Sometimes I forget important things...

It's true. Even with lists and automatic reminders and electronic calendars, I still forget things. Unfortunately, often times the things I forget are the really important things. You know, the things that shouldn't ever be forgotten but somehow do.

Like being authentic.

Sometimes I forget this. And sadly enough, it seems like 98.72348% of the population struggles with the same loss of memory. But why? Why are we afraid to be authentic?

Maybe because it costs more.

I recently read a story about a little boy who grew up in the 50's watching his favorite cowboy show set out in the Wild West. One year his parents took the little boy to see the set as a treat. With eager anticipation, the little boy imagined how great it would be to experience in real life what he had experienced for so long on the other side of a glass screen sitting in his living room. However, upon arrival at the set, his expectations were dashed. Turns out it was filmed on a studio lot and the Wild West wasn't really all that wild. And to make things worse, the town was little more than a meticulously constructed facade that looked great on one side but was propped up with a few boards on the other side.

I suppose the set designers could have created a whole town that would have undoubtedly captured the delight of the little boys who were fortunate enough to come visit the site where their action heroes existed - but they didn't. It would have cost too much.

The facade worked just fine. Well, until you saw the other side that is.

It's so easy to say yes when you really want to say no.
It's so easy to say that you understand when you really don't.
It's so easy to over-promise and under-deliver.
It's so easy to say what they want to hear instead of what they need to hear.
It's so easy to be something, or someone, else than what you really should be.

It's so easy to fake it.

And it's also so very easy to blend in.

It's much harder to stick out. It's hard to be unique. It's tough to be authentic. That in itself is almost reason enough to try it, but there's more to it than that. When you're authentic people take notice. When you tell the truth people are shocked. When you stand your ground it's as though you can feel the solid surface beneath you rising up and connecting with the skin of your toes and the bottom of your heels. It becomes firm. Unwavering. Unyielding.

I'm going to do a better job of reminding myself to be authentic. And you?

The Extra Mile (It's not a requirement)

"Going the extra mile". We've all heard this phrase many times probably without understanding where it originally came from. So, without further delay, allow me to provide a small history lesson gathered from the cobwebs of my brain (and Google).

During the times of the Roman Empire, there was a law that allowed Roman soldiers the right to force Jews to carry their heavy packs for a mile. The law was very specific though, it was only for one mile. The soldier would actually get into trouble for making a Jew carry their pack for a greater distance than was permitted. So Jesus, in his infinite wisdom, told his followers that if they were made to carry a Roman soldiers' pack for one mile, that they should not drop the load at the mile marker- but keep going. This accomplished two things. It first made the soldier uncomfortable because someone was doing more than was expected from them. It was truly an expression of freedom. And secondly, it was a clever way of potentially getting that soldier in hot water with his superiors for seemingly breaking the law. Pretty interesting hunh?

Fast forward a couple thousand years and now we have this saying, "Go the extra mile." We may not know the meaning but the addition of the word "extra" seems to imply that it's not compulsory. No one is going to make you do it. And going one step further, no one is going to expect you to do it and they certainly won't hold you accountable for NOT doing it.

And that, my friends, is the key to it all.

I recently talked about a guy named Jay Abraham, a marketing genius. Jay talks about the difference between a client and a customer. A customer is someone who purchases a product or service from you. A client  is someone under your protection.

Read that again.

What this means is that when you have customers your responsibility is pretty much complete at the point of transaction. "You have a product, I have your money - hope your happy." In other words, I walked the one mile that I was compelled to walk.

But when you have clients, your responsibility for their well-being is never over. Not even after the transaction is completed. Hmm, this sounds a lot like an extra mile. Or two extra miles. Perhaps three.

The point is, when you have clients you have the responsibility to protect them; to care for them; to watch over them. And maybe even when doing so is outside the normal scope of your normal products or services.

No one is going to make you walk the extra mile, that's the point. But if you decide to walk it, you'll have a client for life.

"You take the front, I'll take the back."

It sounds like a clichéd line from some cop show you've seen a thousand times. Two cops pull up in front of a house and jump out with guns drawn. Their faces etched with menacing confidence, they survey the situation and prepare to move in. The 'perp doesn't even know what's coming.

"You take the front, I'll take the back."

It sounds pretty good- knowing that someone is on your side...

Someone is looking out for your best interest...

Someone is there to protect you... 

But what about in real life? And what if you're not a cop? Who has your back then?

Who will take a risk on your behalf?

While this question can be applied to any situation or any relationship, I naturally place it in the context of business. Who is looking out for me and who am I looking out for?

Jay Abraham is a highly paid and very experienced marketing consultant. One of the key concepts that he teaches is called the Strategy of Preeminence. This strategy is at its core simply saying, "I've got your back, and I'm always going to do the right thing for you."

Pretty basic and yet not many businesses function with this philosophy. Because the truth of the matter is that it's risky to trust someone else. How do we know that what they are trying to sell me is what I really need? Far too often, it's much easier to not trust, to not engage, and to not seek to understand. 

This is the safe route, but it's ultimately hollow and exhausting. Far better to take a risk and say, "I've got your back."