Lessons in the midst of madness
Tuesday, 21 October 2008
By Michel Hogan
I am in the US at the moment, and election insanity is in full swing. Predictably the tone has turned quite nasty, with personal attacks diverting attention from the much-needed discussion about the very real issues that face the US and, as events of the past few weeks have shown, the world.
It’s easy to become distracted. As a character in the movie Thomas Crown Affair says when investigating the theft of a Monet painting: “Diversion, make a lot of noise over here, so over there you can take 100 million bucks off the wall and just walk right out the door.”
It can be hard to stay focused on what matters, especially with the current financial situation and constant doomsaying shouted daily from the headlines of our news media. But it has never been more important not to get distracted. If you do, your customers could be what is walking out the door.
The political campaigns here in the US have two very distinctive approaches. One is very disciplined, staying on message, with no leaks of information and unity of purpose. The other has swung from one message to another, with different people within the campaign saying different things. It’s not hard to guess which one is leading the polls.
You can learn a lot from the steps and misteps of the US presidential campaigns. Stay focused, keep the people in your organisation focused, don’t get sucked in by hype or the crisis d’jour.
Don’t create unnecessary anxiety among your team, show your customers, employees and all stakeholders that you have the discipline and common purpose to do what you say. Because there will be a new distraction tomorrow – guaranteed.
See you next week!
Alignment is Michel's passion. Through her work with Brandology here in Australia, and Brand Alignment Group in the United States, she helps organisations align who they are, with what they do and say to build more authentic and sustainable brands.
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