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Kevin Clancy: Fact Based Marketing For Growth & Profits - Blog Business Success Radio

Copernicus Marketing Consulting CEO Kevin Clancy, co-author of the important new book Your Gut Is Still Not Smarter Than Your Head: How Disciplined, Fact-Based Marketing Can Drive Extraordinary Growth and Profits, describes how disciplined, accountable marketing practices, including state of the art market research techniques, to get quantifiable results to build your business success.

Kevin Clancy is my internet radio show guest on Blog Business Success; hosted live on Blog Talk Radio.

The show airs live on Thursday, May 29, at 8:00 pm Eastern Time; 5:00 pm Pacific Time.

Kevin Clancy describes how disciplined, accountable marketing practices, including state of the art market research techniques, to get quantifiable results. You will learn:

* Why fact-based marketing is more effective than gut instinct

* How to do a self assessment of your current marketing plan

* How reliable market research data will identify your ideal target market

* How to use advertising dollars more effectively

Kevin J. Clancy, Ph.D. (photo left), is the co-founder, chairman, and CEO of Copernicus Marketing Consulting. Kevin Clancy, Peter C. Krieg, and partners opened the doors to Copernicus in 1993 with one mission: to transform the way companies think about and practice marketing. The firm takes its name from 16th century scientist Nicolaus Copernicus. Just as Nicolaus Copernicus proved that the sun, not the earth, is the center of the solar system, Kevin Clancy argues that marketing, not finance or operations, is the center of the business solar system.

Prior to Copernicus, Kevin Clancy founded and served as Chairman of Yankelovich Clancy Shulman. Earlier in his career, Kevin Clancy was Vice President for Research Services at BBDO Worldwide, and held faculty appointments in Sociology and Marketing at The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and Boston University's School of Management. Clancy received his B.A. and M.A. degrees in Sociology and Economics from the City University of New York and his Ph.D. in Research Methods and Statistics from New York University.

Kevin Clancy has published numerous articles on advertising, marketing, and social science research and has consulted for three decades with major corporations around the world, including American Express, AT&T, McDonald's, ExxonMobil, Pepsi, Pfizer, Saks Fifth Avenue, The New York Times, and Universal Studios.

Kevin Clancy has co-authored seven books, including two business best-sellers: The Marketing Revolution: A Radical Manifesto for Dominating the Marketplace (HarperCollins 1992); Marketing Myths That Are Killing Business: The Cure for Death Wish Marketing (McGraw-Hill 1993); Simulated Test Marketing: Technology for Launching Successful New Products (Lexington Books 1994); Uncover the Hidden Power of Television Programming (Sage Publishing 1999); Counterintuitive Marketing: Achieve Great Results Using Uncommon Sense (Free Press 2000); Market New Products Successfully (Lexington Books 2006); and Your Gut Is Still Not Smarter Than Your Head: How Disciplined, Fact-Based Marketing Can Drive Extraordinary Growth and Profits (John Wiley & Sons 2007). The American Marketing Association Foundation named Counterintuitive Marketing as one of the top five books in marketing in the past three years.

Kevin Clancy is involved with numerous professional organizations, including the American Marketing Association, the Advertising Research Foundation and the Market Research Council. Kevin Clancy frequently speaks at professional conferences throughout the Americas, Europe, and Asia and is a respected judge in major advertising and marketing competitions.

My book review of Your Gut Is Still Not Smarter Than Your Head: How Disciplined, Fact-Based Marketing Can Drive Extraordinary Growth and Profits by Kevin Clancy and Peter Krieg.

Listen live on Thursday at 8:00 pm Eastern, 5:00 pm Pacific time.

If you miss this very informative show, it will be available for free download as a podcast for iPod, iTunes, and MP3 players; or play it right on your computer. To download this, or any other of my guest interviews, go to the Blog Business Success host page and click on Archived Segments. Once there, click on the podcast icon at the end of the episode description, to download the show free of charge for your listening enjoyment. You can also subscribe to the show feed.

To call in questions for my guest, the number is: (347) 996-5832

Let's talk with Copernicus Marketing Consulting CEO Kevin Clancy, co-author of the important new book Your Gut Is Still Not Smarter Than Your Head: How Disciplined, Fact-Based Marketing Can Drive Extraordinary Growth and Profits, as he describes how disciplined, accountable marketing practices, including state of the art market research techniques, to get quantifiable results to build your business success on Blog Business Success Radio.

Tags: Kevin Clancy, Your Gut Is Still Not Smarter Than Your Head, fact-based marketing, Blog Business Success, Blog Talk Radio.

Your Gut Is Still Not Smarter Than Your Head by Kevin Clancy & Peter Krieg - Book review

Your Gut Is Still Not Smarter Than Your Head:

How Disciplined, Fact-Based Marketing Can Drive Extraordinary Growth and Profits

By Kevin Clancy & Peter Krieg

Published: Mar 30, 2007
ISBN: 978-0-471-97993-7
Format: Hardcover, 304pp
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons Inc.

Nothing is more important to a company than marketing, write co-authors Kevin Clancy and Peter Krieg, in their important new book Your Gut Is Still Not Smarter Than Your Head: How Disciplined, Fact-Based Marketing Can Drive Extraordinary Growth and Profits. Making an organization's marketing more effective, through implementation of hard data and quantifiable information, is the key to the company's success.

Kevin Clancy (photo left) and Peter Krieg move far beyond the intuition based decision making that is prevalent in many corporations today. The authors show multi-million dollar product campaigns that were begun with almost no consideration of marketing to the end customer. If any market research was conducted at all, it was either of the most rudimentary sort, or based on an unmeasurable and questionable instinct of the decision makers. All too often, the product failed to sell, as a result. The authors demonstrate that there is a better way to conduct a marketing plan, and to show how marketing has a measurable and positive return on investment.

The authors walk their talk, and the book is a powerful textbook for the application of hard research data to marketing. They start out by providing the tools to give an organization an overall marketing exam. They follow up this internal evaluation with techniques for finding the ideal target market for a product or service, and how to position it in the marketplace. Instead of simple guesswork, solid and reliable information, facts, and data are applied to the problem. To the surprise of many executives, their vaunted instincts and conventional wisdom. are often proven very wrong.

Peter Krieg (photo left) and Kevin Clancy understand that for many executives, marketing is equated with advertising. While they don't ignore advertising, and indeed provide great advice for making paid advertising more effective, the authors consider marketing in the larger corporate picture. Marketing is what drives the entire organization, and should be considered at every stage of product development, production, and sales distribution. The basis for this holistic marketing approach to business, is measurement of reliable and factual data in the proper manner, not some random gut instinct of what might feel right at the time.

For me, the power of the book is its no nonsense approach to the implementation of hard data and facts to marketing. The authors demonstrate clearly that there is no substitute for reliable information that is proven to be correct. Popular psychological theories may have their place in the initial stages of data collection, but the writers expand that research well past that starting point. The step by step marketing techniques presented in the book are based on finding the facts, and acting upon them. A crucial and powerful message of the book, is hard data will prevent costly mistakes, that often result from a faulty decision making process.

I highly recommend Your Gut Is Still Not Smarter Than Your Head: How Disciplined, Fact-Based Marketing Can Drive Extraordinary Growth and Profits by Kevin Clancy and Peter Krieg, for anyone who is serious about applying factual information to their marketing plan. Instead of guesswork and intuition, and the sad discovery that money is being wasted on advertising, sponsorships, and chasing the wrong target market, this book provides the framework for generating a positive return on your marketing investment.

Read Your Gut Is Still Not Smarter Than Your Head: How Disciplined, Fact-Based Marketing Can Drive Extraordinary Growth and Profits by Kevin Clancy and Peter Krieg, and start making the right business and marketing decision based on the facts, as your head is definitely much smarter than your gut.

Tags: Your Gut Is Still Not Smarter Than Your Head, Kevin Clancy, Peter Krieg, fact-based marketing, business book reviews.

John Assaraf & Murray Smith: The Answer: Grow Any Business & Achieve Financial Freedom - Blog Business Success Radio

Legendary entrepreneurs, and OneCoach co-founders John Assaraf and Murray Smith, co-authors of the visionary best seller The Answer: Grow Any Business, Achieve Financial Freedom, and Live an Extraordinary Life, show listeners how to build their dream business from the inside, by helping them create a crystal clear picture of what they truly want. Then, they demonstrate how to build that business, step-by-step, by following battle-tested strategies for growing untold revenues.

John Assaraf and Murray Smith are my internet radio show guests on Blog Business Success; hosted live on Blog Talk Radio.

The show airs live on Tuesday, May 27, at 8:00 pm Eastern Time; 5:00 pm Pacific Time.

Entrepreneurs John Assaraf and Murray Smith, co-authors of the visionary best seller The Answer: Grow Any Business, Achieve Financial Freedom, and Live an Extraordinary Life, show readers how to build their dream business from the inside, by helping them create a crystal clear picture of what they truly want. You will learn:

* How the science The Law of Attraction really works

* How to identify your ideal client for your business

* Step by step techniques to apply to your own life to achieve success

* How to rid yourself of doubts that impede your progress to your goals

John Assaraf (photo left) is one of the experts featured in the film and book The Secret, which he helped launch into a worldwide phenomenon. He has shared his expertise on achieving financial freedom and living an extraordinary life with millions of viewers on Larry King Live, The Ellen DeGeneres Show, and dozens of other media venues worldwide.

Visit John Assaraf online at www.johnassaraf.com.

Murray Smith (photo left) is a business turnaround guru and consultant who has launched or revived fourteen highly successful businesses and helped thousands of other business owners increase revenues, profits, and value. With John Assaraf, he is co-founder of OneCoach, the world's fastest-growing provider of small-business coaching services.

Murray Smith lives in San Diego, California.

My book review of The Answer: Grow Any Business, Achieve Financial Freedom, and Live an Extraordinary Life by John Assaraf and Murray Smith.

Listen live on Tuesday at 8:00 pm Eastern, 5:00 pm Pacific time.

To call in questions for my guests, the number is: (347) 996-5832

Let's talk with John Assaraf and Murray Smith, co-authors of the visionary best seller The Answer: Grow Any Business, Achieve Financial Freedom, and Live an Extraordinary Life, as they demonstrate how to build their dream business from the inside, by helping them create a crystal clear picture of what they truly want. Then, they demonstrate how to build that business, step-by-step, by following battle-tested strategies for growing untold revenues for building your own successful business on Blog Business Success Radio.

Tags: John Assaraf, Murray Smith, The Answer, The Law of Attraction, Blog Business Success, Blog Talk Radio.

The Answer by John Assaraf & Murray Smith - Book review

The Answer

Grow Any Business, Achieve Financial Freedom, and Live an Extraordinary Life

By: Murray Smith, John Assaraf

Published: May 20, 2008
ISBN-10: 1-4165-6199-4
ISBN-13: 978-1-4165-6199-6
Format: Hardcover, 320pp
Publisher: Atria Books

How can I have unlimited abundance, ask John Assaraf and Murray Smith in their landmark and visionary book The Answer: Grow Any Business, Achieve Financial Freedom, and Live an Extraordinary Life. Through its pages, the authors explore wisdom, the brain, and the power of the universe, and create the definitive textbook on the Law of Attraction.

The book is an enlightening journey of discovery, that begins with co-author John Assaraf (photo left) finding a photo of his newly purchased San Diego home, in a sealed shipping box. To his amazement, he had clipped a photo from a magazine of that exact house, and placed it into the packing box, many years before the purchase of the home. He sets out to answer the question of how he came to select and buy that particular home, and no other, based on a long and seemingly forgotten photograph. The resulting book is an explanation of the relationship between science of the brain, quantum physics, powerful universal laws described in the book, along with the techniques that team them together.

Co-authors Murray Smith (photo left) and John Assaraf are highly successful entrepreneurs who live their teachings, and their business achievements are a testament to their application of the principles in the book. The authors go far beyond the theory of the Law of Attraction into the science behind success.They demonstrate how brain and cognitive science, as well as complex quantum physics work to bring about the needs and wants of the individual. The book provides the practical and intellectual tools necessary for reaching even the most improbable of goals.

As the authors explain, the subconscious mind never rests and has its focus on the here and now. As a result, that part of the brain acts in the present time, giving the individual unlimited power to create a positive and visual reality. The subconscious part of the brain considers all thoughts to be real, whether experienced or imagined by the person. As a result, showing and telling your subconscious that you are successful and that your dreams will come true, will be turned into that reality. Quantum science works in the tiniest of realms, where matter turns into pure thought forming the universe. The mind taps into that intelligent universe to create its desires in the material world.

For me, the power of the book is the practical application of the Law of Attraction, and its combination with real science. For many people, the concept that we create our own reality, and that the universe provides what we request, had been in the area of fantasy. With the application of leading edge discoveries of how the brain really works, the book shows how the science can be applied to your own life. Through application of the concepts presented, and an understanding of how the brain works, anyone can reach even their wildest dreams. That idea in itself is revolutionary in the world of science.

I highly recommend The Answer: Grow Any Business, Achieve Financial Freedom, and Live an Extraordinary Life by John Assaraf and Murray Smith to anyone seeking to live the life of their dreams. Instead of platitudes, the book sets out the guideposts to success. All you have to do is let yourself follow them. Whether it's finding your ideal customer, setting your true business goals, or taking the right plan of action, the book provides the answer for you.

Read The Answer: Grow Any Business, Achieve Financial Freedom, and Live an Extraordinary Life by John Assaraf and Murray Smith, and start your own personal journey to experiencing a new and exciting reality.

Tags: The Answer, Murray Smith, John Assaraf , The Law of Attraction, business book reviews.

Gregg Fraley: Creative Problem Solving - Blog Business Success Radio

Consultant & Partner in The Innovise Guys, Gregg Fraley, author of the best selling ingenious business fable Jack's Notebook: A Business Novel About Creative Problem Solving, describes creative problem solving techniques you can apply to your own business. The concept and techniques of creative problem solving are presented within the business novel itself, and form the basis for the intriguing, and page turning plot.

Gregg Fraley is my internet radio show guest on Blog Business Success; hosted live on Blog Talk Radio.

The show airs live on Thursday, May 22, at 8:00 pm Eastern Time; 5:00 pm Pacific Time.

Consultant Gregg Fraley, author of the best selling ingenious business fable Jack's Notebook: A Business Novel About Creative Problem Solving, describes creative problem solving techniques. You will learn:

* The six steps in the Creative Problem Solving CPS system

* How to overcome barriers to your own creative thinking process

* Why creative thinking is important in problem solving for your business

* How anyone can be creative even when they think they are out of ideas

Gregg Fraley (photo left)helps organizations innovate. He assists by assessing innovation needs and researching markets. He then facilitates dynamic ideation sessions that result in on-target product and service concepts. Gregg's innovation training helps create corporate cultures that foster, nurture, and sustain the innovative output of their people over time. Finally he recommends instituting Idea Management to preserve the most valuable of all corporate assets -- it's ideas.

Gregg blends his passion for creativity with his love for fiction in his innovative business fable, Jack's Notebook: A Business Novel About Creative Problem Solving. In the book he introduces the method of Creative Problem Solving (CPS) to innovation teams in big organizations, small business people, entrepreneurs of all stripes, and individuals looking to master complex challenges and take their careers -- their lives -- to the next level.

In speaking keynotes and workshops he balances quirky humor with cutting edge content. Audiences comment that he has a rare and unique insight into the way people think, communicate, and innovate in the workplace. Gregg fosters understanding of creative style in ways that build bridges. He creates respect for creative thinking diversity and helps executives, managers, and teams overcome the blocks that prevent innovation. His core message of more effective creative thinking -- through authenticity, passion, and deliberate creative process-- brings out the innovator inside of all of us.

His ideation training leads to better, more productive ideation sessions -- and that means more effective new product development. His background as an entrepreneur and as an improvisational actor give him insights, tools, and capabilities few facilitators can offer. His Innovisation™ tools are industry leading and set an environment for ideation that combines a flexible structure for problem solving with ideal conditions for spontaneous thought.

My book review of Jack's Notebook: A Business Novel About Creative Problem Solving by Gregg Fraley.

Listen live on Thursday at 8:00 pm Eastern, 5:00 pm Pacific time.

To call in questions for my guest, the number is: (347) 996-5832

Let's talk with Consultant & Partner in The Innovise Guys, Gregg Fraley, author of the best selling ingenious business fable Jack's Notebook: A Business Novel About Creative Problem Solving, as he describes creative problem solving techniques you can apply to building your own successful business on Blog Business Success Radio.

Tags: Gregg Fraley, Jack's Notebook, creative problem solving, Blog Business Success, Blog Talk Radio.

Jack's Notebook by Gregg Fraley - Book review

Jack's Notebook

A Business Novel About Creative Problem Solving

By: Gregg Fraley

Published: Feb 13, 2007
ISBN: 9780785221661
Format: Hardcover, 242pp
Publisher: Thomas Nelson Inc

Creativity is about problem solving, decision making and self expression, writes author Gregg Fraley in the introduction to his wonderful and ingenious business fable Jack's Notebook: A Business Novel About Creative Problem Solving. The concept and techniques of creative problem solving are presented within the business novel itself, and form the basis for the intriguing, and page turning plot.

Gregg Fraley uses the plot device of a young man named Jack, trapped in jobs he dislikes and feeling lost in the world, who discovers creative problem solving through a chance meeting with a stranger. The plot begins with Jack filling his notebook with lists of ideas for changing his life, on the advice of his mentor Manny. Jack later meets a waitress named Molly, and begins a friendship that turns into romance. All is not a fairy tale for the couple, however, and the adventure that follows requires teamwork, as well as creative thinking and problem solving, to avert disaster.

Gregg Fraley (photo left) blends the exciting narrative skillfully with his teaching of creative problem solving techniques. The author understands that complex ideas are often best learned and remembered through storytelling. The result is a business fable that demonstrates the power of creative thinking to solve business problems, that is applicable to personal lives as well. The steps to creative problem solving are presented in a logical manner, and are summarized at the end of the book in a handy table format.

The main character Jack symbolizes the power of creative solutions to simple or complex problems. Difficult situations, that are seemingly without solutions, find many positive options through the application of the prescribed techniques. Manny represents the patient teacher and facilitator who guides Jack through the six stages of creative problem solving. Molly provides additional assistance through more detailed use of simple, yet powerful creative thinking methods. The resulting novel is a metaphor for the power of a simple notebook, filled with lists and ideas, to change people's lives for the better.

For me, the power of the book is in its simplicity. Complex creative thinking techniques are illustrated, several ways, through the story line. The imaginative use of examples within the novel reinforces the prescribed six steps to creative problem solving. The use of the notebook shows the importance of list making and of writing down every idea, no matter how unrealistic or unworkable it may appear at first glance. The adventure portion of the novel demonstrates the power of group problem solving, the strength of team work, and that even life and death issues can be solved in a positive way.

I highly recommend Jack's Notebook: A Business Novel About Creative Problem Solving by Gregg Fraley to anyone who seeks powerful solutions to problems in business and in life. Every obstacle represents a gift to be cherished as an opportunity to improve your business or your personal situation.

Read Jack's Notebook: A Business Novel About Creative Problem Solving by Gregg Fraley and you will never again look at problems as having no solutions again. Instead of avoiding difficult problems, you will be seeking them out as the paths to a better future, through creative problem solving.

Tags: Jack's Notebook, Gregg Fraley, creative problem solving, business book reviews.

It's Our Ship by Captain D. Michael Abrashoff - Book review

It's Our Ship

The No-nonsense Guide to Leadership

By: Captain D. Michael Abrashoff
Published: May 12, 2008
ISBN: 9780446199667
Format: Hardcover, 288pp
Publisher: Business Plus

A leader must define the organization's goals and spell out why they matter, writes best selling author Captain D. Michael Abrashoff in his important new book It's Our Ship: The No-nonsense Guide to Leadership. The book is a powerful study of management, staff motivation, and leadership. Perhaps, even more important, the book is an enlightening study in personal growth and learning from past successes and failures.

Captain D. Michael Abrashoff, former Commander of USS Benfold (photo bottom left), understands leadership and organizational success begins with establishing core values and then conveying them to the entire staff. To achieve success in the Navy or in business, people must be motivated to do their personal best, and to understand their responsibility to the organization and its clients. It is the mission of the leader to ensure that the message gets through to everyone, and that feedback mechanisms are in place to gauge the depth of understanding and internalization. The goal of the company is to win, and the leader must establish the levels of risk necessary to achieve overall success.

Captain D. Michael Abrashoff (photo left) recognizes that a leader must earn the trust of the entire organization to achieve the desired goals. To gain that trust, a leader must be honest at all times, even if the truth is painful and potentially damaging to the leader's career. The members of the team watch the leader and if the words don't agree with the actions, that crucial trust factor is lost.

Great leaders encourage open and honest assessments of problems facing the company. Covering up mistakes and displaying lax ethical behavior can destroy the very fabric of the organization. A thirst for the truth creates opportunities for improvement and success, while hiding the facts leads to mediocrity and failure. Listening to bad news, without punishment for its bearer, will uncover problems with the system, that when corrected can lead to greater success in the future.

When a leader establishes trust, and creates an atmosphere where mistakes are acceptable as a learning process, people will excel at their jobs. They will take ownership of their roles, and of the overall goals of the organization. Giving people the opportunity to create and develop new ideas, and the opportunity to test their skills, uncovers hidden talent within the company. Helping people reach their personal best, while emphasizing cooperation between staff members, builds the overall strength of the business through a more dedicated team of employees.

USS Benfold (photo left)

For me, the power of the book is the understanding that leadership is about establishing trust in your staff, honesty with everyone within and outside of the company, and being true to your organizational goals. A leader must be an effective communicator of the company mission, and a good listener to the people who form the backbone of the organization. Strong ethical values, and personal responsibility are essential in a great leader, and the employees will internalize and practice those same values.

Mistakes are inevitable in any endeavor and are learning experiences for everyone involved. The author recognizes the importance of helping people achieve greatness, and in letting them spread their wings. Sometimes, they will fail, but over time, those same people will grow and exceed even the most optimistic expectations. I was especially impressed with how Captain Abrashoff described his own growth as a leader after his naval career ended, and how he grew to recognize there were even better ways of achieving his overall objectives.

I highly recommmend It's Our Ship: The No-nonsense Guide to Leadership by Captain D. Michael Abrashoff for anyone serious about improving their own leadership skills, and in helping to bring out the very best in their organizational personnel.

Read It's Our Ship: The No-nonsense Guide to Leadership by Captain D. Michael Abrashoff, and apply the real world tested leadership techniques from aboard the USS Benfold, and from the best boardrooms beyond its decks.

Tags: Captain D. Michael Abrashoff, It's Our Ship, leadership, business book reviews.

Matthew Emmens: Zenobia - The Curious Book of Business - Blog Business Success Radio

Shire Pharmaceuticals CEO Matthew Emmens, co-author of the imaginative and visionary business fable Zenobia: The Curious Book of Business, tells the story of young job applicant Moira who stays true to her vision, which helps to revitalize the fictional Zenobia Corporation, after its decline from its former greatness. Through the power of the symbolic narrative, Matthew Emmens demonstrates the power of creative thinking, discovering new ideas, and the ability of an ordinary person to act as the catalyst for change.

Matthew Emmens is my internet radio show guest on Blog Business Success; hosted live on Blog Talk Radio.

The show airs live on Thursday, May 15, at 8:00 pm Eastern Time; 5:00 pm Pacific Time.

Shire Pharmaceuticals CEO Matthew Emmens, co-author of the imaginative and visionary business fable Zenobia: The Curious Book of Business, demonstrates the power of creative thinking, new ideas, and the ability of an ordinary person to act as the catalyst for change. You will learn:

* Why it only takes one person with vision and creativity to change a company

* How a stagnant and stifling company culture can be revitalized for success

* How to apply creative thinking within an organization

* Why unconventional thinkers should be sought out by employers

Matthew Emmens (photo left) joined Shire Pharmaceuticals Group PLC as chief executive and member of the board in March 2003.

Matthew Emmens, 56, began his career in international pharmaceuticals in 1974 when he joined Merck & Co. He held a wide range of sales, marketing and training positions with Merck & Co before moving to help establish Astra Merck, the joint venture with Astra Pharmaceuticals. He later became its president and chief executive. Astra Merck Inc. became an independent, top 20 US pharmaceutical company with annualised sales in excess of $4 billion and 4000 employees.

In 1999 he joined Merck KGaA and established EMD Pharmaceuticals, the company’s US prescription pharmaceutical business. He was most recently based in Darmstadt, Germany as president of Merck’s global prescription pharmaceuticals business, which in the year 2002 achieved sales of US $2 billion.

Matthew graduated from Fairleigh Dickenson University in Rutherford, New Jersey, US, with a BS in Business Administration.

My book review of Zenobia: The Curious Book of Business by Matthew Emmens with Beth Kephart.

Listen live on Thursday at 8:00 pm Eastern, 5:00 pm Pacific time.

To call in questions for my guest, the number is: (347) 996-5832

Let's talk with Matthew Emmens, co-author of the imaginative and visionary business fable Zenobia: The Curious Book of Business, as he demonstrates the power of creative thinking, unleaching new ideas, and the ability of an ordinary person to act as the catalyst for change, for building your successful business on Blog Business Success Radio.

Tags: Matthew Emmens, Zenobia: The Curious Book of Business, creative thinking, Blog Business Success, Blog Talk Radio.

Zenobia: The Curious Book of Business by Matthew Emmens with Beth Kephart - Book review

Zenobia

The Curious Book of Business

By: Beth Kephart, Matthew Emmens, Arbinger Institute, William Sulit

Published: Jan 1, 2008
ISBN: 9781576754788
Format: Hardcover, 144pp
Publisher: Berrett-Koehler Pub

The heroine's adventure becomes a pathway to success for others, write co-authors Matthew Emmens and Beth Kephart, in their imaginative business fable Zenobia: The Curious Book of Business. In a surrealistic dreamlike world worthy of Franz Kafka or Lewis Carroll, job applicant Moira's journey to the mythical Room 133A, is an inspiration to the power of imagination in business.

Matthew Emmens and Beth Kephart (photo left) take the reader into a their business allegory where the characters are symbols and their actions are metaphors. Young job applicant Moira represents change and new ideas, as well as a vibrant creativity missing from the staid and declining Zenobia Corporation. Once an industry leader, the moribund company clings to past glories through suffocating rules, malignant office politics, and outright hostility to creative thinking or ideas.

Moira, in her symbolically outside the rule book red shoes, defies and overcomes that that institutionalized lack of imagination as she seeks her goal. Seizing a kite, as a metaphor for an idea, she literally climbs the treacherous corporate ladder. With unexpected help from unlikely sources within the company, walks a symbolic tightrope to achieve her dreams. In the process, others in Zenobia follow their dreams, and revitalize the hidebound company. Long stifled employees reach for the stars along with Moira, and dare to imagine what could be for the organization and for their own careers.

Matthew Emmens (photo left) and Beth Kephart take the reader on a voyage of possibility and of imagination. With their symbolic characters, aided by the delightful James Thurber-like illustrations of William Sulit, an alternative through the looking glass world is the creative result. Indeed, the entire book is a tribute to creative thinking, and of seeking new ideas for solving seemingly impossible problems.

The book is about dreams and imagination, and the importance of people within an organization. Moira needs help in her quest, and she receives it when it's needed most. By accepting help, she inspires greatness in others within Zenobia, as they reach goals they never imagined possible. At the same time, the Zenobians step out of their darkness, and help others to find the light of their dreams and ideas, as they too reach for the long dormant kite of imagination.

For me, the power of the book is its faith in the power of imagination and ideas, and how one person can act as a catalyst for change. Moira wasn't a high profile CEO parachuted into the company, and within the story, those closed minded applicants fail to reach Room 133A. They lack the imagination to expand their thinking beyond conventional wisdom. As a result, they are unable to revitalize the floundering Zenobia Corporation. Instead, a seemingly ordinary person, with her unconventional ways of thinking, applied imagination and creativity to the organization, and found the latent greatness within.

I highly recommend the business fable Zenobia: The Curious Book of Business by Matthew Emmens and Beth Kephart for anyone who seeks to follow their dreams to greatness, and to awakening their imaginations to new and wonderful possibilities.

Read Zenobia: The Curious Book of Business by Matthew Emmens and Beth Kephart and wear those non-dress code red shoes, grab hold of that kite of ideas with both hands, and let your imagination soar. Reach for the stars, and you can light up the sky.

Tags: Beth Kephart, Matthew Emmens, William Sulit , Zenobia: The Curious Book of Business, creative thinking, business book reviews.

Tsufit: Step Into The Spotlight - A Guide To Getting Noticed - Blog Business Success Radio

Comedienne, singer, coach, and publicity expert Tsufit, author of the best selling book Step Into the Spotlight! Cause All Business Is Show Business! A Guide to Getting Noticed, shows how all business is show business and how you can stand out as a star celebrity attraction in the media, and how to step into the spotlight for building your successful business.

Tsufit is my internet radio show guest on Blog Business Success; hosted live on Blog Talk Radio.

The show airs live on Thursday, May 8, at 8:00 pm Eastern Time; 5:00 pm Pacific Time.

Tsufit, author of the best selling book Step Into the Spotlight! Cause All Business Is Show Business! A Guide to Getting Noticed, shows how all publicity is show business and how you can stand out as the star celebrity attraction. You will learn:

* How show business techniques can work for your business

* How to become a well known expert in your industry niche

* How to succeed at networking and public speaking

* How to gain powerful media attention and exposure for your company

A singer, television actress and comedienne and the subject of over 100 feature newspaper articles and television and radio appearances internationally, Tsufit (photo left) has appeared doing stand-up comedy in night clubs and on national TV, appeared on television and film commercials internationally and was a regular as the comedically evil cafeteria lady in the national TV show System Crash for four seasons. And yes, that’s her dancing under a Carmen Miranda headdress of tomatoes in an East Side Mario’s commercial!

Tsufit also coaches performers and keynote speakers on how to “knock em dead” in the spotlight. As well, she coaches entrepreneurs to follow their dreams, as she did, leaving her downtown litigation law practice to be a performer.

Tsufit is a Dean’s List graduate from University of Toronto Law School and was once named a “Super-achiever” by Canadian Lawyer magazine. Her music CD, Under the Mediterranean Sky, has made Top Album lists all over North America and is played on the radio internationally.

Tsufit’s unique story was the subject of a national television documentary which has aired on several networks across Canada. Tsufit is a popular guest on national television shows and is in demand as a keynote speaker, radio guest, workshop facilitator and mom (although she is not currently taking on any new clients in the last category!).

My book review of Step Into the Spotlight! Cause All Business Is Show Business! A Guide to Getting Noticed by Tsufit.

Listen live on Thursday at 8:00 pm Eastern, 5:00 pm Pacific time.

To call in questions for my guest, the number is: (347) 996-5832

Let's talk with Tsufit, author of the best selling book Step Into the Spotlight! Cause All Business Is Show Business! A Guide to Getting Noticed, shows how all business is show business and how you can stand out as a star celebrity attraction in the media, and how to step into the spotlight for building your successful business on Blog Business Success Radio.

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Step Into The Spotlight! by Tsufit - Book review

Step Into the Spotlight!

Cause All Business Is Show Business! A Guide to Getting Noticed

By: Tsufit

Published: Apr 8, 2008
ISBN: 9780978191306
Format: Hardcover, 288pp
Publisher: Beach View Books

Life is an infomercial, and you are the star attraction, writes Tsufit in her powerful best selling book Step Into the Spotlight! Cause All Business Is Show Business! A Guide to Getting Noticed. Using her experience as a comedienne and singer to highlight her points, Tsufit demonstrates how to become a business superstar in your industry niche.

Tsufit believes that every business person is a performer, seeking fame and fortune through their products and services. As a result, the entrepreneur or manager is the star of the show, and the true brand of the company. The author provides practical step by step advice, in a highly entertaining delivery style, for building customer applause for a company's performance. Using the tried and proven techniques of movies, television, and live theatre, Tsufit carries the reader through creation of a character, developing a story line, and bringing off the show with panache.

Tsufit (photo left) often shares stories and advice that run counter to conventional wisdom. She considers publicity to important for your business success, but only after your production is ready for prime time. Becoming a star takes work and preparation, and like the endless rehearsals for a Broadway play, your presentation must air without a hitch. Instead of droning away with a boring canned speech, the star effortlessly steals the show and the spotlight. In business, that means more customers and clients, and a stronger bottom line.

For me, the power of the book is the connection between show business and other industries. The techniques for stardom in any field are the same, and can be applied anywhere. By sharing her time proven entertainment industry methods, Tsufit helps reluctant public speakers, boardroom presenters, and person to person sales people overcome their fears. Simple concepts like knowing your true product, understanding your audience, and becoming well known in your field are brought to life through use of story and entertainment examples.

I highly recommend Step Into the Spotlight! Cause All Business Is Show Business! A Guide to Getting Noticed by Tsufit for any business or professional person seeking success in their marketplace. Every page sparkles with exciting techniques for making you the star attraction in any field or endeavour.

Read Step Into the Spotlight! Cause All Business Is Show Business! A Guide to Getting Noticed by Tsufit, and prepare to become a celebrity and and well known expert in your industry, as you take centre stage under the spotlight of success.

Tags: Tsufit, Step Into the Spotlight, marketing and publicity, business book reviews.