Daddy, a Star, and the Ceiling!
You might think a performer’s most treasured Christmas memories would revolve around aspects of the season related to his art. As a magician, writing about “the magic of Christmas” would not only be consistent with my brand, but also probably good fodder for a moderately shareable video. As a musician, I could spend pages writing about favorite songs and carols that cozily curl up in my ear, mind, and heart each December, or maybe I could even churn out a few chords and rhymes about reindeer and ribbons or angels and kings. Instead, my most iconic Christmas memory is an experience that happened when I was about five years old, and which might have lasted all of fifteen seconds. In the early 1970’s my family lived in a small house on a corner lot in a modest neighborhood in Jackson, Mississippi. Christmas there was rarely as snowy or picturesque as the images on Christmas cards, but my folks still committed to the traditions: food, music, and of course decorations both inside and out. Primary among the decorations was, as you’d expect, the tree. Though it is anathema to many, we were an artificial tree family. Mom and Dad liked the economics of re-using the tree year after year. I remember that old plastic pine, with wire branches that were taken from the box to be unbent and reshaped before being inserted into the pre-drilled pseudo-trunk. It was placed in the corner of the family room, to the side of the television where it would be laden with lights and ornaments and other decorations. Among those other decorations was the gaudiest tree-topping star you have ever seen. It was a hard plastic frame embedded with silver tinsel and multi-colored lights. A spring-shaped attachment at the base allowed it to slide onto the top of whatever object was destined to be its pedestal. This star was no mere ornament. It was a technological testament to the electric, blinking, polychromatic glory of post-moonshot America. I loved that star. It transfixed me. Daddy took the star out of the cardboard box and handed it to me. I held it like it was a treasure from heaven. Then he knelt down, picked me up in his arms, sat me on his shoulder and told me to put it on top of the tree. I remember the world was a blur as he stood and hoisted me into the air. I remember straining to reach over to the tree. I struggled to get the metal spring over the top, making sure it was straight and wouldn’t fall off. I couldn’t believe I was up there, so high up, looking over the sofa and the room from such an altitude, even higher than Daddy’s head. The ceiling was there and I could practically touch it. The ceiling! A moment later, Daddy set me down again and we moved on with the decorating. My head swam as I adjusted to life on the ground. It was quite a rush for a five year old. Every year after that, I wanted Daddy to hold me up and let me put the star on top again. Sometimes my brother did it, but it was usually my thing. I wanted to do it because I wanted to recapture the emotion of those few seconds that I still recall. It was always great, but never quite the same. A fleeting moment when Daddy knelt down to lift me up higher than I’d ever been, punctuated with a star. That’s what I think about at Christmas. Joe M. Turner
A Leadership Lesson from a Lousy Alarm
In the past month I’ve spoken or performed in California three times. First in San Francisco, then in Sacramento, then in Los Angeles earlier this week. I had a performance in downtown LA on Monday night, but I had to be back in Atlanta early Tuesday afternoon in order to host/MC a big corporate event at Six Flags on Tuesday night. The result of this was that I needed to take the first flight out of Los Angeles on Tuesday morning. The Monday night performance went great, and I hustled back to my hotel with an eye toward getting to bed as quickly as possible. As I got ready for bed, I used voice commands to set my alarm for 3:00 AM… so I could be at the airport by 4:00 AM for my 6:15 AM flight. Off to sleep I went! When the alarm went off I quickly got up, showered, dressed, packed, and headed downstairs. The concierge called me a cab and off to the airport I went. While sitting in the back seat, I checked my phone to get my boarding pass and to see which terminal I needed… and at that moment, I saw the time. It was only 12:45 AM! Apparently my voice command to set the alarm had gone to my tablet — which was still on Eastern time. I got up 3 hours earlier than I had planned! I had no viable choice but to go on to the airport, where I found a nice carpeted corner in the check-in area where I could doze until they started checking folks in at 4:00 AM. It’s funny now, but I assure you… it wasn’t funny in the cab! Through that minor pain, though, came a lesson I’ll take to heart: no more setting alarms via voice command for me! I’ll always check the time on multiple devices when I get up, too. But in the long run, I guess it’s better to be 3 hours early for check-in than 3 minutes late after the boarding door closes. It could certainly have been much worse. This was a relatively pain-free lesson. Competence Requires Context A useful insight I gained from this experience is this: it wasn’t my tablet’s fault that I got up early. The tablet was the picture of competence. It set off the programmed alarm completely correctly; it was “telling the truth” based on all the information that it had. The error in execution was mine, because I failed to provide the overall context needed in order to execute the task correctly. How often do we try to communicate without setting context? As a speakers, leaders, managers, communicators… are we fully considering the context into which we are sharing information? There are multiple examples of brands who published perfectly true content on their Twitter accounts, for example, but due to a tragedy or some other noteworthy event, the tone of the message turned out to be completely inappropriate. A failure to consider context can transform a perfectly accurate statement into a major misstep.
The Lasting Power of Your Personal Brand
The Lasting Power of Your Personal Brand I have written and shared many articles about the importance of your personal brand. That brand is made up of not only the work you deliver, but also the way you dress, speak, and interact with others. The power of a strong personal brand is not only that people can remember you and the work that you do, but also that you are remembered when your product or service is mentioned. I recently received an email that made me feel like some of my own efforts in this area have been successful. Hello Mr. Turner, My name is Gram Smith. You may or may not remember me because I was so little but you used to perform magic at Norcross Station Cafe in downtown Norcross, Georgia. My dad’s name is Bruce and my mom’s name is Carolee, and my sisters are Callie and Parker. My siblings and I are redheads. I just wanted to reach out and say thank you for being such a kind and friendly person to my sisters and me while we were growing up. It made our Friday nights so fun at dinner because we would always ask, “Where is Mr. Joe?” or “I hope Mr. Joe comes.” I am starting a new chapter in my life. I am now a freshman in college at Middle Tennessee State University and studying aerospace to hopefully in the future fly for Delta Air Lines. My family and I still live in Norcross. But I was just thinking about stuff I did when I was younger and I thought of going to Norcross Station for dinner and remembering you sometimes being there performing. I was watching really funny comedy and magicians earlier and remembered you. I hope all is well and may God bless you and your family. Sincerely, Gram Smith Let’s take a look at a couple of important points. 1. A good brand creates experiences that endure. It has been at least ten years since I stopped performing at the restaurant in question. So the memory of our time together has proven to be lasting for this family, both adults and children. 2. A strong brand owns the mental real estate that a customer has set aside for that industry. Did you notice what happened at the end of the young man’s note? He was reminded of me and his experiences with my magic by watching other performers. Essentially, their work made him think of my brand. That is a principle that can apply to any business, any product, any service… any brand. Consistently deliver a quality experience and your brand will not only endure, but it will benefit from the work that others do in your space. Photo Credit: These photos are used with the permission of Malika Bowling of Roamalicious.com.
Saturn, a Garage-Sale Telescope, and Your Brand
Saturn, a Garage-Sale Telescope, and Your Brand Earlier this month I was in a discussion about branding and customer experience with a group of my peers. I thought of this story from my 2012 book. I shared it and was told afterward that it made a real impact on several people in the room and how they thought about the way they deliver value to their customers. Maybe you’ll find it helpful, too. I’ll never forget the moment I first saw Saturn in a telescope. It was a 3-inch refractor that I had gotten for my tenth birthday. As I sat in the front yard I thought, “This must surely be as good as the telescope Galileo had, and he saw Saturn’s rings. I wonder…” When I saw it, I was amazed. Awestruck. I could barely believe it was real. That little dot in the sky really had a ring around it. It looked like a tiny little sculpture floating in my eyepiece. The pictures that had come back from Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 were enormous investments. The mission, the probes, the experiments, and those photos were built on the educations of hundreds of people and procured at great expense by the American taxpayer. Yet for all their costs, they had suddenly become secondary to my own personal experience through a beat-up garage sale telescope with a busted tripod leg and no finder scope. No matter how sophisticated your audience’s expectations based on other people’s reports, they will ultimately become secondary to the actual experience you deliver. It doesn’t matter how simple the delivery, as long as the experience is amazing. The photo of Saturn above can be seen in Sky & Telescope Magazine’s online gallery here. The story above is excerpted from my 2012 book High JOEltage: 101 JOElts for Becoming Amazingly Effective. The book is available on Amazon.
Dale Jr., Me, and the Power of Flexibility
Dale Jr., Me, and the Power of Flexibility Back in May, I received a Facebook message from an acquaintance I’ve known for a little over ten years. He works in the advertising and marketing industry, and he contacted me to see if I’d be interested in doing some sleight-of-hand on camera for a television commercial. Over the years I’ve done televised magic in many genres, both as a guest performer and as “magic hands.” This would be along the lines of the latter, with the camera focusing on my hands. My friend explained that the production company wanted me to send some video of my hands folding a piece of paper and magically transforming it into their product. I set up my phone and did some rough shots, and the feedback was instantly very positive. I developed a number of solutions to use magic for the spot. Then the project seemed to go radio silent. I wondered if I had done something wrong. I reached out to my contact at the production company and finally learned that there had been a change of plans and that they didn’t want to use sleight-of-hand magic to accomplish the effect in the storyboard. Naturally, I was disappointed. Then, however, I got one of the weirdest comments I’ve ever received: “The client loved your hands. Would you still be interested in being the hand model? You’d be doubling for Dale Earnhardt Jr’s hands in the commercial.” I’ve done a lot of things, but hand modeling is a new one. I figured it would be a fun adventure, so I agreed! I was asked for my ring size, shirt size, and instructed to get a professional manicure. I was told where the shoot was and where my hotel would be. Everything was scheduled to the minute. On the first day of my two-day shoot, I drove up to Charlotte. I arrived for what I was told to expect might be a 6-hour afternoon of costume fitting. I was done in less than fifteen minutes and told that they didn’t need me again until the next afternoon. The folks at Hammerhead Entertainment are extremely efficient! The next morning I took my time getting ready. I was contacted about 4 hours ahead of my original call time and asked if I could come early as they were moving faster than expected. I went in, got dressed, and pretty soon I was in front of the camera. After a few takes, though, the director stopped. The fine hair on my wrists, usually invisible, was indeed showing due to the intensely bright lights. That’s when I got the weird request that topped the earlier one: “Do you mind if we shave your wrists?” I don’t know what you do for a living, but that’s not something I hear everyday. Of course I said, “Sure, let’s do it!” I wasn’t going to get off this ride for the sake of some wispy hair on the back of my wrist! The wardrobe and make-up folks took a buzzer to my wrists and sent me back to the cameras. About an hour later I was done with the shoot, released for the day, and all set for a fantastic barbecue dinner while watching the College World Series. What did I learn from this experience? I took away a few things. First, it was fun. Realistically, hand modeling is not exactly on brand for my business. But an interesting opportunity that is one step off-brand was definitely worth the effort to be flexible. Second, I got to meet people a new and interesting company, visit another city, and build contacts that could be mutually beneficial later. Third, I got a cool story for my blog and that may also provide flavor for future speeches or scripts. Fourth, I had an amazing meal, which is a benefit that should never be ignored! Lesson Learned: Sometimes the business — and the brand — is strengthened by an event or opportunity that doesn’t seem like a perfect fit at first glance. Be flexible.
Atlanta Magic Night Celebrates 4 Years of Wonder
Atlanta Magic Night Celebrates 4 Years of Wonder City’s Longest-Running Magic/Mentalism Show Continues to Amaze ATLANTA – April 17, 2018 — Atlanta’s longest-running magic and mentalism show, Atlanta Magic Night, celebrates its four-year anniversary on May 5, 2018 at 8:00 PM at the Red Light Café in midtown. The show was launched in May 2014 and is produced by comedian Jerry Farber (https://jerryfarberscomedy.com), mentalist Mark Johnson (https://www.markjohnsonspeaks.com), and magician/mentalist Joe M. Turner (https://turnermagic.com). Farber is an Atlanta entertainment legend whose former comedy club, Jerry Farber’s Side Door, was the show’s original venue. “These guys really made it happen,” says Farber. “They’re top shelf performers and there was never a doubt in my mind that they’d connect with audiences.” Johnson, a mentalist, author, and communication consultant, originally approached Farber about putting together a team to produce a show. Said Johnson, “When we started there was no ongoing venue for live magic anywhere in Atlanta. We changed that, and the success of Atlanta Magic Night has been deeply rewarding. Not only do we have terrific shows, we also have a growing community of people who are seeing professional magic. And we couldn’t have done it without the early support of Jerry Farber. He has helped us so much along the way.” Turner, a magician, mentalist, and professional conference keynoter, previously produced a one-man show, Shenanigans, in Atlanta from 2005 to 2008. “Producing a show can become an all-consuming task,” he said. “Working with Jerry and Mark made it not just more efficient, but also just plain fun. I think the vibe of the show, and really the whole brand, reflects that. It’s funny, even a little irreverent, but always coming through with an impossible magical experience. And it’s clear the city wanted that experience, because we are consistently selling out. The Red Light Cafe has been a fantastic venue for us and we are grateful.” The show features a different line-up of magicians and mentalists each month. The anniversary show on May 5 will feature Johnson, Turner, Paul Sponaugle, Howie Marmer, with a planned guest appearance by Farber. Tickets are available via Eventbrite.com, RedLightCafe.com, and AtlantaMagicNight.com. Contact Atlanta Magic Night | Joe M. Turner, Producer
What I Learned from 3 Islands and the Tango
What I Learned from 3 Islands and the Tango In late February I traveled to Auckland where I fulfilled a speaking engagement before embarking on a cruise through the south Pacific. Now that I’m back, here are a few lessons I learned. New Zealand: There’s no substitute for the personal touch. While in New Zealand, my wife and I stayed for a few days with our friends Alan & Michele Watson. We’ve traveled extensively and stayed in hotels and Airbnb lodging, but there’s no better way to experience the world than in the company of friends. Wherever you go, if you don’t have some, make some. For the record, Alan Watson – a recipient of the Queen’s Service Medal, by the way – may be the hardest working, most dependable, highest attention-to-detail man in show business. He has unbelievable dedication to the art, to his own work, and to his friends. Tonga: Raging storms can slow, but never stop, the determined. We had lunch at Oholei Beach Resort and the owner described the rebuilding they’ve done after many cyclones and life challenges. Faith, family, and personal determination have kept them going. If you visit Tonga, make sure to see their show in the beautiful Hina Cave, right on the beach. Dancing, music, fire-eating, and a beautiful island legend make for an unforgettable experience. Aitutaki: Don’t assume the answer is no; ask for what you need. While having a drink at Aitutaki Village resort overlooking arguably the planet’s most beautiful lagoon, I met a couple who had bicycled to the lagoon from another resort several miles away. They were hot and exhausted, and wanted a drink. Unfortunately, they didn’t have enough Cook Island currency to buy more than one, and the credit card machine was down. They assumed they had no other options, so they were beyond surprised when I told them that the bar accepted U.S. dollars. The exchange rate was not ideal, but it was an option they didn’t know they had. By the way, I had paid with U.S. dollars and asked for my change in the local currency. Among other things, Cook Island has a $1 coin, a $2 shaped like a triangle, and a $3 bill! The Tango: Beginner action trumps expert stalling. While on the ship, my wife and I resumed the ballroom dance classes we started on our last cruise. It takes courage to learn something in class one afternoon and then attempt it on the floor that evening, especially when you are surrounded by people with vastly more experience than you have. Sometimes it would take us a while to work up the nerve. But once we were out there, it was worth the effort even with my clumsy missteps. Lesson? Don’t let fear or limited tools stop you from starting. Use the words, tools, and steps that you have and take action. You can keep watching and learning, but don’t deprive yourself of the joy of using what you know. The least experienced dancers on the floor are learning much more than any who are judging them from a chair.
Two Post-Oscar Olympic Observations
Two Post-Oscar Olympic Observations The 2018 Winter Olympics concluded just as my wife and I were leaving for an overseas trip. Thanks to YouTube TV, we have a recording of the closing ceremonies that we can enjoy when we get home. When the Winter Olympics were finished the media buzz immediately went on to the Oscars, but I continued to think about two moments that I thought were noteworthy. Today I’m on a cruise ship in Fiji, but here are a couple of lessons we can take away from PyeongChang. Few things are as genuinely endearing as sincere humility, or as inspiring as good sportsmanship. The unexpected win by Czech skier Ester Ledecka in the Super-G was a shock not only to her, but also to the woman she beat out for the gold medal, Austria’s Anna Veith. The presumptive winner was already practically celebrating, being congratulated by friends, and simply waiting for what everyone knew was a fait accompli. Except that it wasn’t. Ledecka had never finished higher than 19th in a World Cup race in this sport, but she had the race of her life to win Olympic gold. She couldn’t even believe it herself when she learned the result. She was there to do her best, without an expectation of a medal at all. And her reaction touched everyone. Watch the exciting race here: https://www.nbcolympics.com/news/watch-stunned-commentators-call-ester-ledeckas-shocking-victory Now silver medalist Veith was obviously surprised and disappointed, but still congratulated her fellow athlete with a smile and a hug. Contrast this with other personalities at the Olympics whose moments of disappointment included one athlete removing a silver medal from around her own neck, or another tweeting thinly-veiled race-baiting following an impartial tie-breaking process he was fine with until he lost. Which actions demonstrate maturity, sportsmanship, and championship character in the face of crisis and disappointment? Which do you want for yourself and your brand? Ingenuity, determination, and persistence can overcome systemic obstacles or expectations. Elizabeth Swaney may not go down in sports history as a champion skier but she accomplished something that many dream of but never do anything about: she became an Olympic athlete. The halfpipe skier made it to the Olympics by analyzing the qualification rules. She trained to ski a basic, non-trick routine well enough to do it consistently without falling and took that fundamental routine to enough qualifying events to meet the point and placement requirements. Without tricks, her skills would always land her in last place. On occasion, others would fall and she would finish a couple of spots above last place. In all cases, she always finished in the required placement, often because there were not enough participants. She then found a country where she had a legitimate claim for being considered for the team and who had no athletes vying for the spot. She found that match in Hungary, her grandparents’ home and a nation with no female halfpipe skiers. Result? She is now and forever an Olympian. Watch the whole story here: https://www.nbcolympics.com/news/how-freeskier-elizabeth-swaney-made-it-olympics-simple-halfpipe-run Many criticized Swaney online, saying that she “scammed” the system or was an “imposter.” I take a more positive view. This woman saw an opportunity, found a way to follow the rules, and lived out an amazing dream. Her run on the halfpipe was simple in comparison to the trick-filled routines of the others, but I suspect few average Twitter haters could remain standing throughout even her basic run. She treated the process and the sport with respect, trained, dedicated personal time and resources to qualifying,did her best in the contests she entered, and found a way to fulfill a dream that millions of others have stood by and talked about but never bothered to pursue. The expectations of others didn’t stop her. Assumptions about what it takes to go to the Olympics didn’t stop her. The qualifying rules, which would look intimidating to any person simply reading them for the first time, didn’t stop her from doing the research to see that there was an opening. She developed basic skills and applied ingenuity and intelligence to make the most out of what she had. I could certainly benefit from applying similar virtues of creativity, ingenuity, and unconventional thinking to my own business.
The Research Stall
The Research Stall Let’s face it. Even the least change-averse person among us still has a resistance to change. Even the change champion feels hesitation. Sometimes we find ways to disguise our resistance and delay action even when we want to move forward. Consider the following. An Ongoing Magic Debate Last week I answered an online question from a fellow magician in a private forum. His question related to a technique that is used in card magic, a genre of the art which I have studied for almost my entire magical life. It is a technique that requires not only a significant investment of time and effort to learn, but also consistent, ongoing practice to maintain. It’s not a trivial skill to develop, and multiple versions of the technique have been developed. In the last 30 years or so it has truly caught fire within the industry and new developments on the principle are being released constantly. As a result, there is an ongoing tension about which approach to the principle is “best.” There are two primary approaches that have the lion’s share of the market. A new entry within the last few years is gaining traction. And there are a dozen other players each of which has vocal advocates. The debate about which is “best” comes up often, attracting comments from long-term adherents to recent adopters to new converts. My answer to the “which approach is best” question was to investigate the options, decide which approach had features that best suited his style, and to remember that whichever option he chose, the vast majority of experiences he could create using that technique were actually achievable using all of the available approaches. From the audience’s perspective, relatively few things were completely dependent on this choice. It was mostly a matter of what fit his own preferences and got him to take action. The technique is a tool, and there is much less profit in constantly agonizing over the debate than in making an informed decision and moving forward with implementing it. Unfortunately, many magicians spend so much waiting, second-guessing, and debating the merits of the approaches that they miss out on literally years of performance time when they could have been amazing audiences and learning performance lessons that they could apply to the work even if they ultimately changed their preferred approach later. Doesn’t This Sound Familiar? In the true story above, you could probably replace magic with almost any industry, and the specific technique in question with almost any decision that people have to make about tools and methods. In any change management situation, it is obviously important to do due diligence, do the research, and compare what you learn to what your specific needs and preferences are. But… Beware the inertia of the debate, the questioning, the “what if”-ing. There is a comfort in knowing that your delay in taking on the actual work is reasonably covered by the excuse of continuing your research. In change management, as in magic, things are not always quite what they seem. Change advocates and leaders can still be privately afraid of actually moving forward. An endless review loop is a good way to feel like you’re leading change even while you’re stalling! Are you stalling with a research excuse? Your audience is waiting.
Small Action, Big Impact
Small Action, Big Impact Have you ever considered the impact that a small action or decision can have on your audience? Something you consider minor can have an enormous impact on a customer, client, or anyone else who is paying attention to your brand. Here’s a real-world experience that may give you something to think about. So What Actually Happened? Last year I was invited to perform for a corporate client’s holiday party at a beautiful venue in Nashville, Tennessee. Despite unprecedented amounts of ice, snow, and multiple transportation obstacles between my home in Atlanta and the venue in Nashville, I still made it and let me tell you — I have never been so happy to get to work! (The story of overcoming those obstacles is a story worthy of an entire post of its own. Stay tuned!) For this corporate event I provided background piano music, strolling close-up magic, and an after-dinner cabaret magic and mentalism show. That stand-up magic show included a number of pieces that required help from the audience. Choosing assistants from an audience is part art and part science. As the performer, you are observing and evaluating countless characteristics. Is this person smiling and open? Refusing eye-contact? Have they enjoyed the show so far, or have you sensed some kind of tension? Are they obviously having a bad day? Are they wearing glasses? Do they need a cane? Does their behavior seem predictable or erratic? Will the stress of being onstage with you excite or terrify them? Will their participation give the audience more enjoyment, or will it create tension? You may not always be able to know the precise answer to all of these questions, but over time you develop a gut instinct for what makes a good fit in each “guest star” role of your show. I was looking for an audience assistant for a part of my show near the end, and as I scanned the audience I caught the eye of a young girl. She was anxious to help, and might have been a good fit if I were doing a show that was designed for young assistants… but in this case, she wasn’t quite what I needed. I smiled, said as politely as I could that I was going to need someone else, and moved on in my search. I was packing up after the show when she and her dad came by to speak. They were super polite and he simply said that she wanted to talk with me. It was clear that she was disappointed, but she mainly just wanted to interact with me. I thanked her for her willingness to to help and got an address. Later on, I sent her a pack of my personal playing cards as a souvenir. She sent back the thank-you card pictured in this article. Three Decisions and Their Aftermath Let’s look at some decisions that were made and what impact they had. First, no matter how politely I moved on from that moment, I consciously chose not to use this child in my program. In my work I either choose or don’t choose hundreds of people in every show. To me, the moment I decide to move on is a drop of water in an ever-flowing river, and I have very good reasons for those decisions. But to a person in my audience, they might never have been at a show with a performer who was using audience participants. They might catch my eye only one time during the show, and if I don’t choose them… that feels very different. If they have invested emotionally in the moment, it can be truly disappointing. Even adults know how disappointing it is to feel that we’ve been “passed over” for an award, or a promotion, or even a sale. We may have more maturity and more emotional tools for dealing with that and building on it, but it’s still a downer. My small action, no matter how necessary it was, nor how unintended any offense, had a disproportionately negative impact on that young lady. Fortunately, they told me about it rather than keeping it secret! Next, after finding out that the young lady was disappointed, I took action. I chose to send a gift and a short note of encouragement. This was another minor decision, as I have decks of cards on hand and it cost me next to nothing to put together a little gift. But the act of doing so was about more than my own reputation management – it was also intended to help a real person feel real joy. It is almost trivial to take a moment to attempt to bring genuine joy to someone who you know needs it. (Psssst — everyone needs it!) Finally, the young lady responded to what I thought was a trivial gift with a thank you note that she made herself! Clearly, my small actions had a big impact, but her thank you note also did – it was the impetus for this article, and a great illustration of core customer service and branding principles that everyone can learn from. What Can We Learn About Customer Service and Keeping Our Brand Promises? Here are some questions to consider: – Do your business processes have built-in decision points that can generate genuine disappointment for some people? (Pssst – the answer to this question is always “Yes.”) – Do you have channels open to find out about those situations? – Are you willing to evaluate those concerns, prioritize them, and address them? – Are you celebrating the successes of doing so, so that others in your audience can see your brand honestly trying to live up to its promises? In any business, you will sometimes have to make decisions that mean some people don’t get exactly what they wanted. However, with thought and effort, you can take some disappointing outcomes and still frame them in ways that emphasize your organization’s commitment to
