by Pamela McCormick | Featured Contributor
Lights, Camera, Action….
The lights dim. The curtain opens, the audience quiets….
The Power Point fills the screen.
It has all come to this moment. You are ON. You are in the moment. The Sales Meeting. The Book Release. The Presentation. The New Product. The Big Show.
Or is this the only moment that counts? It doesn’t matter what your “big” thing is, I personally believe that HOW you get there is equally important if not even more important. Each step along the way consists of its own moment. But in each one there are 4 tactics that are essential to ACHIEVEMENT.
Ensure every detail counts.
The creative meetings, the marketing plan, the schedule and whatever else is needed for your particular project are among the essential moments “behind the scenes” that can make or break your success.
As a dance teacher we pick music, create unique lines of movement in the choreography, design costumes down to every fine detail, and market and promote for the big debut. And things will happen “backstage” that the audience will NEVER even know happened, but because of proper planning and flexible thinking, the “show always goes on.”
However, I have also been Product Manager for a Wedding Design Book in my creative career. When we produced it, it was a unique, one-of-a-kind design book that changed the way of thinking in our industry, for our business, for our salesforce and our customers. Along the way, I learned some essential tricks to use “behind the scenes” whatever moment I was trying to create.
Make it personal.
Our book was about wedding flowers, the beautiful accent to a critically important moment in people’s lives. I used this to our advantage in presenting this “idea” to our task force, during my flower shop research and in conceptual presentations across various regions of the country. For me, it WAS personal. Not only was I fully invested in this innovative product, but I also happened to be getting married as well. So I reached out to the wives or husbands, significant others of our salesforce, to surprise them with a wedding photo from their past, as a part of product launch presentation in Naples, Fl. The result was amazing! I tapped into their emotions about the topic at hand and that evoked an even bigger passion to SELL this new product.
Create a vested interest.
With passion evoked, memories stirred and enthusiasm high about the new Wedding Book, I used the personal touch to create the NEED to WANT to SELL and sell even more so we could exceed our sales forecast and open a whole new market of customers.
Be hands-on.
Reality shows such as “Undercover Boss[1]” teach us much about life, interaction and creating moments. Whatever your position is within your company, in my opinion, no one is SO BIG that they could work in the trenches, or talk with employees and NOT learn anything. We are all students in this LIFE, no matter our current status. I personally found this to be true, when our target ship date for the Wedding Book was dangerously close to not happening ON TIME. The books, already printed, were held up in our bindery division. Sitting there, with other priority projects filled first, there seemed to be nothing to do. So I pulled up my sleeves, walked from the office area in my black leather pumps to our bindery department and started stuffing (4 books into each box). People followed. Suddenly we had the Marketing Director, Salesforce Manager, President of the Company and several other women and men who loosened ties, took off jackets and got to work. The bindery employees of course appreciated this; some even used their lunch hours to help pack and ship.
It was Personal.
The deadline, the final Detail, created a Vested Interest.
And it was most certainly Hands-On.
We were a Team in every definition of the word.
Those elements, to me, define ACHIEVEMENT.
[1] Undercover Boss, CBS Fridays at 8 pm/7 Central
—————————————————————————————————-
Pamela McCormick, Creativity Promoter/Inspiration Generator
Pam is a creative consultant, writer, editor and dance teacher/choreographer. In addition to the joys of being a Mom of three, ages 14, 10, and 3, she has first-hand experience in the business of family and the opportunities of working women, as well as more than 10 years as a business executive in product development/creative coordination.
Pam, a Communications/Journalism graduate of Michigan State University, is also Managing Member and Creative Director of Creative Digital Ink, LLC, a Traverse City, Michigan-based consultancy. Creative development, copywriting, editing, marketing, photo shoot/project management and sales presentation speaking skills are all in her “dance bag” of tricks. With her varied background of business, leadership, motherhood and teaching, she has learned to “leap” through it all.
Pam is dedicated to social media and still encourages her inner child to jump for joy in the many “shoes” she wears. Working with adults and students of all ages, she understands well the transformative power of relationships, the impressive value of networking and how a simple hello can change your world. Pam is an eternal optimist determined to help you transform the chaos of your daily life into an enthusiastic “DANCE.” Pam’s inspirational blog can be viewed at www.dancinmoma.com.
Or connect with Pam via: Email:
