You Talkin’ to Me?

You Talkin’ to Me?

For living in a world obsessed with communication, we don’t seem to be paying much attention to language. Think about the language of marketing: First, we speak impersonally. We talk about industries, markets, verticals, and accounts. Those referents...
It’s About Time

It’s About Time

I wonder if all of us think more about time as we grow older. I’m sure we’re aware of its passing. I want to know if we share a preoccupation with what we’re doing with our time. We have such a perverse relationship with it. When we’re young, there seems to be too...
Fries With That Shake?

Fries With That Shake?

Brands, like websites, are most effective when they’re not allowed to be static. Brands — and their graphic marks, in particular — shouldn’t be as dynamic as websites, of course; that is, unlike the constantly evolving content of websites, graphic marks...
Whither the CMO?

Whither the CMO?

On LinkedIn alone there are so many apparent obituaries being written for the CMO, I pulled my black suit out of mothballs for the funeral. But when it occurred to me that none of the pieces I’d been reading had given a cause of death, I decided to do a little...
Face the Pain

Face the Pain

We must all suffer one of two things: the pain of discipline or the pain of regret or disappointment. (Jim Rohn) In 2013, I had four surgeries, none serious, all requiring sedentary recovery time. The results of the subsequent inactivity were weight gain and a loss of...