Greenlights

This was a really entertaining book about a person who really has a good grasp on how to craft his future. It’s a book about confidence and rolling through the punches to get what you want. It’s about seeing the future and crafting your future.
  • I’m not perfect; no, I step in shit all the time and recognize it when I do. I’ve just learned how to scrape it off my boots and carry on.
  • Persist, pivot, or concede. It’s up to us, our choice every time.
  • Me? I haven’t made all A’s in the art of living. But I give a damn. And I’ll take an experienced C over an ignorant A any day.
  • Sometimes which choice you make is not as important as making a choice and commiting to it.
  • Life is our resume. It is our story to tell, and the choices we make write the chapters. Can we live in a way where we look forward to looking back?.
  • We can catch more greenlights by simply identifying where the red lights are in our life, and then change course to hit fewer of them.
  • It is not about win or lose, it is about do you accept the challenge.
  • Great leaders are not always in front, they also know who to follow.
  • They are not trying to win arguments of right or wrong. They are trying to understand each other.

When Breath Becomes Air

Life is so very fragile. This came from a neurosurgeon who went through all the rigors of getting to be a surgeon, only to also come down with cancer. He battled, he survived… only to start falling into his same work rituals of wanting to help people… which then also ended his life.

  • “The days are long, but the years are short.”
  • “I expected to feel only empty and heartbroken after Paul died. It never occurred to me that you could love someone the same way after he was gone.”
  • As a resident, my highest ideal was not saving lives—everyone dies eventually—but guiding a patient or family to an understanding of death or illness.
  • “Human knowledge is never contained in one person. It grows from the relationships we create between each other and the world, and still it is never complete.”
  • “Being with patients in these moments certainly had its emotional cost, but it also had its rewards. I don’t think I ever spent a minute of any day wondering why I did this work, or whether it was worth it.”
  • We are never so wise as when we live in this moment.
  • “What are you most afraid or sad about?” she asked me one evening while we were lying in bed. “Leaving you,” I told her.

$100M Leads

Okay, let’s move past the gross title and feel, this book brought up some interesting insights. It was roughly a gym rat turned sales person who knew how to connect with people and make money. And so his insights are valid. Here’s a few of the ones I wrote down:

  • On the importance of social, “the content disappears, but the audience you gain does not”
  • As a marketer, if everyone is doing it… don’t do it.
  • Don’t ask for the business. Just give give give… and eventually people will ask you.
  • If you have to ask, give publicy and ask privately
  • A confused mind does not buy. Keep sales simple.
  • Experience is bulletproof and can’t be challenged. e.g., “Here’s the 5 ways I was able to grow my business through marketing”. vs. “These are 5 things you should be doing to grow your business.” People don’t like to be told what to do in that latter example.
  • Another approach is to mention if they get value out of this, donate to their favorite charity.
  • Always advertise scarcity.
  • Any reason is better than no reason (when advertising).
  • On the importance of social, “the content may disappear, but the audience you gain does not”
  • As a marketer, the golden rule is if everyone is doing it… do something else.
  • A confused mind does not buy. Keep sales simple.
  • Experience is bulletproof and can’t be challenged. e.g., “Here’s the 5 ways I was able to grow my business through marketing”. vs. “These are 5 things you should be doing to grow your business.” People don’t like to be told what to do in that latter example.
  • Health is wealth.
  • Rich is what you earn. Wealth is what you own.
  • The cost is what you pay. Value is what you receive.
  • Think slow. Think smooth. Think speed. The progress of how to learn
  • Do more than what they do… Have more than what they have
  • “The pain is the pitch.” If you can articulate the pain a prospect is feeling accurately, they will almost always buy what you are offering. A prospect must have a painful problem for us to solve and charge money for our solution.”
  • “The point of good writing is for the reader to understand. The point of good persuasion is for the prospect to feel understood.”

The Business of Expertise

I really enjoy listening to the podcast of David Baker and Blair Enns. It’s one of the most insightful that I listen to for the agency side of things. So, I wanted to give this book a whirl which really helped show the value and challenges of consulting. Here’s a few of my favorite quotes.

  • If you want to change the world, you have to learn to think. And writing is important to help process your thinking.
  • No good answer starts without a good question.
  • Good leaders do not surprise their team. They make the most logical decisions. Listen to people. Understand your vision. Then decide.
  • The drive to learn is also the drive to help. Continue to learn and improve to ensure you can give nuggets of insight to clients.
  • Profit, culture, effectiveness – the three points to measure against evaluating projects.
  • To make the most effective decision, understand the vision. Does it get you closer… well, there’s your answer.
  • Money is the currency of respect.
  • Brand Values – Non-negotiables in our belief system that never change despite external changes and pressure in the environment. Vision – Our end point. The destination. Purpose – The reason why our organization exists. Mission – How we achieve that purpose.
  • Listen more than you speak.
  • Never deceive. But during contracting, you can mirror how you’re being treated.