lessons in leadership from a former pack leader

A few years ago I rescued two pitbulls: Diesel & Armani (formerly “Bronson” & “Gritz”) Each came with their own set of issues (besides having horrible names.) Diesel had been raised to fight and was aggressive toward other animals, while Armani had been diagnosed, treated for, and survived heart worm. Diesel lacked self awareness and didn’t play well with others. Armani had been caged for 6 months to allow the heart worm to dissolve before interacting with other dogs, making him the socially awkward only child. Diesel was the athletic knuckle-head who preferred to be the big spoon. Armani was the sensitive introvert who would often sit extremely still and look at himself in the mirror.

I’m not sure I was any better. I had just been divorced a year previous from the woman who I was expecting to spend the rest of my life with. I worked from home and lived in the suburbs with a huge back yard. It was time to have a family.

I knew that I would need to step up and be the pack leader for these two dogs if there was any chance of us leaving the house. They, like people, needed a leader they could look up to and respect. Said respect wasn’t granted right away. I had to earn it. I had to prove to them I was fit to be their pack leader.

Those two dogs taught me more about leadership than any book on the subject. Here are some examples:

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Thanks for your rejection. Seriously.

Over the past two years I’ve had interviews with some amazing companies who all have something in common. They all told me no. Whether they actually followed up and said “Thanks for your time, but the position has been filled.” or left me hanging with no follow-up, they all said no. After two years of interviews and applications, and living in two major cities, I was never able to get a full time job.

Even STARBUCKS didn’t get back to me. Starbucks! And I’m a former employee. (I don’t understand it, either.)

I’ve heard it’s easier to get a job when you have a job. And from the look of it, and seeing my employed colleagues move onto new jobs, I can believe that.

To date, I have 164 emails in my “Job Applications” email folder. This contains both application notices and rejection emails.

This is not a pity post, or a plea for empathy. I honestly feel that I’m the closest I’ve been in a long time to doing what I’ve been created to do. And I wouldn’t be here (literally) if, say, Porter Novelli said “Yes.”

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the #hiretoby campaign

It’s no surprise that I’ve been trying to get a full time job for the past two years. Why it hasn’t happened yet is beyond me, but I continue to trust that God knows what He’s doing.

For the past year, I’ve been working as Communications Director for Inside|Out Global (much more on this later…) but since we don’t have any funding, I’m needing to find something “officially” full time (salary & benefits). It’s time. I’ve been on my own for the past three years operating my own design company and it’s time I get paid twice a month every month.

That I want a job that uses is social media is the reason I’ve decided to use it to get a job. Enter the #hiretoby campaign. What better way to show I have a good grasp of social media than to actually USE it.

I’ve created a website aptly called http://hiretoby.com that houses a general cover letter and includes my resume. My social media links are listed there as well as my references. It’s a place free of distractions, ads, and other people. It’s all about me, my abilities and experiences.

On twitter I write tweets as if they were coming from a personals ad in the paper: “ENFP seeks employer with benefits. http://hiretoby.com #hiretoby” and so on. I include the hashtag #hiretoby so I can search who’s talking about it and track the response.

Feedback for #hiretoby:

“…I love your [#hiretoby] campaign! Smart use of SM!” – @BevJack – Marketing & Social Media engagement for the GRAMMYs

“@tobysturgill love your use of twitter for seeking employment. Perfect example of what I was teaching career transition group, thanks! – @barnettwebsites – web designer, graphic design

“…[#hiretoby] is brilliant!” – @EmoryColvin – actress, production geek, founder of @dramaticncountr

So check it out, RT my #hiretoby tweets and get me a job! :-)

Augmented Reality… beyond the QR Code

I first started talking about QR Codes a year ago this month. That print is now interactive with them was my main statement and to my disappointment, none of my clients at the time wanted to utilize this new technology. “We want to see other people do them successfully before we jump in.” (Not something you say to an early adopter.) Since then, I’ve seen campaign after campaign successfully using Quick Response Codes. I’ve seen them on business cards (they’ll be on mine), on billboards, and catalogs. I think it’s safe to say that we’ve entered the Early Majority crowd. Come on in, the water’s fine!

As with everything these days, this concept has already evolved into Augmented Reality (AR): “in which a view of reality is modified (possibly even diminished rather than augmented) by a computer. As a result, the technology functions by enhancing one’s current perception of reality.” – Wikipedia.

I’m not concerned with how they do it. I’m more interested in how we use it. Marketers and advertisers are constantly having to break through the clutter and noise to get our attention. And since our smartphones and iPads seem to have a lot of that attention, it only makes sense for said groups to figure out how to use them. Enter QR Codes and AR Codes.

Here’s a great practical way to use AR Codes thanks to USPS:

And a brand becomes interactive in London with the same technology:

How can your business or product utilize this technology? The sky’s the limit. Hop on the bandwagon, there’s still room.

an interview with samaritan’s purse

Those of you that run in Christian circles probably have heard of Samaritan’s Purse. They’re a nondenominational evangelical Christian organization providing spiritual and physical aid to hurting people around the world. Since 1970, Samaritan’s Purse has helped meet needs of people who are victims of war, poverty, natural disasters, disease, and famine with the purpose of sharing God’s love through His Son, Jesus Christ. And I have an interview with them on Friday!

The position I’m interviewing for is their Social Media/Marketing Specialist/Communications opening. What’s even cooler is they contacted ME. They saw one of my shamless #hiretoby tweets on Facebook and wanted to set up a phone conversation. That led to a few more phone calls which led to a face-to-face meeting at their International Headquarters in Boone, NC tomorrow.

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making a career change

This past weekend I found a homemade cassette tape from 1987. My mom and I were playing “school” and while I was the only physical child in the classroom (our kitchen table), I insisted that she call on my imaginary classmates Johnny and Susie before I was called on with the right answer. The tape ends with me singing songs from The Sound of Music, a film that would become the bedrock of my childhood.

purchased from iStock Photo

Upon the foundation of inventiveness, music and imagination, a love for the arts and filmmaking was built. I could recite any song by Rogers & Hammerstein and I knew the script to Newsies backwards and forwards. I wanted so much to be part of these great films. I was fascinated by the behind-the-scenes segments and the how’d-they-do-that shows on TV. Any chance I got, I wanted to see what was going on behind the camera.

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Facebook vs Twitter

There’s nothing like a good info graphic, huh? Here’s one for Facebook and Twitter side by side.

How do you use Facebook and Twitter?

the most powerful colors in the world

Here’s a look at the colors of the brands from the top 100 sites in the world.

The web landscape is dominated by a large number of blue brands… but Red occupies a large amount of space as well. What’s driving this? You might want to say that carefully organized branding research and market tests were done to choose the perfect colors to make you spend your money, but a lot of the brands that have grown to be global web powerhouses, started as small web startups… and while large corporate giants with branding departments spend quite a lot on market research, user testing, branding, etc. Continue Reading

The next two weeks…

I have a great opportunity to work at The Park at 14th for the next two weeks. I’ve applied and am interviewing for a full time position there as their Project Manager. These next two weeks will be a trial period to see if it’s a good fit. I sure hope it is.

This was the ad I responded to: Would you consider yourself creative, artistic, and inventive? Are you organized, structured, and prepared? Would others say you’re hard-working, meticulous, and detailed? If you answered yes to all these questions, we want you! We are looking for a project manager to take lead in a busy, fast paced, demanding, yet entertaining atmosphere. Must have strong familiarity in graphic design and style! Excellent verbal communication and writing expertise is mandatory!

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how to promote your SM presence offline

Not sure how to tell customers at your brick-and-mortar stores that you’re also on Facebook, Twitter, and Foursquare? Take a look at these examples at the Flickr group, Signs of Social Media, a gallery of signs that point customers online.

This is a screenshot of the back cover from the latest Crate and Barrel catalog. Note the two signs of social media in the bottom right-hand corner.

It’s amazing how social media is now a part of normal, everyday life. Marketing folks call this “online/offline integration.”

It looks a bit flashy, but it’s TGIFridays in Time Square so they’re on brand.

Greeting folks as they enter Dillard’s in Cincinnati (Glenway/Western Hills)

at Coffee Emporium in downtown Cincinnati

Interesting to see how Oreo pushes people to their Facebook page to engage with the brand. Note it says TELL US vs. FOLLOW US. Subtle but important.

HT: PR Daily