« December 2009 | Main | February 2010 »

January 24, 2010

110 books in 2010. #2: What It Is

It’s probably too early in the year to report that I have discovered my favorite book of 2010, but time will tell if I find another book as original, moving and useful as What It Is by Lynda Barry.

What kind of book is What It Is? Now that’s a tough question. The short answer is that it’s a
non-fiction autobiographical how-to-write comic book.

Confused? Quite frankly, so was I. I found the book after attending a web workshop called Visual Thinking for Writers, produced by VizThink, an organization that promotes visual thinking. The session was facilitated by Austin Kleon, who calls himself “a writer who draws” and who recommended What It Is.

So, I bought it. And, when it arrived, I didn’t know what to make of it, so I left it on the table in my office, occasionally flipping through the pages to browse the funky drawings and comic-strip-looking pages.

Then last week, I decided I would sit with the book until something happened. Somewhat to my surprise, something did. About halfway through, I was completely transfixed. I developed a crush. I fell in love.

Here’s why:

Are there any negatives? Yes, indeed. The title is terrible (What? It Is?). A contents page and some introductory copy would have been helpful; as it is, you have to plunge into the book without knowing how it works. And if you’re very literal, and expect precise recipes, What It Is will probably not work for you.

For me, despite its weaknesses, the book is a revelation. It not only is helping me with my writing, it's also encouraging me to learn to draw.

Seek inspiration? Consider What It Is.

Posted by Alison Davis at 10:09 AM | Comments (0)

January 21, 2010

Please, please, please kill the Corporate Speak

A communication organization I know and love is offering the following learning session: "Mobilizing Employee Attitudes, Strategies to Build and Maintain Workforce Consent: The Politics of Employee Communication."

Huh? I don't know what the title means, but if it was designed to impress me with its erudite sophistication, it's having the opposite effect. I'm appalled that anyone would create such a fractured, convoluted piece of writing, much less an organization that espouses effective communication.

We communicators should take an oath to be clear, concrete and authentic. We need to work hard to stamp out Corporate Speak, words that sound impressive but don't mean anything, and any communication that appeals to MBAs in corner offices but seems false to ordinary cubicle dwellers.

The first time I received an email promoting this workshop, I cringed and hit "delete." This time, I had to do something. So here goes:

Dear Beloved Communication Organization (you know who you are): Let's practice what we preach. Let's avoid the shoemaker's daughter syndrome. Let's take out our powerful red pen and kill Corporate Speak.

It's not always easy, but it's the right thing to do.

Posted by Alison Davis at 08:53 AM | Comments (0)

January 19, 2010

How fast is your food?

I like to follow food trends, because I believe that what and how people eat is a leading indicator for other behaviors and preferences.

So here's an interesting one: People have broadened their definition of "fast food" to mean more than burgers and fries, according to a survey by food service consultancy Techomic, "Fast food" now includes such establishments as Panera Bread and restaurants that offer take-out.

The shift is partly as a result of the weak economy, which has caused restaurants to lower prices and offer more budget-friendly options like take-out.

Other findings:

You are what you eat.

Posted by Alison Davis at 07:26 AM | Comments (0)

January 18, 2010

Guest Book Review: A Millennial on Millennials

Here I am just a few weeks into the new year and already my resolutions are slipping. I vowed to read 110 books in 2010 . . . so far I have read one.

And I know you're not going to give me credit for this entry, because I delegated the assignment to Carly Sikorski, who interned with us during the winter semester break.

However, I thought it would be appropriate for Carly, a Millennial herself, to give us her take on a book about Millennials. Here's Carly's review:

Keeping the Millennials: Why Companies are Losing Billions in Turnover to This Generation—and What to Do About It discusses the new influx of young people into the workforce and the issues that arise as a result. Millennials, people born between the years 1980 and 1999, are transforming the professional world as they introduce unique qualities into the workplace:

Like generations before them, such as the Gen Xers and the Baby Boomers, Millennials have been viewed as threats to the existing order. Many workers, especially those who are well tenured at a company, may resent the new presence of the Millennials. It can be intimidating not only because of Millennials’ different personalities, but also because of the systematic restructuring that may be necessary to adapt to their presence.

As a Millennial myself, who is about to enter the workforce, I have to admit that the language used in this book was a bit disconcerting at times. For example, the current rush of Millennials into the professional realm is often analogized to an invasion—as if my peers and I are more closely related to insects or aliens than human beings.

Overall, however, the book pains an accurate picture of the different ways that Millennials experience and interact with work. It gives workers and managers, many of whom have been in the game since before we Millennials were even born, a useful prediction of the changes that lie ahead, and tips on how to handle the transformation.

Beware, however, not to put too much stock into the Millennial stereotype. It is true that Millennials bring new practices and challenges into the workforce, but so has every other generation. As much as Sujansky and Ferri-Reed make it seem like my generation represents an unprecedented revolution in the professional realm, the effect probably won’t be all that different from what has already occurred in the past. After all, Millennials, although we have our own ways of doing some things, are really not so different from everyone else.

Thanks, Carly!

Posted by Alison Davis at 08:23 AM | Comments (0)

January 14, 2010

Why care about Conan O'Brien?

I don't even stay up until 11:30 (and I've never seen Conan O'Brien), but I've been following the NBC/Leno/Conan story anyway. But not until I read Simon Dumenco's blog in Advertising Age did I understand why.

Conan, writes Mr. Dumenco, has "suddenly become an unlikely (Harvard-educated, multimillionaire) everyman: the freckled face of American job insecurity, a well-meaning hard worker who spent years paying his dues but has now been declared redundant by the halfwit overlords driving his company into the ground."

Suddenly, it all makes sense.

Posted by Alison Davis at 08:00 AM | Comments (0)

January 13, 2010

Updates, minute by minute

When helping our clients improve their communication vehicles, the conversation often turns to employees' expectations about timeliness, transparency, simplicity and other key communication attributes. For better or worse, these expectations are increasing because employees apply the same criteria to internal communication as they experience in the media, marketing and other external communication. In other words, employees think internal communication should be as fast, as clear and as straightforward as, say, CNN.

Want an example? I just visited cnn.com to get the latest update on the Haiti tragedy. As you'd expect, CNN has a full spectrum of coverage, including this amazing update which posts a new item as often as every minute as the story develops.

The definition of "what's current" keeps changing. It's a struggle to keep up, but we need to try.

Posted by Alison Davis at 04:18 PM | Comments (0)

January 05, 2010

Resolution: 110 books in 2010 #1: Made to Stick

Ah, early January. Time to forget what we didn’t accomplish last year, and focus on what we resolve to do during 365 days ahead.

My resolution is to continue my rapid (and sometimes rabid) reading program. But I’ve set aside my old goal of 50 books in 50 days. (A book a day? What was I on, drugs?) Instead, I am starting fresh, with a goal of reading 110 books this year.

That shouldn’t be too hard, right? About two books a week? Piece of cake, for a recovering English major like me.

To get started, I went back and re-read a favorite, Made to Stick by Chip Heath and Dan Heath. I was inspired to do so for two reasons: 1. To see if the book I loved so much on first reading held up. 2. The Heaths have a new book, Switch, coming out in February, and I want to see how the two books compare. (I have the galley and will be reviewing later this month)

My verdict? Made to Stick is even better than I remembered it. In fact, it’s fabulous—an absolute must for anyone who communicates. Made to Stick will not only help you communicate in a clearer and more compelling way, it also provides evidence for counseling those who prefer communication that is dense, detailed or complex.

The premise is simple. As Dan and Chip explain: “We wrote this book to help you make your ideas stick. By ‘stick,’ we mean that your ideas are understood and remembered, and have a lasting impact—they change your audience’s opinions or behaviors.”

How can you do so? By following Made to Stick’s six principles. These principles may not seem completely new. But the brilliance in Made to Stick is that the Heaths not explain how the principles work (and why), they also provide detailed advice about how to implement them.

You should buy this book right away—or, if you already own it, you should pull it off the shelf and start re-reading. But if that’s not going to happen, as a public service, I offer the following excerpt that captures the essence of Made to Stick. (But really: Read the book. If you only read 10 books in 2010, make sure this is one.)

Made to Stick at a glance

1. Simplicity. “How do we find the essential core of our ideas? To strip an idea down to its core, we must be . . . relentlessly prioritize . . . Proverbs are the ideal. We must create ideas that are both simple and profound.”

2. Unexpectedness. “How do we get our audience to pay attention to our ideas, and how do we maintain their interest when we need time to get the ideas across? . . . We can use surprise—an emotion whose function is to increase alertness and cause focus—to grab people’s attention. But surprise doesn’t last. For our idea to endure, we must generate interest and curiosity.”

3. Concreteness. “How do we make our ideas clear? We must explain our ideas in terms of human actions, in terms of sensory information. Naturally sticky ideas are full of concrete images . . . because our brains are wired to remembered concrete data. In proverbs, abstract truths are often encoded in concrete language: “A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.” ”

4. Credibility. “How do we make people believe our ideas? Sticky ideas have to carry their own credentials. We need ways to help people test our ideas for themselves—a “try before you buy” philosophy for the world of ideas.”

5. Emotions. “How do we get people to care about our ideas? We make them feel something. Research shows that people are more likely to make a charitable gift to a single needy individual than to an entire impoverished region. We are wired to feel things for people, not for abstractions.”

6. Stories. “How do we get people to act on our ideas? We tell stories. Firefighters naturally swap stories after every fire, and by doing so they multiply their experiences; after years of hearing stories, they have a richer, more complete catalog of critical situations they might confront during a fire and the appropriate response to those situations.”

Posted by Alison Davis at 01:10 PM | Comments (2)

January 03, 2010

Great metaphor for bad morale

Reading The New York Times over the holiday weekend, I came across an article about the troubles facing Design Within Reach, the home-furnishings company dedicated to popularizing modern design.

The company has brought in a new CEO, John Edelman, who starts work today. When he was hired last month, Mr. Edelman visited the company's headquarters in San Francisco. There, he found evidence of the former CEO's "dictatorial" and "extremely mercurial" management style.

Mr. Edelman said he found employees "hand-shy, like a dog that's been hit."

Ouch! And a wonderful description of terrible morale.

Good luck, Mr. Edelman, at turning the company around.

Posted by Alison Davis at 04:32 PM | Comments (0)

Need to improve your web site in 2010?

Start by getting some inspiration from Advertising Age's piece on The Most Important Websites of the past decade.

On the list are some you'd expect: Google, Yahoo, Facebook, YouTube, Amazon and Wikipedia.

But also included are some you might not expect: Gawker, Drudge Report, Hulu and NYTimes.com.

Great food for thought.

Posted by Alison Davis at 09:32 AM | Comments (0)