Naomi Marr.com

You have to A – S – K to G – E – T

November 2nd, 2009 1 Comment

A very good friend of mine said to me one day, “You have to A – S – K to G – E – T.” She was saying it in reference to a phone conversation she was having with the front desk of a hotel we were checking into later that afternoon. She was asking them if there were any rooms available for a free upgrade. And – wouldn’t you know it – she got us an upgrade. Ocean view with a beautiful balcony. All because she asked the question.

Prior to her saying, “You have to A – S – K to G – E – T,” I never would have asked for something like that. I have always somewhat resented (and still do) people who play the system to their benefit. But the way she phrased it made it sound like there wasn’t anything wrong with simply asking the question. Her take on it is that if you ask and it turns out to benefit you then GREAT! If it doesn’t then so be it. At least you know and you move on.

What a great way to live life. It’s not about playing the system. But – it is about asking the questions that might get you what you want in life. Why not ask?

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve acted on this phrase and to how many people I’ve passed it along (sorry for my friends and family who have heard me say this 1,000 times over the years). But – I can tell you…if you just A – S – K, you will sometimes G – E – T.

Give it a try.

PS — Thanks, Jessica.

Proud starts with a P

November 2nd, 2009 No Comments

Halloween 2009

My daughter is learning to read, so numerous times throughout the day we phonetically pronounce letters and their sounds. The word PROUD definitely starts with a P.

And, I look at this Halloween photo and proud is what comes to mind. It’s not a fancy staged family photo – it’s not even all that great – but, it speaks volumes about my kids and the kind of people they are becoming. People I am very proud to know.

My son (9-years old) decided one day that he’d spontaneously help my husband stack wood for our winter fires. He worked all afternoon with his dad. No complaints. No giving up. Somewhere during the day he decided he’d start weeding the foundation of our house, too. Now don’t get me wrong, we do these things in our house called “family helps” and each kid gets $2 a week (one of which goes in the bank) for completing their family helps with us, so he knows the concept of getting paid for work. But the thing that impressed me about the wood stacking and weeding is that he just did it with no mention of it being a family help.

Later, when discussing his Halloween costume choice and the fact that it was too expensive, he was crushed. However, we gave him three options.

1.) Re-use his costume from last year (which still fit) and we’d give him $10 for his unselfish help with stacking the wood.

2.) Purchase a new, cheaper costume (we gave him a dollar limit) and keep his $10 woodstacking money.

3.) Put his $10 toward the more expensive costume he wanted and forgo any cash in his wallet.

He chose #3 and he’s happy and proud with his work with his dad and his costume decision. We heard no grumbling, no whining, and no trying to get things to all turn out in his favor with the new costume and the money ending up in his pocket. He made his choice and we supported him.

Now my daughter (5-years old) chose a different route. She was – from the very first time the topic of Halloween costumes was discussed for the year – going to be Padmé Amidala for the second straight year. It didn’t matter what we said, she wouldn’t budge. She also decided at some point, that Padmé wore a blue sparkly head wrap so she would, too. Now to the best of my knowledge, Padmé never wore a head wrap but since my daughter wanted to wear one, she insisted that Padmé had, indeed, worn a head wrap. We rolled with it and she was happy as a clam in her old costume with her added accessories.

Both kids are confident in their own ways, happy with their decisions and having fun. Again, PROUD starts with a P comes to mind.

When was the last time you quid pro quo’d?

October 30th, 2009 No Comments

QUID PRO QUO

A friend inserted this phrase into my daily vernacular a few years ago. According to Wikipedia it is, “(From the Latin meaning “something for something”)^[1] indicates a more-or-less equal exchange or substitution of goods or services.”

It’s a phrase that runs through my mind a lot lately and prompts me to ask — when was the last time you quid pro quo’d? Here are some examples to get you started. (PS-I use it as a verb only for demonstration purposes.)

The economic situation forces us all to be more conscious of, and careful with, our money expenditures. The idea of trading one service or good for another (aka bartering) is a very viable way of spending your money efficiently. There is a time and a place for bartering (I.e., you can’t generally barter with a doctor or bank for services), but I’d suggest you consider opportunities for possible use.

The economic situation also has a lot of people looking for jobs. I have always been happy to review resumes, forward contact information, help people get set up to build their social network, etc. But I can say, as a job searcher myself, that quid pro quo is definitely at work in the employment networking space. My job hunt is going well and I am having this success because of the support from those people in my network. It makes me realize that although I’ve been happy to help in the past, there is way more that I could be doing to support my friends and family with their job search. I will definitely pay it forward for all the support I’ve received.

My final example is regarding social media. The social media arena is one where we sometimes need to be reminded to quid pro quo a bit more. It’s not a space for all listening or all talking. Social media is at its best when people are unselfishly supporting others, while at the same time – sharing a bit of themselves. Nothing I’ve just said is revolutionary. Just a reminder; and I guess this ties in to my “Define yourself” post from earlier this week.

So…when was the last time you quid pro quo’d?

Do you suffer from the perceived innovation quotient?

October 28th, 2009 No Comments

I was typing up some email thoughts following a meeting with Kaon Interactive yesterday and used the phrase, “perceived innovation quotient.” It got me thinking that most people would say, “What the heck does that mean? You just made that up.” Perhaps, but in my head it made perfect sense.

The perceived innovation quotient’s fundamental starting place is in the definition of “quotient.” Used in the context of my thought as, “the magnitude of a specified characteristic or quality.” (www.m-w.com)

Breaking it down – I mean that some people get extra credit in the innovation department if the way they present something is perceived as innovative. Regardless of the value of core content or technology. This works both ways. Unbelievably cool technology or content could suffer as a result of the perceived innovation quotient if their presentation seems old school or suffers from bugs/glitches. So many sales demos go awry because of the perceived innovation quotient.

So there you have it. Do you suffer from the perceived innovation quotient in your business?

Re: Kaon Interactive – if you haven’t checked them out, you should. Using their technology relieves you of having to worry about negative perceived innovation quotient. It highlights your business story, solutions, and products and crosses many technology mediums. Their technology is cool and they’re expanding it daily.