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- Steal These Thoughts 02.05.23 | Marketing = Human Superpower
Steal These Thoughts 02.05.23 | Marketing = Human Superpower
Is marketing the untapped human superpower?
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The Big Thought
Marketing, marketing, MARKETING! That’s what we as modern L&D Pros hear daily.It’s been an industry topic for nearly a decade.I love marketing. I talk about it a lot. I’m not shy about the fact marketing frameworks have help
ed me accelerate my L&D career. You don’t need to be a marketer. But, it can help you in learning and beyond.We live in an attention economy. This isn’t confined to the digital world, it’s part of the fabric of your real-life experiences. too.Some L&D people get mad at me when I go on about marketing. They think I’m saying we need to be marketers. But that’s not correct.Instead, we need to each appreciate how we all partake in marketing in some way. Each of us can wield the principles of marketing to our benefit in so many areas.
Marketing is everywhere
First, we need to frame how much we engage with it.When you share a cv with an employer.> That’s marketing.When you build a business case of the skills you’ve learned for a promotion.> That’s marketing.When you convince your crush to go on a date with you.> That’s marketing.It’s woven into the fabric of our world. You’re probably not conscious of it (well, you are now).In L&D, we build products to serve an audience. So, like any good product, knowing how to position them is vital. This happens in the day-to-day too.
From the adverts that bombard our eyes trying to to influence our behaviour to the conversations we have with peers and family. Even something as humble as a discussion about the family holiday is filled with marketing techniques.
Where you choose to go and what you choose to do at your destination is all an outcome of product influence and positioning the benefits of doing x thing.You may not be a ‘marketer’ by trade, but we are each engaging in marketing from the consumer and the creator standpoint. Perhaps my next project should be “How to convince your family that X destination is the best and snorkelling is the biggest benefit”? Crazier things have happened.
In the career game
We can frame this with our career journey too.The traditional CV, or resume for my American friends, is a marketing tool. Although it is outdated in my eyes, it’s still the common mechanism we use to advertise the benefits of employment with companies.
You meticulously invest time to position your brand in the best way possible. You do this by leveraging your skills and experience as the ‘benefits’ an organisation will get if they hire you. You’re marketing the brand of ‘You Inc’.
Much like a CV though, if you think we still live in a world where L&D releases a product and people immediately know about it, then you don’t understand the attention economy today.Knowing how to cut through the noise is a great skill. And marketing skills can be your ticket. This was the foundation of my thinking when writing my book “The Careerverse: Tools to thrive and survive in the 9-5 career game”. To navigate obvious career paths we sometimes have to indulge in non-obvious thinking and tactics.We’re bombarded by notifications all day. To stand out is about connecting with your audience. Do this in a clear not clever way and marketing can be the superpower to change your career and life.I tried to make the last sentence sound as un-cultish as possible. I’m not sure I’ve succeeded, but anyway - hope this helps.Till next time!
Content that has caught my attention and might interest you too.
This a deep piece from the World Economic Forum team.A journey through the history of skills and a skills framework for the future.
Despite writing a newsletter, I don't read a lot of others. Time is finite you see. One I do make time for is No Mercy/No Malice from Professor Scott Galloway.This edition focuses on peeling back the definition of wealth and why compounding is not only a financial thing.
If you're curious, here's three ways I can help you 👇
1/ My L&D toolkit stack with 20 free tools.2/ Grab a copy of my book to survive and thrive in a 9-5 career. 3/ Bounce ideas around with me in a 1:1 session.--Please do share your thoughts with me on these pieces or anything I share on LinkedIn or hit 'reply'. Chat to you soon.
"Progress is never a straight road without speed bumps. You will hit walls and turns, and sometimes you will go completely in reverse. It doesn’t matter. You are going to get up and do it again every day, anyway. Because that’s the only way to succeed.Everyone always wants motivation, but what they need is routine. There is no secret or hack or magic. You just keep going, like a Terminator, no matter what."-- Arnold Schwarzenegger
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