|
|
Sam Horn's "Take Action"
Newsletter |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
• |
Are You Using
Eye-Rollers?
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
• |
I Can't Believe I Wrote
the Whole Thing
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
“Avoid cliché’s like the
plague.” - Samuel Goldwyn
One of my favorite
Washington Post features is
a section every Sunday called
Life is Short in which
readers sum up their life in 100
words or less.
My all-time favorite, James
Boeringer (who looked to be
about 80 in his picture), said,
“I’m getting on, but I still
find ways to be useful. This
morning I noticed that our salt
was in the shaker with the
little holes and our pepper was
in the one with the big holes. I
got two pieces of clean paper
and empted the salt onto one and
the pepper onto the other. Then
I used the papers to funnel the
condiments into the appropriate
containers. I didn’t mess up the
tablecloth.
My wife had been watching and
when I was finished, she asked
‘Why didn’t you just exchange
the caps?’”
Arrghh. I named a POP! technique
in Mr. Boeringer's honor – it’s
called “Exchange the Cliché’s.”
The premise of POP! is that
people are tired of hearing
same-old, same-old. Anytime
someone says, “TEAM = Together
Everyone Achieves More,” they
inwardly groan. If we point out,
“It’s nice to be important, but
it’s more important to be nice,”
eyes roll and minds wander.
Please note: it’s not that the
above sentiments aren’t true;
they’re just not new.
People are so busy these days,
they decide in the first minute
whether we’re worth listening
to. If we state the obvious,
they conclude they don’t have to
pay attention because we’re not
saying anything they haven’t
heard before.
That’s why, in the crucial first
60 seconds, we’ve got to
introduce something that
pleasantly surprises listeners,
readers, and viewers. What will
literally stop them in their
tracks and motivate them to give
us their valuable time and
attention?
One way to do that is to
re-arrange cliché’s instead
of repeat them. Instead
of trotting out a tired truism,
replace an anticipated word with
an unexpected variation. This is
the essence of humor. Comedians
verbally zig when you expect
them to zag which produces a
bark of laughter.
A great example of this
“Exchange the Cliché’” technique
is Avon’s brilliant slogan for
their campaign to fight breast
cancer, “Good things come to
those who . . . walk.”
Marilynn Mobley, a member of my
master-mind group and Sr. VP of
Edelman (the #1 PR agency in the
country) gives a keynote on
communication called “I Heard
You Twice the First Time.”
A local bake shop which
specializes in fresh bread
posted this sign in its window,
“Give Yeast a Chance.”
If I had eBay as a client, I’d
recommend an ad campaign
featuring happy customers
proudly showing their purchases
with the slogan, “Go ahead, make
my eBay.” If I had the Hummer
(the iconoclastic ex-military
vehicle) account, I’d suggest an
ad with the question, “Do you
march to the beat of a different
Hummer?”
Want to know how to create your
own fresh twists on familiar
sayings?
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
“My parents always told me I
wouldn’t amount to anything
because I procrastinated so
much. I told ‘em, ‘Just you
wait.’” – Judy Tenuta
Do you:
- have several writing projects going, all of them half-finished?
- start writing with great
intentions, only to lose
your enthusiasm along the
way?
- know you should blog
more often, get that
newsletter out, finish your
thesis, complete that
proposal, start that book –
but never seem to find the
time?
- try to write but lose
your focus because of all
the distractions and
interruptions?
You’re not alone.
When best-selling author
Peter DeVries was asked the
single best piece of advice
he could give to aspiring
authors, he said wryly,
“Finish.”
Easier said than done. Would
you like to know the 12
biggest mistakes that keep
us from completing our
writing projects -- and how
you can turn procrastination
into progress, frustration
into finished work?
Join me for an I Can’t
Believe I Wrote the Whole
Thing tele-seminar on
May 14th. From the comfort
of your own home or office,
you’ll learn specific steps
you can take to jump-start
and finish your writing
projects in a fraction of
the time it would take
otherwise.
I promise not to waste your
valuable time on prosaic
advice such as “Set a goal
and persevere.” Been there,
heard that, right?
Platitudes don’t help us get
the job done.
You’ll hear best-practice
tips from my own experience
as an author of several
critically acclaimed books
including Tongue Fu!
and What's Holding You
Back? and from some of
the well-known authors I’ve
been privileged to meet in
my 14 years as Emcee (and
former Executive Director)
of the world-renowned Maui
Writers Conference including
how:
- Pulitzer Prize winner Frank McCourt keeps himself focused
- Humorist Dave Barry
keeps those fresh and
funny ideas coming
- “Tuesdays with
Morrie” Mitch Albom
manages to produce and
promote books despite
his busy schedule as a
TV/radio sports
commentator and
journalist
- New York Times
best-selling thriller
writer James Rollins
(and former
veterinarian) uses
self-imposed systems to
get a book done every 6
months
Discover for yourself why
DanCoughlin, author of the
just-published book
Accelerate: 20 Practical
Lessons to Boost Business
Momentum (recently
featured in the New York
Times and Investors
Business Daily) said,
"As an executive coach who’s
had the privilege of working
with Toyota, Coca-Cola,
Marriott, McDonalds, Boeing,
and the St. Louis Cardinals,
I know a master teacher when
I meet one. Sam Horn
provides coaching on how to
write a book on both a macro
and micro level that is off
the charts. Sam has now
guided me through
dramatically improving my
approach to two books,
multiple articles, and a
twenty-page manifesto. She
is simply the finest writing
coach I’ve ever known."
|
|
|
|
|
 |
|
Sam lives and works from her
office in Virginia.
Cheri Grimm works in Sam's
Caifornia office.
Contact Sam, in care of Cheri,
at:
PO Box 6810
Los Osos, CA 93412
805-528-4351
Info@SamHorn.com
www.SamHornPOP.com
|
|
|
|
|
|
