Invizzible Ink

It's in Indy

2012-01-30T23:04:00.007-05:00

Ollie and Rudy are probably bellied up at a local saloon talking about Notre Dame Football and the Milan High Indians tonight. Rudy can remember sports before all this twittering and tweeters. And Ollie shot a basketball underhand in a varsity high school basketball game so his opinion isn’t highly valued from an athlete’s perspective; however he’s part of the conversation because he made the shot. Ollie’s equally important, if not more important to the conversation though because he’s, to use Dave Kerpen's motto, Likeable.

One Hundred Fifty million people in 232 different countries will tune-in to watch Super Bowl XLVI on television. More people than ever before will also be tweeting, posting and sharing their Super Digital Experience simultaneously during this Sunday’s game. The world-famous Super Bowl commercials will air and ten days later no one will be talking about them. But this year more so than ever, digital integration during the Super-expensive commercials will transpire. Ad agencies probably realized after millions of wasted dollars spent on commercials, that people are not buying their products because of commercials on television. Consumers buy for various reasons, but it’s rare that we would buy a thing because we saw it on television. It’s much more likely that we participate in a conversation with people similar to us, be moved to action by someone we trust and purchase a product or service that came recommended. So instead of pushing mediocre ad campaigns at consumers, ad agencies will serve as connectors and amplifiers of their intended audiences this year more than ever before.

The energy surrounding the game will become a constant build of marketing buzz as the top of the Indianapolis skyline becomes visible from Southbound I-65. A groundswell of chatter and excitement will build as fans purchase, participate and talk about it at every opportunity. I included. - The party last night, the hotel room, the players to watch, what she’s wearing, who is going to be there, what club is open late, where to eat… All captured by that simple yet most important character of the week. The hashtag (#).

The hash tag has changed the game of football as much as any rule change since they started wearing plastic helmets in 1939. Every player has the opportunity and responsibility if he chooses to accept it, to broadcast himself and promote his brand to his fans. Likewise, fans have a platform to say whatever they please for the entire world to see by simply placing a targeted hash tag before their comment. Brands, services, celebrities and basically everyone who’s in Indianapolis will be influenced in some way by the hash tag (#) this week. The Super Bowl Committee has even constructed a social media control center to serve as traffic directors for the most talked about player this week in Indy... the hash tag. #invizible_ink #NFL #superbowl #Indy

Pay It Forward

2012-01-09T17:46:00.002-05:00

Today was a great reminder of why we should take time to be a servant.

Several times as a young man I recall trying to find my way as a long-shot-professional athlete, a graduate student, a newbie in my professional career... and the list goes on. Anyways, I felt completely lost and didn’t know whom to turn to for answers. So, I did what many of us do every day… I made mistakes. I failed. I entered situations underprepared.

But I also learned from those failures, embarrassments, and missed opportunities and used that knowledge to not only better myself; but when the right opportunity presented itself to help others: I recognized that I could make a difference. Earlier today I received a random email from a college senior whom I have been mentoring throughout his senior year. He played small college football and was an All-American linebacker at a pretty decent Division III school. The compelling element of our relationship is that I have still not even met him face to face. We communicate long distance and 100% digitally. Which maybe 15 years ago would be ridiculous, but today, it reminded me that sometimes we don't even have to stand up to help someone.

I was paired with his father at a charity golf outing last spring and like every proud father, he bragged about his son. I took an instant liking to Adam’s father; and especially liked the fact that I was consistently longer off the tee than him. After a few cold ones and eigtheen holes, we were friends. He asked if he could pass my card along to his son and of course I encouraged him to do so. "I'd be happy to talk to Adam, I told him. “Who knows,” I told him, maybe I can help him prepare for the real world if football doesn’t work out.” – “I have plenty of experience in football not working out, and I’d be happy to talk to him."

Six months later I received this email…

Hey Mark,

I'm just emailing you to catch you up on how things have been since we talked. Our season ended up 10-2 we made it to the second round of the playoffs. I went on to play in the Metrodome for the All-American bowl and that was a blast! Right before New Year’s I ran into a guy while shopping with my mom; I gave him the elevator speech (which you told me to prepare) and he took down my information. Long story short, today's my first day at TransAmerica Personal Financial Advisors, I'll be helping people spend and invest their money and I think I'm really gonna like this job. I just wanted to thank you for the time you spent with me giving advice. I hope all is well and that you're having a great new year.

Pay it forward friends. It’s worth it.

Third Period English

2011-10-03T18:21:00.002-04:00

When I was a junior in high school Mrs. Leis told our third period College-Prep English Class that who we are and who we become in this world is a result of the people around us. Of all the lessons and memories I have from high school and growing up in my small town, by far this has meant more to me and has guided me to become who I think God intended me to be more than anything else. I have been so blessed over the years to have lived the travels and experiences life has provided, and at every stop, I’ve thought about Mrs. Leis, standing in front of our class talking about the experience of losing her husband in a tragic plane crash and that no matter how long people are in your life, whether it be a moment, an hour, an evening or a lifetime; they leave a mark on you and you are different because you met them. So with that advice, perhaps we listen closer, care more and try harder because every day as Mrs. Leis reminded us, is as an opportunity to be significant to someone else.

I hold a special place and respect for the two football coaches who led the teams I played on and their staffs while at Ottawa-Glandorf High School, but it was in Mrs. Leis’s English class that I learned to express myself and found an identity. It was the encouragement and inspiration from Mrs. Leis to live life to its fullest and not look back that has me sitting in Chicago after traveling the country and literally the world as a professional athlete writing a blog post. I certainly didn’t think professional sports were in my future at that time, but in the back of my mind I thought that I could be a writer someday. Even if being a writer today means I’m blogging or getting a call from a friend to help find the right words for a resume or editing a letter, the fact of the matter is that no matter where I go or who I meet, Mrs. Leis instilled in me in me that I can be someone who leaves a mark on others. So in some self-indulging way, I think I need to write about it because someone may also read this post and be reminded of or moved to ask me about how amazing of an English teacher she was and continues to be.

Talking About Schema

2011-05-17T22:17:00.013-04:00

I earned a minor in Psychology at the University of Findlay because I took 21 hours of it before deciding to major in English. As a result, I learned about "Schema" from Milton Peters, professor of my Psychology II class. He quoted Piaget's Stages of Cognitive Development while speaking of Assimilation and Accommodation. During a Piaget discussion on the second floor of Old Main, we discussed Schema and the human behaviors associated with it. Fast forward 10 years and I'm sitting in a WOMMA conference breakout session, captivated by Steve Knox the CEO of Tremor, as he taught how schema related to WOM marketing.

To summarize the various definitions of the science; a schema is a mental structure we use to organize and simplify our knowledge of the world around us. We have schemas about ourselves, other people, technology, eating, exercising and in fact almost everything. For example, a child may first develop a schema for a dog. The child knows that a dog has fur, four legs and a tail. When the child encounters a cat for the first time, he might first call it a dog because it fits his schema of a dog; he sees an animal that has fur, four legs and a tail. Once the child is told that this is a different animal called a cat, he will modify his current schema for a dog and create a new schema for a cat.

During the session, Knox presented an image of the Miracle on the Hudson. Sully saved hundreds of lives that day and solidified schema-consideration as part of the marketing mix. When we look at this image we see something that disrupts our schema. We associate planes with the sky and not water so it's something that we will remember and talk about. Would you be surprised to know that ten days after the Miracle on the Hudson there was a small aircraft crash that killed 14 people in upstate New York? I doubt any of us remember that plane crash because we weren't talking about it. Unfortunately that story is true. To complete the analogy, when planes crash, schema allows us to know what happened to the passengers without having to see the wreck, although we can't help but look. And we can't help but look because a train wreck, like an air plane on the Hudson River with people standing on the wings is many degrees away from what we believe to be ordinary... and when it's extraordinary, we talk about it.

Seventy-six percent of Americans talk about at least one brand every day according to a 2009 research study conducted by the Keller Fay Group. With three out of four consumers talking about brands, it's essential that Brands give them something to talk about; and one certain way to ensure they are talking is to disrupt their schema.

Super Moments

2011-02-10T23:37:00.018-05:00

It was January 1988 the first time the game made me emotional... It was 17 days into the new year, I was 10 years old and my fandom for the Cleveland Browns culminated at the moment Earnest Byner (# 44) took a handoff from Bernie Kosar. I was with uber sureness the Browns were going to score the game-tying touchdown in the AFC Championship Game, but to my dismay, followed by a 10 year old tear falling at disbelief; The Fumble.

Football has made me emotional numerous times for many different and unrelated reasons but most recently in Dallas at Super Bowl XLV. The National Anthem to be exact. I heard Christina messed up the lyrics but I was in my own world reminising the first time I heard the rendition wearing a New York Football Giants uniform and didn't even notice she messed it up.

My most gratifying memory of playing football came the first time I suited up in an NFL uniform. The game was televised on ESPN and as the National Anthem played, I realized I made a life-long dream come true. It was a personal and special accomplishment, and to this day, when I hear the National Anthem I go back to that moment in New England and get goosebumps... No matter if it's at a high school basketball game or the Super Bowl, it's that particular sound of the game that takes me back.

This past Sunday I had the priviledge of attending SB XLV with a profound and distinguished group of people who crossed a variety of walks of life, but came together as football fans. I truly enjoyed every conversation I was a part of leading up to the game, and I had the opportunity to make new friends with some very cool people; but when the National Anthem played and the jets flew over the stadium; It was time for reading linebackers, picking up blitzes, and recognizing cover 2 defenses. After years of football film watching, it's just how I watch a game. Everyone around me was excited, cheering, and anticipating the kickoff of Super Bowl XLV while I was imagining running down the field on the kickoff team, cognizant of staying in the correct pursuit lane, and wrecklessly looking to make the first tackle of Super Bowl XLV.

There are often indescribable experiences and personal moments that make a game memorable, a career definable, and a moment... a moment. These sports moments are experienced uniquely by an individual and often times, never spoke of; rather kept in a memory bank and recalled when a new experience triggers the sounds, sights and smells of a particular moment. The game is a ame of inches they say, but to me it's a game of moments. A few special moments that made a career meaningful, and memorable.

It's About People

2011-01-09T01:30:00.005-05:00

In the midst of an aimless adventure to find the meaning of life, I stirred one winter morning after a sleepless night in Chicago to find myself stress-riddled and in search of the meaning of my existence... That's a pretty deep intro for an Invizzible Ink blog post but looking back at my five month hiatus from blogging, I intrepidly realized that humans cannot pretend to be someone we are not. Me, I'm a writer. I have been since the fourth grade when I won my first writing contest. (Insert unabashed plug) Fast forward twenty years five months ago, I was adhering to the demanding challenge of working full time in Chicago and going to grad school full time in Ohio while keeping a ridiculous travel schedule and managing school and work projects; And usually between the hours of midnight and 3 am maintaining a decent marketing blog. The trick to accomplishing all these goals was simple; Two years of non-sleep week nights. Healthy? No. But certainly advantageous to the accomplishment of what I set out to do.

What I found to be true of this endeavor was that one cannot maintain that routine for much more than two years; at least I couldn't. Something had to give. Unfortunately for Invizzible Ink, when I started my new job in Chicago, my writing was put on the back burner. Not by choice necessarily, but by default. Hobbies took a back seat; evenings and early mornings gave way to the furious pace of trying to get up to speed with senior and other experienced team members conducting business. It's exciting and exhilarating to make decisions that affect national programs and millions of impressionable consumers, but soon I found that the core of Invizzible Ink; the marketing mind that defined my day-to-day professional career was lacking organic substance. There was something missing that balanced my holistic mind-operation. Austin Powers would diagnose as a loss of mojo. For me, my mojo is writing. And I wasn't writing. I was tired and not inspired until finally I realized what was missing... I needed to bring back Ink!

So how does one lose their mojo anyway? Well, I don't exactly know but I know how one gets it back. One returns to their utility. - The definition of one's purpose for living and ambition to leave one's mark on the world. I'm not sure if Webster or Wikipedia would agree with my definition of utility, but in Business Ethics class, our professor John Annarino taught us the meaning of utility and it stuck with me and resonated deeper than any other lesson I learned in two years of graduate studies. Why? Because it was humanized. It meant something that couldn't be added or subtracted. It lived and breathed in each member of our class and was left for each of us to decide for ourselves how we would define our personal style to learn, lead others, and live life.

One's utility is the most important aspect of business in my opinion. It serves as my personal guide to making decisions and dealing with relationships. I vowed after reading Good to Great by Jim Collins and receiving years of coaching from hard working volunteer football coaches that life is about people first. “First who, then what,” as Collins would say. As I would say, life is too short and opportunities to make a difference in society are too abundant, to not focus on people first before the subject. At the end of my day, I work with people and for people so why not direct my focus on people? - A widget has never generated a single emotion that motivated, encouraged, or taught me a lesson that made a difference in my life, however I could go on for pages about the people in my life that have made Invizzible Ink possible.

Speaking of people, I think we as humans seek and desire many forms of acceptance from our families, employers and significant others in our daily routines to make sense of our existence here on Earth. I believe when we sacrifice our personal passions for obligations beyond our control, we are moved from living-comfort, to a place of reaction. When the speed of the game gets too intense and we are not in control, we lose our ability to make concerted and logical decisions. We panic. Get ahead of ourselves and forget the basis of how we progressed ourselves to our current state of being. And how did we all get to where we are today? People helped us. - Granted many of us have individual talents and successes but collectively, there has always been some person somewhere who gave an opportunity, believed in us, sacrificed for us, or extended a hand to us in some way. It's people, folks! It's not the stuff in our lives, it's the people that make our world what it is. And I feel sorry for those who don't get that, but it's also my utility to help them realize what they are missing.

"Attitude Reflect Leadership, Captain"

2010-08-25T20:56:00.005-04:00

Attitude reflect leadership... So very true in sports as well as in business, family circles, and pretty much life in general. The first time I saw this movie I was a second-year player at the University of Findlay, and frankly the thought of never playing football again mixed with an emotion-enhancinig potion left me wiping tears from my face as I sat on my beer-stained college couch. If you haven't seen this movie yet I find it incredibly unbelievable that you are finding the time to read this blog, but just in case my mother hasn't seen the movie, I won't ruin it for her and give away the entire scene and ending. Ultimately though, one of the main characters, Bertier, doesn't play in the most important game of his career. It's heart-wrenching to follow the character through the entire movie and watch him as well as all the characters grow and become leaders in their community and school and then not to have the chance to paly the final game.

Bertier in many ways is the protagonist in this movie however he probably wouldn't want to be considered above anyone or more important than any of his teammates. As one watches "Remember the Titans", Gerry Bertier stands out as a true leader and captain and embraces it throughout this movie. He gives us multiple examples of his emotional intelligence as well as his passion: Two qualities I believe every leader must possess. Bertier's passion is reflective in nearly every scene he is present, most noticeably when he is on the football field. He loves playing the game, and he loves his teammates, and he loves his coaches. He respects them and he leads them with a passion that only a captain can lead with.

In my opinion the greatest word in any language in any dictionary is passion. Every great leader has it and no person has ever been their best version of themself without having a passion for something that drives them. A person who is a leader demonstrates their leadership by showing others that passion through acting selfless for the betterment of a particular cause. When a leader begins caring more about being recognized and getting credit for contributing to a cause, the pureness of leading is lost and while their still may be passion, leadership is deduced and the organic reward and fulfillment of leading a cause fizzles. People see through self-righteousness and that passion is weakened.

The scene above where Julius and Bertier are having a conversation and Julius challenges Bertier is an epic moment in the movement that changed not only their friendship, but the team and the school and the entire community. It was in this moment that Bertier showed his true self. His true emotional intelligence was apparent as he handled the situation as a true captain should. When Julius challenged him, he collected himself and he thought about what his teammate was really saying before disagreeing with him. He considered his options and became open to making a difficult decision, and he made his decision because it needed to be made for the greater good. The look on Bertier's face right at the end of the above scene is memorable because the look on his face as he hears Julius, is a look of surprise, but also a look of reality. In that particular moment I believe Bertier realized that he wasn't doing everything he could for the football team and that he needed to do more. He needed to find a way to make them better because inside Bertier's man-sized heart was a kid playing a game that he passionately wanted to win.

Bertier was a utilitarian throughout the movie and although the best interest of both the white and the black communities' greater good was a risky and difficult leap to make, he took that leap by putting himself out on a limb. He took the chance and made himself vulnerable for the greater good of the team... And it gave me goose bumps after he called out the white full-back for not blocking for the black tailback. Bertier went back to his defense and turned to the other great leader on that defense Julius, and engaged him to lead with him. Bertier didn't try to do it on his own. He knew, like all great leaders know, that it takes a team to accomplish great things. Bertier obviously knew that Julius was talented and knew that together they had endless potential as a defensive unit, but it was going to take everyone to accomplish what he truely was aiming for. Hence, he took a leap of faith and put himself out for the team. He showed a quality of many other great leaders; he demonstrated courage.

This scene is portrayed as a turning point in the film when the team finally came together and united as one team, instead of white and black. But it accomplished so much more from the aspect of understanding personalities and understanding leadership. Bertier taught the team to follow him. He lead by example and broke down the color barrier by doing what was right. As aspiring leaders in schools, businesses, families, and even politics... We can take a lesson from Gerry Bertier and earn the respect and trust of others by doing what is right. - I think they call it integrity.

Bertier's integrity is apparent throughout the entire film but one scene that stands out in particular that really emphasizes his true self is the scene where he ended his relationship with his girlfriend. He obviously loved her because we heard him say so in the film, but he loved his team and he loved the game more. He was willing to let go of something that was comfortable for something that was compelling and that is an action of a leader with integrity. When his girlfriend wouldn't shake Julius's hand, Bertier had a decision to make and because he was a man with integrity; when given the ultimatum of Julius or her, he chose his team.

Attitude does in fact reflect leadership beyond sports. Poor and positive leadership alike, this movie is a great example of leadership carrying and burying a team. Similar to the leadership of a football team, the same goes in the C-Suite of a firm. If our bosses are complaining and disengagued about a program or event, it shouldn't be a wonder why the program or event is only sub-par. However when an event is led with passion, it is followed with passion and greatness is accomplished.

As I reflect upon the movie yet another time and try to put myself in Bertier's shoes as he's watching his friends play in the state-championship game from a hospital bed, I can't help but recall a cliche that every football player has heard; "Play every play as if it were your last." When the weather is extreme hot or cold or the coach is yelling at you or you are having a crappy practice or you got a bad grade on a test or you got traded to a team in last place... no matter what the excuse might be... it is just that. It's an excuse. The opportunity to play the game of football comes and goes and after it is gone, every football player can probably think back and remember a play here or a play there that they would like to have back... All of us besides Gerry Bertier.

I think the attitude he maintained through the finale of the the video was believable because he did in fact play every play as though it was his last. So when the time came that Gerry did in fact play his last play, he was able to accept it. He accepted that it was his time to move on and he celebrated the team's victory with them from the hospital and wasn't bitter or depressed about it because he knew that he had given his heart to them and to the game. Gerry Bertier knew in his heart that he played the game of football the way it was meant to be played. He played the game of football similarly to how he lived his life; with passion, with courage and with integrity.

Boys of Fall

2010-08-03T00:14:00.006-04:00

I was a boy of fall once. Meant the world to me to play football on Friday nights under the lights. Then on Saturday afternoons... and even a few times on Sunday. There's a place for a boy and a man to come together and be one in the same. And it's on a football field. It's a man's game, that's played with a boy's spirit.

If there is any advice I could ever give to anyone playing this game it's to have fun doing it and enjoy every moment of it. Every play; play as if it's your last. The coach in the video breaks his huddle with 'last play' - and it gave me goosebumps. (My arm hair is still raised as I type). The love of something bigger than yourself is an emotional scenerio for a high school kid to be in, and even bigger as a collegiate and grown man. But it's maybe the most gratifying and rewarding accomplishment to look back upon, at the end of a day, realize that being a part of something bigger than myself was worth the sacrifice.

There is so much to learn from the game of football that doesn't take place between the lines, but happens off the field in conversations on a Thursday night driving your high school clunker around with your best friend. Sharing life stories and being best friends... When you play this game you give your heart to it... at least you should. We play this game with emotion and with the understanding that every play could in fact be our last. But, it doesn't stop us. It drives us. It drives us to be our best. And football has gotten that from so many young men. Young men who believed in something bigger than themselves. They were more than the boys of fall, they were the men of fall.

Still fighting the fight against breast cancer

2010-06-10T10:58:00.005-04:00

On June 21st from 6-9PM at Bridgewater Conference Center at 10561 Sawmill Rd. Powell, Ohio we will be holding the Spielman Gridiron Classic III Kickoff Dinner with Coach Jim Tressel, Chris Spielman, Ted Ginn Sr. and Bill Conley. Enjoy an evening of football and the awarding of the First Annual Stefanie Spielman Inspiration Award to Ted Ginn Sr. for his service and dedication to the youth of Cleveland and Ohio.

Tickets are $40.00 each and the proceeds go to the Stefanie Spielman Fund at the James Cancer Hospital and Solove Research Institute and to meet our goal of sending #500 inner city and at-risk youth to summer camps hosted by the Fellowship of Christian Athletes. If you would like to attend or to sponsor a student to attend, then contact me at mark.inkrott@gmail.com.

There are only a limited number of tickets left, so please do not wait to the last minute. We are expecting #350 people at the event which will include a silent auction and a ticket raffle for several great prizes. Checks should be made payable to: Ohio Sports Classics.

"If you can't feed a hundred people, then feed just one." - Mother Teresa

Time for a Cure

2010-05-15T12:38:00.007-04:00

It feels good to know that your time at work and your efforts are going to a good cause and that you are appreciated right? - Ever get overwhelmed with responsibility at work, deadlines, todo lists??? As a working society we are naturally competitive and eager to win the rat race. We get so tied up in our our busy schedules that sometimes we lose sight of helping others; Not because we are disengaged from people or because we do not care for others, but because we forget that we can achieve our greatest personal goals by spending a few hours of our weekend impacting others in ways far greater than we could ever spend our time or our dollars on ourselves.

By volunteering our time for the greater good of our community we are not only making a priority statement, we are making a positive difference in the lives of others who at no fault of thier own, need a little help. We've all found ourselves in trying times and in need of a little help, and thankfully we have supportive friends and family members to lend us that hand. Without a doubt one of the defining elements that make a friend a friend and a brother a brother is knowing that person will answer when you call. Having someone there to lean on in times of struggle is priceless. There's no value for true friendship that we can place on our friend who is always there to listen to us, to pick us up when we are down, or when we are in a bad situation. Friendship is love, unconditionally and all the time.

When we volunteer for charities like the Race for the Cure, we are not just helping our friends who have experienced pain and unfortunate circumstances due to Breast Cancer, but we are helping strangers as well. Complete strangers who have courageously lost thier battles and live on in spirit and memories, through their friends and their families. By volunteering and taking part in events like the Komen Race, we help those who continue to battle everyday by showing support and encouragement for their cause and we give them something so precious that it brings many of the racers to tears... we give our time.

Time is so precious to those who do not know how much they have left, and too often I feel myself taking time for granted or wishing that it were Friday. In the end, we have so little time here to do all the things we aspire, dream, and plan to do for ourselves. Our long term goals and aspirations seem so large in the sense that one day I will be... or Someday I will have... or Someday I hope to... I will be the first to speak to the importance of setting goals and working feverishly to accomplish them, but every once in a while, its important to ask ourselves if there are others who could use a little of our time as well.

Experience of a Lifetime

2010-05-07T12:33:00.005-04:00

Have you ever recognized there are these intangible characteristics about special people who enter our lives that make it impossible to forget them? We all probably have someone in mind right now who fits into that "special" category. Could be someone we know personally or someone we've heard speak on television or in person; regardless, we agree there are special people who enter our lives at various times for various reasons. These people are for whatever reason timely and purposeful in our lives, and often they encourage us or perhaps just influence us to spend time in personal reflection. They spark internal thought processes we may not have been inclined to reach on our own and coincidentally, as a result of these thoughts we attain a rejuvenated view of ourselves.

One of those people in my opinion is Randy Pausch. If you have never seen his 'Final Lecture' I strongly encourage setting an hour aside and to give it a go. The man is an inspiration to many and he strived to help people become better at whatever it was they wanted to do. And he did it with a purpose, and a certian will to live that I can only describe as admirable.

"Experience is what you get when you didn't get what you wanted" - Randy Pausch

This quote sums up plenty of experiences in my life and as a result, I am better equipped as a person, as an employee, and as a leader. I think its almost humorous that employers post some job postings and list "x" number of years as a requirement for a certain position and then disqualify candidates because of a lack of what they think experience is. Experience is not quantifiable in a sense of placing value on the number of years someone has been doing a job. Real experience is qualitative. It's not what you do in those 5-7 years of work, it's how you do it that tells the true story. I may not have 10 years of management experience but I'm the oldest of four siblings and my first job was watching my baby sister during the summers when my parents were working. I sacrificed many of bike rides with my friends, trips to the swimming pool, and neighborhood basketball games when everyone else was on summer vacation. But experience is what you get when you didn't get what you wanted. Yea I wanted to do those things at the time, but I got something even better instead. So here's a tip to my colleagues in human resources and hiring managers; Don't think you know someone's value based on their age and how many years they have been doing a job; they are obviously trying to advance themself from that position... Dig a little deeper and be creative in your approach. Not sure about you, but I would rather work with someone young and passionate about people and change, than someone with 15 years of leadership experience who is set in their ways. But that's just me.

Does Sport Breed Entrepreneurs?

2010-03-30T14:47:00.011-04:00

The game of football has taught me to be a leader, a teammate, a critical thinker, a problem solver and most of all to be accountable for my actions. It has also given me the confidence to know that I can do anything I set my mind to. I played the game of football competitively for sixteen years (Starting at age nine and retiring from the NFL at age 24). In all those years of playing this game, I have adopted a few themes as part of my life’s DNA which I believe define me as a man as well as an entrepreneur and member of society. Characteristics such as integrity, character, commitment, work ethic, leadership, and being a community ambassador have become the essence of what the game of football has taught me to replicate as I create my legacy.

I learned a long time ago, on a football field, that your team was the most important ingredient in the formula for success. Without others, one’s individual success is impossible; and so people should be every organization’s number one resource. On the football field, it’s imperative to have a talented quarterback, because that is generally the most important position on every team. However, without the entire team working for the same goal and respecting the quarterback, the likelihood of failure is high. The same holds true in business. Constructing a solid team is vital to an organization’s success. It’s essential to find a solid leader, someone the rest of the team will respect and follow to that end. The supporting team may be a variety of personalities and plethora of different skills and individual characteristics, but ultimately, a team needs a captain to lead that team to success.

Vince Lombardi, a legendary NFL coach said, “Individual commitment to a group effort - that is what makes a team work, a company work, a society work, a civilization work.” When building a business, it’s foolish to think one can do it alone. Employing the right people is essential to your team’s success. Also, the reward is much greater when a goal is accomplished as a group rather than alone. Having someone beside you to celebrate with is certainly more enjoyable than solitude. Togetherness is crucial when accomplishing, as well as celebrating. A football team requires eleven players on every play to be together to have success. If one player does not do their job, the play usually fails. Too many failures ultimately equal defeat. It’s really that simple at the end of the fourth quarter. A coach can evaluate a game by simply pointing out the times a team did not work together as one unit and find reason for a loss. The same holds true for success. A coach can evaluate a team’s win by pointing out the consistency of togetherness and number of times a team carried out what they had planned to do throughout its preparation period. Business is much like winning a football game. You prepare for a test by doing research, scouting the competition, preparing a strategy, implementing that strategy and measuring your success so that you can replicate it and understand through statistics where your team is inefficient, and where to focus your strengths and resources to capitalize on future opportunities.

It’s in this preparation time that I believe the sport of football teaches and prepares those that play the sport to be leaders and future successful entrepreneurs. The first reason is due to the amount of time required to be successful. Work ethic is of optimal necessity for an athlete wishing to play in the NFL. The competition is ruthless and the process to make a NFL team is at times, dare I say barbaric. The process is so incredibly demanding that many fail due to the lack of mental toughness. This defining element however, prepares players for future success by engraining a sense of work ethic that is incomparable to most industries. Training camp in the NFL is six weeks of fifteen-hour-days; and completion of that is just to earn consideration for a final position with their organization. Making it to the end of camp doesn’t mean you made the team, it means you made it through another round of interviews.

The executive staff and coaches will make the final decision for your future employment with their organization. Often times your salary requirements will not be in line with what the organization is proposing, or your experience may not be exactly what they are looking for. It may have absolutely nothing to do with your ability or potential; the timing may just not be right.

Football has prepared me for life in business though a multitude of successes as well as defeats. As an entrepreneur, you have to be willing to risk failure to attain your dreams and accomplish your goals. That’s what makes the reward so great!
I was told countless times upon college graduation I was wasting my time working out and preparing to play another football game. - And, after signing a contract but being cut before even having the opportunity to go to training camp my first year in the NFL, I thought maybe they were right… For about day.

I flew back to my hometown, woke up the next morning, and went to my high school practice field and ran gassers and sprints until all my frustrations of being fired were expelled… and that day I started to prepare for my next opportunity.

The game of football teaches resiliency and fortitude in a way no other sport can teach. The game of football takes so incredibly much physical strength and ability, but it also takes a unique mental composition to be the best of the best. Due to some very special people and an internal desire to succeed, I was more than ready for my next NFL opportunity, which came six months later in the form of a workout with the New York Giants… And later in the form of standing on the 50 yard line in Foxboro, Massachusetts while the National Anthem played over the loud speakers. A nationally televised game on ESPN and F-16 fighter jets buzzed the stadium as goose bumps and a tear formed on my skin; I overcame the odds of playing professional football and proved to myself that I can do anything I set my mind to.

High School Hoop Dreams

2010-03-25T22:48:00.002-04:00

This weekend Value City Arena will host the OHSAA boys basketball state tournament. Just down Lane Avenue over the bridge, the Varsity Club will host high school basketball fans. You can join the conversation between games and enjoy a cold beverage before walking back to the Schott for the next game; or you can stay there all day and watch the games on STO. Whether you watch them live or on the big screen at the VC, its sure to be a good time. There will be a few groups of storytellers sure to be in attendance. Count on that.

Let the stories begin... When I was a junior at Ottawa-Glandorf High School, we played in the state championship title game and lost by one point. We had an unbelievable season and nearly pulled off an amazing 21-point-comeback championship victory, but it wasn't meant to be. Coincidentally the school that beat us in 1996 won the semi-final game this afternoon and will play Saturday for another chance at a title. Orrville High School. If they win on Saturday, as part of my work's partnership with the OHSAA, I will deliver a congratulatory speech to their team. - I am hoping Lima Central Catholic wins that game; but the kicker is that Lima beat Ottawa-Glandorf in this year's regional tournament to get to the state tournament... Either way, O-G lost. And that finally is the point of this post... To the winner go the spoils, and no one remembers the losers. (Except maybe the story-telling patrons at the Varsity Club)

I will always remember the one-point loss to Orrville as a heartbreaker, but I will remember the emotional distraught of our seniors, coaches, and fans more than the loss.

I use this example of community comradery because its relevant to the curent events of the weekend for one, but also because it represents the essence of high school sports. For the past month, I have watched high school athletes win and lose in the state tournament of their respective winter sport. Wrestling, Swimming, and most recently girl's and boy's basketball tournaments have built character and taught lessons of sportmanship, integrity, and class to the athletes competing through the elation of winning and agony of defeat. I'm a firm believer we learn more about our personal fortitude through defeat than we do in winning, but that doesn't make it any easier to accept, especially at 17 years old.

I have been fortunate to watch many high school sporting events here of late due in part to the Refuel with Chocolate Milk campaign; and the one lasting image that stays with me is the image of an athlete brought to tears at the realization of their final game/match/event as a high school athlete resulting in a loss. To have come so far, but not far enough. I have to say, as an athlete who has been in those shoes, it's a difficult situation to find yourself in; and managing those emotions can be impossible for the kid who literally invested his/her entire personal commitment to that team. For many, it's their first true love. It may be overwhelming. Numbing. Maybe even sickening. But at the end of that bus trip home is a welcome reception... A community proud of their team. They may not have won first place, but even the consolation prize of a state tournament deserves respect from a community who have reaped so many exciting memories as a result of those 15-17 year old kids. The second place team may not have won gold, but they became stronger young men and women through the process; which reassures my belief that sport creates a greater good in our communities... A utilitarian greater-good that brings forth teamwork, commitment, and trust among young people. I hope all the teams competing this weekend as well as those communities enjoy the experience of a state tournament as much as I did fourteen years ago... even the kids from Orrville.

3 Tips to Solidify your Pro Athlete Endorsement

2010-03-12T07:39:00.007-05:00

Finding the right athlete who stands above all the rest to endorse your product or brand can be a circuitous challenge if you do not have a proper strategy for aligning the right personality with the role. It's important to have a clear outcome and goals defined first, before aligning an athlete with your brand. By creating a plan for your promotion strategy based on specific goals, a brand manager can use the Invizzible Ink Selection Model for choosing an athlete and be confident their project will produce a favorable return on investment. Setting goals may seem like an obvious statement, however marketers are sometimes captivated by the opportunity to work with an A-lister, that they miss their target audience. When this occurs, not only does the project result in an unfavorable outcome from an investment standpoint, but your brand suffers a set-back in a volatile economy. It makes far greater sense to understand your entire project and choose representation based on a desired outcome, not a desired athlete.

The Invizzible Ink Selection Model is a personalized and multifaceted marketing tool used by brands to ensure their goals are met. The foundation of the selection model was built on a number of essential marketing elements that have proven to increase brand awareness, resonance, and revenue. The formula itself is complex in its entirety, however many of the weights assigned to each variable are simply common sense understandings of the sports world and market. While experience has proven to be a leading variable for our brand, it's not the only element with which we have to base our decisions. What we can share today are tips to consider when choosing the right athlete to be the ambassador of your brand. Remember: No strategy is aligned for success without a plan and specified goals...

1. Background Check... Not with the DMV either. Depending on your project, your brand may have a need for a grassroots ambassador, or a major Public Relations identity. In either case, its vital to the success of the campaign to have the right person in place. One way to ensure your brand has the right person in place is to do your homework. Researching candidate's backgrounds, i.e. - college course of study, family, interests outside of sports are just a few criteria I research before recommending an athlete. For example, if your firm is looking for a sports figure to be the spokesperson for a national PR campaign, you probably don't want someone uncomfortable in a public speaking role. Going to a search engine and doing some light stalking will produce a plethora of information valuable to gaining insight to a sports figure. An athlete with a communications degree, a broadcast journalism degree, or a similar course of study will position your brand with an interested and qualified athlete. When this happens, the believability of the athlete's message is increased and brand resonance is attained. By putting the right people in the right places, as Jim Collins expalins in his book, Good to Great, a win-win scenerio is accomplished for both athlete and brand.

2. Does your Brand align with a foundation or charity? Many athletes today have their own foundation, 501 c3, or preferred charity and will align their interests or even passions with brands that support the same programs. Particularly to those brands or organizations looking to hire sports figures in your smaller markets, this bit of information may be a gold mine. If your organization can align itself with this type of athlete while being savvy and strategic, you may find yourself a partner as opposed to paying for a speaker.

3. Who are you getting? -- A good teammate? Good in the locker room? Have they worked with other brands? -- Brand managers in the sports industry need to know the answers to these questions before signing a deal. I've seen far too many examples of athletes showing up late or not showing up at all for an appearance on behalf of an organization or brand, that it literally ruined the event. Disappointed students at a school, fans holding jerseys to be signed at the mall, teams waiting in the locker room before taking the field... Seen it all and felt for all of them. At the end of the day, if your organization is going to align with an athletic figure... Remember, there is a person behind that figure. All-Pro linebackers do not equate to all-pro people. The kids at your local middle school would much rather meet a pro football player and hear his story of what it's like to be a back-up and play special teams in the NFL, rather than be big-timed by the star and promised a reschedule.

Individual Sports Hit Home

2010-03-07T23:41:00.005-05:00

Over the course of the past two weekends I have spent time supporting high school sports in Ohio at the OHSAA state swimming and wrestling championship tournaments. Working in these sports have been a relatively new experience for me as I have always participated in team sports. My cousin Aaron was pretty much a stud swimmer in high school and went on to a successful career at Rutgers University, and many of my college football teammates at the University of Findlay were successful high school wrestlers, but was as close I really came to individual sports at the high school level besides my average showing each year as a member of the OGHS Track team.

What I've learned in the past few weeks is that there is something fundamentally different between team and individual sports at the high school level when it comes to competing at the state tournament. While I will always believe the greatest accomplishment one can achieve is a team championship title, at the end of the competitive day, it takes a group of individuals to contribute to that effort to accomplish that goal. There is certainly a crowned team award for first place in high school swimming and wrestling, but ultimately in sports such as swimming and wrestling, the attention is placed on the state champion. There is only one athlete atop the standings board in individual sports and I have been fortunate to experience some state champions in Ohio be crowned over the past two weeks.

Without a doubt the highlight of the past two weekends has been enjoying the all-access pass for the tournaments granted by the OHSAA. With the American Dairy Association's involvement in high school sports and partnership negotiated with the OHSAA, we have been afforded access to the personal sights and emotions the athletes competing in the tournaments experience. As the relationship manager with the OHSAA, I have been quite fortunate to be in the action first hand. It's wonderful to see up close and personal the emotion on a state champion's face as they beat their opponent and realize they are number one.

Maybe the best feeling I've experienced in recent weeks came after experiencing the first state championship wrestling match of my life. The 103 lb match yielded a champion from Lakewood St. Edwards, Dean Heil. The kid is only a freshman but stood like a man in the circle of the Jerome Schottenstein Center platform as a champion. The excitemet on his face and abundance of emotion as the referee raised his arm as state champion caught me off guard. As the reality set in for Dean Heil that he was number one in the state of Ohio, reality set in with me that I was incredibly happy for him... Not so much that he had just earned points for his team, but because he was the best in the state of Ohio at what he does. It was a new feeling for me to experience, and I greatly appreciated the opportunity.

Heil was a gracious champ; shaking hands with his opponent and his opponet's coaches. Then feeling the excitement take him over, he jumped into the arms of his awaiting coaches; embracing in a heart-felt bear hug. Soon after feeling the love from his coaches, Heil was grabbing his warm-up and off in a fast jog for the bleachers... At the end of his jog was his father; waiting for his son with a proud tear and open arms ready to embrace his state champ. It gave me goosebumps as I watched son and father share that moment. Overwhelming joy and pride radiating from a hug between father and son... It was a beautiful moment that only sport could have provided. As I approached hour 12 of that particular work day, I became overwhelmed with a sence of fulfillment and reward; and realized that sharing that particular moment with Dean Heil and his father was the reason that I do what I do... It wasn't about the long workday any longer, it was about the brief moment that only a long day could have offered.

Invizzible Ink was created to highlight the positive aspects and rewards that sport offers our communities. Experiencing first hand a freshman in high school take the Division I honor of best of the best was a beautiful and very rewarding opportunity. It reminded me that sports marketing and working in sport is more than a business, it's an opportunity to make a difference.

Holy Cow! A Formula for Brand Resonance and a Birthday

2010-03-04T21:54:00.007-05:00

On March 1, 1914 Harry Christopher Carabina was born to Italian-French-Romanian immigrants in St. Louis, MO. I'm a few days late in wishing the voice of my childhood a happy birthday, but I got a feeling he heard the toast I offered to his memory this past Monday in his restaurant. - "To Harry!"
As a Cub fan and a Bud man, Harry Cary has been there since the beginning of my love for the Chicago Cubs. I went to Wrigley for the first time in 1998; four months after Harry passed. The entire team wore the above patch on their uniforms that season and the new tradition of guest singers of the seventh inning stretch began. The day game I attended with my father and our friend Tim and his son Matt, was against the rival Cardinals. Barry Alvarez, then head football coach at the University of Wisconsin, sang Take Me Out to the Ball Game. I can rememebr the entire day like it was yesterday and to this day, consider that day one of the best of my life. As cliche as it sounds, at that point in my life, I had never seen a more beautiful sight than Wrigley Field; the green of the grass, the sounds of the stadium, the sight of the bleachers, and the colors of the uniforms all just blended into one of those perfect moments we are sometimes lucky enough to experience. When I walked into the Friendly Confines for the first time, after thinking about what it would be like for the 5 hour train ride from Ohio... It was perfect.

I'm not sure what it is about baseball that fosters that emotion, but the relationship I have with the Chicago Cubs is similar to the relationship marketers need aim to resonate with consumers of their brands. It's one thing to be a fan of baseball, but it's entirely different to be a Cub Fan and a Bud Man in the bleachers on a shirtless summer day in Chicago singing Go Cubs Go. (Hey Chicago, what do ya say, Cubs are gonna win today!!)

Brand Resonance is the measurement of the emotional connection with core consumers, driven by consistent branding of a product... This definition sounds much like being a passionate sports fan rooting for their team through the good and the bad times, right? A consumer of a sports team follows essentially the same purchasing process as consumers of other tangible products. I imagine most of us enjoy an adult beverage from time to time and this past Monday, I enjoyed a Budweiser in honor of Harry Cary. I was with a fellow Cub fan having dinner and to demonstrate our appreciation for Harry Cary's birthday, I purchased a Budweiser; Harry's favorite brew. I chose Budweiser not because it's my favorite, but because it was Harry's favorite. Cary was a marketing genius, but doubt he ever cared about that title... But make no mistake about it, Harry Cary established brand resonance with Cub fans everywhere while he was in the booth. His love for the game and excitement for his job made watching the Cubs on WGN an event Cub fans everywhere could relate to, and look forward to.

Establishing resonance can be a difficult task for marketers, but a sure way to establish it, is to follow Harry Cary's formula...
Be passionate. Be honest. Have fun. Be authentic. If you can replicate these four objectives, your brand has a chance to win the hearts of consumers; but if you're selling Cardinals memorbillia, I don't care how pasisonate, honest, fun or authentic you are... We're not buying it.

Commitment Issues???

2010-02-25T23:24:00.016-05:00

Recently friend and colleague Dr. Chris Stankovich wrote about athletic transferable skills an athlete learns from sports, and how those skills can be used in situations such as a classroom, a future career, and in life. Dr. Stankovich gave a few examples of these skills including: discipline, being a team player, motivation, goal setting, and I'd like to add commitment.

We've all been on some type of team in our life whether it be a sports team, a work team, a family, or just a group of friends. Think back to that team you were a part of and recall if there was a true sense of commitment not only to the team, but also to team excellence. Vince Lombardi said, "The quality of a person's life is in direct proportion to their commitment to excellence, regardless of thier chosen field of endeavor." Lombardi had a way with words that still echoes in every football coaches office in this country. Football coaches are notorious for one-liners and repeating slogans handed down from the generations... It's not necessarily that current coaches do not have creativity or originality, rather the slogans and beliefs of the Vince Lombardi's of the world were simple and believable, and maybe best described as motivational. I think Lombardi's messages and certainly this particular quote resonates deeper than simply the locker room. The commitment that Lombardi is referring to is the same transferable skill Dr. Stankovich tells us we can learn from sports and use in other aspects of our lives.

After watching this video and listening to the greatest football coach of all time describe the game of football in his own words, I think we can relate to what Dr. Stankovich meant by a transferable skill. It doesn't matter what field one is in, if you go about your work with the passion and conviction that Vince Lombardi did, you're a winner. Vince Lombardi breathed, lived, and died football. Football was more than a part of him; football was in his soul. His voice still gives me goosebumps when I hear him talk about the game of football because for a long time, that was how I felt. Luckily I found another passion after football because I don't know how a person can stop something they feel that strongly about.

Lombardi mentions twice in his speech the importance of having a commitment to excellence... He mentions this because it's the right way to represent your family, the right way to coach and play sports, and it's the right way to do our jobs. While I don't believe I'm as good at sports marketing as Lombardi was at coaching football... (yet) I do believe having a commitment to excellence is a sure way of becoming the best at whatever it is any of us aspire to be. Whether it be a football coach, a marketer, a ditch digger, or a parent; listen to Coach Lombardi talk about the fulfillment and reward of working as a team to accomplish a goal and try to incorporate that same sense of unity in what it is that you do... Individual accomplishment is great, but "Individual commitment to a group effort - that is what makes a team work, a company work, a society work, a civilization work." - Vince Lombardi (1913-1970)

Rachel's Challenge

2010-02-19T12:52:00.008-05:00

During Jim Valvano's 1993 Espy Awards Speech, he encouraged us to never give up, not ever give up. That speech still lives bookmarked on my favorites and is referenced when I need a little motivation.

Today, in a tearful Columbus, Ohio ball room on the second floor of the Renaissance Hotel, Darrell Scott, father of the first homicide victim from the Columbine School shooting, Rachel Scott, addressed a room full of middle school educators. I was there with my work as well and was fortunate to listen in. He shared his daughter's compelling story with us and quite frankly I don't know how he had the strength to watch the video that played on the two projection screens.

The similarities were astounding and equally as insightful in the back of my mind when I thought of Jimmy V's passion and sincerity in his delivery; Don't give up, don't ever give up. Rachel Scott was only 15 years old when she lost her life to ignorant violence but before she left, she had a dream and a vision of making the world a better place. Born from that vision, was Rachel's Challenge. Listening to Darrell Scott share his little girl's dreams with a room of strangers was inspiring. Because not only was his daughter killed that day but his son was also in that school and witnessed two of his friends murdered in cold blood. I can't imagine the pain that family has endured... It seems so unjust and so vulgar to be put into a situation of that magnitude; but if you believe everything happens for a reason, I hope you'll investigate the story of Rachel Scott more in depth because it truly is a story of miracles.

While I shook Darrell's hand after his talk, I could sense a bit of numbness in his expression and somber in his voice just like in this video. - It takes a strong individual to forgive when the pain is so great and the loss so special. Mr. Scott talked about prejudging people when we meet them for the first time and offered a suggestion that if we look for the good in people, we will see it; and of course viceversa... (If the father of a slain daughter can forgive, maybe I can forgive as well and find the good in others before noticing the bad, right?)

Today's experience left me feeling compelled to do something supportive; to carry out Rachel's wish; so I share Rachel's challenge in the best way I know how... my writing. Jim Valvano challenged his audience to accomplish three things everyday; to laugh, to spend some time in thought, and to have your emotions brought to tears. He said if you can do those three things everyday you will have lived that day to it's fullest.

Thank you Mr. Scott; Jimmy V would have been proud of all of us today, especially you.

Broncos get Right Coach for the Job

2010-02-16T21:10:00.010-05:00

The Denver Broncos recently hired a good friend and college teammate as the newest member of their coaching staff. Craig Aukerman was named defensive assistant coach after serving in the college ranks for ten years. I'm extremely proud of my friend and do not have a doubt in my mind that he will be an asset to their coaching staff. Craig has always displayed greatness on and off the field and I am confident that he will continue to be just that.

As we talked yesterday on the phone I asked him what he thought of the playbook and the sytem the Broncos exercise on defense... As I expected, he mentioned learning the extensive playbook would be his first challenge as a new coach in a new system. - Knowing Craig though, he will impress the coaching staff in Denver with his work ethic and football intelligence; and ultimately learn the playbook.

Earlier today I read some cynical comments on Bronco blogs negatively portray the Bronco's hire due to his small college experience at Western Kentucky, Miami (Ohio), and Kent State. I don't want to bash the fans because they are the reason the NFL is what it is, but if you are hating on a guy because of where he learned to be a coach I have to ask the question... Are college athletes really that different in the MAC than they are in the Big 10 or the ACC or even the SEC? Does teaching a five-star collegiate athlete better suit a coach for the next level compared to teaching a three-star athlete? - I pose this rhetorical question because I don't know the answer from a psychological perspective... From a physical ability standpoint I think generally we all agree that athletes are better equipped at Ohio State University than they are at Ohio Northern Universtiy but that's the obvious.

Here's an example: Take a small college safety compared to a NFL safety reading the eyes of a quarterback from a cover-three zone. This means that the defensive player is watching the quarterback prepare to throw the ball and then breaking in the direction of the pass as soon as he believes he knows where the pass is going. A small college safety who runs a 4.6 second forty yard dash may have great instincts and as a result have many pass break ups and interceptions throughout the course of a season. The NFL safety who runs a 4.3 forty yd. dash may have decent instincts but not as many pass break ups or interceptions over the course of a season despite having more opportunity and more physical ability- Granted the quarterback play is much better at the NFL level so it's not entirely an apples to apples comparison but it works for the sake of our discussion. Also assume the atheltes are similar in their preparation, intelligence, and reaction time; however, one is simply physically superior to the other. From a coaching perspective, if a coach is teaching the small college athlete what to look for in the quarterback's progression and he is anticipating where the ball is going and is correct with his assumption, but he just isn't fast enough to make a play on the ball; there's not much else a coach can do or say to improve that athlete.

While the athletes Aukerman coached at his previous assignments may not be capable of making plays in the NFL, I can assure the bloggers of Denver nation that they were well-coached and better men because of him. His ability and potential as a coach is part of the reason the Broncos hired him, but also measured by the Broncos organization is the quality of man becoming a part of their team and community. Don't forget that building a TEAM takes more than talent sports fans. Jim Collins stresses in his book Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap and Other's Don't, the importance of having the right people in the right places to ensure your company, brand, or team's success. Craig Aukerman might not be the powerful household name Bronco fans were expecting but either was Josh McDaniels when he came to town. The 33-year-old had a lot to prove in Denver and I look for the new 33-year-old Aukerman to do the same.

The Dance

2010-02-14T19:35:00.011-05:00

My friends Ty and Cassie shared their first dance as Mr. and Mrs. Rhoad last night in a quaint and beautifully decorated reception hall in Northwest Ohio. I was honored to be a member of their wedding party and while we were in the basement of the church before the ceremony, the famous wedding dance YouTube video came up in conversation. I'd like to say that we entered the Lutheran church to Forever by Chris Brown like the video wedding party, but we saved our big entrances for the reception hall. (Which by the way, everyone said Jessica and I had the best entrance! - Besides Ty and Cassie of course)

I will remember Ty and Cassie's wedding day for a number of reasons. There were some special moments though that especially come to mind: a smile from Cassie, a hug from Ty, a conversation with Ty's father, a dance with Ty's mother, and literally hours of laughter and jokes with our friends.

Creating brand association as memorable and emotional as that of a wedding day can also be accomplished by being authentic and original. Just as the video shows an original wedding party entrance, a brand with authentic, never-seen-before elements creates a branding scenerio that that people will remember and ultimately talk about.

Those of us at the wedding will definitely be talking about the best man's speech this week but I won't attempt to explain that. Some things you just have to experience for yourself to really appreciate them. With that said, if you haven't seen this wedding dance, I hope you appreciate it as much as I did and if you are reading Invizzible Ink to increase your brand's exposure in the market, I hope you can appreciate the originality and authenticity of the dance.

The things I love about this video from a marketing perspective are the unexpectedness of the procession and originality behind the decision. Two elements essential in WOM success that makes a brand talkable are originality and surprise. The wedding party certainly surprised the congregration with their original entrance and you can bet the topic of conversation later that night at the reception was about their big entrance.

If we create buzz around our brands like this bride and groom did on their wedding day, we can safely assume customers will find our brands. Over 42.5 million visitors have viewed the wedding dance video on YouTube. Wouldn't it be nice if 42.5 million visitors heard about your brand and went online to see for themselves?

4 tips to Listening in the Huddle

2010-02-07T18:39:00.001-05:00

Twenty-One! Twenty-one!! Ok here we go: Explode to I-Buster right, lucy trade, 161 Y-shallow cross half back Ralfie, check, I-buster right, middle 27 bob-scissors on two...

Imagine you are in the huddle, it's 3rd and goal with four seconds left to go in a tied playoff game and your team is down five points... Do you know what to do if the defense lines up in cover 1 but rolls to a cover 2 zone? What if they stay in Man? What if the Mike Linebacker blitzes? What if the strong safety blitzes? Do either of these plays have a built in "hot" route? - As you approach the line of scrimage and get into your stance you hear the quarterback make an "Omaha" call, what do you do now? - If you were an NFL tight-end, you would be required to process all of the previous information in less than six seconds. As an added variable, your team is the visitor and the home crowd is making so much noise you can actually feel the vibrations ringing in your helmet from the crowd.

- Plays called by NFL quarterbacks can be up to twenty words long. So as you might guess, it's important to listen in the huddle. In business, like football, listening is a skill that requires some cognizant adherence in order to be great. We sometimes forget to listen or do a poor job of listening and the resulting outcome is undesirable. In comparison, if we would have done an exceptional job of listening, not only would our outcome have been favorable, but our ability to lead would be exemplified by creating an opportunity to help others understand. When you are in a huddle with time running off the game-clock you don't have the luxury of asking questions or requesting the quarterback to recap what he just said; you do however, have to be prepared number one, and number two, you have to listen and have total concentration and focus in this situation.

Listening is a skill that separates many of us, and ultimately makes a leader special. As a manager, there are few actions you can demonstrate to your employees that will impact them personally more than being proactive in helping them accomplish their personal goals. Not only will your emplyees be impressed that you are willing to help them, but recalling the conversation in which you discussed goals with an employee will also show them you care. And if you show your employees that you care about them... Assuming you hired morally sound people, you can expect them to give you the same level of respect and do the extra little things it takes to be great. -- At the end of the day, listening is about caring. If you care about people, you will listen to them and value what they have to say.

However, if you have a hard time paying attention and have a touch of Attention Deficeit Disorder like I do, a few tips I picked up along the way that might help you out include:

1) Make Eye Contact-
Looking at the person talking while simultaneously reading their lips will help you retain information. Using your sense of sight and hearing together will also help improve information retention. (especially if you are playing on the road)

2) Recap confusing or uncertain lessons-
Restating what someone tells you allows you to process the information, restate the information in your own words, and open the dialogue back up in case you missed an element of what you were told. Also, hearing the information a second or third time will help you recall the information when you need it.

3) Ask Questions-
Don't be afraid to ask questions. Please. First of all, there are very few places in business for shyness. Be accountable and ask questions in regard to information you are unclear about. It's your responsibility to know what you need to know. It's much more embarrassing to be the person on film running the wrong route or the person who brought the wrong presentation to the meeting.

4) Knock the chip off your shoulder-
Listening is about caring. Value the people around you and seek to learn from them at all cost. If you walk through your day believing you are too busy to talk to your employees then you are missing out on an invaluable education and almost guaranteeing that later when you are actually paying attention to a conversation, a previous topic will come up and you will be the one left in the dark. All because you didn't think it important enough the first time... It's hard to redeem yourself after this happens - It's far better as well as utilitarian to simply care about your people and listen to what they have to say.

Actions Speak Louder than Words

2010-02-01T21:17:00.002-05:00

Leadership Worthington (LW) is a not-for-profit organization in Worthington, Ohio that serves its community by developing its future leaders through leadership enhancement and focusing on and understanding the key issues facing their community. LW is facilitated by community professionals and designed for high school students in grades 10-12.

I had the opportunity and esteemed pleasure to deliver the keynote to the graduating class this past November at the request of the program's coordinator. My tie to the Worthington community dates back to 2005 when I first moved to the Columbus area. I was rehabbing injuries following my last stint with the Giants, and felt I could bring an added something to the Columbus area by means of service. I ultimately became active in the Worthington School System by first substitute teaching and later taking a full time position as a teacher assistant in an elementary behavior classroom. I must have made a decent impression on a few key people in the district because they looked me up four years later and asked me to be a part of thier leadership program. (Thanks again Val!)

When addressing young people about any topic, it brings with it a responsibility to be relavent as well as insightful to the issues that face them; or you might as well count on them to tune you out. I chose the topics for the keynote specifically because of the relevance I found between my friends whom I mentioned, and my Business Ethics professor, John Annarino, Esq.

In my speech I mentioned my friends Mike and Zack and shared what I learned from them, but not mentioned in the keynote is Professor Annarino. It was in his class that I learned the most about being a leader and what it takes to be my best. It was from John that I learnd to find a balance between my heart and my mind when making decisions. He taught me to be contemplative and aware of who I am and what my utility is as a man, a leader, and legacy. -- We learn many valuable lessons in books, but often times the most important lessons we learn, are learned through experience.

We know that every entity has some form of leadership and there are many adjectives we use to describe those leaders. Coincidentally, we can also compare the body of work which that entity produces to reflect to some extent the leadership that guides. Presidents of countries, CEO's of corporations, principals of elementary schools, and coaches of sports teams all have a unifying quality that conjoin them. - They lead people by defining a mission and entrusting in their own personal vision for the greater good of their entity and its stakeholders.

Leaders who preserve a humble desire to learn from others are demonstrating more than learning and leadership qualities; they are setting the greatest example possible for their pupils. A leader who leads by example will always have the respect and approbation of their team. Too often leaders find themselves in a position to influence others and forget that they too are students and have something to learn. Malcom Gladwell said, "We learn by example and direct experience because there are real limits to the adequacy of verbal instruction." This is very true in sports as well as business. As a back-up to Jeremy Shockey in New York, I had plenty of opportunity to learn by example. On film, on the field, in the weight room; It was like having another coach. In many ways, we all learned from each other. There are so many nuances to the game of football, especially in the trenches. The smallest tip to blocking a defensive end sometimes is the difference between scoring a touch-down or settling for a field goal attempt. For example, If I am watching Jeremy block a quick defensive end and see exactly how he takes his first step off the ball, I do not need to hear a word from a coach... I can see how to do it and will mirror his actions when I am in the same situation.

The same mirroring techniques can be used by managers in business, however they have to see the value of teaching their staff in a "do as I do, not do as I say" style. It's easier for some managers to tell others what to do because they do not have the ability themselves to actually do the task. However, to optimally build your brand and your business; its imperative to have leaders on your team who care to show others how it's done, as well as be able to explain to them why.

Mullet Branded Pro Bowl

2010-01-31T14:25:00.004-05:00

Jared Allen knows how to get to the quarterback from his defensive end position in Minnesota. He did it 14.5 times during his All-Pro 2009/2010 season; second only to Elvis Dumervil from Denver who recorded 17 sacks. But no one; I mean NO ONE, did it quite like Jared Allen. Allen is memorable for his skills on the field but his fun-loving nature and original personality off the field is what tells the story.

He rocks a mullet, wears number 69 on the field, and cut off jorts with an overly zealous belt buckle in nearly every interview he does. Jared Allen signs autographs with Invizzable Ink and is definitely a brand I'm buying. Today, the Pro Bowl is being played in Miami, FL. In a game that matters only to those vacationing in South Florida and a few marketing sponsors, Jared Allen climbs to the top of my watch list today. Not because of his stellar defensive line play in a meaningless game; but because you never know what he's going to do after a sack. The flowing mullet and original brand that is Jared Allen is worth watching anytime he is on the field. Today it's not about the game, it's about the games Jared Allen plays. He makes me laugh and that alone is worth tuning in today. Take a look at the video I grabbed from You Tube and if you don't laugh, you just don't get it.

Tebow's Super Stance

2010-01-26T19:44:00.010-05:00

You either love him or you hate him... Sorry Columbus, Ohio but I love him - well, I love what he stands for anyhow. Tim Tebow was in the news again today, but it had nothing to do with his draft status. Tebow made the ESPN show, Pardon the Interruption for his Right-to-Life support stance in an advertisement for the upcoming SuperBowl. The Focus on the Family campaign features Tebow and his mother in an ad supporting Mrs. Tebow's decision to not follow Doctor's advice and keep her son despite medical risks. This is a sports marketing discussion so I'm choosing not to get into that topic, but maybe we can learn a thing or two about building a brand from Tim Tebow. Everyone in my industry seems to have an opinion regarding how to build a brand; and everyone coincidentally wants to tell others how to do it and why their particular way is superior. As I watched and listened to Wilbon and Kornheiser discuss Tebow's controversial stance, I was leaving the locker room at my gym and realized that Tim Tebow didn't care one way or the other what ESPN, the general public, or any political party thought of his stance. Tebow is a man of veracity. His integrity and character speak for itself and what you see is what you get from him.

In sports it is natural to pick popular athletes and like them or dislike them for various reasons. When I was a kid, I liked Walter Payton from the Chicago Bears because he played the game the way I thought it should have been played. Walter never ran out of bounds when the defense was coming after him; he faced his attackers head-on and worked to get every possible yard for his team. As I got older and became a team member, my pet peave was guys avoiding contact and going out of bounds instead of trying for that extra yard. I think the core reason I respect Tim as much as I do is because he is a tough guy. He plays the game the way it is meant to be played and he leaves everything on the field for his team. That's a teammate.

You know what you are getting from Tim Tebow and as a consumer you want that same trust in a brand. Consumers have options when it comes to choosing a product, and as marketers, its our responsibility to evangelize consumers to choose our brand over our competition. One way to ensure consumers will choose your brand is to create a sense of trust between your brand and your consumer. The same way Tim Tebow's teammates are confident that he is going to be the leader of their football team, consumers not only need but deserve that same sense of confidence in your brand or service to meet their expectations. Without consumer trust, your brand is susceptible to scrutiny and negative buzz. The negativity that surrounds a brand or an athlete are equal in the sense that their actions create the same type of person to person conversational buzz. Whether that buzz is negative or positive is in the positioning of each. Tim Tebow positions himself with the moral fiber of Christianty and personal devotion to his religion. It's authentic, it's definable, and it's believable. Is your brand sending the same loud and clear message?

Ordinarily I don't recall SuperBowl ads after a few days, and they have never convinced me to purchase a product, but all the buzz around this year's Tim Tebow ad just might prove me wrong. Good for you Tim Tebow. I'm buying your brand.

Who Dat Havin all that Fun!?

2010-01-25T13:12:00.000-05:00

Saints Video: Bourbon Street

A team that has never been to the big one is finally getting it's chance to show the rest of the NFL what Who Dat is all about. This video exemplifies my theory of sport producing a greater good in a community. The fanatical comradery that has engulfed the New Orleans Saints Who Dat Nation is an excellent example of what can be overcome by a community that has something to believe in. Those in sports know the story of the New Orleans Saints following Hurricane Katrina and have seen the images captured of shelter-seeking New Orleaners flocking to the Superdome for help. But time changes, and time heals - and now those same once displaced New Orleaners are feeling the love from a city that may just have the next SuperBowl Champions.

There's no doubt the unique vibe that makes Bourbon Street in New Orleans a must-experience city was in the air last night following the overtime thriller. What was also in the air though was euphoria. Look closely at the emotion of the faces of the Saints fans as Bourbon Street explodes with cheers. Fans are absolutely taken over with elation when they realize the kick was good and the Saints are going to the SuperBowl. (Just got goosebumps)

This is what professional sports should be about. A community and a team who support each other in bad times and good times, working together to elevate a community to be greater than the individuals that make it up. As a player, I would have loved to experience the euphoria and elation the Saints players, especially Garrett Hartley felt as the overtime field goal split the uprights to send them to the SuperBowl; but put me in the middle of Bourbon Street surrounded by the sights, smells, and electricity portrayed in this video and I think I would have been equally as happy.

Time-Trusted Friends

2010-01-23T15:36:00.000-05:00

Gearing up for a night out with the boys to celebrate our short friend Ty's last few weeks as a single man. He's getting married in a few weeks and asked me to be one of his groomsmen. Of course I said yes and remember the Put-in-Bay toast that immediately commenced... Cherry Bomb.

Thirty-five of Ty's friends rsvp'd that they would be at the Winking Lizard tonight at 8:00 p.m. to begin the night's events. Ty is a great friend. He was my college roommate for three years and now he lives a few doors down the street with his fiance Cassie. I've known the couple for 10 years and consider them "time-trusted friends." Coach Simrell, one of the three head coaches we had at Findlay during my career there, introduced that phrase to us. I remember joking about it at the time because we joked about everything in the locker room, but I think I know what Sim meant by time-trusted friends. I certainly have time-trusted friends in my life and I'm thinking about all of Ty's friend's who are celebrating with him tonight. Many of them are time-trusted friends.

The ah-hah moment for this blog came when I decided to use Invizzable-Ink as a tool to define business principles and key methods for success. As a result, I know that I would be remissed if I did not include healthy relationships as a key core value. Your business is only as strong as its people engaged in relationships working together to accomplish tasks. The depth of which an organization can accomplish tasks depends on its people and the relationships they manage. If they are surface relationships, you can expect about the same result from the body of work. When people are engaged in a trusting and freedom-given relationship, the abilities of both parties is maximized and the full potential of the relationship is reached.

You Win with People

2010-01-21T22:45:00.000-05:00

My fist real mentor was my college strength coach. Cal Dietz helped me become the athelte I became on a number of platforms. The first platform was the wooden one I did power-cleans on in the University of Findlay weightroom. I had no idea what I was doing and quite frankly I was lucky I didn't hurt myself. But Cal saw something in me that I didn't see in myself. He coached me, encouraged me, and developed the self-confidence I was lacking that ultimately lead me to the NFL.

I'll never forget the embarrassing first day of college football. For those that don't know what testing day is, it's the first day of the season that coaches can see the progress an athlete made in the off-season by having the athletes demonstrate various tests of strength and explosiveness. Players are tested on various strength tests such as the bench press and vertical jump. My first day as a skinny college athlete I did the 225lb bench press test zero reps. Yup, dropped the weight on my chest and couldn't lift it. Good thing I could catch a football because that was the only thing that was impressive about me as a freshman at the University of Findlay.

It wasn't until the following off-season when Cal came to the University that I aspired to be the best football player I could be. He started by teaching me how to eat. That's right; brought me to the dining hall and filled my plate with whole grain bread, deli-style turkey piled high - and I mean high, lots of vegetables, and two glasses of milk. I followed in his shadow as he explained why he was putting the different foods on my tray. "When you finish this tray, go back through the line and get the same thing again. If you need some ice cream to fill in the cracks that's ok." - I guess he wanted me to gain some weight. Which I did, the right way. Nutritious food with a little humor- I'll always remember that moment as Cal's first day of coaching me. From there it was all business in the weight room. I was always a good athlete because I was blessed with talent but Cal helped me become great.

I've had a lot of great coaches and teachers in my life but none quite like Cal. It takes a special person to find personal success in helping others achieve thier goals. Cal certainly has his own goals which is another skill I learned from him, but he always cared about his athletes reaching thier full potential. In his mind, if his athletes weren't reaching their full potential, he wasn't doing his job to his fullest potential. He gave us everything he had everyday as our coach, and in return, we gave him everything we had. It was the epitome of team. And I loved being a part of it. He made me want to be better everytime I was around him.

Cal will always be a dear friend and mentor. We talk about business ventures and philosophy when we have time and most recently we discussed the book Good to Great by Jim Collins. One of the themes in Collin's book is having the right people in the right positions for your organization. Maybe its the competitive nature of the NFL in me that has influenced me or possibly jaded me, but this philosophy is not just a suggestion for managers to consider is it? If you do not have the right people in the right positions your company will never be great. Just as Cal was the right person to help me, corporations have to find the same "right" people to ensure greatness. People are every company's greatest resource and I completely believe a happy employee is one whom is passionate. Find employees who have a passion for your business and listen to them. Develop them into what they want to be and they will give you everything they have for your business. You may not bench-press 400lbs when its all over, but you will have won the right way with the right people on your team. - Thanks Cal for inspiring me to be great.

Life Lessons mixed in Cognitive Psychology

2010-01-20T20:49:00.000-05:00

I remember my first real teaching experience; Second grade at Brookside Elementary. I woke up that morning and had a purpose, a certain motivation to somehow make a difference. The darkness of the morning commute allowed for some anxiety as I sipped my coffee. The questions were floating around in my head as I paid close attention to road signs, cautiously driving to Brookside. Work at an elementary school - It always sounded like something I would enjoy and be good at but as for a career, how would I know until I tried it, right? My football career was up in the air after all the injuries and so I decided to try something different for a while; at least until I was healthy enough to go to another try-out.

After stumbling through my first day and finally walking all the students outside to their busses, one of the little girls returned to the hallway hysterical, crying and shaking. I remember being alarmed and thinking, what is the matter with this poor girl! Confused and not real sure what the acceptable gesture was for the situation, I kneeled down, embraced her in my arms a little and tried to talk to her. She had blurted out between wails that she lost her jacket. The school secretary heard the commotion and soon came and assisted me with this dilemma; which I greatly appreciated because it was helpful to have a motherly figure around at this point. I decided that I would go in search of the jacket and bring it to the bus. The girl calmed down a bit and was off to bus twenty-seven, and I off to find the blue jean jacket.
I only took a few steps though until I realized this poor girl was absolutely terrified to go home without her jacket; or any bad news for that matter. She was scared for her safety. Luckily, I found her jacket on a chair in the hall. I picked up my pace back to the bus to give her the jacket but she had turned back in search of the jacket as well and met me in the hall. When I neared the doors of the building she made eye contact with me and as I kneeled down to give her the jacket she hugged me very tightly, as though I had just saved her of something terrible. It was a hug fueled by terror; not the hug that you imagine from a sweet little second grader. She didn’t say a word, just hugged me and took off for bus twenty-seven.

Why do I still remember the tightness of her hug; the smell of her hair; the shaking of her shoulders, the color of her coat and the number of the bus she rode off in?

The answers to these questions much like the answers to questions floating around your marketing department brainstorming sessions are in an understanding of Sir Frederic Bartlett’s work in Cognitive Psychology. The simple answer, because my schema of hugging a sweet innocent girl was interrupted. I have a six year old niece who is an absolute sweetheart. I look forward to visiting her and anticipate her smile and hug when I pull in the driveway and see her peeking from the kitchen window. When we become accustomed to a certain reality and fundamentally believe something to be a certain way or we are used to having something a certain way, it is human nature that over time we will expect it. When that normalcy is interrupted we have an emotional reaction to it, which causes us to talk about it - or write about it in a blog using a translucent blue-shade of Invizzible Ink.

Much of marketing is about experiences and connecting those experiences with real life consumers. Consumers are human beings, breathing and warm and influenced by a variety of dynamics that they can touch and smell and see for themselves. Consumers want to experience your brand for themselves; they aren’t interested in what a stranger on television tells them about a product anymore. Consumers want to feel the terrified hug and smell the little girl’s hair. As advanced as media has become, they still haven’t brought me a product I can smell, taste, touch, or feel… Invizzable Ink -

Fuel Up to Play60

2010-01-19T20:14:00.000-05:00

I had the best day today. I met with a friend who works as a Physical Therapist for special needs students in a district near and much like my hometown.

For the past year the American Dairy Association has been after our goal of placing Fuel Up to Play60 kits in schools. A kit contains tools that a school can use as part of supporting a healthy lifestyle in their building. We accomplished our goal and have been a part of some wonderful events as a result. Somewhere in the hustle and balancing of grad school and work though, I lost touch with the part of my job that allows me to be a part of changing kid's lives. I felt that emotion again today for the first time in a while and I was reminded again that God is good.

The topic of our conversation was Fuel Up to Play60, a program designed by the Dairy Council and the NFL to create healthy lifestyles in schools. A typical school meeting usually includes getting as many students as possible to sign the pledge and track their progress online because their school can win some great prizes if they win the competitions. But this meeting was different. This meeting was how the program could be used in a one-on-one teaching scenerio between my friend and the special kids she works with.

I'm proud of the success of Fuel Up to Play60 in Ohio but there is also something to be said for the people like my friend who are able to take this program and use it with special kids to improve their quality of life too. One of the boys my friend was telling me about was paralyzed in a car accident from his chest down but despite his challenges was still a pretty good athlete and a football fan. She believes he could compete in wheel chair sports if given the opportunity and feels the Fuel Up to Play60 program will be the ideal program to motivate him. I hope it is.

Our programs and brands can and will be talkable but the people who are talking about us is really what makes our programs and brands what they are. Consumers are the reasons we do what we do. They are ultimately the consumers of our passions. We owe it to them to be our best, to be honest, and to be what we say we are; even when the going gets tough. In return, we receive knowledge and understanding of who our consumers are, what they care about, and what they are passionate about. That seems like a pretty fair trade.

What is Invizzable Ink?

2010-01-18T22:07:00.000-05:00

Invizzable Ink guides the evangelist's favorite pen.

A product is only what people say it is... Regardless of what your CEO and board of directors want or expect; a brand in 2010 is only what people online and at the watercooler say it is. What's being said online and at the watercooler about your brand is making or breaking your business; be sure of that. We call it "Buzz" - or in this this case, Invizzable Ink. Invizzable Ink writes the language of Word-of-Mouth marketing . It's the buzz that surrounds your brand's existance in society... It's invisible to the eye but clearly seen at the watercooler. Invizzable Ink is organic matter that Brand Evangelists use to work.