Time...well spent

 

 

In the end TIME is all we have.

 

How we spend it is all that matters.

 

Spend WISELY.

 

 

The Cost of Free?

The "Drury".  The what?  The "Drury".  We were on the way to the hotel to meet up with family, and were laughing with our daughter Madison as we were trying to pronounce it without it sounding like the "dreary hotel"!  Drury - which in addition to being mildly hard to say can be funny if someone instead hears "dreary".  Some hotel marketer somewhere is going to have to overcome that.  But then again, who cares!  What's in a name?

I hadn't ever been in one - A Drury Hotel that is.  Frankly I had never heard of them before now. 

So what's in a name?  If the name is Drury - free hot breakfast, free 5:30 kickback, free wireless Internet,  free long distance calls, etc..  In addition to all the "freebies", The Drury in North Phoenix is nice!  We had the good fortune of managing one of the nicest Hampton Inns in the country in St. Pete, Florida.  It was a nice hotel.  None the less, hard to compare to the Drury, as there was a lot more marble in this hotel than I have ever seen in a Hampton Inn - including the one in St. Pete.  The Drury reminded me of the Crescent Hotel - Charlie Keating's infamous brass and glass palace built back in the 80's.  Coincidentally about nine miles due South of the Drury. 

In addition to the published "freebies", this one happens to have had free fresh popcorn in the lobby, and an apparently all you can drink soda fountain.  I'm not sure why they bothered with soda machines on the guest floors however.  Maybe to capture the guy who's too tired or too lazy to make the long trek down to the first floor for the free soda!  For our family of six, the free breakfast and "5:30 Kickback" alone (which essentially can replace dinner) is a huge savings to the budget when traveling.

Where will it all end?  While lounging poolside, I couldn't help but to digress, put on my hotel finance hat, and wonder how they were making any money.  What's the room really costing, is this model sustainable, and wondering at the same time just how bad are they hurting other brands? 

But then again, who cares?  I'm not the guy holding the mortage!  I soon came to my senses, stopped thinking, and instead went and got a free refill on my iced tea and a refresh on my popcorn.  Thank goodness for the Drury!  When is breakfast?!

Creating Tribal Culture

Tribal culture is created by it's leader’s passion and creative drive.  This is the catalyst that fuels tribal culture.

Culture flows from the leader.  Whether a family, team, rock band, or billion dollar organization, tribal culture is a byproduct of it's leader.  Who the leader is.  Their passions.  What they believe.  All these drive what they create, and is the fuel that drives tribal culture.

Apple is Apple because of Steve Jobs.  Experiencing his passion from afar through his inspirational creations all these years has been an amazing thing to witness.  His heart and passion explodes out of everything he has created.  His shoes cannot and should not try to be filled.  They are his shoes no one else’s.  I have more respect for him as a leader than ever before watching the amazingly brave thing he has done in stepping down from the helm of something he obviously is very passionate about.  I wish him and the compnay nothing but the best.

Zappos is Zappos because of Tony Hsieh.  Expose yourself to Zappos’ customer obsessive culture.  Their Culture Book alone is worth writing them for and they will blow you away with their customer obsession, generosity, professionalism, humility, passion for what they do, and yes - a little wierdness!  Read Tony’s book Delivering Happiness if you want a glimpse from the leader himself as to how the culture at Zappos was born, why they are who they are, and why they exist!  Wow!   

U2 is U2 because of Bono and his Big Idea.  Yes, Bono is quick to point out and share the credit with Edge, Larry, and Adam that make up the band, and the tribe in Dublin and elsewhere that all make the shows and everything U2 does happen.  However Bono is their leader.  The highest grossing tour of all time, the result of a passionate and multi-generational audience, whose collective passion moves mountains is not a coincidence.  It is fueled by its catalytic leader.

Great tribes are energized from the top by their leaders.   Whether mind blowing products, Wow, or music that moves mountains, the leader’s passion and creative drive propels the tribe. 

The world is a better place because of Steve, Tony, and Bono.  The amazing things they've created, and the tribes they lead. 

Be Extraordinary or Else

Be extraordinary or else.

Extraordinary things create demand.  Businesses that are extraordinary  don’t have to discount to generate demand – they're remarkable instead. 

In our neighborhood there are a few local restaurants that have great food, a unique experience, and friendly employees that get hospitality.  No matter the price point they are busy.  No one wants to eat at an empty restaurant – it’s empty for a reason. 

Many businesses that aren’t great enough to be busy have succumbed to online discounters like Groupon, LivingSocial, and others to generate demand. 

The cost is high.  One restaurateur admitted the net proceeds are 25% of retail after the discounter’s cut.  In his business that doesn’t cover his food cost.  This is not a sustainable strategy.  A spa marketer mentioned that a client got hit with a coupon demand they couldn’t service and had unhappy customers.  Unhappy customers tell friends.

When you’re extraordinary the price is the price.  Create demand by being extraordinary or else.

"Creating Interest in Our Brand"

Dasein - Invitation to Hang is a work created by artist Chase Jarvis that was recently staged at the Ace Hotel in New York City.

A very interesting and very creative way of taking an art form and creating a living breathing gallery inside a boutique hotel in NYC.  Photos being contributed by photographers from all over the world via the web (freely), and being selected and shown by the artist on a daily basis as a collection of photos inside the hotel. 

The brain child of the artist, and looking at the Ace’s site it seems to be very much in sync with their branding as a hip and edgy boutique hotel.  I am guessing the Ace hotel is experiencing increased interest, traffic, attention, and exposure to their hotel and brand as a result of this work.

So how does this concept translate/transfer to other hotels?  Other ideas, translations, or iterations to create interest and awareness in our brand - our product? 

That’s for you and others to figure out.  Get creative, create excitement.  Give someone a reason to check it out and most importantly talk to others.

Barriers to Competition?

In the early days of my career in the luxury hotel business we used to hang our hat on perceived barriers to new competition.  A magical setting with a "sense of place", exceptional service, world class cuisine...  Back then we also knew the capital cost of new construction was a significant barrier.  They worked to a degree for a while.

That was then.  Airbnb is now.  With 20,000,000 connections and counting, and a $100 million round meaning a $1 billion valuation this is formidable new competition for the traditional hotelier. 

The world has gotten incredibly connected and very social.  Everywhere there are tribes of people forming with no geographical boundaries - just common interests.  We yearn to be connected to people in a meaningful way.  Life is too short to go it any other way. 

What barriers?

The magical setting may be just down the road, footsteps away, or the view from the back deck.  World class cuisine is likely at our fingertips, at a trendy local haunt again down the road, or a function of a lively and engaging dinner party hosted in our new vacation home compliments of airbnb.  The guests of the party are a local subset of one of the tribes we're in and we are meeting many new friends in person for the first time and we are having a blast.  Exceptional service?  Maybe - maybe not.  But who cares.  We are having the time of our life.  "Have you been out on the deck yet?"

There are no barriers to new competition. 

Staying relevant and protecting market share and profitability means being remarkable - memorable.  For a refresher on being remarkable read Seth Godin's, Purple Cow. 

It takes blue ocean strategy.  So unique, so special, so remarkable it can't be replicated, or results in such a head start that major competition is not likely.

It's innovative.  Innovate or die. 

We live in very exciting times!   

 Bruce

Pursuing Greatness

When was the last time anyone used the word “great” when they were describing you?  I was struck by this thought this morning when our son Austin’s coach said how much they loved having him on the track team, “He is a great kid!”

Do people describe our country as being great?  Our family?  Our children?  Do we live in great neighborhoods - that are a part of great communities?  Do we work at great companies?  Do we play on great teams?  Are we still making great advances?  Are we pursuing greatness?  For some of us, maybe we can still say we are a part of and pursuing great things.  Great!


He is a great leader…a great friend…a great coach… a great husband…a great father…a great neighbor…a great servant…a great mentor…a great trainer…a great teacher…a great doctor…a great motivator…a great investor…a great businessman…a great (enter anything you want to).

In his book Good to Great, author Jim Collins said, "Good is the enemy of great."  I agree - great lies well beyond good.  Anyone can achieve a good result - pursuing greatness takes more.  

You have to have a clear vision for what “greatness” looks like.  You have to know what you want to be great at.  You have to have a crystal clear picture of where you want to end up.  What the “end” looks like.  Don’t get caught up in the “how to”.  That can tend to limit your perception of what is possible.  You have to see in your mind what greatness looks smells and feels like.  Picture the end…the result. 

You have to have a passion for what you want to be great at.  You have to want it.  When things get difficult and your heart is not into something it is too easy to abandon the effort and accept a good result without the “heart” to achieve greatness.  I have met countless individuals in my life that didn’t really want to be great.  Some seem to not even want to be good.  I myself have struggled from time to time - accepting being "good" at something and taking my eye off the result – losing the desire or lacking the discipline to continue to pursue a “great” result.  Pursuing greatness takes passion.

You have to change.  What you did got you to where you are.  Where you are going will take a new and different set of behaviors.  This means change.  Get used to the discomfort that comes from trying new things.  You likely did it as a kid.  You didn’t have the skills it took to walk, ride a bike, climb a tree, or swim.  You tried news things to accomplish a new result.  You changed.  More of the same will simply get you more of the same.  Try less of the same and more of the new – change.

You have to pursue greatness.  Inactivity is not an option.  You don’t have to have a clear path to your result.  Just start.  You didn’t have a clear picture of how to get to the top of that tree as a kid.  You just started climbing.  The path became obvious to you as you climbed.  My challenge is not getting to the gym and working out every morning.  It is the first five seconds after I wake up – getting my feet to the floor in the direction of my workout clothes – inertia.  Start in the direction of your goal.  Just start.    

You have to accept failure.  Trying new things will result in failure from time to time.  That’s okay.  There is risk whether you stay the same or you pursue greatness.  Decide to choose a new set of risks.  Learn from your failures as opposed to avoiding them all together.  You likely fell many times attempting to ride that bike as a kid.  You simply increased your understanding along the way and eventually mastered the skill.  Have you been failing lately?  If not this is likely a sign you are not pursuing greatness.

Believe.  Believe you can accomplish the result - believe you can get there.  If you can’t believe, at least suspend the disbelief.  You don’t have any more information telling you that you can’t get where you want to go, so why not simply suspend the disbelief.  Either way believe or suspend your disbelief. 

Have fun.  Be in the moment to the best of your ability and enjoy the ride!  Don’t get caught up in thinking too much about the future, or worrying about how you will get there.  Just do what you need to do now - today - in pursuit of your vision, and have a blast doing it.  Believe it or not…you have everything it takes already inside you to make it.  Have a great day!

Bruce