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| Tina Crouse, Strategist |
My friend, Carol Shaben, is a fantastic writer, national award winner and one of Canada's 'instant' success stories. Here's a video from her publisher, Knopf Random House Knopf-acquires-title-two-hours-after-receiving-manuscript . If you ask Carol, she has no explanation for the sudden success; it was a random, twisted road with an unanticipated outcome. So why would anyone use strategies to help their organizations if success is so random ?
This is a quandary a lot of people ask me about : why should I use your services when I can just work hard and hope for the best ? The truth is that instant success is a PR initiative. There is no substitute for knowing what you're good at, working hard and staying focused. Strategic planning and business development help that along. People and organizations need strategies that help them identify their strengths and weaknesses (SWOT analyses never go out of style), plan, carry out and measure 'useful' activities and stay on target to reach their goals. 'Flash in the pan' outcomes do happen but we all know where the one-hit wonders end up; no business wants a one time success only to flame-out as quickly as they flared up.
Good writers keep at it. They improve their craft, they identify their talent, they submit and submit. They also get rejected over and over again. Does this sound like 'instant' ?
Will your business or non-profit sell everything, hit all of your targets, cure everyone in just one day ?
I don't believe success is random; I believe the twists and turns are hidden. And what's hidden the most is the hard work and who helped along the way. Even a writer, sitting alone and perfecting their craft, has help but that doesn't take away from their talent.
I congratulate Carol on her achievement. She's very modest and humble about her skill but she certainly deserved the Gold for National Magazine Award Best Investigative Reporting and the Silver for Politics and Public Interest. You can read the article from Walrus Magazine here Fly-at-your-own-risk and let me know what you think. I don't see her as a 'flash in the pan'.
