Posts by Christopher Lochhead
014 Don’t Take My Word For It
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In this episode, Christopher Lochhead talks about how marketers strategically use language. Legendary marketers create a new language that educates the world on how they want their product or service perceived. Customer’s adaptation to that language is also a great tool to measure success.
How People Perceive Us
Christopher recently had Lee Hartley Carter on Follow Your Different Episode 099. Lee and her firm specialize in language strategy. We can infer that marketers pay very close attention to the use of words.
Christopher reminds us that the usage of some phrases undermines a person’s credibility. Some examples include phrases such as “don’t take my word for it” or “let me be honest with you.”
“Legendary Marketers and Category Designers know that a demarcation point in language creates a demarcation point in thinking, which creates a demarcation in action, usage, and consumption.” – Christopher Lochhead
Create New, Powerful Language
Christopher discusses how legendary marketers use language to create new thinking that educates the world. This language teaches customers what they do, why it matters and how to value it.
Some important examples are Starbucks and their “Double Grande Latte” instead of medium coffee. Another one is selling “pre-owned vehicles” versus “used cars.” Moreover, cloud-based software benefitted greatly with the usage of “on-premise software”
Indication of Success
It’s far too common to hear at almost every other coffee shop other than Starbucks — customers are asking for Grande or Frappe. Customers adapting to a new language is a great indication of success.
“You know you’re winning when customers start using your language, parrot them back to you, and they use it in the competitor’s stores.” – Christopher Lochhead
Christopher stresses Lee’s point, marketers need a language strategy! Category creators and designers create a new language to create a demarcation point in thinking, action, usage, and consumption.
To hear more about don’t take my word for it and more relevant information about language strategy from Christopher Lochhead, download and listen to the episode.
Bio:
Christopher Lochhead is a Top 25 podcaster and #1 Amazon bestselling co-author of books: Niche Down and Play Bigger.
He has been an advisor to over 50 venture-backed startups; a former three-time Silicon Valley public company CMO and an entrepreneur.
Furthermore, he has been called “one of the best minds in marketing” by The Marketing Journal, a “Human Exclamation Point” by Fast Company, a “quasar” by NBA legend Bill Walton and “off-putting to some” by The Economist.
In addition, he served as a chief marketing officer of software juggernaut Mercury Interactive. Hewlett-Packard acquired the company in 2006, for $4.5 billion.
He also co-founded the marketing consulting firm LOCHHEAD; was the founding CMO of Internet consulting firm Scient, and served as head of marketing at the CRM software firm Vantive.
Link:
We hope you enjoyed this episode of Lochhead on Marketing™! Christopher loves hearing from his listeners. Feel free to email him, connect on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and subscribe on iTunes!
102 How to make your place in the world w/ “The Three Foot Giant” Dr. Sean Stephenson
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Today’s episode is a special re-issue with Dr. Sean Stephenson, “The Three-Foot Giant.” He’s a great example of turning obstacles into opportunities, transforming his life into a legendary one. This conversation with Christopher Lochhead is made even more powerful upon the recent passing of Dr. Sean Stephenson.
Join us as we relive the inspiring story of “The Three Foot Giant” in this episode.
A (Legendary) Life Well Lived
Dr. Sean passed away on the 28th of August 2019, following an accident. He was predicted not to survive at birth because of his rare bone disorder, Osteogenesis Imperfecta, which stunted his growth and caused his bones to be extremely fragile. When he was 18 years old, he has already fractured his bones for over 200 times.
Despite his obstacles in life, he lived an inspiring life. He served as an instructive example of how to make your place in the world when you can’t find a place in the world. He worked for President Clinton and shared the stage with his Holiness the Dalai Lama and Oprah. He’s also the author of the bestseller: Get Off Your “But”: How to End Self-Sabotage and Stand Up for Yourself.
“I have decades and decades of education where I help people through their pains and their problems. But in some ways, I’m still learning to walk myself, learning to navigate this world, and I’m loving the experience of making mistakes.” – Dr. Sean Stephenson
Staying True To Oneself
Even after achieving his stature as a public speaker, Sean admits that he’s still growing. He was in business with his father for 22 years. His experiences at home were wonderful as he lived with his family until he was 31 years old. However, all good things must come to a challenging end, when he decided to step out into the world, leaving his father behind.
“As of recent, I decided to “out” my true self, words and all. I kind of hid that over the years. If people knew that about me, they wouldn’t respect me. I’m finding out the opposite is true, the more honest I am, the closer people are becoming to me.” – Dr. Sean Stephenson
Breaking the Mold
To continue his self-discovery, he would reorganize his life every five years or so. He wants to look back on the past five years to reevaluate and learn from his mistakes.
“Maybe there’s a wrongful belief out there that the version of you will always be the same as you get older but I don’t agree with that. I’m constantly breaking the mold and starting over and trying new things and figuring out what do I believe in.” – Dr. Sean Stephenson
To hear more about how to make your place in the world and more relevant information about “The Three-Foot Giant” Dr. Sean Stephenson, download and listen to the episode.
Bio:
Dr. Sean Stephenson was predicted not to survive at birth because of a rare bone disorder that stunted his growth and caused his bones to be extremely fragile (fracturing over 200 times by the age of 18).
Despite his challenges, he took a stand for a quality of life that has inspired millions of people around the world.
Since 1994, his powerful message has been heard at live events in nearly all 50 states and in 16 countries.
Sean has presented at hospitals, universities, prisons, and to companies such as Nike, Whole Foods, Zappos, Walmart, and Sharp Healthcare. He’s shared the stage with U.S. Presidents, billionaire business moguls, celebrities, and his Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama.
Sean has appeared on everything from The Oprah Show to Jimmy Kimmel, in addition to online videos with tens of millions of views.
The Biography Channel produced an hour-long feature on his life called, Three Foot Giant.
Mindie Kniss & Sean Stephenson his international best-selling book, Get Off Your “But”, has been translated into over a dozen different languages.
As a board-certified therapist, and doctor of Clinical Hypnosis, Dr. Stephenson used to see clients in a unique 12-hour session that gets to the root of their fears, excuses, and insecurities.
In the past, Sean hosts live events and group coaching programs to mentor individuals in the art and business of public speaking.
Sean also used to frequent the gym, play NBA 2K with his friends, or watch NBA basketball with his wife and business partner, Mindie Kniss.
Links:
Because of Dr. Sean’s condition, he was only able to qualify for basic health insurance and was not able to qualify for life insurance.
You can support his family with a GoFundMe donation here:
Osteogenesis Imperfecta Foundation
We hope you enjoyed this episode of Follow Your Different™! Christopher loves hearing from his listeners. Feel free to email him, connect on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and subscribe on iTunes!
101 What Motivates Entrepreneurs? w/ Jaime Masters
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Our guest today, Jaime Masters is an entrepreneurial coach and podcasting pioneer. She hosts “Eventual Millionaire” and she shares with us today some fun, practical and insightful learnings on what it takes to become a legendary entrepreneur.
She is an engaging business thinker who has her own quirks (love for costumes) and an amazing mother of two kids who are budding entrepreneurs.
From Tardy to Masters
Jaime Masters hosts the podcast Eventual Millionaire, where Christopher was once invited to promote his first book Play Bigger. She has interviewed close to 500 millionaires and she shares them through her book of the same title, Eventual Millionaire.
Jaime shares with us some funny and serious experiences she had when she started using her maiden name again. The name “Jaime Masters” is now a brand and she admits that she has no further intention of changing her name again, even when she remarries.
“It was something like, looking out when I’m 60, which person do I want to be? Which brand do I want to be building on my life?” – Jaime Masters
Her Kids Attend Entrepreneur School
It was a fun and admirable part of this episode when Jamie shared that her kids, a 12 and 10-year old, go to Entrepreneur School. The school has no homework and grades. They also do not have teachers, instead, they have guides. The school maximizes gamification for their modules.
“They’re learning 2x faster also, which is another thing the school wants. They learn life skills. My son video edited for my clients and is better than the editor that has been with me for 8 years.” – Jaime Masters
Part of teaching life skills, they are set to become entrepreneurs early as they are encouraged to sell products and services during their summer vacation. Jamie’s son went door-to-door with his pressure washer business and her daughter went to sell rosemary to neighbors.
“To me, the best thing about the school is, it’s about grit and pushing you out of your comfort zone. Teaching that at such a young age, not teaching memorization.” – Jaime Masters
Concerns and Motivations of Solopreneurs
Having interviewed around 500 millionaires, Jaime shares the inability to decide whether or not to hire a team is a common concern for them. Jaime further shares her process of assessing and diagnosing her clients’ concerns because sometimes, it is not a “team-problem” but an “owner-problem.”
Furthermore, she acknowledges the fact that most entrepreneurs want progress in their business. She reminded, however, her personal experiences of failing due to the wrong reasons.
“Knowing yourself really, really well is the best thing in entrepreneurship, even though it’s shitty. There are millions of holes that open up but thankfully, the holes to fill it are not achievement and materialism, which you’ll find out if you’re long enough in the game.” – Jaime Masters
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Bio:
Jaime Masters is a podcasting pioneer, host of the popular “Eventual Millionaire”, a Business Coach, Keynote Speaker, and Best Selling Author.
She’s been featured on:
CNNMoney, Yahoo’s homepage (6x), Business Insider, Inc, CNN Newsroom, Entrepreneur, Fox Business News, Success Magazine and Christopher Lochhead Follow Your Different.
Links:
We hope you enjoyed this episode of Follow Your Different™! Christopher loves hearing from his listeners. Feel free to email him, connect on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and subscribe on iTunes!
013 Committees Kill Legendary Marketing
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In today’s episode, Christopher gives us a rundown on why he thinks committees kill legendary marketing.
Why is so much marketing, shitty?
Christopher Lochhead candidly shares his honest observation on the industry today: a lot of marketing efforts suck. Aside from bad creatives, much of this onslaught of marketing stems from their inability to make a difference in designing and dominating a market category. Who’s to blame? Christopher says its the committees.
“This is probably true for most major initiatives in business, but it’s especially true in marketing because, fundamentally, legendary marketing is about leadership.” – Christopher Lochhead
To become the leader in your space — the category queen — a company must define and dominate a market niche. This not only holds true in tech companies but for almost all industries today. To dominate a market, every company’s objective should focus on building the company that wins, with a clear point of view on problem-solving.
The problem with committees
A famous automotive engineer and businessman, Charles Kettering, once said: “If you want to kill any idea in the world, get a committee working on it.” Why does committees hinder legendary marketing?
“The problem with most committees is that they are focused on process, not results.” – Christopher Lochhead
Committees generally try to incorporate everyone’s “feedback,” spend time “socializing ideas” and analyzing data. In the end, they are trying too hard to make everyone happy. Committees strive to be collaborative and ensure that all constituents have a say.
More issues with committees
A structural problem with many committees is that a lot of people can say no, while at the same time, they are not clear about who can say yes. By definition, if everybody agrees, that’s not a legendary idea.
“As a result, committees produce a compromise. They settle on the ideas that everyone could agree on. Not legendary ideas.” – Christopher Lochhead
Additionally, people involved in committees are oftentimes not subject matter experts themselves, which further leads to mediocre marketing efforts.
“It’s not about what people like, it’s about what’s gonna work. Particularly what’s gonna work through the lens. Will these help us design and dominate a giant category that matters and take 2/3 of the economics?” – Christopher Lochhead
To hear more about committees kill legendary marketing and more relevant information from Christopher Lochhead, download and listen to the episode.
Bio:
Christopher Lochhead is a Top 25 podcaster and #1 Amazon bestselling co-author of books: Niche Down and Play Bigger.
He has been an advisor to over 50 venture-backed startups; a former three-time Silicon Valley public company CMO and an entrepreneur.
Furthermore, he has been called “one of the best minds in marketing” by The Marketing Journal, a “Human Exclamation Point” by Fast Company, a “quasar” by NBA legend Bill Walton and “off-putting to some” by The Economist.
In addition, he served as a chief marketing officer of software juggernaut Mercury Interactive. Hewlett-Packard acquired the company in 2006, for $4.5 billion.
He also co-founded the marketing consulting firm LOCHHEAD; was the founder/CMO of Internet consulting firm Scient, and served as head of marketing at the CRM software firm Vantive.
Link:
We hope you enjoyed this episode of Lochhead on Marketing™! Christopher loves hearing from his listeners. Feel free to email him, connect on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and subscribe on iTunes!
100 Grumpy Old Geeks Co-Host Brian Schulmeister
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Today, we have a super fun conversation with Brian Schulmeister, the co-host of Grumpy Old Geeks podcast. We shared stories about music and what it was like doing websites for top bands and names in the industry. Of course, we got our grump on! We talk about what’s in the news: undersea data cables, A.I, data breach and many more!
Websites For Music Artists
Brian Schulmeister is the co-founder of Slender Fungus, a design company working primarily within the music industry. His vast experience in building websites landed him projects with big names such as Goo Goo Dolls, Alanis Morisette, Green Day, Coldplay and Rihanna, among others.
He started his career way back in 1996 and he shared some interesting points on how he went on to pursue clients on his own. He also commented on the music industry at the present time and how consumers are consuming it so poorly.
“The generation now and the way people experience music now is so shallow and disconnected from the artist and its singles. Spotify playlist through horrible headphones, it’s just bad.” – Brian Schulmeister
Grumpy, Angry and Too Depressed
Brian Schulmeister is the co-host of the podcast Grumpy Old Geeks, with Jason DeFelippo. The podcast, which is included in Christopher’s Top 5 list, has originally started as a joke but the hosts later realized they were admittedly angry about a lot of topics. Brian admits he is angry and still is but they try to pepper the episodes with humor.
“The funny thing is at one point I literally wanted to quit the podcast. I felt I was getting too grumpy, too angry, too depressed. I really did. It was shortly after the birth of my child and I started to realize that I really need to have a better outlook in life right now.” – Brian Schulmeister
Let’s Get Our Grump On!
In relation to technology topics, Christopher says that it is easy to be cynical and be fun and grumpy on technology but the reality is, technology has made the world a better place. It has created more opportunities and breakthroughs in the lives of human beings.
“We are at a tipping point right now, at least for technology. We can very easily lose control of sh*t right now. There are some important movements going on right now, the whole data and human rights.” – Brian Schulmeister
Christopher discusses some topics that are on the news such as the 8000 undersea data cables from Hong Kong to Los Angeles, or the data breach at Capital One that allegedly also compromised another 30 companies. They also shared a good laugh about different kinds of farts and shared their reactions about a man collapsing his lungs after a 2-hour karaoke session.
To hear more about the Grumpy Old Geeks Co-Host Brian Schulmeister, download and listen to the episode.
Bio:
Brian lives in Venice, CA, frequents Toronto and London and has spent a lot of the last 10 years happily living out of a suitcase – and a large backpack filled with laptops, cords, wires and various bits and bobs that bloop and bleep.
He’s the co-founder of Slender Fungus, a design company working primarily within the music industry.
He is also the co-writer with Rob Takac of the Goo Goo Dolls in Amungus, an electronica based music project that’s released an EP and played a few festivals.
Brian started with technology at the dawn of time, even running his own BBS at the age of 13, and has stuck with it since then.
And as the co-host of the wildly popular Grumpy Old Geeks Podcast, needless to say, he’s quite grumpy.
Links:
Topics discussed in this Oddcast:
National Security Concerns Threaten Undersea Data Link Backed by Google, Facebook
Too Much Karaoke Sent a Man to the Hospital with a Collapsed Lung
AI can predict when someone will die with unsettling accuracy
The world’s funniest fart sounds messy, lasts four seconds and is embarrassing, scientists say.
French ‘Flying Man’ crosses Channel on jet-powered hoverboard
We hope you enjoyed this episode of Follow Your Different™! Christopher loves hearing from his listeners. Feel free to email him, connect on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and subscribe on iTunes!
012 Category Creation Economics 101
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In this episode, Christopher Lochhead talks about the powerful, surprising winner-take-all realities of categories and why you want to be the category queen/king in your market. Christopher layout facts and data on category creation economics that you’ll find beneficial for your business, whether you’re in the tech industry or not.
Winner Takes All
In Christopher’s first book Play Bigger, they wrote about a research project they conducted on thousands of tech start-ups from 2000 to 2015, determining the market cap or valuation. Specifically, they wanted to know the percentage of the total value goes to the leader or category queen. In reality, one company gets 2/3 for the entire market category.
“The study shows that category queens earned 76 percent of the market capitalization of their entire market categories.” – Christopher Lochhead
Christopher’s good friend, Bob Evans said: “every company is a software company.” Tech company dynamics are now applicable to non-tech companies.
VCs “Me Too Strategy”
Christopher quoted a portion from his book Play Bigger. VCs oftentimes fall for the Me Too strategy where every firm would invest in some company in an emerging category, thinking it will succeed just like the first one who did.
“In Silicon Valley, we’ve watched venture capitalists (VCs) increasingly adopt a category king investment philosophy. Paul Martino of Bullpen Capital notes that VCs used to have a “me-too” strategy. If a start-up hit it big and opened up a hot new category, the many VC firms in Silicon Valley assumed that there was room for a lot of winners in that category.” – Christopher Lochhead, Play Bigger
Furthermore, Paul Martino tells us “it’s now apparent that one company wins big and dominates a healthy c0ategory, and the rest struggle, get acquired or perish. That means that as soon as one company appears to be the category king, the smart money competes to invest in that company, bidding up its value.”
Category Creation is the Ultimate Strategy
Christopher’s friend and category guru to Fortune 500 companies Eddie Yoon wrote for Harvard Business Review on the financial impacts of category creation.
He reported that “top 20 firms in Fortune‘s 2010 list of fastest-growing companies received $3.40 in incremental market capitalization for every $1.00 of revenue growth. Half the top 20 companies grew via category creation. Wall Street exponentially rewards the category creation companies, giving them $5.60 in incremental market capitalization for $1.00 in revenue growth.”
“No matter how you want to look at it, the bottom line is category kings take the vast majority of economics and are massively rewarded for becoming the category queen of the space.” – Christopher Lochhead
To hear more about the category creation economics 101 and more relevant information from Christopher Lochhead, download and listen to the episode.
Bio:
Christopher advised over 50 venture-backed startups. He is a Venture Capital Limited Partner and a former three-time Silicon Valley public company CMO, entrepreneur. In addition, he co-authored two bestsellers: Niche Down and Play Bigger.
After he flunked school, with few other options, Christopher started his first company at the age of 18.
He was a chief marketing officer of software juggernaut Mercury Interactive. Hewlett-Packard, in 2006, acquired that company for $4.5 billion.
Further, he also co-founded the marketing consulting firm LOCHHEAD. Christopher was the founder/CMO of Internet consulting firm Scient. He also served as head of marketing at the CRM software firm Vantive.
Christopher loves his family and friends. He thinks the Ramones are legendary and loves riding the mountains and waves of Northern California.
Links:
Category Creation Is the Ultimate Growth Strategy
Fortune‘s 2010 list of fastest-growing companies
We hope you enjoyed this episode of Lochhead on Marketing™! Christopher loves hearing from his listeners. Feel free to email him, connect on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and subscribe on iTunes!
099 Persuasion w/ Lee Hartley Carter
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Languaging Master Lee Hartley Carter joins us today for a riveting conversation about the power of language and the art of persuasion. She discusses today how language shapes everything in our lives and how to use language to convince people when facts don’t seem to matter.
Marketers and non-marketers will surely learn a ton from this conversation about communications, language strategy, and persuasion.
The Power of Language
Lee candidly shares with Christopher that she never thought about a job opportunity which involves words and messaging. When she was younger, she considers herself as obsessed with words.
For her, language is the means in which people can connect with other human beings and convey thoughts, feelings, and perspectives. Language is a powerful tool with every word, having its own meaning.
“That change in language changes thinking, which ultimately change social beliefs and norms and potentially laws and governance approaches. It can change a lot of things.” – – Lee Hartley Carter
Language Strategy in Marketing
Lee further cites examples of how the smallest change in language can have a huge impact. She cited differences in words such as estate tax/death tax, or global warming/climate change, or used vehicles/pre-owned vehicles. A simple change of words can reshape how people think about the message.
Lee also shared the common mistake marketers make in conveying a message. Oftentimes, marketers tend to “speak louder” — to share more facts to try and get the point across. This doesn’t end well, as people get turned off with the over-communication.
“Instead, what you need to do is to not speak louder but speak smarter. The way that speaks smarter is by slowing down and really saying ‘you know what, this isn’t about what I want to say. This is about what they need to hear.’” – Lee Hartley Carter
Crisis Communications
In an interesting turn of the conversation, Lee and Christopher discussed crisis response. Lee laid out her step by step advice on companies facing a crisis. First, she says that freaking out is a natural response to a crisis. However, she noted that it’s important to understand what your target audience is thinking or is feeling at that moment.
“Who are you trying to convince right now that you’re okay, is it your shareholders? is it your customers? What are they afraid of right now? What value have you just betrayed in them?” – Lee Hartley Carter
They had a great dialogue on crafting emergency messages as Christopher had his own fair share of stories to tell, with regards to crisis communications and response.
To hear more about Persuasion and more relevant information about Lee Hartley Carter, download and listen to the episode.
Bio:
After a crushing loss in a student council race in the 6th grade, Lee learned the importance of getting the story right from the beginning.
In the 7th grade, when she ran again, she ran on a story that was driven by some middle school polling techniques she employed among her classmates.
And, she won.
Ever since she has had a passion for language. For the message. For the story.
And she brings this passion to her role as partner at m+p, a research-driven language strategy firm that specializes in finding the right language and messages based on one simple idea: it’s not what you say that matters, it’s what they hear.
A member of the executive leadership team, Lee oversees a diverse range of language strategy work for Fortune 500 companies and non-profits in the U.S. and abroad.
To do this, Lee has conducted, overseen, and analyzed countless instant response sessions, traditional focus groups, brainstorming and strategy sessions. and surveys in more than 15 countries.
She has worked with clients in a wide range of industries including financial services, energy, automotive, sustainability, hospitality services, food and beverage, technology, and consumer products.
And, she has worked extensively in public affairs, public policy, and issue advocacy.
Before joining Maslansky + Partners, Lee spent more than ten years in marketing and strategic communications.
And, like many of her colleagues at m+p got her start in politics advocating for teaching hospitals, graduate medical education, the use of bicycle helmets, and healthcare for those who couldn’t afford it.
Lee serves as a member of the National Head Start Association advisory board focusing on messaging, is a fellow of the National Committee on US-China Relations Young Leadership Forum, and an occasional contributor to Fox News and MSNBC.
Links:
We hope you enjoyed this episode of Follow Your Different™! Christopher loves hearing from his listeners. Feel free to email him, connect on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and subscribe on iTunes!
098 Build a legendary Board of Directors w/ Coco Brown
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In this episode, the CEO of Athena Alliance Coco Brown talks about how to build a legendary board of directors. Coco is an entrepreneur and an advocate for women. She tells us why boards need to have fresh talents and why they need diversity on skills and people. Also, she shares why the old model of creating a board is worn out.
The Athena Alliance
Coco Brown is the CEO of Athena Alliance. It is a global community of women business leaders, committed to driving diversity on company boards and developing new women leaders.
“We’re essentially bringing the top-tier women together in a digital ecosystem that provides us a lot of opportunities for them across disciplines.” – Coco Brown
Coco describes the community as in-part-Linkedin — with a portion of coaching and networking — and in-part-Bumble, because of matchmaking activities.
Male CEOs and The Outdated Board of Directors
Athena Alliance serves as an agency. The group is in contact with male CEOs who wish to expand their network with women.
Coco further shares with Christopher how outdated most companies are, in terms of the composition of their Board of Directors. In the past, the board is ultimately responsible for long term shareholder. Oftentimes, it is the reason why CEOs tend to stay long in their position, up until retirement.
“The board room needs a lot more empathy, connection, communication and understanding of the marketplace. If you look at the old board — seated with former CEOs and financial experts — the average age is 63, the average tenure is 8 1/2 years.” – Coco Brown
Building A Legendary Board
In the past, the committees are largely about CEO compensation, equities, and succession. Historically, committee topics are financials or risks. In the new world, these financial experts try to squeeze in other pressing corporate issues into those committees.
“So you’re starting to see this need for a much wider range of skills set in the board room. People who understand consumers. So good market strategists and leaders.” – Coco Brown
Moreover, she suggested to bring in more sets of people in their 30s or 40s. Ideally, she suggests contemporary professionals who are experienced with the operations.
To hear more about building a legendary Board of Directors, and more relevant information about Coco Brown, download and listen to the episode.
Bio:
Coco Brown leads “change and transformation.” She is responsible for accelerating multimillion-dollar growth through vision, strategy, technology, and people leadership.
She held leadership roles including CEO, COO, President, board member, and advisor—partnering with F1000 companies, start-ups, and nonprofits. Through her leadership, she has delivered successful outcomes for Apple, Cisco, eBay, Facebook, Silicon Valley Bank, and many others.
Currently, she is the founder, CEO, and board member of The Athena Alliance. The company is a game-changing executive firm helping to position the top 10% of executive women for advancement and board opportunities.
Since founding Athena in the Spring of 2016, she has led the organization to a network of over 1000 C-Level women, VCs, and CEOs from over 150 companies. These companies include Accenture, Cisco, Microsoft, Intuit, Autodesk, and Alphabet / Google.
Within two years, we have overseen 20 board placements and have secured $2 million in income through corporate and investor service offerings.
Links:
We hope you enjoyed this episode of Follow Your Different™! Christopher loves hearing from his listeners. Feel free to email him, connect on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and subscribe on iTunes!
097 Legendary Writer Dushka Zapata
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One of the most prolific and important writers in the world and our most regular guest Dushka Zapata, joins us today. We had a heartfelt conversation about mending broken-hearts, why grief is worst when you’re young, why discipline is better than inspiration and many more!
Writing Beautiful Answers at Quora
You may find Dushka lounging in Question and Answer site Quora, where her writings receive 140 million views. Her life-affirming, fun and powerful answers have garnered her quite a following, including Christopher himself.
During this conversation, she shared a wonderful passage where we can learn a thing or to about mending a broken heart. She shares a story about a big, crowded yoga class she attended. The intention was to heal the physical and non-physical aspects of the person — whether a sprain, a wound or even sorrow, anxiety and loneliness.
“At this point, I sneaked a peek. I opened my eyes and slowly panned the room. I would say that 97% of the people on the room had placed both their hands over the left side of their chest.” – Dushka Zapata
She left a powerful message to readers, reminding everyone to tread very carefully in this world because, in reality, almost everyone is desperately trying to mend a broken heart.
Grief is Worse When You’re Young
Dushka shares another question lifted from Quora about a young 16-year old who wanted to marry her girlfriend. She crafted a very creative and wholehearted response: she affirmed what the young lad was feeling and then informed him that this feeling is temporary.
“Feelings — real and deep — change. Feelings change and the fact that they do is what breaks me. The fact that it changes, saves me and it will save you too.” – Dushka Zapata
She concludes that the younger you are, the more confusing things are because you don’t know you can survive them.
Discipline Matters More Than Being Inspired
Dushka shares to Christopher about some days in her career, where she counts on being disciplined, rather than inspired., which she believes is the secret to anything.
“I don’t think there is such a thing as motivation. I think that you just do it because, you said you are gonna do it every day.” – Dushka Zapata
More on this Oddcast, Christopher, and Dushka discuss the importance of being an amateur. She also conversed about her new book, You Belong Everywhere and Other Things You’ll Have to See for Yourself.
To hear more about Legendary Writer Dushka Zapata, download and listen to the episode.
Bio:
Dushka Zapata is one of the most prolific and popular writers working today.
On question and answer site Quora her work has been viewed over 140 million times.
She’s the author of eight best-selling books.
Dushka has over 20 years experience as a senior communications executive in Silicon Valley.
When she’s not writing, she serves as a communications executive at tech juggernaut Zendesk.
Links:
New Book: You Belong Everywhere and Other Things You’ll Have to See for Yourself
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