Every moment of every day, choose.

I ran across this wonderful reminder this morning that was printed in one of Stephen R. Covey's "portable" books entitled "Choice: Choosing the Proactive Life You Want to Live" and thought it was well worth sharing. A reminder that our lives are a series of choices we make every day in each moment. What are you choosing, right now?

Choose to do the right thing, the tough thing -- not the familiar easy thing. Choose the way of the warrior or the way of the coward. Make your choice out of love instead of fear. Choose from the heart. Choose to live fully, not to sleepwalk through your life. Choose to respond with the way you really feel, not the way you're supposed to feel. Choose the mineral water over the soda; choose the lemon juice and olive oil over the blue cheese; choose the walk in the park over the ride to the mall. Choose simplicity over extravagance. Choose conversation over the television. Choose to talk things out rather than stew in your anger overnight. Choose compassion and generosity. Choose to smile instead of frown. Make your own choices in your own time and choose to stick with them.

~ Rachel Snyder

Building your personal brand. What's your message?

We only have one body, one identity, one life. Our uniqueness is ours alone, and doesn't belong to anyone else but us. It's easy to hide behind the company we work for. Or the people we associate with. Some people just don't want to "put themselves out there." Living under the radar, so to speak, seems more comfortable. And yet we long for some level of personal success, achievement, satisfaction or fulfillment.

But I don't believe there's any reason to hide our strengths. Who we are. Our authenticity. It would be like the parable of the man who hid his talents by burying them. To him were given no more. But to the man who utilized his talents, many more were given.

Some people think that building a brand identity costs a lot of money. Or time. It really doesn't have to. Brands can be built almost entirely using the internet these days -- and many of the services are free or at nominal cost. Just like anything else, it's only difficult if we make it difficult.

What do you want to be known for? What do you want to say? What lesson have you learned that you'd like to share? What can you teach from your experience? What opinion do you have about a topic that you're passionate about?

Brands are simply a culmination of thoughts and images of an individual or company, and the perception of that brand is often in the eye of the beholder. Brands are never fully built or complete. Rather, they are moving targets being shaped proactively by the owner and those with whom the owner interacts.

When you ask some people about their brand, they think about the brand of the company they work for or are associated with. But I like to ask people about their own personal and individual brand. Yes, that's right -- I'm asking you. Are you proactively crafting your unique story? Do people know who you are and what you stand for? Or are you standing idly by waiting for your brand to be created all by itself?

I encourage you to take some action today. I'm amazed at how many people still do not have something simple as a website or blog that begins to define them. God has given us gifts in the form of talents. Let's not bury them in the sand.

There's a video about a little boy who picks up a starfish on the beach and throws it back into the ocean. And an observer asks what he is doing. And he tells that man that if the starfish doesn't get thrown back in it will die. As the man looks across the beach that goes on for miles, he says to the boy that he can't possibly make a difference as there is miles of beach and hundreds maybe thousands of starfish that have washed up. As the little boy throws another starfish in the ocean, he replies by saying "I made a difference for that one."

Building a personal brand isn't about us necessarily. Oh, it can be, for sure. But it's really about being authentic and true to ourselves. And it's about sharing a story or lesson that perhaps just one person -- another human being -- can be inspired by and go on to do something in his or her life that's good. Something that maybe he or she wouldn't have done if the two people had not crossed paths. Take action today. You'll be surprised at the goodness you'll receive in return.

Where does impact live? 5 tips from the Master Media Coach.

One of the best speakers at last week's World's Greatest Marketing Conference was media coach, Joel Roberts. As a media coach, his job is to get other people to listen to your story which means he has to help you create a compelling, impactful story in the first place. So here are 5 things that I learned from him last week that I thought I'd share:

1. Don't go to the media expecting to get interviewed or to get publicity until you're ready. Get clarity first and have your marketing in place before you attempt to sell your story.
2. Clarity comes with concrete, specific language and does not live in the abstract. If you're going to make impact, be as specific and clear as possible. If you try to tell people what you do or how you got to the place you're in now in general terms, not only will you not be able to sell your story but you won't even get listeners. The media favors the concrete over the abstact, every time and all the time.
3. Sell the problem first, not your solution. What's the problem you remedy for your clients or customers? This is a common mistake that people and businesses make. Make the problem known! Talk about it with drama and grit. Don't just enroll people in the problem but pull them in. Submerge them in it. Steep them in it. Paint that picture. Address it clearly and head on -- or -- get them to have the problem you solve (there are two kinds of problems -- ones people have or ones they don't). Think of yourself as being in the problem distribution business. You can only sell your solution when people can relate or identify with the problem first.
4. Make it real. Make it human. Look for balance between humanity and your expertise. So in addition to making your story crystal clear, remember to access that place -- that human, vulnerable place in you -- predictably and learn to articulate the message precisely. Access predictably; articulate precisely. Tell the most dramatic story, whether it's your personal story or one of your client's. Choregraph your own energy around it when you tell it and bring the emotion in to it for people.
5. Follow a model; master it then transcend it. An easy short model to begin with is to use this phrase "Today I'm (insert all the good specifics about your current success) but it wasn't always that way. I used to be (insert the things you were that you're not now) and/or I tried (insert specifics of all the things you tried) and nothing worked. It wasn't until I discovered (insert the thing that turned you around, your revelation or epiphany) that led me to where I am today. Can I tell you more?" If you can begin with this model of how to set up the short version of your story, then you'll be able to pique the media's interest (or anyone you're selling to) about why they should hear more. Basically, you'll use this as "the short memo that explains why the longer memo is necessary." Master this template and then you can revise to make it your own.

Joel is a masterful media coach who has helped many authors and corporate executives prepare for major media interviews on Oprah, the Today Show and radio stations too numerous to mention. His joy comes from teaching intensive 3-day Excellence in Media seminars, and upcoming dates along with contact information can be found at http://www.joelroberts.com/.

Own your greatness.

I'm getting ready to embark on a new chapter of my career to help people do what Les Brown says, "own your greatness." What inspires me are the people who are seeking more, those who ask "is that all there is?" or "How'd I get here?" or who say "I'd really like to be doing something else." Those who want to do more fulfilling and rewarding work, not being satisfied where they are.

Then there are the people who by most accounts are already successful who need a little boost, too. The CEO who is looking for the next chapter of his/her life who just hasn't stopped long enough to think it through or make it important enough to take action. The author who's already published and sold many books but hasn't figured out how to build his or her internet presence. The Think Tank group that hasn't figured out how to use blogging to collaborate and expand their collective thinking. The small business owner or entrepreneur who needs to take his/her business to the next level.

There are so many things that stop people from what I refer to as "mission critical." I believe it is critical, somehow mandatory, that each one of us fully lives our mission. And I'm talking about in business or in life. Can you imagine? What would it be like if you and everyone around you did nothing but exactly what they were put here on earth to do?

I'm reminded of Paul Potts, the opera singer who won Britain's Got Talent reality TV show for '07. The guy had a voice like that and was hiding out selling cell phones for goodness sake. No confidence whatsoever. Unbelievable. His life has completely changed -- and all of us are the benefactors as we have the wonderful opportunity to listen to the passion in his voice because he chose to own his greatness -- he chose to trade his singing in the shower for singing on the world's stage. There's no way one can listen to Paul sing Nessun Dorma and not be moved. Truly moved. And his humble story just makes him that much more compelling as an artist. And everything he's been through in life has made him what he is today.

The thing is...he's not the only one. There are many more like him. Those of us who hide behind whatever lack of confidence we have in ourselves. Having incredible talent and not even being aware of our amazing gift. And "gifts" are like that...they come so naturally to us that we don't even realize what we've been given. We have to stop, be aware and make the right decisions.

I love what Paul said in his biography, "I was so nervous I was shaking like a jelly, but when I watch that audition back, I can see in my eyes that when I start to sing I go to a totally different place and the nerves just vanish."

What do you do that takes you to a totally different place? Where can you can get lost in doing it and time just seems to stand still in the moment? Where can you feel free from fear? What moves you??? Remember that everything in your life -- all your experiences, successes and failures, happiness and sadness alike -- have been given to you to bring you to this place. This moment right now. Will you choose to own your greatness? Or will you cower and retreat to a place of perceived safety? Be bold.

Indecision: The opposite of being bold

"Each indecision brings its own delays and days are lost lamenting over lost days...What you can do or think you can do, begin it. For boldness has magic, power, and genius in it."

- Johann Wolfgang von Goethe,
1749-1832, Poet, Novelist and Scientist

And that's all I've got to say about that.

How powerful is intuition? In business. In life.

Most people would probably agree that we can't run our businesses or our lives on intuition or gut feel alone. Facts, figures, information, competitive environment, past success or failures all play a part in our decision-making. But when faced with a choice where all things seem relatively equal, learning to trust our intuition can be extremely valuable.

There are many successful business people who will tell you how important it is to believe and trust intuition as a guiding factor. Richard Branson, Donald Trump, Oprah Winfrey and Bill Gates have all admitted that much of their success can be attributed to their ability to sense what's right based on instinct rather than rational processes. Even Einstein wrote that "the only valuable thing is intuition."

John Naisbitt, author of Megatrends, was quoted as saying "Intuition becomes increasingly invaluable in the new information society precisely because there is so much data." So the question is how powerful is intuition becoming as a legitimate and highly recognizable tool in our society? According to a 2006 PRWeek CEO survey, 62% of CEOs use their gut feel when making decisions. And then there are companies who pay $10,000 a month for business intuitionists, like Laura Day, who was recently featured in Newsweek, to help them as an organization become more intuitive, innovative and creative. Obviously, Seagate Technologies and other companies must think it's extremely valuable.

We all possess intuition. Some people have more of an innate ability to pay attention to it and trust it than others, but we can all learn to do that. You probably know people who are very objective in their judgment and then others who are naturally subjective. Or people who tend to be more original and creative thinkers and others who would prefer to simply restate what others have said.

Arupa Testolin, of Intuita, wrote an encapsulating article on the importance of intuition in management decisions. She closed by saying, "Our greatest challenges today will be surmounted by choices made, not from what we know, but from what we don't."

The new business agenda: Is your mission big enough to be your business strategy?

A few years ago, I read the book "Mavericks at Work: Why the most original minds in business win." So I was delighted to see co-author and Fast Company co-founder Bill Taylor on the Maximum Impact simulcast in May as I wanted to hear what this business futurist had up his sleeve.

While his message didn't stray too much from the book, his passion and belief about originality was about as authentic as I've seen... Strategy and ideas -- implemented of course -- reshape organizations. Companies with the clearest sense of purpose are the ones that win. Those with a distinctive mission have a very different kind of impact. Strategy as advocacy -- not just a company but a cause. The only sense of sustaining leadership is thought leadership. Not to be different but to have a mission that becomes the company's strategy. Success is much more than price, features, product or a service -- it is about passion, emotion, identity, being memorable even with the small touches...being human. This is the side of the business that will make the most difference in both growth and sustainability. Being not just problem solvers but solutions finders for our customers and clients.

So what is it about our businesses that people find memorable? What will make them stick when competition or the economy is tough? How do we rise above and find opportunities amidst the chaos?

Bill reminds us that ideas can come from anywhere and any person in the world. We shouldn't feel like we need to be the smartest person in the "room" -- it's o.k. to tap the hidden genius and the collective genius in our organizations and beyond.