Insights With Trent Munday

Today is Part I of a special series I'm doing for the next few days with expert storyteller - Hasani X. I asked Hasani why is storytelling such an effective way for us to communicate. As you'll hear, he reckons we're basically hardwired to absorb stories. NB: Here's a link to Hasani X's website if you'd like to learn more - https://bit.ly/3yNTxwU #storytelling #communication #branding

Invariably, as companies grow a bit bigger, there tends to be more of a focus on The Handbook. The SOPs. The P&Ps. And that's important. Companies need to do this to ensure consistency. The problem is, when an organisation focuses too much on the Handbook, they can stifle their creativity. Employees think less about being creative and more about following the Book. Creativity is probably a big part of how your company got to where it is. It's the reason you were able to create a unique product or service. So, by all means, create the Handbooks...but just ensure there's enough scope in there for the creativity to continue to flourish. #creativity #employeehandbook #SOPs

We like to have definitive answers We prefer the absolute. But most of the time, it's not that simple. It's rarely all of THIS or all of THAT. Should you use THIS social media adverting or THAT traditional advertising? The answer is almost always...BOTH. Thanks to Gary Vaynerchuck for the inspiration! #lifelessons #eitheror #noabsolutes

You've heard the expression 'There's a market for everything'. Well, if you've ever doubted it...take a look at this. An Italian artist has just sold what he calls an 'immaterial sculpture'. And what is that? Well...nothing. Literally...it's nothing.  Just space. Just air. Not even a vacuum really. It's not like he sold it for $1 either. It sold for EURO 15,000. So, the next time you're not quite sure if there's a market for your widgets...consider this. Here's a link to a story on the sculpture if you want to take a look - https://bit.ly/3e5AVAx  #marketdemand #art #value

Whether it's gambling, trading stocks or currencies or launching a new product, service or marketing campaign, you can get away with being greedy. You can get away with holding out for better returns.  You can get away with not taking any of your wins off the table as you progress. As long as you stay focussed.  As long as you stay disciplined. As long as...you're not lazy...not even for a moment. If you do, it can all unravel pretty quickly. Conversely, you can get away with taking risks and being lazy too...as long as you're not expecting too much in return. As long as you're not being greedy. #risktaking #greedy #lazy

Malcolm Gladwell, famed author of The Tipping Point, is pretty bullish on the future. He believes that we as a society are moving away from a reliance on the Hierarchy and becoming more accepting of the Network. And that, according to Gladwell, is a good thing. He may well be right. He cites Black Lives Matter and the US vaccine rollout as examples of how the Network proved to be a better solution than the Hierarchy. So the question is, Is your business ready for this? Both in the way your company is structured and operates and how you deal with customers and clients. How will that all change as we move away from Hierarchy and towards Network? Here's a link to the article - https://bit.ly/36kWE3g #thenetwork #hierarchy #thefuture  

A sabbatical is basically an extended break from or leave from your job. It can paid, unpaid or partially paid. It can be for 1-3 months or more. Some sabbaticals require the employee to undertake specific tasks, activities, further education, etc. I think the benefits of a sabbatical, to both the employee and the organisation are self-explanatory. However, if you're going to allow sabbaticals, you should certainly be having some robust discussions about your official Sabbatical Policy. #sabbatical #policiesandprocedures #companyculture

What fascinates me most about Change is how much we don't like. People are generally risk averse. We don't like change. We'd prefer things to stay the same. However, as the famed Dutch-American impressionist Willem de Kooning said, sometimes we need to change, just to stay the same. Whilst I don't necessarily think that applies on a personal level, on a business level it absolutely does. Anywhere you have a competitive landscape, those competitors will be working hard to change things. To remove you from your position. So, if you want to stay where you are, you actually need to change...just to keep pace. #change #competitiveedge #maintaining

Why do we travel? Sometimes it's to get to another destination and experience it. Sometimes it's simply to enjoy the journey. But sometimes the place you want to get to most is a WHO, not a WHERE. That's the message in a brilliant ad campaign from Skyscanner. Because sometimes we travel just because we want to see our mother again. Or maybe it's to hug our granddaughter for the very first time. It shows a real understanding of the true intent of their customer. And that...is magic! NB: Thanks to Nick Day for sharing that Tweet from Trenton Burke. #intent #customerinsights #adcampaign

I recently described a conversation I was having as 'meandering'. The definition of meandering is 'moving slowly in no particular direction or with no clear purpose'. The person I was speaking with took that as an insult.  That's not the way it was intended. In the context of our discussion, which was about early stage product development, I believe meandering conversations are important.  They allow you to seek and absorb feedback without preconceived ideas and biases. At a later stage, once the product is defined, sure, you want to be the opposite of meandering. You need to be focussed and targeted. The lesson is that even if we both know the definition of a word, we may have different perceptions of it. Also, that as the context changes, so too may our perceptions of the intent of that word. Communication is tricky sometimes. #interpretation #context #communication

I was recently told that someone was intimidated by my intelligence. That's pretty funny to me because I have been around some intelligent people in my life, and I know that I am a long way off that. I have also been told that some people think I'm an idiot. That's not true.  However, I understand how that perception can come about because I try not to take life too seriously, I like to joke around a bit, etc. Neither of those perceptions matches my reality, but knowing that they are out there allows me to do two things... 1. I can tailor my message according to the perception of the audience I'm speaking to. 2. I can stay grounded. Not getting too high when someone perceives me as intelligent. Not getting too low if they think I'm an idiot. And that...is a great place to be. #selfawareness #perception #reality

We know we can't simply rely on luck to achieve our goals. But luck can still be a meaningful tactic. As Seth Godin suggests, putting ourselves in situations where luck may be able to play out can be a smart tactic to employ. Being alone in an elevator with the keynote speaker at the premier industry event is a bit of luck. If that elevator breaks down and you're now stuck there alone with him for 35 mins, that's really lucky...for you (maybe not for him). Should you count on getting lucky? Absolutely not. But at the same time, you definitely shouldn't dismiss or discount luck as a potentially useful tactic as part of your overall strategy. #luck #strategies #tactics  

The early recordings of Elvis Presley - I mean the really, really early recordings - were special. Bruce Springsteen reckons the reason for that is he hadn't heard himself on the radio very often yet. And because of that, there was a Purity and Freedom to what he was doing. He didn't have the opportunity to review and analyse and tweak his performances. He wasn't self-conscious. He was pure Elvis. Now think for a moment about how we live today in a world of constant and instant feedback. We often think that makes us better. But maybe, if you consider the Elvis example, that's exactly what's holding us back. Maybe this is preventing us from being pure us. #selfawareness #purity #feedback

I've come to the conclusion that I am not the guy that's gonna call you to see what's going on, to see how you are, to make plans, etc. However...if you call me...I will answer. I will be there to answer your call. And I reckon that's ok. I used to think that if I'm not the one making the call then I can't be a very good friend. But I don't think that any more. I'm now ok with just being the one you can call. #callme #support #bethere  

I've noticed something interesting since we've all been working from home. The mini-meeting has disappeared. That quick informal, 'Let's go and have a quick chat about this', meeting to discuss a specific topic. If we're not in the office, those mini-meetings don't happen. Instead, it's all virtual meetings and Zoom calls. And when we have these meetings, we tend to lump lots of other little things into the one meeting. No matter how focussed we are going in, we always end up chatting about other things that aren't related. As a result, the topics that needed to be addressed can get lost a bit. To counter that, we should be making sure each meeting is structured around a specific intent or outcome. Many companies think they're doing that because they have an Agenda and Minutes. But sometimes that's not quite enough. So, structure your meetings around intent, including the intent to just have a general chit chat.  Because those less formal discussions are important too. #zoomfatigue #workfromhome

When it comes to change, the story we often tell ourselves is that we're not quite ready to make a decision yet, so we'll just stay the same. But, as Prof. Laurie Buchanan suggests, if you don't change, that is in fact the choice you have made. Don't kid yourself. Deciding to do nothing is actually deciding to accept things the way they are. To accept the status quo. NB: Thanks to Jenn Simms for sharing! #change #choices #decisions

There are literally thousands of companies that chose not to pivot and start making face mask or hand sanitiser when this Covid-19 pandemic first began. Most of those probably assumed this thing wasn't going to last long enough to make it worthwhile to make a temporary pivot. By now, many of them will be thinking that they missed the moment. They could have owned that space had they made the switch back then. But here's the good news...there will always be another moment. It may not be the same moment. It may not even be as big an opportunity. But it will still be worthwhile. Don't dwell on the moments missed. Keep your eyes open. Your ears open. Stay attuned to the opportunities. There will always be another moment. #opportunities #seizethemoment #moments

Anyone with an internet connection these days has the opportunity to get themselves educated. And with that democratisation of education comes the interesting phenomenon of people being educated beyond their intelligence. They may well be academically educated. They may be knowledge educated. However, they may lack the ability to apply that education. They can still lack emotional intelligence. They might lack common sense intelligence. We need to be careful that we don't put those with simply the most education on a pedestal.  It's the people with the more well-rounded intelligence that we should be paying attention to. #educated #intelligent #emotionalintelligence

There are many valuable lessons to be learned from this global Covid-19 pandemic. One that many of us are learning now, as we start to look at a life after (or with) Covid-19, is the value of staying nimble. Think back to how agile and adaptable you were when this thing started. Well, you will need to be just as nimble, agile and adaptable on the way out of this crisis too. The future is far for certain. There will no doubt be many twists and turns. So, Stay Nimble. That applies to this crisis, and quite frankly, any future crisis too. #nimble #agile #adaptable

I used to be loyal to Ray Ban sunglasses...until I found Maui Jim's. And I used to loyally read the Melbourne Age website every morning...until they put all the content behind a subscription wall. As brands and businesses, we like to tell ourselves that our customers are loyal. They may well be...to a certain extent. As long as it suits them. So long as the current iteration of your product or service fits to your customers prevailing wants, needs and circumstances...they will be loyal. All things being equal...they will be loyal. But all things are almost never equal. At least not for long. #customerloyalty #brandloyalty #consumerbehaviour