CODE RED launch, celebrating leaps of faith, and what sells more than sex
Hi friend. This week I'm kicking off by getting a little reflective.
I recently read that happiness is the absence of the sensation of needing to be elsewhere, doing something else, or being somewhere else.
In a way, happiness is the absence of.... else.
This week, I had a quite a few moments in which I said to myself "you know, this is exactly where I'm supposed to be right now." I'll remember these moments on the tough days and I hope you stop to appreciate the feeling when it happens to you.
PS: If it's not happening to you, it's probably time for change.
ANYWAY, what a terminally delightful way to start a day. Now, the world's most terminally delightful drag queen, BenDeLaCreme:
And the interesting tidbits I uncovered this week:
1. 20 questions with meeeee!
2. CODE RED Official Launch: Minorities and Diversity Advocates in Tech
3. It's Saturday and I'm speaking to a bunch of student entrepreneurs
4. Time for change
5. The surprising contribution of freelancers to the economy
6. Weak product positioning
7. Sex doesn't sell anymore... guess what does?
8. Quote of the week: Fran Lebowitz on Donald Trump
1. 20 questions with meeee!
Marketing agency GET LIFT (the all-caps name means they're always yelling because they always have something important to say) recently asked me a bunch of questions that I answered with aplomb.
What a great word, aplomb.
2. CODE RED Official Launch: Minorities and Diversity Advocates in Tech
My friend Adaora Asala (we call her Spectra) is a self described "Slayer of Silos. Breaker of Barriers. Mother of Feline Dragons." She's an incredible brand and product strategist who works hard to champion diversity in the world of tech. Check out her upcoming event on Thursday, February 23rd: CODE RED.
3. It's Saturday and I'm speaking to a bunch of student entrepreneurs
This morning, I'm speaking to InnovateEDU - a consortium of Boston-area colleges and universities who are all gathering, yes on a Saturday, to learn how to build a Go-To-Market strategy. I hope they're ready for truth bombs and tough advice. If you're interested, you can see my full presentation at this link.
4. Time for change
When I embarked on the brave new world of freelancing (loving it) I wrote about the decision on LinkedIn. It inspired a bajillion messages from people who were pushed over the edge (in a good way) and inspired to take the jump, and continues to be found by those who are likely searching "should I quit my job and freelance? What the f*ck am I thinking? Benefits of freelance vs staying in job I hate" etc etc etc.
This week it hit closer to home as I spoke with the very talented Julie Weill Persofsky of Influitive, who has decided to take a similar leap of faith.
I want to use this to unabashedly promote Julie as an expert in post-sale customer success / account expansion and growth / sales and team development. HIRE HER! I will gladly make an intro.
5. The surprising contribution of freelancers to the economy
Speaking of consulting... did you know freelancers contribute an estimated $1 Trillion annually to our economy?
That's $1,000,000,000,000.
It's a bit hard to view below. See the full infographic on my website.
6. Weak product positioning
Came across a fantastic marketing thinker this week, April Dunford. Highly recommend her article Obviously Awesome: a product positioning exercise.
"Weak positioning is usually the result of hanging on to a “default” market position that is rooted in the history of the product idea."
7. Sex doesn't sell anymore... guess what does?
OK wait, before you take the article at face value, understand sex still sells extremely well, and it always will.
But, activism is a new playing field for brands who want to gain affinity with the majority of consumers. Sure, it ruffles some feathers, but remember, a brand doesn't have to appeal to everyone.
It has to appeal to its target market.
And that, in many cases, is comprised of a certain type of voter, one who may be drawn to acts of activism in contentious political environment. One that is part of a voting cohort 3 million people larger than the other. Money talks!
8. Quote of the week
"If there's one upside to all this, it's that it's gotten Donald Trump out of New York." - Fran Lebowitz
Have a terminally delightful weekend. As always, thank you for reading.
Best,
Katie
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