October, 2009

Passionate People Who Make a Difference

By Barbara Burke. October 26th, 2009

Last week I had the opportunity to visit the headquarters of the publisher of my book and was delighted to discover that they walk their talk.

If you are a regular reader of these Monday Aha!s you know that publisher Hay House will be releasing the hardcover version of my book, The Napkin, the Melon & the Monkey in February. The company was founded by Louise Hay in 1987 and today is the largest publisher of self-help books on the planet. 
Since last November when I signed the contract, I have visited Hay House’s small office in New York City several times. My most recent visit was a few weeks ago when I met with the three PR pros in charge of promoting the book to both the business and consumer markets. I have been so impressed with the caliber of the staff in NYC as well as their genuine commitment to making the world a better place, I wanted to see if the same was true of the people at the main office in Carlsbad, California. The only way to find out was to pay them a visit.
I was delighted with what I found. Everyone I met was a pro and obviously committed to the Hay House mission of making a positive difference in the lives of others. After a day half of meetings with an array staff members and lunch with the CEO, this first-time author came away a bit overwhelmed and very excited about the plans Hay House has for my little book. I now have much better understanding and appreciation for what it takes to launch and promote a book these days. 


Book tours are out. Social media is in. Hay House dedicates considerable resources to creating a buzz on the web. So, with the help of their staff of “new media” experts I will be connecting with bloggers, providing articles to Hay House’s newly launched interactive site: www.healyourlife.com and maybe even Oprah.com. I’ll be working with their Facebook expert on doing more there. My interview on Hay House Radio will reach many thousands of people. But the coolest thing is the possibility of creating an iphone app featuring the 22 Aha!s from the book. (The new iphone apps were introduced in July and will someday replace their famous card decks.)
And then there are the videos which will go on U-tube, Amazon.com and various websites. To do that they needed some footage. On Wednesday I was scheduled to do my “There’s No Such Thing as a Difficult Situation” presentation to the 20+ employees who signed up. Knowing that I’d probably stress about being video-taped, they were considerate enough to wait until the night before to let me know they’d like to video tape my presentation. The employees made a great audience (see the photo). 
 In my last meeting I looked around the table at the eight staffers in charge of marketing and social media and it suddenly occurred to me that I now have my own “peeps.” I am so grateful! Finally after 24 years of being a one-person operation (with the “help” of my two associates, my cats) I now have a team of terrific people both there and in New York who share my passion for making a difference. How cool is that?

Have a great week knowing that there are people just like you out there who are passionate about making a difference.

Mayor of Moscow: It's going to snow whether you like it or not

By Barbara Burke. October 19th, 2009

“I could see now that somewhere along the way I had appointed myself the General Manager of the Universe. My attempt to control everything and everybody had to change or I was never going to be at peace with myself or with the rest of the planet.”

– excerpt from The Napkin, the Melon & the Monkey.

Yury Luzhkov, the Mayor of Moscow is at it again — trying his hand at being the General Manager of the Universe. In 2002 he tried to reverse the flow of the River Ob so that water could be diverted to a drought stricken area of the country. It didn’t work.
This year the Mayor plans to stop the snow from falling in the City of Moscow. It’s expensive to remove, he says, and it’s downright inconvenient. So, he has hired the Russian Air Force to spray the sky with chemicals so the snow misses Moscow and falls someplace else.  Experts say this idea won’t work either.
You probably have your own list of things you’d like to change. Here are some of mine. If I could, I would:

* Be 25 years young again.
* Get the paper delivery person to throw the paper within reach of my back door every morning.
* Make cell service, cable, internet access and electricity free for everyone.
* Reduce the months of cold weather in Minnesota from 6 to 3.
* Be upgraded to First Class every time I have to fly.
* Raise my recently departed dog, Layla, from the dead.
* Eradicate World hunger in my lifetime.

Although it’s entertaining to think about, the chances of any of the things on my list happening are zero.
I had an epiphany several years ago and finally resigned from being the General Manager of the Universe.  After experiencing the equivalent of a personal train wreck, I realized how deluded I was in thinking that I could control the behavior of others or live my life absent problems. I finally understood the real truth, put best by Jack Kornfield, “You can’t stop the waves, but you can learn to surf.”
This week catch a wave and enjoy the ride. And to those of you (Mayor of Moscow included) who live in a cold climate — it’s time to get out your snow shovel.

Stereotypes don't tell the whole story

By Barbara Burke. October 12th, 2009

Minnesota Nice: A style of pleasantness, courtesy, cooperation, and helpfulness associated with culture; a form of Midwestern charm.

Last week I was in New York City and the “Minnesota Nice” thing happened again. I was having breakfast at a restaurant in Manhattan getting acquainted with Beth Goodman and Meryl Moss — the two PR dynamos that Hay House has engaged to promote my book to the business media.  We were chitchatting and one of them remarked how “nice” Minnesotans were. I hear that remark all the time.
Strangers tell me their stories of personal encounters of the nicest kind.  Recently I sat next to a man at dinner in Atlanta who after learning I was from Minnesota, had to tell me about his visit to Minnesota a few years ago. He and his wife were returning to their downtown Minneapolis hotel after dinner. As they were navigating their way through the complicated Minneapolis skyway system (a network of enclosed, climate-controlled pedestrian walkways that link the buildings downtown) they became hopelessly lost. There they were — late at night in a strange city trapped like a hamster in a maze of walkways. A young couple going the opposite direction stopped to offer their assistance. You can bet that having that positive experience pre-disposed them to expecting the best from Minnesotans they met during their visit.
Stereotypes don’t tell the whole story. I know plenty of nasty Minnesotans who are rarely nice. New Yorkers are supposed to be pushy and rude. That hasn’t been my experience. I found most of the people I talked with during my recent visits to be just as nice as Minnesotans. The dangerous thing about stereotyping and categorizing others is that we often get what we expect.
This week examine some of your closely held stereotypes to see how accurate they really are.