A few years ago, I bought a Nike Fuel band to help me with my fitness goals. I loved how it cheered me on when I hit a milestone. Wearing it 24/7 bolstered my identity as an athletic person. My current research on the changing relationship between ambition and identity...
Author Archives: Patricia Martin
What’s Next for You?
Like me, you’ve probably given serious thought to how you are going to improve your work or personal life, even a smidge in 2017. On my list is a set of self-improvement goals a magic genie couldn’t tackle: 1. Give up sugar. (I already gave up gluten last year). 2....
Thrilling Me Softly: What Digital Natives Love
3 Valentine’s Day tips: Tap into Millennials’ passion for honest come-ons. Have you ever succumbed to link bait? If so, you’ll know it’s frustrating when your sincere desire meets a hostile pay wall or aggressive lead capture. Halt! Go no further without surrendering your privacy or your credit card. So,...
Digital Media Usage Doubles in a Decade
Last night, I juggled a bag of groceries on my knee while I rifling through my handbag to answer my cell phone. Yes, 2016 is off to a hectic start. Our devices make us efficient. And I love every handy APP on my phone. But why is it that I...
The Ultimate Recipe for Top-Performing Teams
I remember the first time I designed a workshop for a client who wanted to encourage his team after re-organization. The company was poised for a renaissance, he said. If only he could make the new team configuration gel. A few jobs had been eliminated, so people were touchy. Teams...
The Road to Eureka!
It happens fairly often as I’m researching social trends. I’m faced with moments when I’m desperate for that really big eureka. I’m not talking about a run-of-the-mill “aha” moment. I’m talking about the kind of insight that blows the ceiling off a client’s conference room. When I need inspiration sometimes,...
5 Nitty-Gritty Social Trends That Impact Sales
Day in and day out, you put products or services in front of prospects. You may be starting to notice that it’s tougher to close the deals you really want. Perhaps that’s because you‘re relying on a few tactics that no longer have currency in the digital culture. When your...
As Simple Step to Better Thinking
Escapism. It’s a precious thing to be able to clear the mind. To sit quietly by yourself, in a place outside your comfort zone (by that I mean, not your local coffee shop… you know, the one with the free wi-fi, where you sit in that same spot by the...
How to Influence Change: 3 Lessons I’ve Learned
After 20 years of helping companies and influential nonprofits compel change, I’ve learned valuable lessons about what it takes to get people to take action. Chief among them is that it’s not about the issue–it’s about what the issue means in people’s lives. Despite our passion for the causes we...