Meteoman!

May 15th, 2012 § 0

Who has a daily programme on TV since TV was invented? Who, after all these years, is still being watched with great attention by the majority of the population? It’s Meteoman (m/f)! Whatever the message, be it good or bad, Meteoman (m/f) manages to get away with it and be the talk of the town. Truly a phenomenon that deserves closer investigation.

To start with, Meteoman (m/f) is respected as an expert on the subject. That fact already counters possible criticism. It is generally accepted that he/she knows what he/she is talking about. Also, a weather forecast is a forecast, a prediction of future events, not a fact. There are charts to support the message and they are the result of complicated and thorough measuring, we all know that. Some dare utter a slight doubt maybe, but nobody dares leave their umbrella at home when rain was announced by ‘he who knows’.

Meteoman (m/f) is also a truly gifted communicator. Where you and I would get as far as ‘sunny’, ‘windy’, ‘rain’ … Meteoman (m/f) has an extensive vocabulary to make a distinction between the slightest differences of, for example, the general idea of ‘wet’.  Rain is definitely not the same as drizzle, mizzle or pitter-patter. One wants to know whether one is going to get damp, wet or soaked.

See, the meteo flash on TV is a lesson in presentation skills, all for free. Next time you prepare that quarterly presentation of the financial figures of your business, be it good or bad, have a closer look at Meteoman …

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Boxes

April 26th, 2012 § 0

When the Titanic sank just over a century ago, its ‘community’ sort of split up in small rescue vessels. Well, they had to, to save as many as possible. Many did not fit in, they ‘fell off the boat’. That is the danger of splitting up: the different parts do not perfectly match the bigger whole there used to be. There are gaps and cracks in which people risk to disappear.

We are very ‘individual’. We like to isolate ourselves in communities where we feel safe. These communities become smaller and smaller. Schools divide up in classes with pupils of the same age. In our working environment we huddle together with people who share more or less the same (business) interests. We live in regions, cities, blocks, streets, in private homes, where we have our own (study) room. But that is also the place where the internet opens a window to the world outside.

From big to small and back to big, it goes seemingly effortless. We create boxes in boxes and then virtually think outside those boxes again. We focus on personal development, we specialise, we distinguish ourselves – marketing is the art of setting the differences clear. Successful individual track records contribute to the world’s evolution in general. Unfortunately the separate boxes do not seamlessly fit, there are ‘oubliettes’, there’s a Neverland and ‘lost boys’. But fortunately there is also Peter Pan, who convinces Wendy to leave her comfortable room and bridge the gap to a completely different world. That, too, is a century ago and has never been forgotten since.

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Choosing is losing

March 20th, 2012 § 0

The Tour de France, the World Cup Football, the Olympic Games … none of these events have started yet. The gap of competition fever is readily being filled by the media with the elections in the United States. Even us Europeans follow Mitt Romney, Rick Santorum and Newt Gingrich on their tour through America, watch their chances go up and down. The media brings it as if these were the play-offs. Also in Belgium we are never far from the next election. This time it’s the local elections that we are looking out for. Who will become mayor, who will have a seat in the town hall?

Communications agencies are being addressed by candidates of different political parties: can and will these agencies ‘defend their case’? Is a politician just another client to these agencies? Is an election campaign just another brand campaign? Some citizens are loyal to one ‘brand’ and will vote for the party they’ve always voted for, whatever the ‘special offer’. Others will be ‘shopping’ for the best deal, considering everything that is out on the shelves. Some will be interested in the ‘ingredients’, others will let themselves be lead by the packaging.

 Perception can be decisive, also in politics. To make a well-grounded choice, people need to know what their options are. Have all messages come across is part of a democracy. So yes, I believe professionals should apply their communication skills and use all communication tools to give every opinion its fair chance. And yes the campaign will of course focus on the strengths. But unlike with regular shopping, as an agency you know that your whole target group is going to ‘buy’ one ‘product’. Unlike any other buying option, the buyer can’t decide to take both or even more. That makes these political campaigns a whole different ball game! Let’s play!

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If you have to go skiing…

February 28th, 2012 § 0

I had just began my career when I had a skiing accident. I was young, I was eager to prove myself, so I did not let my immobilized, injured knee immobilize the rest of me. I learned that when I pushed back the seat of my car to the furthest position, I could squeeze my unbendable leg in. I drove to work as if nothing had happened. I didn’t have an automatic gear back then, so I don’t dare to imagine how I dealt with the brakes, but apparently I did. I also did something else: I decided that I would never ski again. But not just me, the rule would apply to all of my staff. Being the young manager  I was at the time, I imagined what a catastrophe it would be if all my staff would return home from their skiing holiday in my same condition. I knew that what had happened to me could happen to anyone.  However, they would not all be crazy enough to drive to work anyway. Business would falter seriously and we could definitely not have that.

I guess I had forgotten about the new house rule by the time the next skiing season started…and the one after, and the one after that, because I continued to ski ever since. But still, skiing involves risk  and this is easily forgotten when we see people from all ages fleeing the cities to get on the slopes. The accident the Dutch prince Friso suffered in Austria brought the risk back to the front pages. The Dutch queen leaving the hospital with her daughter-in-law stood in contrast with the pictures of all of the Belgian royal family on their skiing holiday. I was surprised to see Filip together with his four children, him being heir to the throne and they being next in line. What if they would be surprised by an avalanche? The king and his heir are not allowed to fly in the same plane in case something would happen. I know skiing does not quite hold the same risks, but still. Your royal highness prince Filip, I am not in a position to keep you (nor anyone else) from skiing but please take my advice: be careful, stay on the trail.

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Anonymous

January 26th, 2012 § 0

Our Belgian Minister for Equality recently suggested that job applications should be made anonymous. She’s convinced that the exchange of only the relevant facts and nothing else will discourage discrimination in a working environment and will lead to a more correct hiring procedure. My immediate thought is: when will be the right time for the candidate to reveal his or her identity? That moment cannot be postponed endlessly, can it? I can almost see it happen: “Dear colleagues, here is our new project manager. Tara!” And up goes the curtain.

Of course that’s not what is meant, this example is really to the extreme. But still you have to question which elements are considered to be personal? Name? Address? Gender? Hobbies? Interests? Former work experience even? In the 70’s it was common practice to send a photo along with ones candidature. I can understand how this could be misused. But on the other hand, are we not overestimating anonymity, and at the same time underestimating the value of what makes us all unique individuals? Your CV and application is supposed to highlight your differentiating factor, your USP, and in some people it’s the person that makes them individuals.

 Why for example do some people make their phone calls anonymously? Do they fear that they will be pushed off? If so, why bother making the call? It’s not going to be a great conversation anyway, is it? I never answer anonymous calls, sorry but I’m not going to talk to a shadow. If the caller has no problem telling me who he or she is on the phone call, then why not start with that? In real life, you would never stand awkwardly with no introduction. You start by saying “Hello, I’m so and so, do you have minute …” it sounds perfectly reasonable to me.

And suppose we do stick to only relevant facts when it comes to applications, will we then be sure to get the right picture? Last week I thought I might as well join a professional PR group on one of the social networks. My application was declined. Apparently I did not meet the membership standards. I dare to question that, you’ll understand. Either their automatic (?) verification system missed it or they hold very peculiar standards… that was with all my information, imagine if they only had the relevant.

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Part of a bigger whole

January 5th, 2012 § 0

How many people have you wished a prosperous, healthy, happy new year? I bet a lot. Through a card, via the internet, live with a kiss maybe … Of course I won’t stay behind: I hereby wish you and your beloved ones a wonderful 2012.

But there is more. I have a special wish for all people. It started in India. I still haven’t forgotten what struck me there: the constant awareness of the fellow human being. Of the ones living here and now, the ones living elsewhere, even in different times, in the age to come, or the age that has been … So many people, far too many even? Not to the Indians. They understand the art of turning the negative feeling of being wiped away by the crowd into a general positive awareness of being one of many. And that is what I wish for everyone: to feel you belong somewhere, to feel that you are part of a bigger whole. Where people come together, people get close. Not only is that a physical fact, it is also a social reality. You see it in cities all over the world: when you live next to others, you’ve got to live with them. Out of sight, out of mind? I guess it also works the other way around: to know people is to love them. So my wish for you, all of you, for 2012 is: get to know each other. It’s the best basis for mutual respect. Your grandmother? Even should she no longer be alive, keep her alive in your thoughts and your conversations with family. Your neighbour? Do not avoid running into each other. On the contrary, go borrow an egg, make some small talk. The person sitting next to you on the train? Say hi, good morning or evening. Your niece in New Zealand? She will be positively surprised if you send her a birthday card, so do it! Your former teacher launched an idea that hit the media? Let him know you noticed. Et cetera. There are so many opportunities to make new contacts or to keep human contacts warm. Take these opportunities. You’ll bridge gaps between ages, religions, sexes, races and time.

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Namastay*

December 13th, 2011 § 0

A visit to India is a sensory overload, but a good one. The colors, the spicy odors, the handshakes, the music, the different tastes in food unknown to my palate. This vast country, similar in size to Europe, holds 1.2 billion people, a wealth of cultures, 216 languages and thousands of years of history. The religions of Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism and Sikhism were all born here. India is speeding into the future with computer software and has become the biggest force among the international film industry, through its famously known, Bollywood. But it is India’s exotic qualities that have inspired me. An India of my imagination. An India of extreme contrasts.

Coming back from India feels like going back to your own world in black & white.  Everything in India, the people, the markets, the dishes, etc. is rendered in brilliant technicolor. The people teach you what tolerance and gentleness really means. They represent mature minds with an understanding spirit and a love for all human beings. They hold respect for animals as incarnations of our ancestors. And they express a strong belief in karma, your next life.

Mahatma Gandhi inspired so many people, and his messages, “life is greater than all art” and “my life is my message,” make you pause. Need a wake-up call? Horn please! Is this the same planet?  Maybe I should learn to nod with my head the Indian way.

There are some places you visit that find a place in your heart. For me, India is such a place. A teardrop of time.

 Shukriyaa* .

*Hindi: Namastay is ‘hi’ and Shukriyaa is ‘thank you’.

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A role play

November 29th, 2011 § 0

When travelling outside of Europe I’m European. When looking at international statistics, I’m Belgian. When speaking to a Dutchman in our mother tongue, I’m Flemish. These are all different phases of my personality and only the scale varies. If the perspective is wide, my range of personalities will also be wider and vice versa. Especially when being challenged, people tend to fold back to a smaller identity. Especially when being attacked, we sacrifice the outer skirts of our entity and we entrench our defence behind the next wall.

It is not wrong to have multiple identities. It is important however to know which one to focus on and when. When working on a project as a team, each team member will have his or her role to play. The sum of the individual efforts is what the client should see, not the separate ingredients with names on them. Viewed from within the company there are account managers, designers, senior accountants, copywriters, executives … From a client’s perspective there is ‘the agency’. A designer hiding behind the company’s umbrella in the process of the project is wrong. A designer stepping in the spotlight for the client to see him rather than shifting the focus to the actual project, is also a mistake.

Belgium will have to make serious savings. To bridge the losses, our national government points to the regional governments who then point to the municipal authorities, who will then probably expect its citizens to make an effort. Roles are not meant to be hidden. Roles are meant to be played.

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The saints and their PR

November 8th, 2011 § 0

We haven’t always had Halloween in Belgium. Only recently have the Jack-O’Lanterns turned up on the streets of All Saints’ eve. First in the shopping centers, now the lit up scary faced pumpkins grace the windowsills of homes all over Belgium. As soon as dusk hits children go door to door for a treat (or trick, whichever it may be) their first one of the season. And from the 31st of October many other seasons will follow; Sint-Maarten in certain regions, Sinterklaas in most parts of Belgium, Santa Claus of course and Epiphany. Plenty of ‘Holy Days’, with a (pseudo) religious background and what’s more appreciated than the promise of getting cozy, candy and toys? Thanks to Halloween it all starts at least ten days sooner than it used to in our local tradition.

Do you really believe it is just chance that the holiday season falls within winter? These saints don’t have a natural preference for cold and dark days do they? It seems they do have a fetish for theater and drama. A procession of festive lanterns while it is pitch black outside. Gifts wrapped in sparkly paper placed under a fairy lit Christmas tree and golden ball-balls with an open fire; whilst it’s freezing cold outside…Perfect timing and an eye-catching presentation have proven to be a formula for guaranteed success. These saints sure take care of their PR.

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Small is big

October 18th, 2011 § 0

Nothing is too small. That is what Wangari Maathai was convinced of. It was this conviction that led her to receive the Nobel Peace Prize in 2004. At the time she was an ordinary woman living in Kenya. And what did she do? She had a profound understanding of the simple things in life. She knew that growing seeds and planting them would soon emerge into trees that would support the infrastructure of the ground and preserve necessary soil from flooding away. It was her belief in this small act that enabled her to convince others. She saw the opportunity that she had and she went for it, thus promoting social, economic and cultural development in an environmentally-friendly way.

Excuses are tempting. Do not accept you are born to be lazy. Talking takes little effort and therefore is something we do quite easily. It is when a small African lady comes along, who does not say much and shows that it takes no more than a seed to demonstrate the power of small things that makes us listen. A seed is all it takes to blow away the vast excuses from the “big mouths”. Well that woman should get them – get us – on our feet and make us walk the walk and not just talk the talk. Let’s banish the “buts” and go for it. Let us all stop pointing at the next person to get things done. When was the last time you did something for the first time? Our economy is not static. Our position in the world is defined by what we provoke, initiate and dare to try. Do not wait for a road map but start drawing one yourself. Economics, the environment, peace… they all seem like the big things that are far above our reach. Mrs Wangari Maathai would never have won the Nobel Peace Prize if she believed that. Every piece of wood comes from trees and trees start with seeds. Every big thing can be brought down to those digestible bites. Who would have thought an elephant could be scared of a mouse.  Imagine what more mice can do. The world needs people who dream and make changes. And we need them now. Hurry.  It doesn’t have to be big the first time; it is just the first step that is big.

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