Posts tagged rules
Remember. Smart people are smart and sometimes they have different rules.
Apr 1st
I had the brief pleasure to cross paths at a job with one of the greatest minds in marketing. A brilliantly eclectic guy named Tony Wainwright. Given my role – I was in middle management at the time – I was a little unclear on his place in the agency. Full time employee? Part time? Consultant? He was kind of mysterious (I believe most larger companies have those people).
Every once in awhile I would get a 6 word memo, signed Tony, either asking or telling me something (he was the Zen master of brevity). And every once in awhile he would appear in an internal meeting.
It was in one of those meetings that I came to understand smart people sometimes work under a different set of rules.
I had a couple clients in the meeting. Not most senior. Not most junior. But it was a fairly important set up strategy meeting with some long term implications.
So Tony sits himself in a corner and listens. And then pretty much fell asleep. I don’t know if I was more pissed or mortified. The head of my department was also there (being his quiet brilliant self effacing self – I will write about him another day). And he was pretty much indifferent to Tony’s dozing. (This despite all the mental harpoons I was sending his way).
To be fair. I believe Tony had a recurring illness that would challenge him physically on certain days. (but in that time and place I kinda wasn’t thinking about that).
Anyway. Towards the end of the meeting Tony kind of stirs a little. Makes a little noise so that everyone turns and looks at him and he says:
“So, if I understand it, here is the decision we need to make. It seems to me we should do ‘this’.”
He then said maybe one more sentence to explain but that is what was indelibly stamped in my brain. Brevity. The man was all about brevity.
Within a less than 5 minute window he isolated the issue and crystallized a solution. That is a gift.
(and when you find someone like that treat them as if they are the last drop of water you have to drink each day)
It would have been easy for everyone to walk out of that meeting and focus on the fact he dozed 95% of his time in the meeting (and I would say 95% of the people did). Yeah. I did walk out a little pissed myself. The head of my department, while chuckling a little, did happen to point out to me that Tony’s 25 words or so did provide a clear solution and probably saved me a lot of work and we were moving forward aligned on a direction. (I told you that guy was a brilliantly self effacing guy)
I am not sure this one meeting truly clarified these following things for me at that time but it certainly helped me along the way:
- Don’t take silence for stupidity or indifference.
- It ain’t about the number of words it’s all about the words you use.
It sucks to us nonsmart (less smart) people but it pays to put smart people in situations to be smart and let them do it their way. Your rules don’t apply to these people. Let me repeat that. Your rules don’t apply to these people. It may piss you off but in the end you are simply being immature (unless you believe you could produce as well as they could without the rules).
Look. Sports teams do it all the time (hence the reason a quarterback can call an audible).
Businesses should also.
But I guess my point here is that we can all get caught up in our pettiness on occasion. And we can all believe that everyone should be treated the same way. Well. Maybe in utopia (which was a Todd Rundgren album but that is a different post).
The reality is rules are different for smart people. And the sooner you recognize that and either get out of their way with your “way to do things” or even better figure out how to set up a situation for the way “they play the game” the sooner you yourself will do better.
And, who knows, along the way you may learn something new.
Christianity Part 2: Taking the First Step toward Success
Apr 1st
I wrote awhile back about why I believe Christianity is getting its ass kicked by Islam. And I also offered a plan of action to resolve it.
Well.
I had the team look at our Google analytics and it didn’t look like we had any hits from the Vatican (although someone named Benny in Rome checked out my One Hit Wonders post) but they have surely taken step one in the McTague plan of action. (quick note: Part 3 soon to be posted will reflect how the Pope has recently taken a step back in the McTague plan of action).
So. Their first step. A good one. No wiggle room. The Catholic Church is stepping up to the plate and standing for something. Something unequivocally clear.
I think they are doing the right thing. Listen. The Catholic Church is an all inclusive club with a set of rules to be included (I know that sounds odd … but they are open to including anyone … anyone who will follow their rules).
And that is okay.
When people suggest they are close minded and not progressive and whatever…they are missing the point. It is their club. They set their rules. If you don’t want to join this club, don’t. What I like about what they are doing is they are saying quite vocally “hey, like ‘em or not, here are the rules of our club. Please come and join us.”
Look. Personally I don’t like some of their rules. But who cares? So I don’t join their club. Do I have a right to suggest their rules are wrong? Well. I guess under freedom of speech I can snipe as much as I want to. But under freedom of religion they can say and do what they want.
So. If the sign says “Catholic,” it had better be by the rules Catholic. That’s what U.S. Catholic clergy are saying as they make moves across the country to ensure the Church’s directives, particularly on marriage and sexuality, are followed to the letter by everyone who says “I am Catholic.” (hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm … only mention the US … I wonder if we are the Catholic problem child?)
Anyway. People will not be able to follow the Church directives as they have “historically interpreted” them. I am going to imagine this is going to be a public relations nightmare and there will be a number of really pissed off people and organizations. Organizations that had been dependent upon the Catholic Church in the past. Well. Tough noogies. (I have been waiting for an opportunity to type that).
They have decided in order for the Church to preserve its distinctive teachings and clarity of voice and mission they are willing to clash with the demands of a wider population of employees and clients of the Church – their affiliated programs and services. Good for them I say. From a business executive type perspective this action is long overdue.
But. Here is the deal.
Internal alignment. Setting a Standard as Role Models. Unequivocal unforgiving standards. 
It all falls apart if they don’t set the standard internally. If the Catholic Church wants everyone to play by the “rules” then it should practice what it preaches (pun intended).
The Church should stand firm regarding beliefs and policies – internally with ultra maximum effort.
If employees, etc. have a problem with that, they are free to seek employment or services from numerous other Churches. No one is forced to work for or use the services provided by the Catholic Church. The Catholic Church is putting a stake in the ground, and unlike many other denominations, it is stating to the world it is not a “designer” religion where people pick and choose what suits them to believe in.
Heck. Some businesses should heed this lesson. Now all they have to do is to get all the other Christian churches to step up, and once they all have they can get to the bigger item on my plan of action – the common core agreements to stand for. Ah. Only time will tell.
Oh. Pay attention. Here is a teaser for a future post.
My Vatican music playlist (maybe that will also help with their alignment).
Thoughts on taglines or descriptor lines
Feb 17th
First. I believe the amount of time people spend on developing or thinking of taglines is nuts. Yes. They are important but in the scheme of things I would envision if you are analyzing your time (or people’s time in general) by billable hour, the amount of time invested in this type of thing is … well … not a good investment.
Second. Here is why I think the time invested is out of whack. In general, here are the guidelines for developing a brand line.
- If the company/brand name is more aspirational/inspirational, or less descriptive, like Nike’s company name, err on the side of aiming for a more descriptive tagline telling people what the company offers or does (like Nike’s original line of “superior performance athletic shoes”).
- If the company/brand name is more descriptive of the product/service that is being offered then the tagline can assume a more aspirational feel & direction.
- The exception: when a company has achieved such a strong awareness that it has achieved a brand status, meaning that people know what the company actually does/offers, a tagline can take on more of an aspirational aspect (use Nike as an example when it shifted to “Just do IT” after they had attained 90+% awareness).
Third. The main rule of the road for descriptor/tagline development:
When the logo/name of company and tagline are stand-alone, make sure people can tell you exactly what that company does or offers. In other words, don’t be tricky or creative and lose an opportunity to be clear about who and what you are. And this is REALLY important when you come out of the starting blocks. Look. You can always change later. Upfront be clear. Making people guess (and you don’t have enough money to answer their guessing) is a silly investment.
Why? Anything other than meeting that main rule translates into having to invest a lot of money, and time effort, to educate people.
There you go. All these “inspirational taglines” and such are kinda silly. Do other things to inspire people. Plus. I am also a believer that a tagline can change. Almost as often as you would like (as long as it stays in the same sphere of character). There you go. Tagline 101.
why Islam appears to be kicking christianity’s ass
Jan 15th
(note: kicking ass for now)
I am not a theologian nor particularly religiously knowledgeable. However Christianity, and its role around the world, is very important to a number of people I care about and respect. Through work and some friendships I have been on the periphery of the religious discussion and Christianity’s place in today’s world. I have an opinion and this point of view shares it. You will see some numbers which I have used to provide some perspective. I have used as sources a variety of online/USA Today articles and research.
The situation (or challenge)
There is absolutely a decline of Christianity (no matter how you look at the numbers). Suffice it to say within the world’s largest democracies Christianity is a declining portion of the population in all but South Korea and Japan. Conversions away from the faith are the main reason. From 1990 to 2008, the portion of American adults who self-identify as Christians has dropped 10 percentage points (from 86% to 76%), while the portion of those who report no religious affiliation has almost doubled — from 8% to 15%. All the while Atheism and other forms of non-belief have been expanding in the United States.
The total number of Muslims is a little more than one fifth of the world’s population, over a billion Muslims in the world, a majority in 50 nations. Just 2% of the world’s Muslims live in the West. The growth rate of the Muslim population, which averaged 1.9 between 2000 and 2006, is also far higher than the world’s population growth rate, which averaged 1.2% in the same period. It is also much faster than any other major religious group.
Nevertheless, even if a Muslim majority is coming it probably will not be soon. Over the last six years the Muslim population has grown only about two thirds of a percentage point a year faster than the world population.
It is interesting to note (and relevant to this writing) that a conference of Muslim leaders in Mecca in 1899 was called to discuss the decline of Islam. From then the second half of the twentieth century has seen a Muslim revival.
Possibly most importantly, Islam is growing in organizational strength, not just numbers. It has undergone massive restructuring in the last five years. Mosques and other institutions are proliferating, and Muslims are exerting their influence in such fields as education, censorship and politics. This is no accident. A document produced by a prominent Muslim leader in the UK in the early 1980s described the Islamic movement in the West as ‘an organized struggle to change the existing society into an Islamic Society with the Qur’an and Sunna as its base’.
Islam is organized and focused and has momentum.
Okay. Let’s not haggle over the exact numbers. Christianity has an issue and Islam is taking advantage.
Attacking the Issue: Separate Religion from Church
I believe Christians need to separate their belief in the religion from their bias toward a particular church. To me religion is the practice of believing in a higher power, or at minimum, subscribing to a particular set of values while the Church is simply a place, or a construct within, you go to learn these things.
I believe church (or churches) are confusing people. Each church seems to have a different set of rules as well as a different interpretation of the bible. Most critically it has become difficult to understand what is unifying between all the different church groups (and I admit .. it may be there .. that unifying aspect .. but the individual church rhetoric is so noisy I cannot hear it). Suffice it to say the current situation has discouraged even some of the faithful.
Let’s get more people to consider Christianity (then offer a specific church group).
Hey. I am not against competition. And I believe every spiritual path has the right to be passionate with regard to their beliefs and their path. What I do believe is troublesome is when the “in fighting” creates confusion and the entire industry suffers in totality.
Every Christian church group should be passionate about their path to God. BUT. It shouldn’t come at the expense of the bigger issue – Christianity.
The best example I can think of at the moment is the US Armed Forces. I am quite sure that behind closed doors the Marines, Army, Air Force and Navy (and maybe the National Guard and Coast Guard and whatever) are pushing and pulling for their own self interest. And each branch has an identity and does whatever it can do to remind people of the difference. But come war the objective is clear, differences put aside and they work together to win. They understand the overall objective is more important than the individual constituents. Is there some chafing? Sure. Is there alignment on doing what is best for US interests? Sure.
There will be debate. There will be arguments. People will get pissed at each other (or whatever version of pissed off Christian leaders are permitted to be). But in the end the whole is stronger than the parts. I am confident no one, and I mean no one, can beat an aligned focused US Armed Forces initiative. And I would argue the same for Christianity.
Discipline. Rules.
One of the people I admire most in the world is a Marine highly decorated from his service in Vietnam. But my admiration and respect has little to do with decorations (although I admit it earns my ultimate respect), but rather with the man himself. He is a master coordinator, organizer and inspirer. As a CEO of a global franchise organization, he put in place the discipline and set of rules that defined who could be on his team and be successful. But that was the basics. He set out a framework of attitudinal “rules” and values as well as defined an organizational attitude. Instilled with these additional parameters, this organization, and others he has been associated with, clearly defined itself in the marketplace, gathered likeminded people and ultimately became globally successful and wealthy. So rules can include attitude as well as “things we have to do.”
Maybe Christianity needs the same discipline and rules as a successful franchise organization.
I apologize to theologians by comparing religion to a global franchise organization but the parallels are too great to ignore by a non-believer such as I. Disparate locations with a common goal and an objective to be more successful than the competition. If a 3000 unit franchise organization can figure out how to remain aligned enough globally to be efficient focused and successful, surely a Christian organization can. Read the rest of this entry »
