Yellow Dog Consulting

Sales & Marketing Consulting for solo-preneurs.

July Pop Culture Round Up

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It’s that time of the month again where I share some of my favorite pop culture moments from the month. Feel free to share what you are reading/watching/listening to this summer in the comments!

1262187_fulRead

I finally finished The Sisters Brothers on my trip to New York and it was AWESOME. It’s not the kind of book I would think I’ll like, but I loved it! Part Western, part mystery, and all a story about brothers. It was great. Read it, trust me on this one.

Now I’m reading Someone to Run With, about a boy and girl and dog in Jerusalem. I’m not that far into it yet, but it’s a great story so far. Seems a little more heavy of a plot, makes me think of a fall/rainy day read. And it does that thing where there’s rarely a chapter, so it’s hard to pick up and put down for a couple of days, I have to recap a page or two, BUT the story is great!

Lazarus– here’s my graphic novel suggestion for the month. When I was in New York I went to Midtown Comics, the holy grail of comic book shops. And it did NOT disappoint  On Free Comic Book Day I read a preview in one of my comics for Lazarus, which is about a post apocalyptic future (yes, I am aware I really like this genre lately) and a rich family. It has some Hunger Game elements to it. The first issue came out in June, so it’s a great time to start this series!

Watch

Dexter-the final season is here and I couldn’t be happier! Dr. Vogel will hopefully be a really interesting way to tie this story together in a finale, and Deb’s distructive path is fascinating to watch. She’s one of the most overlooked actresses out there. I can’t wiat to see how this series ties up. Will Dexter get caught? Will he die? Will he & Deb & Harrison run off into the sunset?

The Bridge- This series has been hyped about as one of the best new series this summer, and the pilot was awesome. Exploring the El Paso/Juarez relationship is a great idea, and Demian Bichir is a fantastic actor. I will say that the female lead bugged me all through the pilot. I know she has Aspergers  it wasn’t that, it was the actress, it was like she was trying to hard. I hope she mellows out or explains herself in future episodes, I didn’t care for her at all, which is a problem, since she’s the co-star…

Under the Dome– This is a summer series that is just what I want it to be. It’s a good story, I want to know what the dome is and why it’s there, but I hate the kid who kidnapped his girlfriend, I could do without that creepy storyline. My guess is Stephen King’s book is a bazillion times better and I’m missing out by not reading it. I’ll keep with the series this summer, besides there isn’t much else on!

As for movies, The Heat, Much Ado About Nothing, The Way, Way Back & World War Z are all on my short list to see.

Listen

No new exciting music to listen to, but I am keeping up on my podcasts while I drive around the Puget Sound!

The Nerdist, Pop Culture Happy Hour, Grantland Pop Culture, and the Firewall & Iceberg pods are all on my short list lately!

Other Pop

Comic Con starts this weekend in San Diego. Someday I’ll make it there, but not this year. I know it’s going to be awesome and there will be a lot of cool stuff happening and news about upcoming movies, fall TV shows, and new comics I’ll have to check out. I can’t wait for my list of “needs” to grow!

What are you reading/watching/listening to this summer?

Don’t be Weird!

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stack of credit cards (isolated on white)I was at a networking event this morning and afterwards was talking with a good friend of mine, who worked for the host of the event. A woman came over and took our picture, but she wasn’t related to the organization. She  never introduced herself, or asked our names. As we were starting to leave, she came over and said she’d love to connect and do I have a card.

What I SHOULD Have done was say NO, I forgot them.

What I DID do though was say yes and give her one. At this point, she has STILL not asked my name or what I do. I finally asked what she did, and she said full service marketing, so I replied with, “so do I.” “oh that’s great, I’m talking with some other folks about doing a tradeshow if you’d be interested.” “oh good luck with that, sounds interesting.” (friend chimes in) “yeah, done those, good luck!”

We awkwardly walk away, and she’s STILL never asked our names.

And guess what I had in my inbox at the end of the day? a LinkedIn invite. Someone needs a lesson on polite etiquette and networking techniques!

Don’t be weird. People like to talk about themselves. What’s your name? What do you do? Who’s a good client for you? Where do you live? How was your holiday weekend? How long have you been/owned the company?

There are a lot of questions you can ask besides “can I have your business card.”

Just a reminder.

Don’t Negotiate

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images-1I’m not a big fan of negotiating. I know that sounds weird if you know me, and as someone in sales. And, I LOVE a good deal. But in business, I’m not a fan of negotiating or discounting rates. Your rate is what you have decided you’re worth. And, your clients are paying you for that, so it’s proven that your rate is valid. But negotiating your rate makes it look like you don’t think you are worth what you say you are.

I recently raised my rates, and instead of negotiating or putting clients on a sliding scale, as their contract came up, I simply said:

“I’ve recently reviewed my rates and found you’re getting a great deal! I have looked at what others in my industry are charging and have increased my rate to $XXX, when we setup your next Statement of Work, it will be at this rate.”

No room to negotiate. Have a lost clients? One. And the next day I talked to a new client who didn’t flinch at the rate. I also had a client email me and say he’s not leaving unless I fire him. I want clients who want to work with me, and have the budget to do so. I don’t want clients who will stress out every time my invoice shows up in their inbox. I’ll gladly negotiate the work we do and the hours of work that happen, but you have to pay me what I’m worth.