Introduction
Be Generous
Help This Person
Introduce Others
Serve, Don’t Sell
When It’s Hard, Do More
Give Away Good Ideas
Promote Others Online
Kindness First
Be Expert
Use Social Media in a Genuine Manner
Do What You Do Best
Start Small
The Basics Matter
Prove It
Specialize
Be Trustworthy
Don’t Always Trust Your Judgment
Tell the Whole Truth
Be Perfect
Be There in Tough Times
Use Levels of Substance
Respect the Authenticity Condition
Be Clear
Have ONE Point
Minimize the Trivial
Use a Lot More Pictures
Follow The Theory of Seven
Get Feedback, and Use It
Ask for 3 Criticisms
Be Open-Minded
Travel in New Circles
Attack Your Blind Spots
Make Bold Proposals
Point/Counterpoint
Admit It, You’re in Show Business
Be Adaptable
Change the Cover
Rewrite, Rewrite, Rewrite
Use Fear to Your Advantage
Partner
Think (a Bit) Like an Academic
Keep Learning
Be Persistent
Don’t Take No Answer as a No
Exceed Promises
Ask for Referrals
Take Credit
Exhibit Grit
Be Present
Really Listen
Talk Less
Change Your Perspective
Be Ultra-Quiet
Breathe
Get in Front of People
More information
Credits
About the Author
Social media ghostwriting
Follow the Theory of Seven
As previously mentioned, there are a lot of words in business: job descriptions, memos, briefings, meetings, quick updates (that last 45 minutes), and more meetings. This flood of words creates the impression that adults have endless attention spans and that you can keep talking and people will keep listening.
This impression is wrong.
I spend my winter weekends at Stratton Mountain, coaching incredibly talented seven-year-old skiers. They inspired me to create the Theory of Seven (True confession: I named and capitalized it to illustrate a point. Young kids love it when you come up with goofy names.).
My Theory of Seven says that adults are not much different than seven-year-olds, except that we pretend to be different. Our attention spans are ridiculously short. We love distractions. Given a choice, we'd eat cookies all the time. If you leave us in line too long, we start pushing and shoving.
So, how can the Theory of Seven help you reach others? Like this...
Be clear about what’s next: The second - and I mean the very second - we finish a ski run, my kids want to know what we are doing next. They have no interest in the run after that; it is too much information. Assume the same is true for your colleagues. Be simple, and focus on what's next.
Don't be intellectual: One kid is a great skier, aggressive and talented. But he has a quirk: every time he does a hard "skating" stop, he stares at his toes, which shifts his weight in the wrong direction. I tried explaining this, but it just didn't sink in. Finally I said, "You must have beautiful toes. You must love your toes so much, you can't help but look at them."
He thought this was hilarious, and so did the other kids. But then he stopped staring at his toes.
A small percentage of adults are intellectual; most are not. Most need simple, memorable guidance. Most don't pay attention to complex explanations.
Don't assume that others are idiots: Seven-year-olds may be goofy little human beings with short attention spans, but they are much more perceptive than you might assume. They constantly surprise me with their observations.
If you're not getting through to others, the reason may not be because they "are idiots." The problem may be that you haven't figured out a simple and interesting way to communicate your messages.
Keep things moving: Even the best-coached, most responsive group of kids start acting like babbling idiots if you keep them waiting too long in a ski lift line or at the cafeteria. Adults are no different; when they get bored, they start to gossip, complain, and even act irrationally.
If you aspire to reach others, keep things fresh.