It seems a no-brainer that the most successful leaders are those who are also full of self-confidence (not to be confused with conceit).  However, what is it that makes someone appear “confident”?  What is that certain something that ensures Leaders have Followers?

Dr. Marshall Goldsmith attempts to answer these questions in a post for the Harvard Business blog – excerpted here:

1. DON’T WORRY ABOUT BEING PERFECT. There are never right or wrong answers to complex business decisions. The best that you can do as a leader is to gather all of the information that you can (in a timely manner), do a cost-benefit analysis of potential options, use your best judgment — and then go for it.
2. LEARN TO LIVE WITH FAILURE. Great salespeople are the ones who get rejected the most often. They just ask for the order more than the other salespeople. You are going to make mistakes. You are human. Learn from these mistakes and move on.
3. AFTER YOU MAKE THE FINAL DECISION — commit! Don’t continually second-guess yourself. Great leaders communicate with a sense of belief in what they are doing and with positive expectations toward the achievement of their vision.
4. SHOW COURAGE ON THE OUTSIDE — even if you don’t always feel it on the inside. Everyone is afraid sometimes. If you are a leader, your direct reports will read your every expression. If you show a lack of courage, you will begin to damage your direct reports’ self-confidence.
5. FIND HAPPINESS AND CONTENTMENT IN YOUR WORK. Life is short. My extensive research indicates that we are all going to die anyway. Do your best. Follow your heart. When you win, celebrate. When you lose, just start over the next day.

*Read the full article at Harvard Business*

Photo courtesy of Design*Sponge

A few months ago, I posted an excerpt from a story about Coralie Bickford-Smith – the designer responsible for many wonderful book covers at Penguin Classics.

Well, just today, Design*Sponge (if you don’t know this site, you should!!) posted a more extended interview with Ms. Bickford-Smith.  So, I thought I would share it with you here.  Click on the link below to see the full post in its natural habitat…

An brief excerpt from the Design*Sponge interview:

…That’s the nature of cover design really – the designs are there to serve the writing, and there’s such a range of material that we design for that a personal style isn’t necessarily what you want the customer to see.

If you are in business, you are offering a product.  Whether you’re selling sneakers or your accounting skills, your customers are shelling out money in return for whatever it is you have to offer.  In order to succeed, you need to understand the myriad ways you could fail…

*Article posted at Fuel Your Branding*

Holistic and 3-dimensional brand development results in a powerful relationships with internal and external stakeholders.  The built environment should not be overlooked as an integral part of brand communication.

**Article posted at Fuel Your Branding**

An indoor “fireplace” sans chimney.  Clever, simple, useful!

* Courtesy of Core77 *

Successful organizations are driven to succeed by visionary leaders.  These leaders take calculated risks, and look for ways to innovate in every aspect of their business.  Everything from internal work processes, to product design, to revamped service offerings are fair game when it comes to growing a company.  No matter what the innovations, however, the overall brand idea remains at the root of the evolution.  Thus, success depends upon a strong Brand.

Here’s why:

DEMONSTRATES ORGANIZATIONAL DISCIPLINE

Brand expression is strongest when it is consistent.  Consistency builds confidence in your company and its offerings.  Disciplined brand development within your organization demonstrates to your customers that you pay attention to the details.

IT’S GOOD FOR MORALE

People like to feel like they are a part of something good, something purposeful.  Your brand is the living, breathing example of why you do what you do.  If your employees understand your brand, they will likewise know why they do what they do.

GUIDES ORGANIZATION AS IT NATURALLY EVOLVES

In order to thrive and grow, organizations must manage change in a deliberate way.  A brand idea that has been similarly developed will provide a solid foundation upon which to build the company.

GUIDES ORGANIZATION WHEN IT’S FORCED TO EVOLVE

Sometimes, environmental conditions necessitate that you change your company’s direction.  When you see change on the horizon, a strong brand idea will help you plan ahead, allowing you to keep the core of who you are while adjusting to new conditions.

COMMUNICATES WITHOUT WORDS

When your brand identity begins to speak for itself – in logos, packaging, customer service, etc. – you’ve done your job.

PROVIDES GUIDANCE TO PARTNER ORGANIZATIONS

At some point, every company finds it necessary to collaborate with another organization.  Whether it’s a multi-disciplinary design team or an impending merger, a strong brand I.D. will not only tell your partners what you are about, but what is expected of them.

FORMS THE BASIS OF YOUR ‘ELEVATOR PITCH’

A well-defined brand idea is simple.  It’s easy to describe and easy to understand.  If your employees can’t say it in 20 seconds, it’s time to re-think your pitch.

INSPIRES COMPANY FOUNDERS WHEN THEY NEED IT

(and they will)

The daily grind is enough to take anyone off their game, even a visionary leader.  When you lose your focus, your brand idea can bring you back to the basics:  why you do what you do.

GIVES DIRECTION IN TIMES OF CONFUSION

Every organization goes through times of difficulty.  It may be do to external factors, like a recession; or it may be an internal issue.  When you need to get back on track in order to move your company forward, looking back at the root brand idea can tell you exactly where you need to go.

IT’S COMMUNITY SERVICE…YOU CAN INSPIRE OTHERS

When you are doing things right, people take notice.  Some are impressed, but many more are likely to be inspired.  Great leaders lead by example.  Your success can tangibly demonstrate the power of a strong brand.

Do you have a strong brand?  If so, what makes it work?  If not, what’s holding you back?  Share your thoughts.

Quick Post: Book Cover Design

Alex Camlin of Da Capo Press chats about his experience, his inspiration, and his work…

An excerpt from The Casual Optimist:

I really enjoy working on books that are a bit off-beat or quirky. Recently, I’ve worked covers for a Karaoke memoir, a history of jetpacks, and a fake autobiography of Steve Jobs. I find that the books with moderate-to-low sales expectations (usually due to their niche subject matter) are the best to work on. Very few people bother to deconstruct what I’ve done, and the off-beat content usually leads to some interesting visuals.

A shout out to @designrelated on Twitter for posting this informative Q+A!

It has come to my attention that certain words have certain meanings.

I mention this because this information can be important – particularly when describing one’s profession.  Say, for instance, that you practiced in one of the following fields:

• Advertising
• Marketing
• Public Relations
• Branding

If you were asked to explain the difference between them all, could you do it?  Go ahead.  Think on it for 30 seconds…

How did you do?  Did you come up with anything?  Or did you quit after you envisioned a car commercial, your frazzled company marketing director, the White House Press Secretary, and your favorite cereal?

Differentiating between these terms is surprisingly difficult because all of these disciplines are very much connected in their intent – that being the communication of “ideas” from one entity or organization to another.  Where they differ, however, is in the measurements of success.

Did the customer buy the product?  Do more people know about our company this year versus last?  Are we well-considered by the community?  Does every aspect of our organization represent our company culture and value system?

As you can see, these questions are all somewhat related.  But, the preferred answer to each can only be obtained in a particular manner, utilizing the tools of a particular discipline.  The disciplines in question are, of course, Advertising, Marketing, Public Relations, and Branding.

And, in the spirit of meaningful words, the definitions of each discipline are as follows:

ADVERTISING

The activity of attracting public attention to a product or business, as by paid announcements in the print, broadcast, or electronic media.  The business of designing and writing advertisements – (from Dictionary.com)

MARKETING

Marketing is the activity, set of institutions, and processes for creating, communicating, delivering, and exchanging offerings that have value for customers, clients, partners, and society at large - (from the American Marketing Association)

PUBLIC RELATIONS

• Anticipating, analyzing and interpreting public opinion, attitudes, and issues that might impact, for good or ill, the operations and plans of the organization.
• Counseling management at all levels in the organization with regard to policy decisions,courses of action,and communication, taking into account their public ramifications and the organization’s social or citizenship responsibilities.
• Researching, conducting, and evaluating, on a continuing basis, programs of action and communication to achieve the informed public understanding necessary to the success of an organization’s aims. These may include marketing, financial, fund raising,employee,community or government relations, and other programs.
• Planning and implementing the organization’s efforts to influence or change public policy.
• Setting objectives, planning,budgeting, recruiting and training staff,developing facilities — in short,managing the resources needed to perform all of the above.

- (from the Public Relations Society of America)

BRANDING

Branding is how you go about establishing your brand’s differentiated meaning in people’s minds…Branding is about signals – the signals people use to determine what you stand for as a brand.  Signals create associations. (from BrandSimple by Allen P. Adamson)

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES:

Public Relations Society of America

American Marketing Association

American Association of Advertising Agencies

Brandchannel

Quick post.  Interesting design.  I think this is pretty cool and might work nicely in more whimsical applications.

Click the photo for the original post on www.iainclaridge.co.uk

Full disclosure: I read the project description and still have no idea what the point of this effort was.

However, this being my alma mater, I thought I would post the project here anyway.  If you figure it out, let me know.  Meanwhile, take note of the lovely campus…it’s a beauty!!

Click the photo for the full story at ArchDaily