Fifteen Laughable Product Warning Labels

The above article was in Forbes this week.  I got a kick out of all of the warning labels - some were truly extreme, for example the one below.  Imagine - Office Depot warning people to wear Safety Goggles to use a letter opener. Pretty bad, huh?

But then I started thinking about why the  companies delivering these products felt compelled to cover their proverbial derrieres in such obviously over-the-top ways.

It's not because they've lost their minds. Nor have their corporate lawyers run amok - well, at least no more so than normal. It's not even because they're trying to do the best job possible of protecting their customers.

These companies are going to extreme measures to CYA because NOT doing so means they open themselves up to frivolous litigation. Not going to these extreme measures means they could lose their business to someone who makes a silly move and blames them - and in the end, the company pays, and pays big.

My righteous indignation is screaming!

I get ticked every time I hear of yet another lawsuit filed by some person who wasn't paying attention, using common sense or who was doing something just plain stupid and was injured.  Remember the person who poured hot coffee on themselves and was burned - and sued the restaurant?  That was only the beginning.

I have to ask. What happened to personal responsibility and just plain good judgment?  Is anyone else out there  thinking our legal system has gone loco?   Are we so inept that we can't be trusted to make good  decisions and protect ourselves from dangerous letter openers?  Must we place the responsibility for protecting our safely (and common sense) on the manufacturers of products?  I hope not.

Here's my BIG concern. 

If this trend continues - businesses will have a hard time releasing products to their markets. Legal teams will determine the risk/reward scenarios of bringing  a new product to market. Great innovations will die a sad death. We'll fall behind the rest of the world thanks to our onerous litigation. 

There has to be a way to halt this madness and return to a balanced and equitable distribution of responsibility. Starting with our legal system - or maybe with a return to personal responsibility.

Let me know what YOU think.  Rebel Rant over and out....for now.

The WOW was  because of what I learned.

It all started out simply enough. I was Tweeting with a couple of gal friends as the coin was tossed, then the game began - and then the ads started.That's when the fun began.

It wasn't the game that everybody was commenting on.  It was the ads!  And what comments they were. OMG! My Twitter stream went from this powerful, positive information-filled environment to a running stream of  sarcastic comments whose seeming purpose was to diss every advertising firm involved.  When did we become so hard to please? It's a football game!

But then I noticed some other comments - from people who loved the first round of ads, and the next and the next.  Positive, upbeat, heart-filled and supportive.  These people also commented on the game itself, interacting with a light-hearted, upbeat spirit - like they were at a real football game.  They were reveling in the celebration. It was such fun to share the game and the whole experience with them!

That's when it hit me.

Twitter is a real time audience feedback mechanism!

I created two new TD columns for these sets of Tweeps - added the folks who were online and active. I also added a third column - for all the folks who were on Twitter but who hadn't said a single word about the game so far.

I watched those three columns between plays, and I learned so much!

• The cool Tweeps - the ones who were dissing everything in sight - pretty much kept on doing just that. No matter what was happening.  They dissed the ads, the plays, called The Who a bunch of old men who needed to be in nursing homes. Sarcasm must be the new chic???

• The happy Tweeps - the ones who were enjoying the game - commented about everything that was happening, straight from their hearts. They liked some ads, didn't like some ads and discussed why and why not.  They didn't try to be important or cool - they were having fun AND providing real feedback on every $3M spent. And BTW - the guys tended to like pretty much the same ads, across the board. Imagine that.

• The hard-working Tweeps kept focused on their normal, every Sunday afternoon kinda Tweets. Not one of them mentioned the game, ever. And yes, they were in the US.

• A fourth category came along about halfway through the game. The women who were offended by Bridgestone and GoDaddy and other ads they felt were chauvinistic.  This stream grew larger and more vocal by the end of the game.  Another audience segment speaking their truth!

Harvard Business Review ran an article last week entitled 'Let's Tweet About Something Important!' I was yet again surprised by the premise of the article - that the power of social networking is being hijacked by frivolous, not-important-at-all information. 

We all know there's a lot of noise out there.

That's one of the best things about social media - Twitter especially. People can share whatever they feel like sharing. Everything from what they had for breakfast to personal details I'd rather they kept to themselves.  But there is also great value found on Twitter. From people sharing ideas and information, to folks sharing themselves and their experiences.

That's what social media is all about IMHO.  Any and all information and insights are available for whoever wants to listen to them. And there's my point.

We get to choose what we hear.

We don't have to listen to all the noise - we get to choose who and what we Follow. We naturally UnFollow the people who don't match our tastes.  We search, use #hashtags, download TweetDeck or Seismic, create friend streams or lists. We  filter the stream to meet our own personal needs...not to hear everything that's said.

Saying Twitter has little great info is like saying television has nothing but sports and reality TV. There's so much more out there!  We just have to click through the 5000 satellite channels to find the great learning and entertainment. 

Similarly, we have to search to find the great insights, information and people on Twitter. We need the right tools and we need to be curious.  But just think what we can find in the Twitter stream! Anything and everything we want!

My Twitter Experience

I've met mentors and friends in the Twitter stream, ready to share their wisdom and expertise, as well as their hearts.  I have new friends from Warsaw to Paris - people I communicate with every day, who I've never met face-to-face. And it doesn't really matter. I've found blogs to follow, information to guide my own learning - all from the folks who share on Twitter. But I've found even more.

As may of you know, I'm launching a new platform and book this year. Thanks to Twitter, I met my fabulous speaking coach, Scott McKain. I met my publisher, Clint Greenleaf of Greenleaf Book Group.  I met my strategist, Thom Scott and his fabulous business partner Bob Burg, both of whom I'm honored to call friends and associates. I found my favorite art director (who I haven't spoken to in 10 years) and now he's helping me with some re-branding.

Thanks to the Twitter Vortex, I have the perfect team to help me launch 'Rebel 2.0'.

My information and networks may not be 'important' to other people- but it's darned important to me. I believe that everyone can find value on Twitter. Just look beyond the mundane and just plain silly (or obnoxious) and focus on what we want and need. We'll find relevant information, meet new friends, expand our networks.  

And yes, we can also know what that stranger had for lunch - if we so choose.

I sure was!

I was in Tahoe last week as four BIG storms brought over ten feet of snow.  It was slick as a gut, drifted so deep in places that even Thelma (my F-250 turbo diesel truck) had a hard time getting through. After they plowed the roads, it was still a mess with melting, freezing and lotsa black ice.

I skied every day. To get to the hill in the morning - I had to constantly change Thelma between  4-Wheel Drive High and Low.  It took 4WD Low (with my wheel hubs locked) to get moving in my driveway and down my side street. Once I hit the bigger street, I had to get out, unlock the wheel hubs and shift to regular 4WD.   But then it would start to snow and accumulate. I'd hit a thick spot and have to pull over so I could lock the hubs again for 4WD LOW to get by.  Or I'd get into the parking lot and get stuck - and have to change those hubs.

 I'd never had to do this before!  After a few days, I got frustrated. By day five I was gunning it to get over bumps and sliding backwards into my friend's garage at Squaw (no damage, Les) just to avoid having to get out and lock the hubs for 20 feet of forward progress.  I even got stuck going up the hill to Tahoe Donner in 4WD one night, sliding backwards down the road. I told myself I didn't want to get out in minus 5 degree weather to lock the hubs.  Luckily a nice policeman drove up behind me, got out and locked my wheel hubs for me.  I made it home just fine.

I was stuck in all sorts of ruts!

Why was I so resistant to those darned hubs? It takes 30 seconds and makes it easy to go anywhere I want to go. There were lots of folks who would have loved the chance to drive safely in all that snow. They were parked in snow drifts or halfway to the top of a hill. They'd get out to switch their hubs I bet! Yet I'd have done anything to stay in that truck and drive - instead of crawling in/out to lock/unlock those hubs. 

I'm thinking it was the lack of control.  Getting stuck in that snow in my 6-ton hauling pick-em-up truck made me feel so powerless. I'd get out and lock those hubs, then get back in and have this sick feeling as I started forward again - waiting to slide backwards because sometimes even  4WD LOW didn't work.

Most of the time with those hubs locked - I was going anywhere I wanted. But it was only most of the time. I had to have four guys push me out of a dip at my fave ski store one night. 4WD Low wouldn't dig me out of the deep snow. I was scared all the way home of getting stuck yet again.

Most of us don't like change because it makes us powerless.   I found myself resisting change - even something as simple as changing my hubs.  Not because of the weather.  It was because of how powerless I felt.  That got me thinking.

If I avoid a change as simple as that - what will we do to avoid big changes?

I believe we can all create 'fair' lives.

I'm a big follower of the Law of Attraction (and Quantum Physics). I believe that we create (or select) what we focus upon in our thoughts and intentions.  If I focus on good things - I create them, or select them out of the infinite stream of possibilities. If  I focus on what I don't want, or negative things around me - I create, or select, more of the same negative results.

I know that my life is created by my focus.

Today I realize that all of the really , really tough times were my own personal creation. I had some pretty nasty subconscious beliefs that were driving my life toward constant crises and painful disappointment. I released the beliefs- and my world changed.  Dramatically.

All the 'unfairness' in my life prior to that awakening - well, it was fair, even if it was painful. It was exactly what I was expecting - and creating. Those tough times also helped me to grow  as a person, So maybe 'fair' is about what helps us to expand and grow - not about what keeps us safe and stuck in our comfort zone?

Mine is not the most popular opinion - especially when things go badly. Most of us don't want to believe that our entire lives, and the fairness or unfairness, is our own responsibility. We somehow feel compelled to blame some unfair external power or person for the challenges. 

Take those acts of nature, or God.

Some point to Haiti or 9/11 or other disasters and say life isn't fair. But how do we know that?

What if all the people who weren't' in the towers, even though they should have been - demonstrate that life is more fair than we want to admit?  What if all the people who survived the earthquake for days in Haiti show that life is fair even in a crisis?  What if in the big picture balance - the survivors and those who avoided death make our world more than fair? 

Here's the hardest part.  We'll never really know what all the folks involved in 'disasters' were creating. It's not ours to say. I certainly am NOT saying that terror attacks and earthquakes are fair. Anything but.

But do those horrific natural and human events mean life overall isn't fair?  What if they are part of the balance across all our thinking, or our own subconscious and individual creations joining together? I know, that's a hard one to fathom, but we understand so little about our existence. What if we're responsible?

We make the choice for fairness - or not.

I believe life is meant to be filled with joyful abundance for all of us. I also believe that we get in our own way, focusing on the negative and the lack and the fearful horrors. That focus creates things that are painful.  I spent decades of my life creating unpleasant experiences for myself.  Once I learned that I was responsible for those experiences - I changed my thoughts and everything changed!

When we shift our attitudes toward the positive, we create positive lives.

We can create abundance and prosperity.  We just can't fall prey to the collective consciousness and the dark side of the force.  I've lived on both sides - and I can tell you that simple focus on positive expectations can make life 'fair'. Even the unpleasant things can be fair, growth giving experiences - it's all in how we see them.

As for acts of Nature - well, only our higher power knows about those. But I still do believe there's a reason for all things.  I also believe that each of us has more control than we like to admit  - like whether we're in the right place at the right time, or the wrong place at the wrong time.

I know, that's not a factual answer to the question "Is Life Fair?"  But it's my answer - straight from the heart.

I shared this quote the other day on Twitter, noting that it seemed a bit cynical to me. I immediately received an RT from someone who didn't think it was cynical - it was the truth.  Life isn't fair. More people agreed - and frankly, I was shocked.

 I kinda pushed back and one person responded using the earthquake in Haiti as an example that life is not fair - and how could anyone think it was?

I think life is fair.

Before you jump to the assumption I've never had anything bad happen to me so of course life's fair - think again. I've had more than my share of ugliness - sickness, death, betrayal and just plain horrible stuff. But I still think life is fair in the balance of all things.

But then, it does depend on how you define 'fair', now doesn't it?  

• If 'fair' means that everyone gets exactly what they want all the time - then the world probably isn't fair. 
• Or is 'fair' getting what you want part of the time -with a few tough times thrown in as reasonable balance?
• Does fair apply as a balance across the populace or is it just about our own personal experience of fairness?
• What if something you think is fair is actually perceived as unfair by someone else? What's fair then?

Life surely seemed fair when we were on a roll.

Think about life during the boom years. Money was flowing, everyone was enjoying the BIG upside and life was viewed as fair by most.  In the Silicon Valley  life was REALLY fair. We bought houses using options that wouldn't vest for six or more years. We knew life was fair and we'd be rewarded like everyone else in the valley. (I'd like to note: that popular home buying trend wasn't exactly a secure or sensible way to take on big debt.) 

Today, life isn't viewed as fair in the Valley. Those homes are going into foreclosure, the big dollar salaries for folks with minimal experience have vanished.  You can hear the protests all around that life just isn't fair! 

I'm not saying that times right now are not tough for a lot of folks.  I know they are. But - is that 'unfair' or simply a balance to the over the top 'fairness' we enjoyed five years ago?

What about Human responsibility for fairness?

I also believe that  acts of Humanity influence our collective energy - and the fairness of our lives.  Wall Street was a great example of that. Those leaders did things that were beyond unfair - and their actions brought a wide spread, and unfair, impact to our economy.  Does that mean life isn't fair?  Seems to me a select few brought that unfairness on all of us.

Tomorrow I'll share my own personal beliefs about fairness - and our power to create our lives.

In the meantime, what do you think about life and fairness? I want to know - because I only have my own answer - and I'd love to hear yours!

Thanks to the iPad, I can access anything I want on the web, watch  videos, write a blog post, create a presentation, run a spreadsheet,  read my book or magazine and email as I like.  I can carry one small iPad onto the plane or in the car and do everything I need to do.  Wow -I just lost ten pounds of luggage! 

Too bad some smaller minds had to show up at the party.

As soon as Steve said the name 'iPad' - they started attacking.  'Bad name' screamed the cynics.  'iMaxi' or 'iTampon' joked these brilliant gurus.   

You have to be kidding me? 

The iPad changes the way we can work and play. It obsoletes netbooks, Kindles and Nooks and more.  Apple just delivered the answer to many of us travelers' dreams.  Just think what it can do for our work life, our personal life and our kids!   Star Trek - here we come!

So why are 'experts' so focused on dissing the name?  

They're doing what they are paid to do. They can't find a major flaw - but they have to create negative drama to get attention, to earn their paychecks.  After all -  a vendor can't deliver a product that hip experts say is GOOD, right?  Hip experts are always cynical and sarcastic. So they create conflict, look for anything negative. If it means attacking the name iPad - so be it.  After all, drama sells, right?

We are better than this!

• Do any of us really believe someone won't buy an iPad because of the name?  No.
• Is the iPad any less innovative because of the trash talk about its moniker?  No.
• Do any of us think the name will in any way impact the coolness of this new Apple iPad?  No. 

Why do we  listen to and even pass along such drivel?  Those comments were rude, vulgar and unprofessional at best.  They certainly had nothing to do with an expert opinion (even a hip expert) on a new product offering. 

I'm ditching the drama. I've had enough.

I stopped watching the news because of drama and manipulation by supposed 'experts'. As of today I've stopped listening to the new generation of sarcastic, negative experts in all aspects of my life. I'm reclaiming my power to decide for myself, based on real facts that matter, not on petty drama.  

I'm surely not listening to self-adorned experts who resort to crass name-calling.

I'll buy my iPad, enjoy the innovation and laugh all the way to the plane. And for those who don't like the name - WHO CARES?  Shame on you!  I'm not using the name to do my work, watch movies, send email, write a note or surf the web, now am I?

Let's focus on what's important - creating positive value. 

I learned a life lesson at Squaw Valley yesterday.

It was a rough day. Over a foot of our famous Sierra Cement and more coming down.  Sierra Cement is heavy, heavy snow - think skiing slurpies. It changes with every inch - sometimes you move along, sometimes you get grabbed and stop suddenly.  It's an art to find your balance and stay down the hill when you're getting thrown all over the place. Even the tiniest mistake and you get slammed.

I was skiing with my good buddy Jim - who also happens to be a Mountain Guide and one of the best skiers I've ever seen.  He was being gracious and helping me relocate my ski legs in this stuff.

We had a GREAT day - I found my balance on my new skis and had a blast in the stuff that I used to hate. I was focused and felt really 'on it' as we skied some of the steepest, narrowest trees at Squaw (trees force you to make turns and get on balance).  I was thrilled- I've never skied that well in this stuff and it's something I needed to learn again after a few years in UT. But with a lot of focus, and by paying attention to the changing conditions under my feet - I got it!

We stopped about 30 feet above the groomer on our last run to decide what we were doing. We'd come down the hill and it was pouring rain - the snow had turned into glue under my skis.  I decided to head home after such a great day - so we headed toward the base. 

As we were heading to the groomer - I looked up to check out KT (a famous Squaw mountain) and lost my focus. My skis left the tracks in this super glue and the next thing I know - I'm face planted on the groomer with a yard sale all around me. I heard my head go Crack as it hit the hardpack and trust me, I felt the pain. I laid there for a minute and thought - "Now that was a bonehead move. What was I thinking?" 

We're not sure if my nose is broken. Hopefully it's just the cut I got from my goggles. Then there's my headache - which is surely hurtin' this am. And my neck has a new position on my spine - which we need to fix too.

My point?  I LOST MY FOCUS.  I wasn't thinking about what I was doing! I started looking around at KT, which was NOT important to my efforts at that moment.  And I went Splat! That made me wonder...

How often do we look around, get distracted and lose our focus?

What does that cost us in business and in our personal lives?

We all know how annoying all the Twitter 'Thanks for following' DMs are, right?  Mine have become downright out of control these days.  I miss my friends DMs thanks to all the SPAM in my DM column. Sigh. It's worse than email because I can't block Tweets.

I wouldn't mind the DMs so much if they really were thanking me and/or offering something valuable. But we know that's not true either.  It's a rare DM that offers anything other than 'Follow me on FB', 'Get 1,000 followers in under 60 seconds', 'Use my MLM and you'll be a millionaire tomorrow'. Blah Blah.

Recently I've been paying a bit more attention to those pesky DMs. I wanted to see if anyone had a clue about an effective use of Direct Messages in response to Follows.  I'm sad to say - I haven't found a single one yet that made me jump up and scream "Yes!!"

I did find one yesterday that made me scream "NO!" more loudly than usual.  The Tweep has over 32,000 Followers so you'd think he'd know better.  Obviously not.

Here's the DM...with a few changes to protect the guilty.

I'm honored for the follow! I create sustainable business systems. Can I help? See my site: http://XXX.com   (NO DM's pls)

No DMs Please? Excuse me Mr. Tweep, I must be confused. Didn't you just DM me to sell your services?  Didn't you just take my time, invade my space, without asking permission?  And now you're telling me you're too busy to accept a DM back from me? 

You gotta be kidding me. 

I am amazed at the Power of Twitter and other Social Media platforms to network with like-minded folks.  ISM is a fabulous tool when used appropriately.

I'm also continuously shocked at the seeming lack of just plain common sense (or maybe in this case it's common courtesy) from folks on social media - especially Twitter.

So, here are a few little clues for anyone  using Twitter.  Forget the DMs, stop annoying people and just be yourself. Let your voice shine through your Tweets, share your value freely and let people see why they want to be a Follower of you and your  thoughts. That's the key to creating a loyal SM following - on any of the platforms.

• Don't send blind, pointless DMs.
• Stop Spamming with your promises of thousands of followers.
• Forget the millionaire overnight promo and most of all...

Don't insult people by telling them your time is more valuable than theirs.

Reality comes from our markets, not ourselves.

I seek customer, prospect and partner feedback before I ever begin to brainstorm a strategy.  Clients often ask me why I don’t take their word for where they are and what they do.  It’s not that I don’t believe them. I do. 

It’s that I don’t believe any of us can clearly see today’s reality through the eyes of our buyers.  We’re too busy managing the day-to-day in our overloaded lives. We need clear perspective - and that comes from the keepers of the truth – our audiences.

We all think we know our markets, know that we can promote what we believe to be best for our buyers - which happens to be our products. Unfortunately - that's just not the case anymore. There was a day when advertising and marketing could sway a market - but no more.  The internet and social media changed that forever.

Today's buyers control their own destinies through information.

Everything we need to know about our present and future is in the eyes and hearts of our customers. They know their present needs and can offer advice to improve and enhance our value.  They  also know  the progress they want to make, the challenges they expect to face.

Our audiences put their money where their beliefs are.

Since those dollars represent the holy grail we seek – I follow them, not internal opinions. I care what internal players believe - but I also know that the customer is my Keeper of the Truth. Customer opinions are the only ones that matter. Creating strategies in the vacuum of our own corporate legends is how we fail. 

Ask yourself- when was the last time you made a decision based on real-world audience input, instead of the opinions of your executive team, or that engineering manager or sales leader?

What customers see as true value is  very different from what we believe. That’s a fact that must drive every value, opportunity and growth decision we make.

If we haven’t validated our decision with multiple and varied customers and prospects, then that decision is just an assumption.  Usually it’s an assumption based on our own status quo thinking.

And we all know what happens when we assume, now don’t we?