It's Christmahannukwanzadan! Here are 9 goodies just for you.
Hello, gorgeous.
Happy Christmahannukwanzadan, and for the one person I know celebrating Russian New Year (you know who you are), I say S novym godom ya filthy animal.
HELLO to everyone who is receiving this for the first time... my list has grown enormously over the month of December and for that I am perpetually in a state of both gratitude and confusion - but welcome, just the same, to edition number 16. Special love to my OGs who have been here since day 1.
In this edition of the World's Best Newsletter:
1. Nature's Way (or, why marketers should hate innovation)
2. Top 10! Boom, baby.
3. HyperNormalisation - retreating into an over-simplified reality
4. 70% of speaking proposals come from men
5. Why I'm glad I'm happily married... online dating FML
6. The myth of "self-made billionaires"
7. Looking for a new gig? Here's who's hiring in my network.
8. Quote of the week
9. Aint no party like a headshot party!
1. Nature's Way (or, why marketers should hate innovation)
This HBR article is not new - in fact it's 12 years old. But the advice within is increasingly relevant as many of my clients seek to create new categories, change the way their buyers behave, and generally introduce change to the market. Innovation is good, right?
We forget, as stated here, that "markets, by their very nature, resist new ideas and accept the rest only grudgingly."
Read HBR: The New Rules for Bringing Innovations to Market
2. Top 10! Boom, baby.
Every year, LinkedIn publishes a series of top-10 lists with their most successful writers and content across the many topic areas their publishing platform covers.
PS: If you're in B2B as a founder/CEO/marketer and are not writing for LinkedIn, you're missing a powerful way to connect with your audience. Don't tell me you want to get into the NYT - your buyers are here.
This year, I was again named to the list of top marketing writers, thanks to my tendency to go on a rant about issues like:
the hype cycle in marketing conferences (and the importance of trolls)
what great product marketers do (an ode to Hally Pinaud)
the decision to strike out on my own as a consultant (my most-read this year)
THANK YOU to everyone who reached out with kind words, and to my father who said "what, you only made it to number 8!?" Sigh.
3. HyperNormalisation - retreating into an over-simplified reality
Our current political climate is nuanced. It's complicated.
Sometimes I wish more people understood that issues are not black and white. They are not simple.
It's easy to have an opinion when you've heard someone else say it with confidence at the bar, on the news, or in a meme. But it's dangerous. One effect of our current media environment is oversimplification.
In that light, I recommend adding this video to your watch list (you know, once you get through the Gilmore Girls.) In it, Adam Curtis explains how, at a time of confusing and inexplicable world events, politicians and the people they represent have retreated in to a damaging over-simplified version of what is happening. Watch it soon.
4. 70% of speaking proposals come from men
Conferences often get criticized about diversity - a lack of women, or people of color. I have asked before: where are all the women speakers? Organizations have emerged in response such as Innovation Women (an all-female speakers bureau).
Content Marketing Institute's Joe Pulizzi recently wrote a defense of Content Marketing World's process - a very transparent look into the stats behind this popular event's competitive speaking sessions.
The most eye-opening stat for me was that 70% of the proposals they receive come from men.
Hey ladies. Look. If you want to see more women on stage, you've got to put yourself out there. And encourage your friends to do it too. And help them.
I'm happy to sanity-check your speaking submission or presentation, just email me. I've worked with many executives to get them on stage and deliver a great session - let's go, girls. You have a story to tell, and expertise to share.
5. Why I'm glad I'm married... online dating FML
My good friend Meg runs the world's funniest Instagram detailing REAL 100% authentic genuine messages she gets on dating sites. Reading her posts makes me grateful I'm married...
6. The myth of "self-made billionaires"
After Forbes claimed that 70% of billionaires on their Forbes 400 list made their fortune "entirely from scratch," analysts found that, in fact, over 60% grew up in substantial privilege with some inheriting over $50 million.
Yeah. Can we stop that gag-inducing narrative now? It helps to be part of the rich white boys club circle, part of the scene, part of the club. It's a leg up. That's the reality of our world, let's not pretend otherwise.
7. Looking for a new gig? Here's who's hiring in my network:
EvyTea is the world's first cold-brew tea company. Based here in Boston by a friend of mine, Emerson graduate Evy Chen, and poised to take over the world, they're looking for a killer marketing hire. Must love tea.
Marcom Central is a marketing asset management firm in San Diego hiring a Director/VP of Marketing to work from their office in San Diego. You know, with perfect weather and amazing Mexican food (tough gig.)
Cyft is a super cool Kendall Sq healthcare company using machine learning and NLP to solve big problems. They're looking for a marketing director.
Email me if you'd like an introduction to any of these firms, and if you're hiring.
8. Quote of the week
"You know... secretly, people just want to be weird."
Spoken with truth over dinner this week by Devin Bramhall, unofficial Mayor of Boston. I agree. We're all weird, and often just need permission to let it out. Normal is boring. This world is a crazy place. Our lives are short. Embrace the weird in you, embrace it in others, and embrace it in the world around you. What you call weird is, often times, what makes our lives remarkable.
9. Sponsored - Ain't no party like a headshot party! Does your team need an infusion of life in their old, stodgy headshots? People do business with people, not with organizations - build trust, have fun, host a headshot party at your office with Rachel Tine! Check out some sample shots.
I'm offering a special deal for my subscribers (you lucky dogs you). Book a headshot party for at least five executives between now and January 15th, and your headshot is free.
Reply to this email to learn more. Here's a shot Rachel took of me:
Thanks, as always, for reading.
Happy Holidays,
Katie
PS: You can always view past editions of this hoedown by reading through my archive. (Warning: last week's humping Santa gif was, well, provocative.)