positivity

Do I believe in the power of positive affirmations?

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(What follows is the outline I wrote in advance of recording the video. They’re my talking points. Not a regular post or article. Just an outline.)

Until now my video posts have been focused on the short-form courses I’ve created over the last 12 months. These are the topics that have been generating the most questions, so that’s where I have been focusing my attention.

But… it’s time for a little variety.

I’ve dusted off a question about an ebook I wrote several years ago – Affirmations for Freelancers.

I answered the question by email, back when I received it, but thought I’d share what I said.

Here’s the original question, from Richard:

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It’s not always easy being upbeat on demand. It may even feel a little fake. But…

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Upbeat group showing forced positivity

Whether I’m speaking on a stage, giving a live webinar or producing video-based training materials, I often encounter the same criticism…

“Nick, you don’t sound upbeat enough!”

And here’s a quote from a review for one of my courses:

“Lots of good stuff worth thinking about. I did find Nicks voice a bit ‘sleep inducing’ but otherwise clear. Thanks.”

Ouch. That’s not good. Feedback like that I take seriously.

In fact, before recording a lesson or lecture, I usually go through a series of physical, voice and mental exercises… all designed to give me a little more of an upbeat feel when I speak.

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Use inspirational stories to drive engagement and sales.

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Mountain bike inspiration

With some product and service categories, we automatically expect marketers to inspire us.

For example, if we are being sold a weight-loss program, we expect to hear inspirational stories about those who have come before us.

We expect to see before and after photos, and to hear about how people’s lives are improved as they shed those extra pounds.

Weight-loss and wellness coaches help us succeed by inspiring us with positive messages and stories.

It’s what we expect.

But we can also create inspirational content for slightly less obvious categories.

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Choose clients that inspire your very best work.

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want more message on signIf you look back over the work you have done as a freelance writer or copywriter over the last year, you can probably identify one or two jobs that stand out from the rest.

These were jobs that brought out the best in you.

They tapped into your core skills.

They allowed you to shine in ways that just didn’t happen with most other projects.

You probably loved the product or service you were promoting.

You respected the company you were working with.

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Monday Spark: Stop worrying about bad news.

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sign of bad newsWhen you watch the news on TV or browse your favorite news websites, it’s guaranteed you’ll find some really bad news on page one.

The news media put a lot of emphasis on bad, scary and generally depressing news.

Right now you can take your pick from rising gas and food prices, the looming “fiscal cliff”, riots in Europe, nuclear weapons in Iran and so on.

And if world news doesn’t do it for you, there are plenty of depressing stories you can find closer to home – about bullying in schools, people losing their homes, and whole communities being washed away by hurricanes.

One way or another, whichever news source you look at, you can be guaranteed to be overwhelmed with bad news.

Before you go hide under the bed for the next 10 years, here are a couple of things to consider.

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Monday Spark: 1000 Awesome Things [VIDEO]

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happy momentsIf you haven’t visited Neil Pasricha’s blog, 1000awesomethings.com, you should check it out.

And if you watch the video below you can hear about how and why he started the site.

In brief, he had been through a few tough years, and was looking for a way to bring some smiles and happiness back into his life. He started to write this blog. Each day he wrote about one of the small pleasures of life. Nothing big or special – just a little thing.

For example, he has written about the pleasure of standing at the end of a long line at the supermarket checkout, seeing a new line open up, and jumping over to be first in new line. Nice.

Little things like that happen to us every day. Maybe we get to see the sun rise, or a bird bathing in a bird bath, a sprinkling of fresh snow, or a three year old blowing the seeds off a dandelion.

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