Calculated Risk

Last Friday I chose to take the biggest calculated risk of my life...I chose to bet on myself and walk away from Corporate America.

When I look at the picture to the left it says it all. I am standing on the cliff which is the "Safe" Corporate job and I am taking a leap into the unknown ocean below.

My decision is a calculated risk for this MAJOR reason...I believe in myself and the three other Co-Founders of BuzzCal Communications!

BuzzCal Communications has already started to grow and with my 100% focus it will explode.

I have worked hard for 12 years developing ideas to help grow revenue for many National companies with AT&T, metroPCS, and Ford to name a few along with helping smaller local companies in a wide range of Industries from Automotive, Furniture, Fast Food, Retail, Packaged Goods, and even Real Estate. I can now take all this experience and help businesses through my own company instead of doing it for someone else.

I'm ready for the new path I have chosen. I really look forward to continuing to grow the network of awesome people I have met on Twitter and meeting y'all in person:) Please join me in my journey to build BuzzCal Communications. I may fail but at least I will always be able to say I gave it a shot!

My favorite quote "In every passionate pursuit the pursuit counts more than the object pursued" Bruce Lee

Let the journey begin!!!

My LinkedIn

#Follow Friday for 10/9/09

Some of the GREAT friends I have met on twitter.

My #Follow Friday List for 10/9/09:

@Pats4Me Top of my list! This lady makes me laugh everyday, has tremendous spunk, and her passion for the Patriots fits in nicely with the rest of the Boston Posse.

@matusik5 I consider this gal the other half of @pats4me making them the dynamic duo. I got lucky to have connected with these wonderful ladies. She is so smart and funny. She keeps me laughing constantly!

@HowellMarketing Very Smart Media Gal who is also funny and enjoys my Blips. She totally spoiled me with a #FF last week that has to be one of my best ever. THANKS!!!

@LoisMarketing This lady is really funny, I think she is French, and a huge lover of Formula 1 racing.

@USNAVYSEALS A True Patriot who served our country and was in my favorite part of the Armed Services...The Navy Seals. They don't play games! Hear that Terrorists! These are the guys who will hunt U down while u sleep.

@AmericanWomannn Very nice lady who nominated me for her #hunkalert. THX!

@shawnpbutler Cool Media guy here in Atlanta who enjoys my Blips.

@jademorey Smart young gal who is the Chairwoman of the Georgia Association of College Republicans

@nwchptr4me Very cool Boston Posse member who loves the red Sox and has a great profile pic that shows her devilish side:)

@LaraAlexandra Very funny girl who works in Radio up in New York. Hook her up.

@KatColeATL Real cool lady who is the VP of Hooters and who I need to have coffee with soon:)

@Kim23Supernova Real interesting gal who is a talented golfer and photographer. I have such a respect for her approach to life. A must follow!

@955TheBeat Plays all your favorite artists from Pitbull, Mariah Carey, Kanye West, etc. and always giving you ways to win cool prizes.

@MaverickATL He is the Afternoon DJ at @955thebeat and a real nice guy.

@Gina_Lee_Garcia If you want some yummy BBQ sauce then this is your gal.

@MurphDawgRadio One half of the @955thebeat Morning Show. This guy is a cool cat who you should get to know.

@radiojohnnyd Another GREAT On-Air DJ for @955thebeat .

@KennyHamilton @955thebeat Personality and FUNNY DUDE!

@jsbsox AWESOME Red Sox and FSU Fan! She is always fun to connect with on Twitter.

@SocialDivo Real cool guy here who makes it happen in the A-T-L!

@BobWarren The man, the myth, the legend:) The Ultimate Don Juan of Twitter. He works the ladies almost as well as the "World's Most Interesting Man" LOL

@LenKendall A nice guy I met in July. He has great persepctives I enjoy reading.

@jaybaer Really intelligent Social Media practitioner.

@SarahRobinson Another great lady I got to meet in person this past July. She is making it happen with the "Young Turk" in tow one day at a time.

@ChicagoDiane Another bright gal who is fun to tweet with.

@NancyLoo If you watch TV in Chicago then you need to know this lovely lady.

@dnvrsangel A very kind lady who is fun to connect with on Twitter.

@rachelmello The fiery red head who has to deal with me. Trust me I am not easy but this beautiful, funny, talented, and louder than me girl does it:) My wife.

@thescottbishop Very bright Marketing/Social Media Strategist. I enjoy his takes on the online world.

@JoeTheProducer Here is one of those extremely nice guys you want to know. I constantly think about how I can work with him as BuzzCal.net grows since he is a very talented video producer. Follow this guy NOW!

@aakomas This girl ROCKS IT in Chicago! AWESOME GAL!!!

@luiserpa Another highly talented and smart man here! Funny too!

@tkpleslie Helping Green Furniture retailers.

@JeanneBehr HUGE lover of my blips and I like her despite her Steeler love...HA!

@michele7962 A really nice lady who always has a kind word to say.

@vcolon My virtual running partner and AWESOME lady:) Let's go!!!

@Ace2003 Solid Red Sox Fan and I like him even though he is misguided with his football team selection:)

@SoxFan24 & @ashleyjill I put them on the same line since they are like an old married couple. I love them both and they always keep me smiling. Thanks y'all!

@julito77 One of my closest buds on Twitter. We have met in person a couple of times and he has been with me here pretty much from the beginning. He gives me a lot of crap about the my Red Sox frustrations but I know it is all in fun. Pleasure my brothah!

Soar With Your Strengths

This week's Key Point: Hire the right people and let them do what they do best!

I was excited to see the positive response from my "Managing Employees in this Economy" post and for that reason, I decided to do a series of posts discussing key points.

As a young manager my mentor had me read the book "Soar With Your Strengths" by Donald Clifton and Paula Nelson. This book is AWESOME and it provided me a completely different management perspective.

"Soar With Your Strengths" was based on one simple question...What would happen if they studied what was right with people versus what's wrong with people.

New thought...

You CANNOT achieve whatever you put your mind to!

Focus on your STRENGTHS and MINIMIZE your weaknesses!

Drive, Creativity, Problem Solving, and Ability to Focus Under Intense Stress are a few examples of natural strengths that cannot be taught.

You cannot achieve whatever you put your mind to. That belief is a falsehood fed by our families, friends, etc. Every individual has an innate strength that enables them to perform a task extremely well. It is our job as a parent, teacher, manager, etc. to help an individual uncover their one true strength and allow it to flourish.

Companies are only as good as the people who work for them. The following are what companies can do to ensure peak performance...

• Assess each role employees perform within your company
• Identify what strength(s) leads to maximum performance in each role
• Assess each employee to identify their strength(s) and to make sure they are aligned in the right role within your company to maximize their strength(s)
  
• If you identify holes within your company that need to be filled then make sure you are looking for the strength(s) associated with that role when interviewing a potential new employee
• DO NOT try and identify an employee's weakness as an area to work on! This is a waste of time and will not lead to better company performance!!!

Once you have the right employees, who possess the right strength(s) to perform at an optimal level in their role then get out of their way!