Every company has these individuals.  These are the behind the scenes people that do the majority of the “grunt” work.  They do not have the most glamorous positions and rarely get credit for success.  They do not interact with clients in a direct manner but they are on the front-lines regardless.

• In a restaurant, they are your cooks and bussers
• In a big corporation they might be your mail room employees, or messengers
• They could be your janitors

The idea is these are the people that support you in your job: the person that helps you with research, the data entry person, the writer or editor… whatever position they may hold I’m sure you know who they are in your company.

We know who they are but do we actually take care of them?

Do we truly understand the value they bring to the organization?

Do we really understand that they make our jobs easier and support us in our ever difficult interactions with our clients?

Without these individuals, many companies would collapse from the pressure.  Many “stars” would not shine as bright.  Without them there would be an apparent crack in the organizational structure that the whole world, especially the clients can see.

It is imperative that we recognize our support staff.

Recognize them, take them out to lunch after a job well done and just show appreciation.  If you’re in a decision making position, make a decision that can make their day.

They most likely do not make as much money as you but they are equally as important and we must let them know that we know.

Bottomline…take care of your support staff.

I could write a generic post about SXSW, explaining what I learned from panels, dropping names of famous people I met and saw, all the things that make Austin great or give a list of what I think SXSW can do better for future festivals.

Instead I’m going to write about my personal experiences and observations on an individual level.

The Energy

From the moment I entered Austin on Thursday night I felt the energy of SXSW. People are on the go, eager to learn and meet new people. The type of energy at SXSW is the energy that makes you want to go and make a difference and push yourself to succeed. You immediately want to apply something you learned to an existing venture, or you get an idea on the fly and immediately want to get started brainstorming and planning. The attendees are fired up and passionate about whatever they are working on. The hardest part is maintaining that energy and motivation once you leave Austin.

Walking Billboards

Everyone at SXSW is representing someone, something, or some place. People are eager to tell you how amazing their company is or how their new start-up will change the world. People are explaining how they created an algorithm that can beat Google’s or how their system is better than Groupon’s and how their mobile app will change mobile usage. People are dropping names left and right, giving statistics and numbers and telling you how much first round funding they received.

My take on all of it….who cares?

The way I look at it is if your venture, personal project, mobile app, system or algorithim is good enough to change the world and actually make a difference then I’d hear about it eventually.

The fact that people were so emphatically “representing” made it real difficult to actually connect on a personal level. This is a general statement and I did meet people that were not like this at all but were friendly and transparent enough to actually connect and care but this is my view from people watching, overhearing people’s conversations and conversations I’ve personally had.

When I attend a gathering of people my goal is not to give away as many business cards as I can or to become a walking billboard for my company. My goal is to actually connect with people and make long-lasting friendships that transcend professional and personal gain.

Perspective

One thing I realized while at SXSW is I have as much chance of succeeding and being an expert in my field as much as the next guy. The speakers and panelists were regular people that chose to consistently excel at what they love doing. There wasn’t a secret that only speakers knew but they did take standard principles of success (passion, motivations, discipline, consistency, knowledge, etc) and applied them in a way that placed them ahead of the curve. These principles are public knowledge and have been practiced for thousands of years but the difference is how people apply them.

This sparked a genuine interest to actually find a way to impact people on a greater level whether it may be public speaking, bigger than when I spoke at Ignite Dallas, writing a book or telling stories of my professional and personal experiences and how it can apply to people’s lives.

Final Takeaways

To solve the energy depletion problem, Jason Markow, Laura Kimball and myself decided to create our own personal Facebook Group and schedule monthly Skype calls where we discuss what we’ve accomplished for that month, brainstorm together and set goals for ourselves. It helps keep each of us accountable and we each view it as our personal think tank. We’re not sure how or if it will work but we’re all motivated enough and trust each other enough to try and make it work.

How do you maintain the energy you gain from a massive event or conference? How do you approach networking events?

photo by John McNab

Flash forward 17 years…Mouyyad is now a marketing consultant.

How did I go from detective to marketing?

Eight year old me did not want to be a detective to arrest criminals, solve murders, carry a badge or gun nor to clean up the streets. Eight year old me wanted to be a detective to connect the dots, solve the puzzles, and find the solutions to problems. A detective is given multiple pieces of unrelated evidence and asked to solve the crime.

Flash forward 17 years….that’s exactly what I’m doing.

Marketing is all about connecting the dots, solving puzzles and finding solutions to problems.

A company has a product or service. A marketer’s job is to find a way to establish the connection between product and customer, that is, connect the dot between a product or service and the prospects mind. Marketing campaigns solve the puzzles of presenting that product or service to the consumer. A marketer is given a product fact sheet, company background, market research and customer testimonials and then asked to find the connection between all the information and present it in such a way that will ultimately generate sales and profits.

Dos Equis connected the dots between a man that is a mixture of Indiana Jones and James Bond and drinking an imported (and more expensive) beer.

Visa connected the dots between traveling the world and using a credit card.

All these companies had the right marketing campaigns that were able to take a quality product or service and present it in such way that established a direct connection with potential clients and customers. These companies connected the dots, and found solutions to the problems.

Bottomline…..8 year old me would be happy with the career path I chose. I’m still a detective…gathering evidence, finding a connection and solving crimes….only excepetion is I do it without a badge or gun.

photo by Troy Holden

Working non stop towards a goal is great.

Setting your sight on a point on the horizon and not stopping till you reach it, is wonderful.

Not seeing anything else on the way…running with blinders…having tunnel vision….not so good.

If you have ever been on a subway, or driven through a tunnel you have experienced tunnel vision. The only things you see are the entrance to the tunnel, then the exit and complete darkness in between.

We have goals, we have ambitions and we are told to do everything in our power to reach them.
Sure but what if we miss something on the way?
What if we miss a greater opportunity?
What if we miss that exit that we need to take before its too late?
What if we forget something back at point A?

We can’t go back until we exit the tunnel and turn back, which negates any progress made in the first place.

Bottomline…I don’t like tunnels. I like seeing the world around me and keeping my options open. Don’t live, work, run your business, or approach your goals in a tunnel. Taking the longer scenic route can be more valuable.

photo by Nam2@7676

Last week, my sister and I watched the midnight showing of the new installment of the Harry Potter series. This has been a tradition for us every time a new Harry Potter movie comes out.

I like tradition. Tradition is consistency and stability. Tradition keeps one grounded to their roots and personal core.

We are always told to be different, be unconventional, change our behaviors and try new things. While I agree, I also contend that one should exhibit both: the traditional and unconventional.

Traditional keeps one connected to the past.
Unconventional paves the way for the future.

Traditional keeps our eyes focused on whats around us.
Unconventional expands our horizons.

Traditional keeps people we’ve connected with in our lives.
Unconventional allows us to connect with new people.

Traditional helps us understand our current geography.
Unconventional allows us to travel to new places.

Traditional keeps our current customers.
Unconventional attracts new customers.

Traditional is always eating our favorites.
Unconventional means trying new foods.

Traditional means listening to our current collection of music.
Unconventional means listening to music we’ve never heard before.

Traditional means rereading the books that you’ve enjoyed.
Unconventional means reading a whole different genre.

Traditional means improving on what we’ve learned.
Unconventional is learning something new altogether.

Bottom line…combining the traditional and unconventional is what allows one to better understand themselves and understand the world we live in.

photo by jcarlosn

By no means am I a chess master. I do enjoy playing every now and then and consider myself of average skill. I recognize certain patterns and understand basic strategy. I’ve won and lost my fair share games to people that are both less skilled and more skilled then myself.

The one person I have the most trouble playing chess with is one of my good friends. All he knows is the basic moves and understands the object of the game. His greatest strength in playing chess is he is the most unconventional player I play against.

He will take his queen out early. He will open with a rook’s pawn. He will advance a knight so far that you have no idea what do with him. He doesn’t play offense or defense. He assembles combinations that drive you crazy. At one point in the game you think a move he made is the stupidest move ever but turns out to be the greatest. My biggest fault in playing against him is that I underestimate that unconventional wisdom.

While there is a lot to be said about proven strategies, we need to start thinking about the unproven ones. Instead of driving on the same route, we need to try a different route and take in the sites. Sure the unconventional strategy might mean we lose a few games but the lessons we do gain are invaluable and will improve our abilities in the conventional realm.

Bottomline…in life and business we need to, at times, be unconventional. Following conventional wisdom and conventional strategy can only get us to a conventional place. True success comes from being unconventional and different and trying new methods to improve ourselves and our businesses.

photo by maHidoodi

Many of these jobs had futures and adequate career paths but not for me. Last September I stepped off the treadmill. I took my first leap of faith and it has paid off dividends.

After that leap of faith, one of my best friends LuayRahil , who I’ve known ever since my first job at IHOP asked me a really interesting question. He asked me,” What do you want in a job? What would your ideal job look like.?”

This is a very important question that we all have to ask ourselves. We can go from job to job and get a paycheck, but then we’re running on a treadmill. For some that’s enough, but not for me. Whether looking for a job in Corporate America, or starting our own business the first step is understanding what our ideal job would look like.

My ideal job/career/business requirements…

1) Location Independent
2) Choose who I interact with
3) Autonomy, as in allows me to be creative and independent
4) Flexibile schedule

Bottomline…get off the treadmill and ask yourself: what would your ideal job/career/business look like?

I’ve received 27 traffic tickets and numerous warnings. Mostly speeding tickets but some odd balls like failure to evacuate lane for emergency vehicle and changing lanes at an intersection. So, I have had my fair share of experiences when it comes to traffic violations, dealing with courts and traffic attorneys.

However, I did learn some lessons from my ticket spree.

1) Patience

The worst feeling is when you give the cop your license and registration and sit “patiently” in the car waiting for him or her to check the system and give you that ticket. Depending on the time, the city, and on the attitude of the officer this could take anywhere from a few minutes to over an hour. (1 hour and 10 minutes was my record) In these situations, you have to be patient. I learned a few tricks to help me get through the wait. I’ve listened to music as loud as I can so the officer can hear it too (he can be entertained) and I’ve taken naps.

2) I’m not always in control

We like to think that we are in control of our destiny and of the choices we make. That may be true but not when a police officer is involved. When you see those police lights in the rear view mirror, you are now at the mercy of the law. Two things can happen either you’re getting a ticket or getting a warning and there is nothing you can do about it so you just have to accept it as it is.

3) Being nice pays off

To help the situation mentioned above, being nice to the officer does play in your favor. Sometimes they will just give you a warning, but if you’re not that lucky then a lot of times they will lower the clocked speed on the ticket thus saving you money (ask me I know). I’ve been a jerk to cops before (if you want to hear a specific story feel free to connect with me and I’ll tell you) and it doesn’t help. You’re only making the cop take longer and ensuring that you’re getting a ticket.

4) When you have something that needs to be taken care of…take care of it!

None of the tickets I have received are on my record because I took care of all of them. I took them to attorney’s, I did deferred adjudication, I did probation, I did defensive driving, I’ve talked to judges and district attorney’s, I’ve even gone to the post office at the 11th hour, I did everything possible so they won’t be on my record. I never had my license suspended or any points on my record. Getting a ticket isn’t fun but not taking care of it is even worse. I’ve seen people go to jail over one ticket they didn’t take care of. It’s not worth it.

5) Money wasted is gone forever

I’ve probably spent over $3000 over my 27 tickets in court fees, attorney fees, defensive driving courses, etc. That has to be the worst money I’ve ever spent in my life. I didn’t get any ROI besides this blog post.

6) There is always some fun to be had

The best adrenaline rushes I’ve ever had were twice when I ran away from two cops in two separate times. (again connect with me and I’ll be happy to tell you the stories). I’ve also had fun with the officers when they stopped me. I’ve acted completely ignorant (Really officer…I had no idea I was going that fast) and I’ve put on Oscar worthy performances (officer I really have to go to the restroom, or Officer if I don’t make it to work in the next 15 minutes I’m going to get fired and then the government will take money out of your potential bonus and raise and pay my unemployment). I’ve even placed a bet with an officer telling him that if he can spell my name right without looking at my license I’ll buy him a cup of coffee (they never could).

Bottomline…yes I’ve received 27 tickets but I did learn some valuable lessons in the process…was it worth it…NO! but at least I got something out of it.

Photo By: DownTown Pictures

The other night, I was brushing my teeth with my Sonicare Toothbrush (those things are amazing…not meant to be a product plug) before I went out. My mom walks behind me and states “Is everything you own rechargeable…?” (Sarcastic motherly tone of course)

After almost choking to death from laughter and instantly tweeting the quote, I started to think about what my mom so keenly noticed…everything I own is rechargeable!

My iPhone, my iPod, my toothbrush, my laptop, my car battery (needs an alternator), my camera, my X-BOX controllers, my external mouse and keyboard….everything I use every single day is rechargeable.

Aren’t we as human beings rechargeable? I understand that we eventually die, just like a lithium-ion battery, but what about every day? Sleeping and eating are both forms of recharging, but sometimes we need more extreme measures of recharging. We need that vacation, we need that career change, we need that big project, we need that escape that helps us recharge our batteries.

Relationships are rechargeable. Reconnecting with an old friend, calling a distant relative, texting an old coworker, chatting with an old high school buddy on facebook….these are all ways to recharge a relationship.

What about businesses? Can’t businesses be rechargeable? Yes…a business can be recharged with that new product launch, that new marketing campaign, new employee initiatives, new branding strategy and on and on.

Bottom-line….everything is rechargeable, we just have to figure how.

My new ebook about 24 people in my life that have influenced me and the lessons they have taught me. I hope you enjoy reading.