We are in the midst of an Election.

There is Election fever everywhere.

A warm Spring evening and it’s such fun to watch the aspiring leaders dash here, dash there, in the hope of votes, office and power.

My door bell keeps ringing.

The approach keeps changing.

Their impatience and desire to cover as many doors as possible is amusing.

They miss the point.

The quality versus quantity point.

A well known Politician rushed to my front door, feverish with sweat, darting eyes betraying his haste.

I leant on my door, said nothing and listened.

“I’m counting on getting your Number 1 Vote, can I rely on you?” were his entry and his exit.

I said nothing because I had nothing to say.

In a flurry he was gone.

More doors to knock, more ground to cover.

Fever!

I’m looking forward to seeing where the speedy feverish sprinter finishes when the results are in.

For sure, he will win the “cover the most doors” trophy but will he win the prize?

In business, the strategy of elections would not last long.

Value is not a numbers game, it’s a listening game

I’m glad I don’t have to bet on the ‘runner’ up!

I met a man recently.

He is a proud and elderly gentleman.

I asked his opinion and advice on something that was confusing me.

I felt he could unlock the puzzle.

The warm smile gave way to a cold look.

“Oh No Conor, it took me years to figure it out myself, I’m hardly going to share my knowledge with anyone.”

I was perplexed. Surely wisdom is for sharing?

I thought back to great teachers, great friends, great mentors, great listeners and great schools.

I wondered what use good lessons are if we never share them.

I’m grateful that my teachers were always generous.

After all, it’s the only way I know of that you can learn.

Politics has become a marketing project.

Posters compete energetically.

Experienced eyes see the tricks.

Air brushed posters, uncomfortable smiles and flyers all claiming ‘my’ initiative.

Great big buses and great big promises.

Each promises salvation and all promise a brave new perfect world.

In mid election mode our neighbours are being found out.

The public sense blood and resignations are fast and furious.

The dam has burst, the expenses exposed.

Thing is, these are the same people who once knocked on doors promising all of the above.

Generally, modern marketing misses nostalgia.

It’s a powerful and evocative emotion and it drives thinking.

I’m lucky, very lucky, to enjoy the friendship of Padraig O’Ceidigh. Every time we meet, I walk away with a new thought, generally a defining thought. It’s no surprise that he has achieved so much but it is his restless appetite to create meaningful footprints that always inspires most.

This week we met for a coffee, a catch up and a chat. It’s a meeting I always look forward to. No agenda, two guys talking, two guys listening.

It has been my simple observation that the more successful the person, the greater the humility. That humility focuses on what is right, what is important, what is worthy. That’s why my occasional meetings are so inspiring.

The chat ebbed and flowed and Padraig talked about what matters. It was worth listening to and his astute wisdom knows not of failure, doom or even gloom. His relentless energy sees the world as a hopeful, happy place and his vision lights up the bleakest landscape.

We talked a little about work and the challenges we all face. We talked restructuring, rethinking, rebuilding and reimagining. As ever, his beautifully simple Connemara phrases stopped me dead.

“Do you know what I’m doing right now Conor?” he asked with a twinkling smile.

“I’m restructuring myself.”

Three words, one impact, a deep impression. I’m still feeling the impact.

Don’t spin wheels in horrible murky waters. Take a leaf out of Padraig’s book of wisdom. Look at the world differently. More importantly, look at yourself differently too.

Reimagine.

We spend a lot of time thinking about ‘the future’. The Golden days are not then, they are now.

Recently, a virtual friend on Seth Godin’s Triiibes website sent me a fascinating video clip.

The facilitator was 77 years old. He wanted to make a point. He wanted to make people question what they were putting off and what one thing they really wanted to do. He wanted to make a point, a powerful point, about ‘time’.

He pulled out a measuring tape and slowly counted out 77 inches. The tape was almost fully extended.He said; “This is how far I have come”.

Then, he took out a chart, the average life expectancy chart. He said; “On the law of averages, this is how long I have left”.

It put everything in perspective.

What will you not put off any longer?

The World has changed and there is no guarantee that the old World will ever come back.

New conditions need new thinking.

Marketing is no different.

The Market has changed.

In future, the new engines of growth will shift.

Are you ready? Are you aware? If not, prepare.

5 points to consider;

1.      Move from a product to an experience then think ‘make it personal’.

2.      Create with, not for. Involve your customer in the outcome.

3.      Deliver differently. Think new ways to deliver and ditch the dumper truck.

4.      Innovate in groups not at your desk. Involve your village, every time.

5.      Forget quantity, think quality, think individual, think unique.

The trick is to seamlessly shift from goods to solutions and from solutions to experience.

To make an experience you have to involve.

To involve you need innovation, energy, leadership and luck

Try it, you will like it!

Many years ago I worked for a grand old gentleman. In his office, a wonderfully mahogany paneled room, was a fading print that had little artistic merit. The image was of a man astride his camel perched high on a sand dune in a bleak desert landscape.

The rider was gazing in a perplexed sort of way and looked lost. My boss, aware that I was looking at the picture, asked me what I thought.

Afraid to be impolite I replied, “interesting”. He laughed. “You see Conor it’s an ugly painting but that man up there is just like all of us in business – Where am I going next? Where is the next piece of business coming from?”

The image has stayed with me, the moral too. It’s this;

If you stand still long enough in a hot desert, you will eventually get burnt –keep moving, keep looking, keep trying.

Seen recently on a tombstone by a friend;

“I too was once where you are now.”

The ‘Golden Years’ are not tomorrow, they are today

The bubble that burst took us all away from what really matters.

As the typhoon of money created faster disposability we began to throw out ‘hardly used’ way too soon.

Tennis players were past it at 19, some even retired.

It was expected to throw out your new car after just 2 years.

Mobile phones became accessories, not communication tools.

Lap tops became fashion statements, even if you didn’t know how to use one.

People were retired before they were ready.

Youthful exuberance is wonderful.

The energy of youth inspiring.

But, young people are still young and experience takes time.

Downpours force change. Downpours clear air.

Storms need steady hands; youth realizes it’s not so calm.

All of a sudden, ‘old’ has become ‘new’ and wise owls are in demand.

Thing is, wise owls were just resting. They knew the call would come.

That’s why experience is ageless, precious and priceless too