you don’t do something about it (and quick!), your income craters and your reputation and career chase it right down the tubes.
In short, depression is one of the costliest business problems any of us ever deal with!
Conversely, the ability to identify and neutralize depression quickly are two of the most valuable skills any entrepreneur or marketer could possibly acquire. They empower you to add scores more productive and profitable hours, days, and weeks to your year.
In my experience, depression comes from three places…
1. Too many drugs, so little time
When I say "drugs," I’m referring to my three personal favorites: (1) Grey Goose, (2) Starbucks, and (3) Marlboro Lights.
Once upon a time, I could pretty much party for 48 hours straight and never pay the piper. I could do Friday and Saturday at Sloppy Joe’s, ride the 14 or 15 hours home from Key West, and still show up for work bright and bushy-tailed first thing Monday morning.
These days, not so much. My 54-year-old body demands at least 72 hours to get over a weekend like that. And it puts me through a period of pretty intense chemical mopery before my wife, friends, total strangers, the local constabulary, my lawyer, and my creative muse begin speaking to me again.
Goes without saying: Losing 72 hours of creative time each week would make it nearly impossible for me to continue living the comfortable life to which I’ve become accustomed. And so I’ve been forced into a life of relative abstinence - punctuated, of course, by the occasional not-so-graceful swan dive off the wagon at vacation time.
Caffeine and nicotine are something else altogether. I can’t walk, speak, or think until I’ve had a couple of mugs of Joe in the morning. Problem is, it’s 2:00 p.m. before I know it, and by then, my get-up-and-go has got up and skedaddled.
And of course, it’s even worse if I’m inhaling nicotine - an infamous depressant - with all that coffee.
What’s the solution? The dreaded "M" word: Moderation.
On the plus side, there is a mood-brightening drug I can’t recommend highly enough - one that I absolutely hate getting.
I’m talking about endorphins. You get them by doing exercise: swimming, walking, running, that kind of stuff.
Work out for two weeks in the morning before you go to work, and you’ll be absolutely amazed at how much happier you are, how much more productive you become, and how much more moolah you rake in!
2. Lies your brain tells you
Has some terrible thing happened that gives you the right to be depressed? The promotion you just knew would make you a gazillion bucks flopped flatter than a flapjack? You’re broker than a sailor after shore leave, and the bill collectors are calling non-stop?
Hey - I’ve been there. It sucks.
But it doesn’t mean you have to suffer from depression-related brain-block, too!
The fact is, you get to choose how you feel in response to just about anything that happens to you.
See, everything that happens to you passes through a little "belief filter" in your brain - a conviction you’ve come to hold about yourself and/or the world around you.
These filters can be positive - as in "I’m brilliant," "I’m a winner," "I always come out smelling like a rose"…
… or they can be negative - as in "I’m a dope, a fraud," "I’m a loser," "Everything I touch turns to crapola."
Here’s the golden key: Nearly all the belief filters we have are utter nonsense.
The objective truth is, nobody is always a winner or a loser… creative or dull… brilliant or a dunce.
So the next time depression has you creatively hog-tied, try this…
First, identify the negative thought that triggered your lousy mood.
Then, ask yourself, "Is that thought valid?" (99.9% of the time it is not!)
And then ask yourself, "Is the belief filter that triggered that negative thought valid?" (Again: Almost never.)
Finally, ask yourself, "How should I change that belief about myself and/or the world to bring it in line with reality?"
You’ll be amazed at how quickly even the lousiest mood evaporates in the blinding light of the objective truth.
3. Self-obsession
I learned this simple fact of life many years ago - and re-learn it all the time. In fact, you could say it was my guiding principle for launching The Total Package e-zine last year.
The simple fact is, when my focus is on others’ well-being, I’m happier.
Conversely, I notice that when I’m trying to find things that will make me happy - new toys, vacations, etc. - I’m actually less happy.
So where’s your focus? Are you obsessed with your own feelings and the state of your life? If so, there’s a good chance those feelings are not positive ones.
Try doing something to improve someone else’s life today. You’ll be amazed at how quickly your mood lifts!
[Ed. Note: Clayton Makepeace has spent the last 35 years creating direct-mail, Internet, and print promotions that have sold well over $1 billion worth of products. Plus, as a direct-marketing consultant and copywriter, he’s helped four major direct-marketing firms at least quadruple sales and profits to well over $100 million per year each. Clayton publishes the highly acclaimed e-zine The Total Package (www.makepeacetotalpackage.com) to help business owners and copywriters accelerate their sales and profits. Check it out.
For dozens of goal-setting strategies that can help you bypass stress and other obstacles to your success, sign up for ETR’s Total Success Achievement Program. Learn more here.]
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Praise for Ready, Fire, Aim : "I highly recommend this book."
"I have seen firsthand how Michael Masterson can grow a business.
"Reading Ready, Fire, Aim was like a flashback to all the advice Michael has given me over the years as a mentor and now consultant to my company. I know that advice is the only reason we survived the initial start-up and now have annual sales over $10 million. Now all that knowledge, experience, and advice is put together in Michael’s latest book. I highly recommend this book to anyone starting their own business - or, for that matter, anyone who owns a business of any size.
"Fantastic!"
- Brian Sodi
Delray Beach, FL
A Television Ad Gets It Right
By Suzanne Richardson
One big idea. It’s the power behind super-successful companies. It’s what turns a book into a classic. It’s what makes a movie a blockbuster. And it’s what makes products sell like crazy.
So one of the most important rules to follow when you’re writing ads is that they should be about one strong idea.
As copywriting expert John Forde says, "One message, well developed, just has more impact than ads - short or long - that are overloaded with competing ideas."
A lot of television ads get it wrong. Face it, there are some pretty ridiculous and perplexing commercials making the rounds these days. (What do lizards dancing to Michael Jackson tunes have to do with anything?)
But here’s one example of how a TV ad got it very right.
The commercial opens with a shot of a big, manila envelope - the kind in which you send inter-office memos. Music plays in the background. A hand comes out and opens the envelope. It pulls out… the latest Apple notebook computer. The hand opens the computer. The camera swings around the computer, reinforcing just how thin it is. The hand closes the computer, revealing the words "MacBook Air. The world’s thinnest notebook."
The entire 29 seconds of the commercial is devoted to a single idea: the computer’s revolutionary slimness.
Is its ultra-thinness the only thing the MacBook has going for it? I doubt it. But the notebook’s size is a "big idea" that differentiates it from competitors. It’s simple. It’s memorable. And it’s powerful. As John Forde says, "The tighter and more isolated the core idea, the more powerful the result. Without exception."
So when you’re coming up with ads for your product… radio spots, television commercials, sales letters, banner ads… keep its biggest idea in mind.
Exercise as an Antioxidant
When people talk about antioxidant-packed foods, they almost always think of vegetables and fruits, such as broccoli and berries. However, researchers from the University of Virginia have shown that exercise can have a similar protective effect.
In the study, 49 older adults (aged 60-72) performed a 6-month resistance training program. Some of the subjects were overweight, and some were normal weight. At the end of the program, researchers noted that exercise reduced levels of harmful free radicals and homocysteine in both groups. Since homocysteine and free radicals have been associated with cardiovascular disease, the resistance training appeared to act as a protective factor against heart disease.
It’s easy to do resistance training at home. You can begin with bodyweight exercises or you can use resistance bands, dumbbells, or even kettlebells. Stick to multi-muscle movements like squats, rows, and presses, and you’ll get the maximum benefits in the minimum amount of time.
[Ed. Note: Fitness expert Craig Ballantyne is the creator of the Turbulence Training for Fat Loss system. For a free online source of information, motivation, and social support to help you improve your health, lose weight, and get fit, sign up for ETR’s free natural health e-letter.]
It’s Fun to Know: The 10-Gallon Hat
Any cowboy can tell you that the so-called 10-gallon hat actually holds only about three-quarters of a gallon of liquid. So where did the name come from? It turns out it’s a bit of linguistic misunderstanding. Mexican cowboys ("vaqueros") wore braided bands around their hats, as many as 10. The Spanish word for braid? Galon, which American cowboys misinterpreted as "gallon" when introducing the hat style to the United States.
(Source: That’s a Fact Jack and The Straight Dope )
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Word to the Wise: Nolens Volens
"Nolens volens" (NOH-lenz VOH-lenz) - from the Latin - means "whether unwilling or willing."
Example (as used by the Daily Telegraph ): " Events have put NATO in a position where it is the policeman of Europe and beyond, nolens volens."
[Ed. Note: Become a more persuasive writer and speaker … build your self-confidence and intellect … increase your attractiveness to others … just by spending 10 VERY enjoyable minutes a day with ETR’s new Words to the Wise CD Library.]
Copyright ETR, LLC, 2008