How a Hacker Attack Led To a Breakthrough…
By Anna Johnson on January 8th, 2009Yesterday I mentioned that I was able to turn the attack on our web server into a positive. Not just any positive, but a breakthrough.
One that may well change the course of our business and, in particular, some of the things I do in this business.
Which leads me to not only share the revelation I had, but to also encourage you to purposely do what I was forced to do…
You know, I can’t help but draw parallels between what I do in my business… and what I used to do as a competitive runner. Back then, I was a chronic over-trainer. My coach had to urge me NOT to train too much. Of course, I largely ignored him… to my own peril: I was constantly getting injured.
I guess I have a chronic tendency to push and push and push. Hmmm… anyone else reading this newsletter have a similar tendency? Ironically, though, when I got injured and was forced to stop running, my body actually got a much needed chance to rest, which meant I actually performed better when I was able to train and race again. I was literally faster after I’d had a week or more of NOT running.
It seems that having some of our sites offline and being unable to send or receive email for a day had a similar effect.
Because I was forced to change what I had planned to do that day, I ended up doing something that will probably turn out to be a major turning point in our business.
Now, let me warn you: what I am about to say will cause some of you to roll your eyes. But, please, don’t focus so much on what my particular revelation was, as on the fact that I had a revelation. And on the fact that you too can have a revelation like this… if you give yourself the time and space to do so.
So what did I do?
I decided to make a little video using my webcam. (No rude jokes please!)
Okay, so you may have created tons of videos already, and, heck, I’ve been writing about online video for some time now. But I’ve always thought of doing videos as something I needed to put a lot of thought, planning and preparation into… rather than something I could do rather quickly.
You know Henry Ford’s saying? Whether you think you can, or you think you can’t… you’re right.
So, instead of thinking about all the reasons why I couldn’t do a video, I thought about how I could. I even challenged myself. I imagined myself in a competition where I only had a few minutes to prepare something. What would I come up with?
That’s an idea for you too: if you’ve been procrastinating about doing something… play a little game with yourself. Put yourself in a imaginary scenario where you MUST take action.
So that’s what I did. And guess what? I was able to produce not one, but two videos. Videos that have given me confidence to do more in the future. Indeed, if all goes well, the videos I produce in the future will be quite something…
Wanna see what I concocted?
The first video is a bit of fun. It was my ‘test’ video. And, yes, for all you Americans, I know I probably pronounced it wrong… (you’ll have to watch to find out what ‘it’ is).
The second is a video I created to promote a fantastic new product that will soon be launched. But, I promise, it’s NOT your normal promotional video. If you watch the first video you’ll get an inkling of why…
As for why I believe doing these videos will end up being a turning point in our business… that’s because of what I plan to do next. I’m not going to spell this out for you… you’ll get to see for yourself very soon…
In summary though, let me urge you to take time away from your regular routine to do things you wouldn’t normally do. By having no choice but to do something else, you may well come up with breakthroughs.
January 8th, 2009 at 6:19 pm
Loved the intro, “The Unspoken Crisis in Australian Homes”,
except it took me into a new website.
That straight face would crack a china plate!
Then the new product intro segwaying into
an affiliate promo, great stuff
More videos, more Videos
William
January 8th, 2009 at 6:28 pm
As Crazy Ann Sue would say, ‘you ain’t seen nothin’ yet.’ Who’s Crazy Ann Sue? All will be revealed…