Yellow Dog Consulting

Sales & Marketing Consulting for solo-preneurs.

August Pop Culture Round Up

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August can be quiet when it comes to pop culture, but that seems to make it a great time to catch up on all that pop culture you’ve been meaning to get to. Or maybe that’s just me. I haven’t read as much as I’d like this month, but with a few road trips the podcasts are in full force and my Netflix queue is getting cleaned up this month!

Listening

When we were in Bend for my niece’s first birthday my brother recommended the ESPN 30 for 30 podcast. I’m not a big sports person, but sports stories (and the 30 for 30 series FYI) are great. I highly suggest The Queen of Sorts, a really great poker story…

I’m still really enjoying Ear Hustle and The Daily – which is becoming my go to podcast first thing in the morning. Due to the popularity of The Daily they’ve launched a new podcast that I’m also enjoying – The New Washington. The interview with Sarah Sanders was really interesting to me.

Reading

The older I get, the more I turn into my dad. Evidently this year that includes having multiple books going at the same time (a classic dad habit). On the book stack to take to the beach and finish by Labor Day are:

  • David Sedaris’ diaries (it’s too easy to pick up and put down!)
  • Fetch, a graphic novel about a woman and her dog that I’m really enjoying
  • The Boy on the Bridge which I just started
  • Fierce Kingdom – this was my latest Book of the Month and I haven’t started it yet but it’s next on the list
  • Comics…I’m way behind on Outcast and I picked up a graphic novel called Rasputin I’m excited to check out.

Watching

Well that Game of Thrones finale sure was something! The juxtaposition of Bran’s big reveal with that scene on the boat was well executed but really high on the incest ICK factor for me. And holy ice dragon, WOW. WOW. WOW. I rewatched the entire season over the weekend and was glad I had so I was really ready for that finale. Waiting over a year for it’s return is going to be TORTURE.

I am really liking The Sinner on USA. It’s the Jessica Biel series about a woman who kills a guy she doesn’t know. I could do without Bill Pullman’s story line, but oh well. Also – I think the husband on the show must audition as “knock off Jon Snow” because he and Kit Harrington have to be related…

I’ve been on a streaming binge lately. I signed up for Hulu when The Handmaids Tale was on and discovered they have all of Happy Endings, which is a FABULOUS show! I just finished the rewatch of that series which holds up! I had heard great things about The Keepers so finally watched it. I don’t do well with sexual violence and molestation so half way through the second episode I was pretty sure I was out. But I kept with it and the way they wove the story together made you really really angry at a lot of people in authority in Baltimore. I had seen a preview for Atypical on Netflix and was happy when it arrived a couple of weeks ago. It is FANTASTIC. It’s clever and real and very funny. I love the ridiculousness of Wet Hot American Summer and the 10 year reunion had the stupidest ending yet, but the Adam Scott joke never got old! And I just rewatched one of my favorite new shows from last year The Good Place which is now on Netflix. If you never watched it, please get on that this holiday weekend!

I’ve been watching a few of the Princess Diana specials. The ABC one was really interesting and I didn’t remember, or know, a lot of things that happened and I don’t think I ever realized how incredibly young she was when she married Prince Charles or how large their age difference was. WOW.

Leah Remini‘s Scientology series has returned and continues to infuriate me (especially after finishing The Keepers), but it is very well done and fascinating. SNL’s Weekend Update Summer Edition has been exactly what I needed this August.

I know I should be excited for the return of Will & Grace this fall, but that series finale was so final that I’m ticked they’re going to pretend it didn’t happen…

What pop culture is getting you through the dog days of summer?

Great Questions to Ask When Networking

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When I was growing up, if we had a friend come over for dinner my dad would do interview questions. One person asked the question, everyone answers and then the next person asks, and so on and so forth. It was a way for us to get to know the distinguished 10 year old and to keep the conversation going. Questions ran the gambit but they usually included:

  • What’s your favorite TV show?
  • What’s your Favorite Book?
  • What’s your favorite movie?
  • If you could go anywhere in the world where would it be?
  • Who’s your favorite basketball player/team?
  • Who’s your favorite parent? (kidding!)

I love the interview questions, and now that my friends have kids who are at a good age for this distraction from eating dinner, it still pops up on occasion.

Why am I telling you about this random family meal activity?

Because it holds up in business. A couple of weeks ago I arrived early for a networking event and there was one person to talk to. So, I sat down and started chatting, and quickly realized this person was not going to ask me questions in return. But they were pretty happy to keep talking about their self. So, I start the interview…where do you live? where are you from? kids? pets? favorite restaurants in town? did you go to the recent event that compliments this event we’re attending?

Sometimes the conversation does turn to pop culture, which always makes me happy. And sometimes it stays on business. Having a stack of interview questions in my back pocket when I’m networking usually means I learn something personal and interesting about this person that I’ll remember way longer than all the spewing about how they’re different from every other CPA firm in town…

What are your go to questions when networking to keep the conversation going?

3 Ways to Automate Your Follow Up

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I had a call today and we ended up talking a bit about how you automate your follow up. It may sound weird that you would automate something so personal. Sure if someone downloads something from your website you should automate that process and then add them to your newsletter (right?) But what about someone you met networking? How do you “automate” that process? Here’s 3 ways you may not have thought of…

  1. Social Media – If you’ve followed your Kickass Follow up Templates then you’ve already connected with them on social media right? Right. Don’t nag them or harass them. Instead be ACTIVE on your social media. Stay on brand and make sure that if they are also active on that social media platform that they have the opportunity to see you’re alive and kicking and available to connect and be hired.
  2. Your Newsletter – I think of my newsletter as a long term drip campaign. It’s a way to get my name in your inbox and to educate you about my awesomeness. This is what it would look like to work with me. This is how my mind works. This is what you’re missing out on. If I have met with someone and sent them recommendations or a proposal for work, I consider that implied consent to add them to my newsletter list. You may decide to be more (or less) explicit about it, and that’s up to you. But don’t underestimate the power of the newsletter. It’s brought me more business than I could have expected.
  3. Networking – Yes, networking. That thing you did where you met that prospective client you don’t know how to follow up with for the 7th time. People need to see you. They need a reminder you’re alive and kicking and a REAL person. Leave your office, put pants on and go to a networking event. It may take months or even years for someone to finally realize they’re ready to hire you. If you keep showing up, it’s a visual reminder that you are alive and kicking and ready to work with them. When the time is right.

How else can you “automate” such a personal process? In your business can a more formal email automation work or does it need to be more personalized?