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The BrainWalk Journey

The Passion to create Knowledge Ecosystem Available to Everyone

The BrainWalk Journey - The Passion to create Knowledge Ecosystem Available to Everyone

Case Study: Nike’s “Just Do It” Advertising Campaign by CFAR

 Mini-Case Study from Center for Applied Research (CFAR).

You guys are free to put any Comments or Analysis about this case.

Nike Just Do It

According to Nike company lore, one of the most famous and easily recognized slogans in advertising history was coined at a 1988 meeting of Nike’s ad agency Wieden and Kennedy and a group of Nike employees. Dan Weiden, speaking admiringly of Nike’s can-do attitude, reportedly said, “You Nike guys, you just do it.” The rest, as they say, is (advertising) history.

After stumbling badly against archrival Reebok in the 1980s, Nike rose about as high and fast in the ‘90s as any company can. It took on a new religion of brand consciousness and broke advertising sound barriers with its indelible Swoosh, “Just Do It” slogan and deified sports figures. Nike managed the deftest of marketing tricks: to be both anti-establishment and mass market, to the tune of $9.2 billion dollars in sales in 1997.

—Jolie Soloman
“When Nike Goes Cold”
Newsweek, March 30, 1998

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Leaving the City of Regret

Regret

I had not really planned on taking a trip this time of year, and yet I found myself packing rather hurriedly. This trip was going to be unpleasant and I knew in advance that no real good would come of it. I’m talking about my annual “Guilt Trip.”

I got tickets to fly there on Wish I Had airlines. It was an extremely short flight. I got my baggage, which I could not check. I chose to carry it myself all the way. It was weighted down with a thousand memories of what might have been. No one greeted me as I entered the terminal to the Regret City International Airport. I say international because people from all over the world come to this dismal town.

As I checked into the Last Resort Hotel, I noticed that they would be hosting the year’s most important event, the Annual Pity Party. I wasn’t going to miss that great social occasion. Many of the towns leading citizens would be there.

First, there would be the Done family, you know, Should Have, Would Have and Could Have. Then came the I Had family. You probably know ol’ Wish and his clan. Of course, the Opportunities would be present, Missed and Lost. The biggest family would be the Yesterday’s. There are far too many of them to count, but each one would have a very sad story to share.

Then Shattered Dreams would surely make and appearance. And It’s Their Fault would regale us with stories (excuses) about how things had failed in his life, and each story would be loudly applauded by Don’t Blame Me and I Couldn’t Help It.

Well, to make a long story short, I went to this depressing party knowing that there would be no real benefit in doing so. And, as usual, I became very depressed. But as I thought about all of the stories of failures brought back from the past, it occurred to me that all of this trip and subsequent “pity party” could be canceled by ME! I started to truly realize that I did not have to be there. I didn’t have to be depressed. One thing kept going through my mind, I CAN’T CHANGE YESTERDAY, BUT I DO HAVE THE POWER TO MAKE TODAY A WONDERFUL DAY. I can be happy, joyous, fulfilled, encouraged, as well as encouraging. Knowing this, I left the City of Regret immediately and left no forwarding address. Am I sorry for mistakes I’ve made in the past? YES! But there is no physical way to undo them.

So, if you’re planning a trip back to the City of Regret, please cancel all your reservations now. Instead, take a trip to a place called, Starting Again. I liked it so much that I have now taken up permanent residence there. My neighbors, the I Forgive Myselfs and the New Starts are so very helpful. By the way, you don’t have to carry around heavy baggage, because the load is lifted from your shoulders upon arrival. God bless you in finding this great town. If you can find it — it’s in your own heart — please look me up. I live on I Can Do It street.

Book by Larry Harp

Keep On, Keeping On

Keep on and be persistent

Colonel Sanders went to more than 1,000 places trying to sell his chicken recipe before he found an interested buyer. The fact that we can buy Kentucky Fried Chicken today attests to his perseverance. Thomas Edison tried almost 10,000 times before he succeeded in creating the electric light. If he had given up, you would be reading this in the dark!

The original business plan for what was to become Federal Express was given a failing grade on Fred Smith¹s college exam. And, in the early days, their employees would cash their pay checks at retail stores, rather than banks. This meant it would take longer for the money to clear, thereby giving Fed Ex more time to cover their payroll.

Sylvester Stallone had been turned down a thousand times by agents and was down to his last $600 before he found a company that would produce Rocky. The rest is history! To truly succeed requires a total commitment to your goal. Too many people make the mistake of quitting just short of success. Keep going no matter what. If you really believe in what you are doing, give it all you¹ve got and don¹t give up.

You will succeed. There is no such thing as failure. Every action produces an outcome. It may not always be the outcome you are looking for, but it is an outcome nonetheless. If you monitor the results of your actions and keep correcting what is not working, you will eventually produce the outcome you are looking for.

Be Persistent – Ray Kroc, the late founder of McDonalds, put it best when he said: “Nothing in this world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with great talent. Genius will not. Un-rewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not. The world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence, determination and love are omnipotent.”



Learning to Soar

Soaring Eagle

When I was a boy a neighbor gave me a baby crow. After the crow was about half grown I decided that he needed to learn to fly. I climbed a ladder to the top of our house with my crow (His name was “Rocket.”). Then I dropped him over the side. He fell, then flapped his wings, and landed safely. I repeated the process six or seven times until, finally instead of landing, Rocket flew over to a tree. He now knew how to fly!

An eagle that lives in the mountains does much the same with its young. When the time is right the mother eagle literally tears the nest apart and forces the eaglets to go plummeting toward the earth. Before the eaglet hits the ground the mother eagle will catch the eaglet and bear it up on its wings. The process is repeated until the eaglets can fly. Because the nest has been destroyed the eaglets are forced to begin their own lives.

Have you ever been safe and secure then suddenly your nest has been destroyed? Sometimes God, just like the mother eagle, must nudge us out of our comfort zone. It isn’t always pleasant but then we do want to learn how to fly don’t we? Actually eagles don’t fly they soar on the currents of wind. We want to be able to soar as well on the wind of the Holy Spirit. “But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.” (Isaiah 41:31)

Ed Wrather



Should I Get Involved?

This is a true story of friend of mine. I’ve shared this story to many groups and friends, i hope this story can give you’ll inspiration. The story just like this, read carefully.

Saved Girl

I was walking down a dimly lit street one evening when I heard muffled screams coming from behind a clump of bushes. Alarmed, I slowed down to listen, and panicked when I realized that what I was hearing were the unmistakable sounds of a struggle: heavy grunting, frantic scuffling, and tearing of fabric.

Only yards from where I stood, a woman was being attacked.

Should I get involved?

I was frightened for my own safety, and berated myself for having suddenly decided to take a new route home that night. What if I became another statistic? Shouldn’t I just run to the nearest phone and call the police?

Although it seemed an eternity, the deliberations in my head had only taken seconds, but already the girl’s cries were growing weaker.

I knew I had to act fast. How could I walk away from this?

No, I finally resolved, I could not turn my back on the fate of this unknown woman, even if it meant risking my own life.

I am not a brave man, nor am I athletic. I don’t know where I found the moral, courage and physical strength, but once I had finally resolved to help the girl, I became strangely transformed.

I ran behind the bushes and pulled the assailant off the woman. Grappling, we fell to the ground, where we wrestled for a few minutes until the attacker jumped up and escaped.

Panting hard, I scrambled upright and approached the girl, who was crouched behind a tree, sobbing. In the darkness, I could barely see her outline, but I could certainly sense her trembling shock. Not wanting to frighten her any further, I at first spoke to her from a distance.

It’s OK,” I said soothingly. “The man ran away. You’re safe now.”

There was a long pause and then I heard the words, uttered in wonder, in amazement.

Dad, is that you?

And then, from behind the tree, stepped my youngest daughter, Katherine.

Experience by Richard. God bless you bro!



Go For Greatness, Don’t Give Up and Be Persistent

Don't Give Up

“The greatest unused power on earth is the power to go for it! The second greatest unused power on earth is the power to go for it again, and again”
Mike Marino, Jr.

Speaking is what I do. My wife is my life! Please only one dream to a person!!!

The truth in my humble opinion is everyone is hiring right now. The problem is they want to find the right person. So many beautiful person girls would rather stay single than to marry the wrong person. So many companies and individuals would rather do without than to hire the wrong person. That is why the only thing you have to sell is trust. The best way to sell trust is In Person! Face to face with persistence, not Facebook!

If you do not sell trust, you still have trust! You do not know my story.

I met my dream at a dance in 1964 after I got out of the Navy. I wanted to marry my dream right on the spot. My wife was one of five daughters. They lived across the river. Her Mother was determined to hold on to the last daughter. My wife had a good job and was helping to support the family. Her Mother managed to run everyone, that came to court her daughter, away.

My picture is in the dictionary next to the world persistence. Only persistence is precious (valuable) when pursuing your dream. We dated for three years. I went through pure hell. My wife was very obedient to her Mother. We married in a very big church wedding. My wife was pregnant within a few months after we married. My Mother-in-law talked her into coming back home. I was devastated to say the least. We were divorced. I had to go over to across the river and have two hour visiting rights with my baby daughter. Eventually the judge let me take her out with me.

A very close friend of mine is a Jesuit Priest. He talked me into doing volunteer work. He said that I had healed myself by building a bridge from my life into someone else’s life that had much bigger problems than I.

I worked at Children’s Hospital for one hour every week for five years. I got an idea to invent a special exercise bicycle for paraplegics. I received a patent on the bicycle and sold them all over the world. I sold the patent for $50.000.00 in 1970. I worked with young boys that were in auto accidents and got the Idea to open a bicycle shop to hire people with disabilities. I opened August 1, 1971 on a $1,200.00 loan in a one-room shop 14 X 12 feet. My sales for the first years were $195,000.00.

I moved on Veterans Blvd. in September 1972 into a much larger building. My sales grew to $875,000 a year by the grace of God.

By the Grace of God, I hired 189 high school and college students over twenty eight years and coached them to explore their potentials. Eighty five students came from Delgado Rehabilitation College. Things were changing, and I was forced to close the business in 1998.

Four years after the divorce, my wife broke away from her Mother and we were married in St. Francis Xavier Church on Metairie Road in a private wedding. I have a daughter. She has four children and my son, he lives with us; he is Autistic. My daughter is from my first wife; my son is from my second wife. Same wife! I am still married to my dream for 44 years.

My Mother-in-law came to live with us for the last five years of her life. She passed away at 97. She laughed at my jokes. I ask her why she gave me so much trouble to marry her daughter. She said, “You were not sensible, you do not listen. You do not have patience.”

I said, “I wanted to marry your daughter because she has patience, listens and is sensible.”

She said, “Then why should my daughter have married you?”

I said, “Because I am persistent!”

They did not have stalking in those days. I would still be in jail. I am still married to my wife of 44 years and six months; two children and four perfect grandchildren.

The Law of Persistence: Your Ability to persist despite setbacks and disappointments affirms your Faith in God and your belief in yourself.

Persistence is the iron quality of Success! Only Persistence tells everyone what you really want! You are the best at who you are!

Remember, when David first tried to slay the giant, he missed.

Everyone is hiring. You must call on them and sell trust! What you want the most wants you!

I am now a licensed New Orleans Tour Guide at age 71. I do three hundred New Orleans City tours a year on a thirteen passenger van as a day job. I have been speaking and writing for 28 years on the topic: Fall In Love With Learning. My new book, “You Have The World In A Jug With The Cork In Your Hand!” will be available on my web site soon.

I have had the privilege of the platform more than 5,000 times in 36 states and 16 countries.

With best intentions to serve with humility,

by Mike Marino, Jr.



Judge Me by the Footprints I Leave Behind

Footprints

A story is told about a soldier who was finally coming home after having fought in Vietnam.

He called his parents from San Francisco.

“Mom and Dad, I’m coming home, but I’ve got a favor to ask. I have a friend I’d like to bring with me.”

“Sure,” they replied, “we’d love to meet him.”

“There’s something you should know the son continued, “he was hurt pretty badly in the fighting. He stepped on a land mined and lost an arm and a leg. He has nowhere else to go, and I want him to come live with us.”

“I’m sorry to hear that, son. Maybe we can help him find somewhere to live.”
“No, Mom and Dad, I want him to live with us.”

“Son,” said the father, “you don’t know what you’re asking. Someone with such a handicap would be a terrible burden on us. We have our own lives to live, and we can’t let something like this interfere with our lives. I think you should just come home and forget about this guy. He’ll find a way to live on his own.”
At that point, the son hung up the phone. The parents heard nothing more from him.

A few days later, however, they received a call from the San Francisco police. Their son had died after falling from a building, they were told. The police believed it was suicide. The grief-stricken parents flew to San Francisco and were taken to the city morgue to identify the body of their son. They recognized him, but to their horror they also discovered something they didn’t know, their son had only one arm and one leg.

The parents in this story are like many of us. We find it easy to love those who are good-looking or fun to have around, but we don’t like people who inconvenience us or make us feel uncomfortable. We would rather stay away from people who aren’t as healthy, beautiful, or smart as we are.

Submitted by Richard



Happiness

The Happiness

The Happiness

“They say we become our environment. That we cultivate our environment.”

I’ll set the scene in your mind for you. Picture a grocery store with a man in his 60′s sitting on a bench by the exit door along with a few people around him that he hasn’t seen in some time.

In broken English he says, “I have four children. One is a dentist. One is a lawyer. One is a doctor. And one is happy.”

Are you happy? How is your self-esteem?

As a writer I receive many letters from India, PNG (Papua New Guinea), the continent of Africa and so many. So many corners of the world. For most who live there, they think of the United States and Canada where I live as being well off. Yes, we are rich with resources. But are we well off? Happy?

For the most part our North American customs and traditions are:

(1) Get a good job
(2) Get a nice house
(3) Get a nice car

So here we are. We get that good job. We get that nice house. We get that nice car. But then are we happy? Oh, they (the system of marketing and sales) forgot to tell us that won’t really make us happy. Our parents didn’t drill into our heads to be happy. They told us, “Get a good job. Then you’ll be someone.”

When we think of Mother Theresa, do we think of the sweet ride (car) she had? Or are we saying: “Man her house was the bomb” (which means for us older folks: wasn’t it something?). Do we remember her? And all her great values? And for what principles she believed in and stood for?

And we talk about happiness. Like an unrecognized commodity.

“Houston, we don’t have a problem. Earth, we have a problem. Anger. Hatred is all around us. But it doesn’t have to be this way. A new self-healing spacecraft must be developed by us. One with precision pieces of engineering. Engineered with hope, joy, and kindness to our fellow man. One that makes all spirits fly.”

Why is the UFC so popular? Before that it was the WWE. All this anger. It goes far back to when the gladiators fought. Killing each other in the coliseums. Thumbs up he lives. Thumbs down he dies.

Flowers of Happiness

Why? Why do so many enjoy this? Perhaps we aren’t happy with our spouse. Our boss/workplace. We were bullied in school. So much anger and hatred placed upon our souls. We can’t fight back, but it is good to watch. We can release it this way. But it is all wrong, isn’t it?

So often these emotions enter into our daily lives. They seep into our relationships. Our parenting. Our being. Our legacy.

At the start of each new year most make resolutions. Maybe this year we should keep it simple. This year I’m going to instill happiness into my parenting. This year I’m going to be happy. This year I’m going to learn how to be truly happy.

by Miles Patrick Yohnke

“Globally recognized and award-nominated engineer, producer, writer, poet and founder and C.E.O. of 5 Star Productions”



Habis Manis Tidak Menjadi Sepah

Habis Manis Sepah Dibuang

Sebagian besar dari kita tentu pernah dan bahkan sering mendengar kalimat peribahasa “Habis Manis Sepah Dibuang”. Menurut saya pribadi, mungkin ini adalah salah satu peribahasa yang paling populer di sekitar kita.

Ucapan peribahasa tersebut merupakan gambaran dari ungkapan kekecewaan terhadap orang atau siapapun yang dianggap tidak tahu terimakasih, tidak tahu diuntung, tidak tahu balas budi atau beda-beda tipis lah dengan “Kacang Lupa Jaketnya”.

Mungkin bisa dibilang wajar kalau kalimat sindiran tersebut keluar dari orang yang sudah banyak memberikan pengorbanan namun dikecewakan oleh orang yang ia beri. Tapi jika kita hanya berpatokan kepada kesan kalau kita ini menjadi sepah setelah berjasa tentu itu kurang baik. Stop!!!, berhentilah dengan menyebut diri sendiri sebagai sepah.

Saya ingin sedikit mengomentari pribahasa “Habis Manis Sepah Dibuang” tersebut. Kenapa saya bilang sedikit ?, kalau banyak mendingan dijadikan buku ya, kan sekarang gampang banget tuh nerbitin buku, soal kualitas nomor sekian aja dah, soal gak laku paling nanti saya sendiri yang galau. Heheheheeee…

Siapa dari kita yang tidak ingin habis manis sepah dibuang ?. Saya rasa semuanya tidak ingin ya. Ternyata caranya Ada dan Sangat Sederhana, yaitu: “Jangan menjadi sepah, Jangan menjadi sampah, Jangan menjadi layak untuk dibuang.” Okey, kita mulai rada serius nih ya.

Soal sepah-menyepah (halah… istilah apa pula ini), sepertinya kesalahan yang paling awal datang dari diri kita sendiri :

  1. Mau menjadi sepah (biar rada saklek baca : Sampah)
  2. Menganggap diri sendiri sebagai sepah
  3. Betah menjadi sepah

Baik, sekarang kita coba bahas satu persatu :

Mau Menjadi Sepah

Sejak sekolah SD saya yakin kita sudah tahu dengan peribahasa ini, tapi seringnya kita baru sedia payung setelah hujan. Baru merajuk-rajuk setelah semuanya terjadi. Baru menyesal setelah kekecewaan datang. Maka, kalau tidak mau menjadi sepah, sejak awal kita harus lebih berhati-hati dalam banyak hal, terutama soal mempercayai. Saran saya yang mungkin paling paten, kalau memang niatnya menolong maka niatkanlah karena Tuhan semata, jadi apapun ending-nya mudah-mudahan tidak akan kecewa.

Yang paling miris lagi adalah ketika ungkapan “Habis Manis Sepah Dibuang” tersebut terlontar dari seorang perempuan yang (maaf beribu-ribu maaf) sudah menyerahkan kehormatannya kepada lelaki yang bukan suaminya, namun kemudian ia dicampakan. Ini bisa jadi pelajaran buat perempuan lainnya, jangan biarkan diri Anda menjadi sepah dengan menyerahkan kehormatan hanya bermodal rasa percaya.

Kemudian ada juga laki-laki yang merasa sudah banyak mengeluarkan materi untuk kekasihnya, namun dikemudian hari setelah hartanya terkuras habis ia menganggap dirinya habis manis sepah dibuang. Nah, pelajarannya terserah dah ambil masing-masing. Masih mau jadi sepah ?

Saya tidak ingin mengajak saudara-saudara untuk menjadi pribadi yang pelit, tapi kita harus lebih hati-hati lagi terhadap apa dan kepada siapa yang akan kita berikan. Kecuali mungkin kalau untuk yang berkaitan dengan materi kita bisa berpatokan kepada Porsi dan Berkat Tuhan dalam kehidupan kita.

Menganggap Diri Sendiri Sepah

Saudara-saudara!!!, Sadarlah !. Tidak ada satu orangpun yang menganggap dirimu sebagai sepah atau sampah atau sesuatu yang tidak berguna lagi. Bahkan dia yang sudah mengecewakanmu sekalipun. Yang ada adalah diri sendiri yang menganggap dirinya sebagai sepah.

Percaya atau tidak, ketika kita menganggap kalau diri kita sendiri sebagai sepah itu sudah memberi sugesti dan magnet untuk semakin membuat diri kita terpuruk. Jadi, jangan biarkan pikiran kita sendiri yang membuang dan mengubur diri kita kedalam sampah sejarah.

Betah Menjadi Sepah

Ini yang paling fatal. Setelah disia-siakan dan merasa diri sendiri tidak berguna, eh malah tidak melakukan apapun yang mampu membangkitkan semangat dan potensi diri. Seolah-olah dirinya betah menjadi sampah, betah menjadi tidak berguna.

Agar tidak betah menjadi sepah, maka hindari perasaan kalau diri sendiri sudah diperlakukan seperti sepah. Bangkitlah, lakukan banyak hal yang mampu mengalihkan pikiran kita dari praduga-praduga yang malah tidak menyehatkan hati dan pikiran. Ingat, didalam diri kita ada segumpal organ yang kalau organ tersebut tidak sehat maka seluruh badan kitapun tidak akan sehat, yaitu hati.

Tunjukan kepada orang-orang yang sudah menyia-nyiakan kita kalau dia akan menyesal karena sudah menyia-nyiakan kita.

Penutup

Habis manis sepah dibuang pada dasarnya menurut saya (menurut orang lain mungkin saja berbeda) lebih dikarenakan kesalahan diri kita sendiri. Tidak perlu menyalahkan orang lain, karena itu hanya akan membuat diri kita benar-benar menjadi sepah.

Kesalahan yang dimulai dari “mau menjadi sepah”, kemudian diperparah lagi dengan “menganggap diri sendiri sebagai sepah”, dan diperhancur lebur lagi ketika “betah menjadi sepah”.

Yang cukup penting agar tidak menjadi sepah adalah tetaplah menjadi manis, teruslah berusaha dan berkarya, serta teruslah menjadi yang berguna dan bermanfaat yang membuat siapapun tidak sanggup untuk kehilangan Anda apalagi membuang Anda.

Demikian Sobat, semoga bermanfaat, karena Anda begitu Manis.

Sweet Desserts



Just Do It

Just Do It

Too many people put off something that brings them joy just because they haven’t thought about it, don’t have it on their schedule, didn’t know it was coming or are too rigid to depart from their routine.

I got to thinking one day about all those women on the Titanic who passed up dessert at dinner that fateful night in an effort to cut back… From then on, I’ve tried to be a little more flexible.

How many women out there will eat at home because their husband didn’t suggest going out to dinner until after something had been thawed? Does the word “refrigeration” mean nothing to you? How often have your kids dropped in to talk and sat in silence while you watched ‘Jeopardy’ on television?

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