BizBook Nuggets

The Blog Squad iPod Give-Away Contest

The Blog Squad Announces...

          Win an iPod Contest

We’re giving away 2 iPod nanos and a sleek Razer mouse
to celebrate the first year of our "Build a Better
Blog" ebook and Conversations with Experts TeleSeries.

iPod Contest:

Here’s how you can win an iPod nano loaded with our
entire Conversations with Experts TeleSeries! To
celebrate The Blog Squad’s first anniversary, Denise
and I are giving away 2 iPod nanos, plus a sleek Razer
Copperhead mouse. There are 3 ways you can win:

1. Subscribe to our ezine, Savvy eBiz Tips. All new
   subscribers are automatically entered into a random
   drawing for 1 iPod nano, preloaded with 44+ hours of
   Conversations with Experts.  Use this link to
   subscribe and enter the contest:

http://snipurl.com/SeBT_Contest

2. Enter by contributing your answer to this question:
   "In your experience, what is the most important
    marketing skill a professional must master to be
    effective in the years to come?"

We will judge the winning answer based on relevance,
utility, creativity, and "smart and savviness."

Use this link to enter your answer:

http://snipurl.com/Question_Contest

3. If you are already a Savvy eBiz Tips subscriber,
   you can win by referring the most number of friends
   and colleagues who sign up. This prize is a sleek Razer
   Copperhead mouse, the mouse that is so fast and precise,
   you will save your wrist action.  Use this link to
   make your referrals: 

http://snipurl.com/Contest_Referral

The Blog Squad's free weekly ezine, Savvy eBiz Tips,
gives action-oriented steps for streamlining online
marketing tasks, including those for blogs,
newsletters, websites, and e-commerce systems.

We'll be drawing the iPod and Razer mouse winners
the first week of May.

Good-luck!

Denise Wakeman and Patsi Krakoff
The Blog Squad

Real Leadership: Are You Part of the Middle Ages?

This post isn't about a book but about a new thought from Steve Rubel: if you want to find really great leadership, look at the mid-level executives. Steve writes a blog about PR and using the web for creating buzz, and to me has established himself as a thought leader for all things web.

But this transcends the web context. It's worth reading his entire post. Then, cogitate on this thought, and let me know if it resonates with you. Maybe truely great leadership is flourishing at the mid-levels, and we aren't even looking there to find it? Your thoughts, please.

Here's an excerpt:

The Middle Ages

What if leadership didn't originate from the top of an organization, society or ecosystem, but from its middle? Thanks to a flattening Earth, a declining trust in hierarchy, plus the rising prominence of mid-level stars, we're entering such an era. I call it “The Middle Ages.” Business and society will never be the same. (It's nothing like the last Middle Ages either.)

The Internet, in particular consumer generated media and search, is at the heart of this societal change. Consider The Long Tail. It is actually a byproduct of the Middle Ages. The concept here is that there's a glut of goods in the middle that are not hits, nor flops. They might be books on Amazon.com or bloggers and podcasters. What's important is that they are now thriving because they are easier to find thanks to Internet search and recommendation engines - be they human or computer-powered.

Biz Books and Sports in the News

Jack Covert over at 800CEORead blog writes that the Baltimore Ravens head coach is using Jim Collin's Good to Great bestseller to get his team working together.

Another example of the universality of business principles, and the cross-over between team sports and working in organizations. Now, if only there were half-time breaks, and you only had to perform a couple hours a week...

Biz Book on Teams a Favorite for NFL Footballers

Biz Books aren't just for executives anymore. Football coaches and quarterbacks are reading the Five Dysfunctions of a Team by Patrick Lencioni. Here's what a Nov. 27th article in USA Today says about the phenomenon:

Why is a business book catching on in the NFL? Partly because these are times when head coaches and CEOs are similarly struggling to maximize teamwork in a world of A-players, rainmakers and would-be hall-of-famers. But it may also be because coaches are closet fans of business leadership/management books, just as executives have long been fans of leadership books written by successful athletes and coaches, such as Wooden on Leadership by former UCLA basketball coach John Wooden.

Corporate leaders have traditionally borrowed from successful sports strategies to run their companies. But lately McCown and others in the NFL are learning a thing or two from a business book about winning tactics in the workplace.

Five Dysfunctions was written for business executives and managers. A football audience was so far from the mind of author Patrick Lencioni that the parable's heroine is a 57-year-old, female CEO named Kathryn who talks about such sappy things as fear of conflict.

Lencioni says he is stunned his book is becoming a must-read for NFL head coaches.

To read the full article and an excerpt from the book Five Dysfunctions of a Team, read further.

Peter F. Drucker Passes Away

I learned about the death of Peter F. Drucker while at the ICF Conference in San Jose, CA on Nov. 11th. Since then, I've been wanting to write a long article summarizing all his good writing, biggest concepts and major contributions to business thought. An impossible task. I've even put off this blog post about him, for fear that I would not do justice to his memory.

I've opted instead to give you a few links to articles about him on other blogs. In the meantime, I'm rereading some of my favorite Drucker books, and suggest you do too. If you have other links about him to share, please hit the comment link below and tell us.

Death of a Coach shared by John Agno on his Coaching Tip blog.

These links come from CEO Read Blog:

The Economist -- Trusting the teacher in the grey-flannel suit

Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania -- Farewell, Peter Drucker: A Tribute to an Intellectual Giant

BusinessWeek -- The Man Who Invented Management: Why Peter Drucker's ideas still matter

Forbes -- Peter Drucker’s Final Interview

The Wall Street Journal -- In His Words

USA Today -- Management guru Drucker told it like it was

Inc.

-- Flashes of Genius
-- Peter's Principles
-- The Uber Mentor
-- When Peter Drucker Speaks

Learning about Lean -- Drucker Tribute

Evolving Excellence -- Rest Well, Peter Drucker

BusinessPundit.com -- Peter Drucker Got it Right

Drucker Archives -- a little bit of everything Drucker

Leader to Leader Institute

-- Several quotes from various "Thought Leaders"
-- Links to a lot of Peter Drucker articles

Blog Squad Featured by 1ShoppingCart.com

1ShoppingCart.com Features The Blog Squad

Wow!  The Blog Squad strikes again.  Shop Talk, the online newsletter for 1ShoppingCart and their many private label systems, features us and the Build a Better Blog ebook in their November newsletter's Merchant Spotlight.

This past Wednesday we interviewed Martin Wales, VP at 1ShoppingCart about the powerful automated shopping cart/marketing system.  Then he turns around and features us in their newsletter. Very cool.  Thanks, Martin! 

P.S.  Check out Martin's other business, Customer Catcher and sign up for his marketing tips.  He's good.

P.S.S. Need to automate your systems? Use my affiliate link to try out the best shopping cart system around. Thanks!

Blog Squad in Coaching Insider

Blog Squad Interviewed by The Coaching Insider

During last week's International Coach Federation's 10th Annual Conference, your's truly -- The Blog Squad, was interviewed by Ken Winston Caine of The Coaching Insider.  You can check out The Blog Squad intereview here.

During last week's International Coach Federation's 10th Annual Conference, your's truly -- The Blog Squad, was interviewed by Ken Winston Caine of The Coaching Insider.  You can check out The Blog Squad intereview here.

The Aftermath of Hurricaine Katrina

It is confusing to know how to help, where to contribute...so much is needed in the tragic aftermath of the Hurricaine.

The Reuters Foundation 'Alertnet' just has referred me to a very helpful resource for small business owners and entrepreneurs who want to provide help to hurricane survivors. 

It's a comprehensive web site that not only details what relief organizations are currently engaged in the Gulf coast region, but also describes the scope and scale of their activities.

I'd like to encourage you to go over this list, read about the missions each one of these groups is involved in, select one you feel an affinity towards and make a contribution today.

Recovery from this disaster will be a long, multi-stage process, but there is an immediate need right now to provide food, water, and medical attention to the people who have lost their homes and means of support.

This is the best list I've found of groups that are in the region and doing what needs to be done right now.

http://www.interaction.org/katrina

Please copy and paste this message to friends, family and colleagues. Time is of the essence.

This information comes from internet expert Ken McCarthy at: http://www.SystemFundraiser.com, a comprehensive source of fundraising advice for small business owners and entrepreneurs interested in helping hurricane relief efforts.

Take care, and be healthy.