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Top of Mind Thursday Memo Archive
Top of Mind Thursday – February 3, 2022: If You Give a Maus a Cookie…
According to the children’s book, if you give a mouse a cookie, he’ll ask for a glass of milk, then a straw, then a napkin, etc. One thing leads to another.
This past week, the book Maus, the only graphic novel to ever win a Pulitzer Prize, was banned in Tennessee schools because of language and nudity. Mausi tells the story of the author’s father’s experiences through the Holocaust. It has received widespread acclaim since it was published in 1980.
The Tennessee school board said the book, part of a curriculum focused on the Holocaust, contained “unhealthy and unwise” content. Well, yes, the Holocaust was a pretty unhealthy and unwise situation–given that nearly 11 million people (six million of whom were Jews) were killed.
Here’s the problem: Many of the most important lessons we need to learn from history don’t involve nice, neat, healthy, and happy content. That doesn’t mean we should ban them. On the contrary, those are the areas we need to focus on more deeply–so people understand what happened and we ensure those things don’t happen again.
And here’s what happens when you try to avoid unpleasant history…If you give a Maus a ban, then he’ll get much more attention, people will start to wonder what all the fuss in about, and the book will become the #3 selling book on Amazon today (out of more than 48 million books!).
After all, one thing leads to another.
Contact me to find out how you can get heard above the noise–even in a crisis situation.
Catch the latest episodes of the hottest podcast on business and entrepreneurship…ShrimpTank Seattle Wednesdays at noon PT.
Check out our marketing thought leadership podcasts and the video trailer for my book, Marketing Above the Noise: Achieve Strategic Advantage with Marketing that Matters.
.
Let us help your business rise to the top.
linda@popky.com
(650) 281-4854
www.leverage2market.com
Top of Mind Thursday – January 27, 2022: Totally Nuts
This week, a Merrill Lynch advisor was fired after directing an expletive laden tirade at the workers at a smoothie shop who made his son’s drink. He threw a drink at one person and made anti-immigrant comments at another.
Sounds like a straight-forward case of inappropriate racist behavior, right? Not so fast.
It turned out that James Iannozzo’s son has a severe peanut allergy. Iannozzo specifically told the shop NOT to put peanuts in his son’s drink–and this even was noted on his sales slip. However, in spite of this, the smoothie contained peanuts and his son required emergency room treatment.
Somehow this part of the story appears to have been lost. The video of Iannozzo’s tirade has gone viral–being viewed more than half a million times. It doesn’t appear there’s a video of his son being treated for anaphylactic shock, which could have easily killed him.
Too many people poo-poo allergies like this–complaining how limiting peanuts at school lunch tables or on airplanes is inconvenient for them. This is not an inconvenience for someone like Iannozzo’s son. Untreated, an exposure like this could be deadly. Over 3 million people in the US have nut allergies and 150 of them die each year from situations like this.
Was Iannozo wrong to attack the employees in the store like this? Yes. Were the store employees wrong not to treat a nut allergy seriously? Absolutely.
It’s too bad this hasn’t been showcased as an example of why nut allergies should be taken so seriously. Ignoring that lesson is totally nuts.
Contact me to find out how you can get heard above the noise–even in a crisis situation.
Catch the latest episodes of the hottest podcast on business and entrepreneurship…ShrimpTank Seattle Wednesdays at noon PT.
Check out our marketing thought leadership podcasts and the video trailer for my book, Marketing Above the Noise: Achieve Strategic Advantage with Marketing that Matters.
.
Let us help your business rise to the top.
linda@popky.com
(650) 281-4854
www.leverage2market.com
Top of Mind Thursday – January 20, 2022: What if He Was Still Alive?
Monday was MLK Day in the US–honoring slain civil rights leader Martin Luther King.
It’s been nearly 54 years since Dr. King was assassinated in Memphis. Since then, there has been movement forward and back on civil rights. Voting rights acts passed–followed by restrictive voting laws in many states. American electing a Black president–followed by one who was blatantly racist.
King told us not to judge a man by the color of his skin–yet that still happens on an ongoing basis. He told us the time is always right to do what’s right, and darkness can’t drive out darkness: only light can do that.
I wonder what MLK would have to say about the current state of things if he were still alive. What commentary would he have about our polarized world–a place where people fight over mask mandates and refuse to be vaccinated against a disease that has already killed over 5 million people globally? Would he chastise us for forgetting what he saw as the path forward to justice and equality?
Maybe he’d just repeat what he already told us:
“We must learn to live together as brothers or perish together as fools.”
“If we are to have peace on earth, our loyalties must become ecumenical rather than sectional. Our loyalties must transcend our race, our tribe, our class, and our nation; and this means we must develop a world perspective.”
It seems that the more things change, the more they stay the same.
Contact me to find out how you can get heard above the noise–even in a crisis situation.
Catch the latest episodes of the hottest podcast on business and entrepreneurship…ShrimpTank Seattle Wednesdays at noon PT.
Check out our marketing thought leadership podcasts and the video trailer for my book, Marketing Above the Noise: Achieve Strategic Advantage with Marketing that Matters.
.
Let us help your business rise to the top.
linda@popky.com
(650) 281-4854
www.leverage2market.com
Top of Mind Thursday – January 13, 2022: Final Curtain Call
Bob Saget. Betty White. Sidney Poitier. John Madden. Desmond Tutu. Joan Didion.
These are a few of the most notable performers, writers, and public figures who passed away in the last 30 days.
All of these people lived long, productive lives (Bob Saget was the youngest, at 65). They received respect and acclaim for their accomplishments throughout their careers.
Some–like Poitier and Tutu–had to overcome tremendous obstacles to achieve greatness. Others–like Betty White–continued to perform and delight audiences until just days before their death.
A 100th birthday celebration for Betty White, planned for next week, will now be a celebration of her life.
The problem with these celebrations, of course, is that there’s no guarantee that the guest of honor will be around to show up for the event. If we learn one thing from the time of COVID, it should be that life is not just precious but also fragile. One can appear healthy and vibrant one day and then be gone the next (like Saget).
Which is why we should be sure to celebrate the important people in our lives on an ongoing basis–whether or not they are nearing an important milestone birthday or anniversary.
My father was a key community leader in our town in Northeastern Pennsylvania. For decades, he championed programs for the disabled, low-income senior citizens, and others. Our family was grateful that the organizations he supported chose to honor him while he was still alive–rather than waiting till after he passed.
The problem with a final posthumous curtain call is that the person who is meant to be honored can no longer hear the applause.
Contact me to find out how you can get heard above the noise–even in a crisis situation.
Catch the latest episodes of the hottest podcast on business and entrepreneurship…ShrimpTank Seattle Wednesdays at noon PT.
Check out our marketing thought leadership podcasts and the video trailer for my book, Marketing Above the Noise: Achieve Strategic Advantage with Marketing that Matters.
.
Let us help your business rise to the top.
linda@popky.com
(650) 281-4854
www.leverage2market.com