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Is your natural instinct holding your business back?

June 6, 2011

George Lee - The Business Show

“There is no way that I am going on TV” , “Neither am I, not a chance”

Here was a golden opportunity for the Fuzion team to achieve some national coverage for the business, which would be invaluable and the PR team’s first reaction was a collective “No way“!

The call had come through from RTE as they were looking for the Fuzion team to appear in the new George Lee, Business Show.

As soon as I heard about and understood the opportunity it was time to put the foot down – Guys, we’re doing it , end of story .. like it or lump it and that was it (for once I got away with being authoritative!).

This was a terrific learning for all of us – here was a clear opportunity for the business, which better than anyone we fully appreciated but the immediate “gut” reaction from the team was – No way!

What was that all about?

I think for most of us there is a humbleness, a shyness, a natural instinct to stay behind the camera – we are more comfortable as the reader than being read about, we are more comfortable watching than being watched. Is this even more exaggerated in Ireland or does it happen everywhere?

The learning was terrific – all of a sudden we were the reluctant client!

Everyday we spend our time negotiating opportunities for our clients, pitching their businesses to newspapers, radio stations and TV programmes all with the objective of achieving valuable coverage for them. We will look at every angle, attempting to excite the different media with that interesting story that they hopefully agree to cover.

Bingo! ..they love the story but they insist on an interview, an appearance, a photograph of our client. Often the media prefer the “people” behind the story rather than the story itself.

Thrilled with the successfully negotiated opportunity, we pick up the phone and call our client to convey the great news, the success..

Hmmm, what is this reluctance from the client about? “They want to do a piece about me? Will my photo be shown? Will I have to answer some personal questions as well as business ones? Will they want me to actually talk on the radio? Will I have to go on TV?”

Even though this is what they are paying us for, even though they fully understand the benefit to their business of the coverage in that instant “something” takes over and we get a point blank “I’m not doing it”

Oh my god, the frustration – we have negotiated a clear win and the client is letting it slip through their hands.

Richard Branson
Richard Branson was really shy but realised that he had to push himself forward for the business

Our own experience with the George Lee Business Show at least gave us a deep understanding of what it feels like for our clients.

Our appearance went great and we were featured on national TV with other big companies such as Google and it was superb for our business. If we had given in to our natural instincts and refused to appear a huge opportunity would have been wasted.

.. Is your natural instinct holding your business back?

Greg Canty is a partner of Fuzion

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Posted in Personal development, PR, Uncategorized | 9 Comments »

Pessimistic, Realistic or Optimistic – Which are you?

June 6, 2011
Optimistic, Pessimistic or Realistic?

Would you sit next to this guy at a party?

My friend was killing me with his negativity, I was feeling hot, uneasy and uncomfortable.. despite really liking him and not having seen him in quite a while I just wanted to get out of there!

I guess I’ve been accused of the opposite, taking a general optimistic approach to things. For some this can come across as being uplifting and for others it could be seen as being naive and maybe they want to get away from me?

It can be difficult at times when we are surrounded by doom and gloom, bad news, tangible signs of distress and people that are really struggling with things going badly wrong for them and we all have a different way of dealing with this environment.

In the meaty discussion with my quite successful friend I found myself not wanting to be in his company any more as he was sapping the energy from me with his pessimistic view on everything. I could literally feel a cloud creep over us as we chatted.

His big argument when I challenged him about his “outlook” was that he was being realistic as opposed to being pessimistic. In his view I was being optimistic and not realistic!

Of course neither of us were wrong and we agreed to disagree and having thought about this even more I think the real secret is all about adopting a “positive” attitude – even in a pessimistic frame of mind this can be quite powerful.

Even though the environment has been terrible my friend’s business has done really well by him positively tackling the lousy climate and continually adapting, despite his pessimism!

Whatever is happening in your business you do need to get through it “yourself” and part of this is equipping yourself with the tools, attitude and general approach that works best for you.

For me I recognise that part of my own personal armour is adopting a positive approach, which at times can be quite challenging. And yes, I am optimistic about how me and our business will survive and thrive but being realistic I know this will only happen if we work our socks off and continue delivering for our clients.

My medicine?

Even when things are going wrong attack the situation with positivity, be optimistic about your future success but realistic about what you need to do to achieve it. And if the guy sitting next to you is dragging you down with his negativity, pessimism or realism then move on politely..

No one said it was going to be easy!

Greg Canty is a partner of Fuzion

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Posted in Irish Economy, Personal development, Positivity, Recession, Uncategorized | 19 Comments »

The Fuzion Women and the Wedding !

April 29, 2011
Mary & William, Royal Wedding

The Royal Wedding - is that Mary or Kate?

Now before I go any further let me stress that at Fuzion we have a team of intelligent, diligent and very hard working women ..

“Oh my God” this is going to be the best day ever … Mary (our Londoner, who may feel hard done by today – in the UK this would have been a day off – I think it is here as well!!) declares in a very excited fashion – Oh My God is right !! They are definitely a different species ..

The amount of time and detail and arrangements that have gone into the big day is incredible – I’m not talking about the the arrangements in London, I’m talking about the arrangements by the intelligent and hard working female crew in Fuzion.

The William and Kate inscribed champagne flutes are on standby, special cakes have been baked for the occasion, the LCD screen is set up and the wedding of the decade is about to be screened.

10:30 AM and we are already listening to the excited screams, oohs and aahs about the different dresses and I can confirm that the girls have freely admitted that “we would all love to be a princess”!

10:40: “Oh my God, I have that coat”, “Look at the dress it is, AMAZING !!” “She’s put on weight” “Look, look it’s Prince Charles”

11:02: The girls freak out as the screen freezes on the CNN feed- panic !

Now all the boys are watching it as well ..if you can’t beat them you may as well join them!

Major excitement as we have just unveiled a picture of Mary with Prince William – Paul did a great job with it and I think Mary is genuinely impressed .. we have another little gift for her later!

11:45: We are in the middle of the vows and girls are nervous .. very tense … Yahoo !! They have done it

Fuzion Girls

Fuzion girls working hard!

12:15 “Do you think they will kiss on the balcony ?” – What do you think? – of course they will ..

The champagne and Pimms is flowing, the scones and cream are ready, we have sandwiches, we have gorgeous cheeses, we have pate .. we’re having fun!

The girls are now practicing their Queen “wave” – Jill is definitely the best, guess who has done this before.

Mary is not impressed at the picture of her as the Queen, she prefers being a Princess I am guessing – she is the most fabulous girl, we’re mad about her! William would be lucky to have her but he had to settle for Kate, another commoner.

12:50 Ali arrives to join the fun!

13:05 and all the girls now are just waiting for the balcony kiss (by the way Posh Spice’s outfit got the thumbs up!)

13:27 – the moment has come, they have appeared on the balcony – Mary has declared to us that “I have goose bumps”, Kerrie being very practical “Ah for God’s sake, hold hands will ye!” .. wait for it, wait for it .. lots of waving, anticipation, more waving and there you go, smack – the most polite, useless pathetic kiss of all time!

.. the crowd are chanting … kiss again, kiss again, obviously not very happy with the 1st one … nothing doing just yet, more waving. Ah damn – they kissed while the cameras were following the air force jets flying overhead – what a waste!

That’s nearly it, they’re all going in, backs turned and in they go – “That marriage isn’t going to last” , “Ah, I think it will”

Fuzion wedding girls photo

Fuzion girls know how to have fun!

William and Kate (or Mary!) you brought us a little bit of magic today, thank you and the very best of luck!

It probably won’t be easy..

Now – back to work!

Greg Canty is a partner of Fuzion

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Posted in Personal development, Positivity, Royal Wedding | Leave a Comment »

The Brown Envelope and the Harp

April 25, 2011
The Brown Envelope and the Harp!

Will I open it?

There it is patiently sitting on my desk waiting to be opened.

In fact it has been there for a while and for some reason I am just not ready yet to open it. You might call it procrastination and that might be a fair comment but for me it is about something much more simple than that ..

I have to be in a positive place to get the best out of my day, my team and my own workload. It’s tough out there, you need to punch in long hours and do everything you can to keep the positive energy going and to keep winning – This is working well for us and I feel I actually owe it to the business and our team to protect myself and stay in this positive place.

I am quite sure that there is nothing in that brown envelope with the harp that is going to make my day any better so it does tend to stay there a while. I know there is nothing wrong that I should be worried about but they never fail to surprise you! Will I open it?

Procrastination or protection?

Greg Canty is a partner of Fuzion

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Posted in Personal development, Positivity, Uncategorized | 2 Comments »

Motivating the boss!

March 2, 2011
Give your boss a hug!

Give your boss a hug!

I was working on employee contracts lately, which I really hate because you get into this formal, “what happens when things go wrong” world.

You suddenly go from the niceties of the interview and the informal job offer to the “legal contract“, which at the end of the day is a vital legal document protecting you and your staff members in the event of any issues arising.

I know it has to be written in a particular way but I really try and keep it as “real” as possible capturing the essence of the agreement and the spirit of the working arrangement and our organisation. Even with our very best efforts the contracts still carry some of those awful formal bits.

Before I put the latest offer in the post I have one last glance over it and I realise that I have left something out that is really vital to me, I have actually quite carelessly left it out of all the contracts I have ever issued.

Here goes with the missing clause – In the course of your duties you must motivate the boss!

I can’t ever recall seeing something like this in an employee contract and I’m sure it would be a difficult issue to review if there were ever an issue or dispute but I do think it would be a great thing to put in there.

Like most bosses today I am juggling a million things and so many different roles. I work really hard, I try to make sure our team are motivated and happy (despite tax increases reducing their income), I make sure that our working conditions are comfortable, I make sure we stay up to date on all the latest trends and technology, I make sure that we bring in enough business to pay the bills, I make sure that we collect on time (or as best as possible) from our clients, I make sure that we pay our bills, I make sure that we pay our taxes and most of all I make sure that we deliver the magic that makes all of this happens; satisfied clients – we make sure together that we consistently deliver great results for them.

I don’t expect a medal or anything for the really long hours, effort, endurance and 24/7 focus but at times this can be really stressful and quite exhausting, particularly now when the rewards can be as simple as just staying in business, which I do fully appreciate. While I am normally really upbeat and will gladly take on the role of motivating the others at times I do slump a little – it’s at these times that I really need one of my crew to spot the “dip” and say those few words, give me a motivational pep talk, take me for a coffee or whatever it takes.

Thankfully my crew are good at spotting the dip and aren’t shy at offering a “lift” at the right time – that is one of the most valuable things they could do for me. Probably more valuable that all the other stuff that is required of them – After all there is no jurisdiction or hierarchy over motivation.

How about putting that clause in the contracts? Not so crazy after all ..

Greg Canty is a partner of Fuzion Communications.

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Posted in HR, Personal development, Self Help, Staff training, Training, Uncategorized | 15 Comments »

Have you met your “Other Self”?

February 15, 2011
Napoleon Hill, Think and Grow Rich

Napoleon Hill – Inspirational!

I came across this powerful extract in Napoleon Hill’s inspirational book, “Think and Grow Rich” published in 1937, and written with a backdrop of the Great Depression.

“You have been disappointed, you have undergone defeat during the depression, you have felt the great heart within you crushed until it bled. Take courage, for those experiences have tempered the spiritual metal of which you are made – they are assets of incomparable value.

Remember, too, that all who succeed in life get off to a bad start, and pass through many heartbreaking struggles before they “arrive”. The turning point in the lives of those who succeed, usually comes at the moment of some crisis, through which they are introduced to their “other selves”.”

Have you met your “other self”?

I know it is a terrible time for so many people but I would really urge them to dig deep (or even deeper as the case may be), try to look for the positives or the “unique” opportunities and eventually you will find a new and possible very rewarding and fulfilling path.

Greg Canty is a partner of Fuzion Communications

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Posted in Irish Economy, Personal development, Self Help, Uncategorized | 3 Comments »

New Years Resolution – Change your Bio!

January 1, 2011

New Years Resolution

How about this year with your New Years Resolutions doing something a little bit different that might really makes change actually happen?

I’m not sure about you but I gave up making these “New Year” resolutions a long time ago because I know I just don’t stick to them, so I guess it is time to take a different approach.

New Years Resolutions? What are they about anyway?

If I am really going to commit to doing something different, I guess it should be something significant, something really positive in my life, some “change” that I want to happen – I suppose you could say I want a “new me” in some way, corny I know, but isn’t that what it boils down to?

To achieve any goal a lot of the motivational “gurus” will recommend some form of visualisation, finding some way of creating a clear picture of what that success looks like. This process is supposed to help clear the path of obstacles and open your mind to the route to ultimate success. Easy? Not really ..but you can see how it could work.

With this in mind how about taking this approach but simplifying it for our “life change” resolutions – forget about New Year, if it’s a positive change let’s really go for it!

How about doing the ultimate visualisation and actually making a change to your bio? It sounds a bit crazy but why not? It takes the visualisation a stage further and makes it a public promise in a way – This is who I am.

Ok, you’re not a liar so now you have to correct this small little “white lie” about yourself and make that positive change in your life so you can become the person you want to be!

Wow, that’s powerful stuff if it could work for you. For this you need to choose those changes very carefully – What is it you exactly want to change?

So .. Who are you ?

A non-smoker, an entrepreneur, a writer, a wine expert, a mountain climber, a cyclist, a marathon runner, a photographer, award winning PR consultant, an artist.. It’s up to you.

After carefully deciding that “life change” go to your bio on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, your blog, website or even your CV .. make that little White Lie and start correcting it as soon as possible.

I must start ..

Greg Canty is a partner of Fuzion Communications

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Posted in Personal development, Uncategorized | 7 Comments »

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