ORANGE STAR BLOG
Subscribe to Fresh Squeezed, essential ideas on branding, marketing and growing a small business.
Subscribe to Fresh Squeezed, essential ideas on branding, marketing and growing a small business.
Skepticism without cynicism
Skepticism is the practice of questioning everything. Whereas cynicism is the belief that people are generally motivated by self-interest. Skepticism is not automatically distrustful of others, while cynicism is.Skepticism does not preclude the possibility of happiness or success, while cynicism sees those things as an impossibility because it assumes that most people are out to get themselves…
Feynman’s 7 “Tricks” for Evaluating Information
We are drowning in information. Most of that information is irrelevant. If only we could sort what matters from what doesn’t.The good news is, you can.In his FS.blog, Shane Parrish shares how to Find the Signal in the Noise. “A large part of wisdom is knowing what to ignore. A large part of expertise is knowing where…
The stupidest thing I ever heard
“That’s the stupidest thing I’ve ever heard!”Is it really?We often react this way to out-of-the-box ideas that may actually be the path to innovation.Ideas that are outside of our comfort zone can be difficult to accept, especially if they seem ridiculous at first.So you’ve probably heard of the internet, right? 😉 At one point people…
Do it like a girl
I recently discovered the Letters Live Youtube series that celebrates the power of literary correspondence. The idea is simple: talented, inspiring and high-profile artists from various disciplines read letters out loud to live audiences.In this one, Garbage’s Shirley Manson reads a powerful feminist letter to her niece: “You do everything you damn well choose and carry on doing it…
“Bad marketing values promotions. Good marketing promotes values.”
“Bad marketing values promotions. Good marketing promotes values.” ~ Simon SinekWhen you promote values, you’re connecting with people on a deeper level. You’re speaking to their core beliefs and helping them see how your product or service aligns with those beliefs.Values are what drive people to make decisions. And when it comes to buying something, people…
Do the work
Do the work. That’s all you need to do. Everything else will follow.Thinking about something does not make it happen. Neither does talking about it. In order to see results, you have to take action and put in the work.Too often, we get caught up in thinking about our goals instead of taking the steps…
What if it’s easier than you think?
How many times have you made something super complicated in your mind and then procrastinated doing it? Then when you finally force yourself to take action, you marvel at how simple and easy it actually was. As a professional, I strive to provide elegantly simple solutions to complex problems. Also, I am a master at…
Confidence without Arrogance
I read something recently about how every good idea and every admirable trait can be taken too far. The first item on the list stuck with me — Confidence without Arrogance — and I’ve been thinking about that as I was struggling with procrastination in pricing a proposal.True confidence is knowing your worth without needing validation from…
“What was I thinking?! Why did I agree to do this?!”
We’ve all been there. Dreading something or finding yourself in the middle of it asking yourself, WHY THE #$%^ DID I AGREE TO DO THIS?!Austin Kleon shared a question he learned that helps you avoid accepting invitations you’ll later regret — “Would I do it tomorrow?”NOT: Would I do it on some theoretical day in the future? This is the crucial question: Would…
Everyone is Creative — Make Magic
Everyone is creative, not just artists. It’s a myth that only highly intelligent people are creative. In fact, research shows that once you get beyond an I.Q. of about 120, intelligence and creativity are not at all related. This means we all have the potential to wield amazing creative power. Great work comes from a…
