One Dimensional

I like the whole idea of one.  Do one thing; do it well.  Boil it down to a core essence, the primary fulcrum, and focus on that relentlessly.  Obsess.  Become famous for it.  Own something.  I just wish I could act on my convictions.

Many companies and people are attracted to this notion, but very few live by it.  They hedge.  They diversify.  They extend.  They unfocus.  They seek multi-dimensionality and typically arrive at non-dimensionality.  

I see so many businesses stuck in this quagmire.  Somewhere in history they traded their single-minded focus for a multi-front campaign.  They spend decades honing their core business and competency, then assume that over the course of 3-4 years they can recreate that magic in a new category or channel or country.  And they usually don’t.  They end up with average.  And rather than retreating or forging ahead they hold, then they extend again and again and again until the company is more average than great.  Starbucks.  Campbell Soup.  Burger King.  KFC.

My generation of leadership inherited this mess.  Sins of the father and the diversify movement.  We are beholden to Wall Street to grow …. so we shutter to think what shedding all this revenue would mean.  And truth be told, many of these ancillary lines can’t even be divested.  Who wants to buy PowerAde from Coke?   What CEO is willing to admit the millions poured into these average brands has been a bust?  That not just the revenue, but the asset, needs written off?

Agencies do this too.  Rather than accept that their resources should be leveraged against a core competency … say creative… they invest bodies and mindshare against disciplines where they are average at best.  The net effect is that clients see them as average.  That the weak link breaks the chain.

And we do it as people.  Our personal lives are hallmarked by over commitments in the numerous areas we strive to master.  Husband.  Dad.  Friend.  Brother.  Son.

Oh I know this is idealistic.  But isn’t that the point?  To shoot for the moon and at least hit the ceiling.  The construct is focus, simplicity, subtraction.   Uni-tasking... not multi-tasking.

I just wish I could act on my convictions.  

How about you?

Confession of the Bad Self-Editor

I started my career with very little written correspondence. A couple of letters a day to clients, usually nothing more than a slightly revised form letter. "Thanks for your interest..."

Now we all write all the time. Email and text if nothing else. Personal and professional. Considered and rushed. Life has become an endless stream of writing. I'm still learning.

For the last 4-5 years, many branding experts have been proposing that branding is storytelling. And while storytelling is verbal, it is also written. I'm still learning.

The hardest part for me is editing. It's not practical to have another person edit all your correspondence. But truth be told, I hate editing. It's my arrogance that gets in the way, but I'm still learning.

Most times I'm left with the task of self-editing (by choice or practicality). Lately, this is the mental checklist I use.

Grammar and Spelling: Obvious yes, but it still bites me occasionally. Learning not to rely 100% on spellcheck.

Flow/Plot: For business writing, set the context and then present in a logical flow. I learned this at P&G and it haunts me still today.

Simplicity: Delete. Delete. Simplify words. Simplify concepts. Delete. Trim. Always less than one page. Always less than 10 slides.

Voice: I find that I tend to write like a know-it-all. Everything is written in a persuasive voice. I'm learning that today's audiences are often better reached in a more conversational, "walk with me" voice. Back to that arrogance thing again.

I'm ok at the first two points, but the last two are blind spots for me. Complex, verbose, buzz-word writing shows expertise. Right? Wrong. Arrogant, self-important voice impresses the audience. Right? Wrong. So at least I'm self-aware. Now what?

Any advice? I'm still learning.