#1. Students are Happier Giving: Michael’s research of college students in Vancouver showed that those asked to spend money on themselves had no change in happiness vs. those students who spent on someone else saw an increase in happiness.  Giving yourself or gifting a cup of Starbucks is a good thing.  Humm–smells like brand endorsement to me!

#2. The World is Happier Giving: Michael looked at Gallop poll results from 136 countries.  He correlates giving to charities with happiness and finds all but one country (Central African Republic) to show a positive correlation–more you give the happier you are.  Understanding this connection with your brand can help you stand out!

 
#3. Pinata at Work Adds Happiness: Michael and team did a test with companies.  Employees spending the given money on themselves reduced ROI.  Employees spending on their team mates, increased ROI big time!  One team used their money to buy a pinata, break it and enjoy the candy.

Ask yourself, what ONE (or more) act of giving can you do today in your current job?  Here are some suggestions to get you started:

• Buy someone lunch/coffee today
• A special gift for a customer
• Thank a peer for their support
• Hand write a thank you
• Drop off a peer’s favorite treat anonymously

REMEMBER: it’s the giver that increases happiness–so go gift someone now and let me know how it went.

Recently, I was at QFC for a quick “get milk” errand.  As I walked past the produce area this banana display caught my attention.  How brilliant!  Instead of tossing overripe bananas out or having them drive customers away, someone at QFC was smart to develop a brand line extension even within the basic banana category (yes there are organic and basic but this is super cool).  By simply marking the ripe bananas stand-out with a red tape, having a smaller display with a lower price and labeling it “baking bananas” QFC has not only sold those bananas but got customers thinking.  I definitely thought of banana bread.  Think of all the extras I could have bought to create my banana concoction.

Ask yourself (and your team):

What can you do with what you have laying around or even more–laying within you?  What latent talent can you showcase that people desire and are delighted to purchase?

My Take:
1. Brené has nailed it! Her work is another way of looking at our shadow (thanks Carl Yung)–those emotions we hide, suppress or deny.

2. We are still primal animals. We are constantly threatened by our “environment”–what people say, when things go against our best interest and when are simply down. Most of us deny those emotions.

3. There is no silver lining. Let us stop sugar quoting our emotions. There is no shame in feeling angry, sad or mad. The sooner I accept how I feel the sooner I can flow onto the next emotion.

4. Shame is universal. I love how she talks about finally researching men, after years of focusing only on shame among women. Yes, men carry a lot of shame and now we are giving ourselves permission to talk about it.

5. Seek support. This is the only part that she doesn’t highlight and I’ll assume she believes in 100%. That’s why 12-step programs work, when 2 or more gather to deal with an issue–change happens. You don’t have to be in recovery to seek help. Just ask!

Finally, ONE simple message to marketers–get vulnerable!  Don’t just talk about “authentic” and “real” to connect with your customer: show them your humanity, do the things that you believe are right and in alignment with your values–not just some jargon filled value proposition or brand “pillars.”  Be vulnerable and have no shame about it.

First some of my judgement about the state of humanity–take what you like, leave the rest. We pay more attention to the artificial “stuff” than to the real things of nature. By nature I don’t mean only “green” and more as in our true human nature–born to be innocent and free.

The Last Truffula Seed is about a society that’s lost touch with what’s real and this seed represents a new beginning to connect with that which is natural–a real tree, which this artificial town in the movie Lorax has not a single one of. Now translate that to humanity and ask yourself these questions:
- How often do you show your true feelings or do you “zip it?”
- How often do you lead with what resonates with you or do you conform with the norm?
- How often do you plant new seeds of ideas and water them, patiently waiting for them to grow?

If your answer to even one of these is “not that often” then ask yourself–what stops you from living your most authentic life? Remember, this applies to each individual just as much as any brand.

L is for Liberating
Is your environment open and inclusive to allow people to express their unique gifts/strengths?  Or do people hold back for fear of being shut-down/laid-off? Make time to free yourself.

O is for Owning
Is your culture one of self-responsibility where people own their part and do what they say they’ll do? Or is it full of finger pointing and carnage?  Do you ask for what you want?  Remember, people can not read your mind. Be clear about your part.

V is for Visioning
Does your culture welcome stepping back and visioning the bigger WHY?  Or is it focused on the WHAT and the HOW and stuck on the obstacles in the way for the wrong WHY?  Take time to diverge before converging.

E is for Empowering
Are most choices/strategies empowering or take people’s individual sense of autonomy and contribution away? Are people asking more curious questions or simply pointing to what’s broken? Are you part of the solution or the problem?   Be clear about the “true” problem before solving for it.

Please contact me bobby@ResonantInsights.com if you want to discuss this further and make it relevant in your environment.

As you will see in this short video, he is visiting Paulo Coelho, author of The Alchemist and numerous other global best sellers. See that blue glass bottle that Kevin gave Paulo? Bill Hinsley (my dear friend who traveled with me) and I received one of those as a rare gift from Kevin during our visit, among many other gifts he sent us off with. The blue glass bottle has “magic” etched on it.

They say giving is the #1 most generative act we can offer each other as human beings. Kevin Carroll gave to us a lot more than physical gifts. He gave us the most precious of all human qualities–to believe in a person. Thank you Kevin for opening your soul to us. I am deeply grateful.

I am choosing to focus on these 7 qualities to define the Dragon: pioneering, artistic, generous, self-assured, direct, passionate and decisive. I put out a question to my newsletter subscribers today–what can you do to embrace one or more of these qualities fully in 2012? To get you started, here are some examples:

Pioneering: What uncharted territory are you willing to explore this year? (perhaps an emotion)
Artistic: What latent talent can you express this year? (perhaps commit to it today)
Generous: What random act of kindness can you share today? (perhaps smile at a stranger)
Self-Assured: Are you aware of the “should” voice from within? (perhaps say “no thank you”)
Direct: What can you do to clearly ask for what you want right now? (perhaps just try it)
Passionate: What gets you energized and in the flow? (perhaps a childhood activity)
Decisive: What can you do to get off the fence? (perhaps “just do it”)

Let me close by thanking the ancestors who gave us so many rich metaphors and symbols to leverage in our daily life. Perhaps we’ll ponder how to embrace the Year of the Dragon in our life, regardless if you believe in such symbols or not. Just perhaps these symbols are a window to living a more meaningful life, a life of clear purpose.

Please comment and let us know what you think of the concepts Bobby proposes in this talk.

Please comment and let us know what you think of the concepts Bobby proposes in this talk.

Please comment and let us know what you think of the concepts Bobby proposes in this talk.