I’m working on a list of creative exercises. I’ve just added a reading list to get me started; I’d be interested in any more ideas folks can contribute to my list!

• The Book of Doing: Everyday Activities to Unlock Your Creativity and Joy by Allison Arden
• The Copywriter’s Bible (Mastercraft Series)
• Creativity magazine

Thanks to Twitter and @davidwain, I discovered a great speech from John Cleese — the hilarious actor of Monty Python’s Flying Circus fame — on creativity. If you have a half an hour to listen to some remarkably academic content from one of the funniest actors I know of, check this video out:

And here’s more from John Cleese: 4 Lessons in Creativity from John Cleese.

I’ve gotten a lot of back up from my online buddies, both bloggers and on Twitter, so I’m gonna keep sharing my goals with you folks. Feel free to do the same right back at me.

1. Less naysaying. Don’t you hate naysayers? I do. So I’m going to try and stop myself when I hear “Nay” about to emerge, and think twice. Why not say “Yay?” Or even “Maybe?”
2. More reading. I’ve got a lot of books lined up, many thanks to Santa, etcetera. So I have some reading to do. And it may be quite relaxing.
3. More gym time. Also relaxing, and it could easily go along with the reading, see how that works?
4. Clean up some clutter. I’ve got a number of boxes in my basement that haven’t been touched since I moved in, and that tells me there is some very useless crap in there. So do regular posts from the Unclutterer. Time to make some room!
5. Pay off some credit cards. I’ve been working on these, and a couple are due to disappear this year. I can’t wait! Thanks to Budgets Are Sexy for the encouragement.
6. More blogging. Friends of mine — My Scenic Byway and Thinking Clearly — that have just started are blazing through blog posts, and I am straggling with a post every other week or so. Shame on me. Time to get back on that horse!

Have a safe and healthy new year in 2011!

Also read: Making resolutions stick

The First Billion is the Hardest

Obama is on every publication cover on the shelves this month, and news programs are clamoring to guess what he’ll do next.

Oddly enough, another very popular figure has been T. Boone Pickens. I saw him at least three times this weekend; on the Daily Show with John Stewart, on Meet the Press, and on some other random MSNBC program.

He’s getting all kinds of attention, talking not only about his plan and his book, but also being asked his opinion on the destiny of the Big Three automakers. He’s even been nominated to be Time Magazine’s Person of the Year.

What do you think about the Pickens Plan? Is he making an impact? Or just blowing hot air?

The First Billion Is the Hardest: Reflections on a Life of Comebacks and America’s Energy Future

I really enjoyed the DC Ad Club’s luncheon speakers today, Brad Beckstrom of ApolloBravo Mobile Marketing and Rohit Bhargava, Sr. VP of Ogilvy’s Digital Influence group, author of “Personality Not Included” and Word of Mouth Marketing and Social Media expert.

Rohit talked about word of mouth marketing and how it can be integrated into your advertising, marketing or PR. His philosophy was interesting, and I was impressed to see that Guy Kawasaki wrote a foreword for his book. So I bought one of the signed copies he had there. Reading it now.

Brad filled us in on some recent stats from the CTIA (cellphone industry association) that are pretty astounding. Overall, I was impressed to know that cellphone ownership in the USA has now surpassed that of home PCs and web access. Plus, while more and more people have phones, the number of minutes Americans spend making phone calls has stayed pretty static. But the number of text messages (SMS) has grown exponentially. Of course these SMS messages can be used by companies to contribute to word of mouth campaigns.

Besides the book, I took away one big idea: word of mouth marketing is not something you can buy. But you can push it with advertising you buy or create, whether it’s guerilla marketing, or print, radio, TV advertising or SMS messages with three little words: “tell a friend.”

I wasn’t quite sure what to expect from this session at DC’s Ad Week. The title was “The Buzz in Business & Why It’s Not Hype.” Well, that title turned out to be mumbo-jumbo. What James Surowiecki (I will refer to him as James so I don’t slaughter his name repeatedly) spoke about was the wisdom of crowds. Coincidentally, he’s written a book on that topic.

Generally we don’t like to follow the crowd just because, but as market researchers, the wisdom of the masses is interesting to us.

So – James brought out some interesting examples. For instance, odds on horses at race tracks. Wikipedia. Google‘s page rank algorithm. The Threadless t-shirt company. The Hollywood Stock Exchange. All of these are success stories that hinge on the wisdom of groups.

James even threw out some interesting factoids, in case you’re ever on Who Wants to Be a Millionaire. The majority of the audience is right on 91% of the questions they’re asked to cast an opinion on. The experts, which contestants select ahead of time by topic area, are only correct 2/3 of the time. Just so ya know.

Of course there is a key to the success of mob rule. James provided some pointers.

• Be sure you’re aggregating lots of DIFFERENT opinions. You’re not looking for one or two genius ideas, you’re looking for a collective user response.
• Ideally, you want the group to be diverse, that is, thinking about the world in different ways, coming at problems from different angles.
• People need space to think for themselves. If you have an in-person group, watch out for high status people and talkative folks.

James’s book: The Wisdom of Crowds

I was recently asked to define celebrity service. Donna Cutting is writing a book on Celebrity Service.  Hmm, what makes me feel like a celebrity ?

Outside of immaculate cleanliness, perfumed tissues, and beverages offered at no extra charge for the full extent of my stay, what are we really talking about here?

I think it gets down to a definition I included in my last post: gracious …

I have been to upscale establishments where the staff are aware that they are supposed to be providing 5-star service to me, but I don’t quite look like the 5-star customer, so they provide a reluctant, snobbish version of the service. They are meeting all the minimum requirements, but not with the enthusiasm they would for, say, a rock star.

What a shame. I found myself surprised this weekend. I was at a rock concert this past weekend that happened to offer table service. We had a table for two next to a group of 3 girls and a guy. I overheard the ladies talking about how the guy might be able to get them backstage passes, and I didn’t really think anything of it. Imagine my surprise when the show started and he was on stage, playing the bass!

Our server may well have known who he was, but we had no idea. Cheers to our server, who provided excellent service to both tables. Also — remember that all so-called ‘important’ people do NOT go around with neon signs on their foreheads, whether the people that are important to you are rock stars, CEOs or journalists.

Elements of celebrity service ( in my opinion)

• Eagerness to please
• The customer is always, always, right
• Extra touches: in packaging, purchasing assistance, follow-up
• Listening vs. telling: giving your customer the floor and following through with their requests

Of course you walk a fine line: especially if you are a consultant, like myself. You need to be able to listen to a client and be able to tell them if they are steering themselves wrong. That’s not easy, but it can be done tactfully. Or should I say, gracefully?

Check out the book: The Celebrity Experience: Insider Secrets to Delivering Red Carpet Customer Service

This Day in the Life is the second book in the This Day series, but I got to participate in the making of this one. Almost 500 women kept journals on the same day. The editors of the book put together our entries, collecting not only our daily duties, but also our thoughts and feelings.

There is not one piece in this compilation that is not captivating.
Following up on the editors’ first collection of journal entries published in 2003, they selected 34 diaries out of 493 submissions written by a cross-section of American women on June 29, 2004. The collection’s success rests on both the astonishing variety of participants and the sincerity with which they describe an ordinary day…These women communicate bravery, compassion, humor and perseverance in this compulsively readable volume.”
— Publishers Weekly starred review

Unfortunately, The Day that we were journaling our days, my day was sufficiently boring that it fell to the cutting room floor. Nevertheless, I believe I am credited as a contributor, and I am very excited to see the final product.

It’s on sale December 27 – you can preorder it from Amazon.

Addendum: I bought my copy – I am indeed credited as a contributor – everyone who knows me should go buy a copy so I can autograph it for them! (I will autograph the book for free – other items are $5 each. Check out the website for more on the book, it’s a very interesting concept.