If each TMNT wrote for a blog

I don't know about you all but I am very excited about the new Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movie. 

It's been over  15 years since the last action style movie came out!  There has been a lot of mixed reviews before this movie has even come out.  Transformers director Michael Bay is producing this reboot and many people fear it will take on the "transformers" style of story telling.  While Shredder does look like a Decepticon...



I'm not watching it for Shredder- I'm watching it because deep inside, I want to be 7 years old again. (#Nostalgia)  I want to experience a story of four brothers with unique personalities that come together to save the day.

The story has already been told there's just been different aesthetics that differentiate the various remade movies.  The brand is so strong that their personalities remain constant.    The turtles hold a special place in my heart as I used to aspire to be a turtle living in a sewer that looked like a downtown Chicago condominium.   IMO, The best movie was the original one that featured depth to identify each turtles personality and fighting style. 

While each director has changed their look, the origin of the turtles remains the same.  They always possess the qualities that made fans like us, connect to them.

What if each turtle had its' own blog to communicate to us? The mental makeup of each turtle lends an interesting discussion.  What would each of their blogs look like?

You have:



Leonardo- The unquestioned leader who is most calm under pressure and also the most disciplined. In every film you can find him meditating and finding ways to be a better leader.  His blog would probably consists of yoga, meditation, and motivational quotes- I'm thinking family friendly MEMES. 



Raphael-  The "stubbornly" passionate one.  I'd imagine Raphael's blog detailing the social ills of the world and ways we can make a change.  He's so aggressive in nature because he cares so much about the people around him. He would have one of the more intense blogs and/or journals detailing his frustration with the world.  He would detail the pain of others and he would CHALLENGE us to change our thinking.



Donatello- The "brains" behind the turtles.  I'd imagine if Donatello wrote a blog he would give us facts and BE the expert on a lot of subjects-Especially technology.  Life and technical hacks would be the premise of a Donatello written blog.



Michelangelo- The fun and carefree one.  He might have had ADD and his love for pizza could not be described in just words.  His blog would consist of what we look at today.  Entertainment, gossip and pop culture would be his passion and it would show in his writing.  While I believe the others would have a more formal style, Michelangelo would feature a laid back writing tone.

I would remain a constant fixture on Michelangelo and Raphael's blog.  They encompass my personality and values.  The naive child approach Michelangelo has to life balances out with the strong passion and rebellion Raphael gives.  I am passionate about marketing and understanding why people do what they do.

I could learn from Leonardo the art of discipline and being a leader. I could learn from Donatello the importance of understanding how things work and working with limited resources to achieve results.

There's a teenage mutant ninja turtle in every one of our personality make ups.  Creator Kevin Eastman did a masterful job in bringing human psychology to characters that while are reptiles, can be easily related and understood.

Why so SENSitive

I usually don't do this but I had to post this email I received today.  To give you a little back story..

I have been professional in contacting this individual ( who will remain anonymous) about IT solutions.  I am the "evil" salesmen so on numerous times he would simply hang up while I talked in mid sentence. 

I ended up sending him an email with information- He disregarded receiving it.  After the final time of him hanging up on me before I could get a word in, I sent him an email.

Prospect:

"I have to say. I have contacted you several times and before I even get the opportunity to tell you what I’m calling about, you disconnect the line.  I would like to think that the phone seems to cut off on its own but I’m not that naïve to the situation.

I have had conversations with your institution from my previous job.  I’ve talked to Sven and his assistant.  I’ve talked to several in your FA department and everyone, for the most part, has been warm and open minded.

 I can understand sales calls coming at inopportune times for you and I’m here to be that resource for you when you work on IT related projects.  You may very well be set with everything and it’s good to always have resourceds handy.  I haven’t earned the right to question what you personally do so I won’t.

 I can say as a leader for Technology in Bethany College, I expect a more transparent dialogue.  If you are not interested in hearing how Zones Inc. can help reduce your IT costs and make life easier, tell me please.

 Thank you,

Of course I had one costly grammatical error in there I failed to proofread, The message was clear about just being honest.  I figured he would not respond back to me since I sent him information and even left voice mails.  He actually responded to this email and I finally saw I struck a chord with him ( albeit in a less favorable way)

"I must say that the "you're a jerk but everybody else at your school is pretty nice" is a novel approach.  

 I get 20 calls a week from guys just like you that want to make my life easier.  You caught me up on a ladder this morning adding technology to a classroom, so you'll forgive me for not taking your call. 

I have your contact info, but after this email I doubt I'll ever use it, your
expectations notwithstanding. 

 By the way can I have your managers contact info?  Since you've seen fit to waist some of my time chiding me maybe I can return the favor. 

Thank you "

Sent from my iPhone

So after numerous attempts of trying to contact this individual, one email emotionally connected to him and he responded back to me.  My manager spoke with me and stated I should have been PR friendly but I feel when you are talking to borderline C level employees,  "Why dumb it down?" 

The game of cat and mouse gets tiring and monotonous.  I don't feel I was out of line with my email and it did elicit a response. ( It worked because I solicited a response)

My email seemed to be illicit since it doesn't follow the usual PR friendly "safe" words.

How would you have handled this situation?

work hard or work smart?

Which do you do?  Here's 2 scenarios.

Tommy works on the docks.  The union's been on strike, he's down on his luck it's tough.

Gina works the diner all day.  Working for her man, she brings home her pay for love.

Ok.. Enough of the Bon Jovi song reference, This used to be two common scenarios that I guess, meant you eventually would get a promotion.

I have seen people that exert so much effort and concentration.  I've seen that same person stay at work until 630 7PM and still complain, " I got so much I need to do."

Meanwhile, I used to see people who would work the same 9-5 shift and mostly leave the office at 5PM. These people had the highest metrics that mattered....Revenue and real productivity.  These people also seemed to be less stressed and at ease when you talked to them.  The "work harder" person always power walked even to go grab their coffee because of this internal clock saying,

"You're not earning your pay if you stop and talk to co workers."

I used to think if I made a bunch of phone calls, and lived by these hardcore metrics, I would be able to enjoy great success and get the promotions.  I'm not disagreeing with putting work in, but I also know the people who get farther are able to problem solve a constraint in the system. 

Thach Nyguen has a great quote to describe the two scenarios of work:



Now Playing- "Living on a prayer"

#triggerhappy

If you remember from my "22 things I neglected to mention about myself" I  said I am one of the most impatient people you will meet.

If I was told to pull a trigger on a gun for a race, I'd pull prematurely because I just hate to wait for things. 



That weakness of mine has turned into a strength because I "seize" the opportunities given to me.

As a sales consultant I come across impatient people and I learn along the way more about myself.  I learn that I am completely comfortable with someone not liking me.  You don't have to like me to see that I can help you with your motive and purpose.

On the other hand, being impatient has cost me some opportunities that just needed time.  Like a cop that has a quick trigger, I can kill an opportunity as fast as saving one.  I'm not proud of that ability- That's extreme.

I just contradicted myself- I'm too impatient to keep just one stance.

#WorldCup2014

The FIFA World Cup is one of the biggest sport events that happens every four years.  Football ( or Soccer) is one of the biggest sports in the world.  You literally have hundreds of millions of people watching their team represent their country. 

The US is slowly climbing on the Soccer bandwagon.  Sure we may have American football, basketball and baseball- they don't tell the story that Soccer gives its viewers.

People feel connections based off emotions.  Soccer tells a story where you have a:



Protagonist: The team that is looked at favorably- similar to a hero that must overcome a challenge.
Antoganist:  The team that is looked at as the villain that will do anything to win.

This "story" has all the emotion and pride that makes soccer such a universal sport. 

Soccer requires an incredible amount of endurance that's more rigorous than an NBA or NFL game.

Soccer players also wear the brand logos of their sponsors- NBA, NFL and MLB don't do this (yet) 

My former marketing professor Dr. McDermott has an interesting take on rising popularity of marketing in soccer - Soccer popularity

#Storytellin

When I was 8 years old, my grandmother used to hate when I said someone was lying to me.

Now my grandmother grew up born and raised in Memphis TN.  In her southern accent she would calmly but firmly tell me, "Baby, they not lying, they just telling stories."

20 years later, There's got to be quite a lot of stories being told. 



To tell a story gets us out of situations and paints this vivid picture of what might have happened.  We can manipulate that story for bad or good.

Someone tells a "lie" and it essentially is a story true or fictitious designed to interest, amuse, or instruct a reader or hearer.

We tell lies to not hurt peoples feelings. I love honesty but there's a certain line when you must tell a "story."



Which option are you going with?

#lifeinTV

I was in a car this past weekend talking with fellow friends who have a web series they are creating.  It was great listening to them because they both have experience in video production.  What I gathered was they had a great idea for a show, but didn't know how important it was to build the characters and tell their story.

How many times have you heard a story from someone and thought, "This is like a tv show." - I can name numerous times I have experienced this and I now I have gotten into screen writing as a hobby.  This hobby has helped me understand:

-How people think
-What people crave
- When they become emotionally attached to a character
- Why they connect

Some of my favorite shows are great at connecting the audience.  This is what marketing is essentially all about.  I challenge everyone to try and write "your" episode.  Let's see how many people can feel for your pilot.

Now Playing- Seinfeld Theme