The Little Things

How’s it going, Ladies and Gentlemen?

Welcome back to Graceland Ontario, your one stop location for learning lessons from the greats. Today, I’m going to be talking about “doing the little things” − you’d be surprised at how big they really are.

So, as you may be aware, today is St. David’s Day, named after the patron saint of Wales. But even if you aren’t Welsh, there’s always a thing or two you can pick up from a saint (I don’t know about you − I think anyone who earns that title’s been very successful!)

We know a couple things about St. David: one, he existed; two, he lived about 1500 years ago; and three, he spread Christianity amongst the pagan tribes in old Wales. He gave St. David’s, the place of his shrine, such a reputation that four visits there were considered equal to two trips to Rome or one to Jerusalem. That’s what I call creating a brand!

St. David advocated a hard life for his monks; he believed in drinking just water and would only allow his monks the benefit of milk on top of this. He was against eating meat and believed that monks should pull their own plough in place of animals.

But he will always be remembered most for a quote from his last sermon "do the little things, the small things you've seen me doing".

Powerful, huh?

And as timely in modern business and our current world as it was in the ancient one. When you embark on your journey in life, whether it be in an artistic stream, leading a company or rising through the corporate steel mill, not everything you do will be noted. Sometimes, your greatest achievements will be looked over. And it can be easy to be disheartened and say “screw this! I don’t have to work this hard if it’s never going to amount to anything!”

You stop doing “the little things” and just expect that you’ll rise to the occasion when it comes along. But, as Tony Robbins says, “people are rewarded in public for what they practice for years in private”. You need to work hard at home, in your office, wherever, even if no one’s watching. Your little rituals − brushing your teeth, answering emails in a timely fashion, being nice and friendly to coworkers and friends − all come back to aid you when you do well. And destroy you when you don’t.

Would you give your money to someone you didn’t trust? Didn’t think so. To succeed in business and life, people need to believe in you as a reliable and responsible person. You don’t get that kind of reputation (or ability to live up to one) over night. You need to consistently practice being at your best to achieve that, even if your boss isn’t over your shoulder or you’re up for review the day after next. Those who keep doing “the little things” are the ones who achieve the big things in the end. Why? Because they earned it, one small action at a time.

Have a great St. David’s Day, remember the old fella’s advice and talk to you soon!

Alex H.

 

Thanks to the BBC for the information on St. David. You can check out more on the Welsh legend here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/christianity/saints/david_1.shtml

If you’re interested in this post, you might also like these other Graceland Ontario updates:

•  35 Years Without Elvis (And Why He's So Popular Today)
• Graceland, Ontario: The Witches's Marketing Secret
• Graceland, Ontario: A Lesson from Steve Jobs
• Graceland, Ontario: You're Good!
• Graceland, Ontario: What's Your Lucky Number?

35 Years Without Elvis (And Why He’s So Popular Today)

Helloo0O Ladies and Gentlemen!!!

Welcome back to Graceland Ontario, your one stop blog for learning success lessons from the actions of the King of Rock ‘n’ Roll. Today, we’re delaying the final Olympic Blog Post for one more week to talk about your enduring popularity. I hope you enjoy it!

So, if you’re a big Elvis fan, you probably know that on August 16^th 2012 Elvis Presley celebrated 35 years of no-Elvis. Yep, it was the anniversary of his death. Yet, a crowd still showed up at Graceland, they stilled played Elvis records on the radio, Elvis Presley Enterprises still made money. 35 years after his death, Elvis is still popular.

“Why?”

He’s got a brand; a set of distinctive attributes that can be uniquely associated with him.

“But he’s a person, a dead person. How can he have a brand?”

Well, it’s what he did while he was alive that made it possible −the songs, the looks, the pictures, they were all part of his image when he was alive, but they also gave him immortality. You see, as soon as he died, people could then use what he created in life to keep making money in the future.

He had the fashions that made him unique, the jumpsuits, the Tupelo Gold Suit. People recognized Elvis’s image, with the sideburns and slicked back hair, and it could be used to market him after death as well as in life.

So Elvis Presley Enterprises (E. P. E.) took control. Graceland became the base, the centre where Elvis fans could meet and reminisce. The products remained Elvis’s tracks and movies, which could be re-mastered and remixed as much as needed. Then there were the spin-off products; the books, the posters, the t-shirts and dolls, the licensing. Collecting royalties from all this made Elvis one of the highest paid dead-men in the world.

But that’s not good enough − the brand must be dynamic; it must move and change and twist and keep growing. Remember the old business adage? If you’re not growing, you’re dieing − and E.P. Enterprises knew that so they kept changing things, remodelling this and that, putting out new publicity campaigns, licensing new odds and dodds.

And what has it brought them? A successful business thriving thirty five years after the man who inspired it was discovered dead in his Graceland bathroom. It worked for Elvis and it can work for you.

The key is not to be boring. When you don’t grow, that’s predictable, that’s boring and that won’t make you any money. On the other hand, when you create an exciting brand, a cool brand, as Apple’s done, and keep growing even when the inspiration for the business has been dead for thirty five years, it keeps you on top of the tower.

So, what’s important for you? Get your brand going. Whether you know it or not, the way you show yourself, your business, the place you hold up, the stuff you create or sell is all part of that brand. Advertise that brand as E.P. Enterprises has and collect for the image you promote. Then, keep growing the brand. Don’t change everything but adding this and taking that away, improving this and innovating that keeps you growing. And as long as you’re growing, you won’t be dieing. That’s how Elvis did it.

So, thirty five years on, Elvis isn’t dead, not really. He’s a living, growing entity with a unique brand. And as long as that brand keeps growing, he’ll never die. He’ll be immortal.

Elvis’s Lessons:

Create a brand. A brand is a set of attributes (like a house, image, fashion, book, recordings, t-shirt, etc) that can be associated with you. Then, as Elvis’s estate did, change the brand slowly so that it keeps growing and never dies. When you have your brand - with its subtle changes over time - you will be moving towards Elvis’s current station, true immortality.

Creating a brand is like creating an image, it reflects who you are and what you stand for. For more on creating an image, check out what I say about it in this post.

P.S. This ’35 years without Elvis’ post happened to be my 35^th post, and not purposely − it makes you wonder…

P.P.S. Remember to leave a comment − I’d love to hear from you.

P.P.S. If you’d like to see a Youtube clip from Graceland this year, 35 years after Elvis’s death, here’s a news broadcast with Elvis's ex-wife and daughter, Priscilla and Lisa Marie, talking about Elvis's legacy.