I recently heard this really cool interview on Fresh Air and was really impressed with the insight to the creative (and not so creative) mind Jonah Lehrer offers up.

Settle in for the 33 minute show and let me know what you think. How are you fostering creativity at your company? What do you wish your company environment would change?

Incidentally, my office walls are painted blue. :)

On January 22, 2012 the U.S. Postal Service® implemented a postage rate increase for all mail classes including First Class Mail®, Priority Mail and Express Mail along with many special services.

Summary of the 2012 USPS postage rate increase:
First Class Letters (1 oz.) will increase by one cent to $0.45 from $0.44. Each additional ounce will cost an extra $0.20 (no change)
First Class Flats (1 oz.) will increase by two cents to $0.90 from $0.88. Each additional ounce will cost an extra $0.20 (no change)
Postcard rates will increase by three cents to $0.32 from $0.29
Priority Mail retail rates will increase by an average of 3.2% and will start at $5.20 (previously at $5.10)
Express Mail retail rates will increase by an average of 4.4% and will start at $12.95 (previously at $12.85)
Parcel Post rates will start at $5.20 (previously at $5.10)
Media Mail rates will start at $2.47 (previously at $2.41)
New Product! Priority Mail Regional Rate Box C is being introduced with a 25 pound maximum weight limit. Prices start at $14.44
New Product! Express Mail Flat Rate Box is being introduced at $39.95 with a 70 pound maximum weight limit

Click here for more information and a really cool chart.

Now, before you freak out, just remember the fact you can send a card to anyone in the entire United States for only .45 is still one hell of a deal. I mean, really, you have to spend nearly twice that on a candy bar that is gone in less than 5 minutes. I don't know about you but I have a whole box of cards that people have sent me over the years that really touched me. I can't say the same for candy.

Last week, Center Aisle Group send out a whole slew of holiday cards. Old school? Perhaps. But, since we're part of the greeting card industry, we do that. Yeah, we're smokin' what we're selling, yo.

I got an email a couple of days later from my good friend and industry powerhouse Kate Harper. Her question was simple:

"Are you saying "Happy Holidays" or 'Bite Me'?

Needless to say, my reply was "Bite Me."



Disclaimer: I know that there isn't an address on the envelope in this photo. If you want Kate's address, you'll need to ask her directly. Sorry.

Happy Friday, dear readers!

While the details of the situation with the US Postal Service are definitely worthy of a much more detailed discussion, I'm going to save that for another day.

For now, just enjoy the delicious reporting finesse of our friends at The Daily Show with Jon Stewert. Nobody, and I mean nobody, does it better.

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
Too Big to Mail
www.thedailyshow.com
Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor & Satire Blog The Daily Show on Facebook

There are many, many perks to my job. Recently I was on a visit to the legendary John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, DC. I was given a backstage tour of "The Magic Flute" which is currently showing there. We rounded the corner and I came face to face with this massive box.



There was something about it that I found hilarious. I don't know if it was the word "Ostrich" or the size of the crate but I couldn't help but laugh...and of course document it for you. No wonder people have a hard time understanding the life of a sales rep!

As we wind up the year, surely you've got some funny stories of your life pimpin'. Share them here with the only folks who can truly appreciate the absurdity of what we do.

Many reps struggle with end of the year burnout and fatigue. The new economy has made selling hard again and 2011 has been a tough year. For the reps that have survived to sell another day, the physical, mental and emotional toll is no joke and you may be feeling pretty burned out.



Rep self-care is one of those topics you never see addressed in sales meetings or sales manuals, yet it is one of the most important elements to sustaining success in this business.

Sometimes the most effective way to serve our customers and our manufacturers is to serve ourselves first. For many reps, Q4 is make it or break it time and you don’t have the luxury of taking it easy or coasting.

So, whatta you do?

Here are 5 Ways to Power Thorough When You’re Powered Out.

1. Get physical. Start incorporating some type of physical activity into your day, above and beyond walking from your car into an appointment. Moving your body helps ward off depression and will build your physical stamina so they show don’t physically wear you out as much. Even a 20-minute walk around your neighborhood will help clear your head and reduce anxiety.

2. Plan a Winter Break. Reserve a block of time between Christmas and the first of the year for vacation. This can be a couple of days or even a few weeks if you can manage it. Notify your manufacturers, set an auto-responder on your email, change your voicemail and unplug. The decompression will do wonders for your state of mind and ability to focus. Having these days reserved will also give you something to look forward to.

3. Eat Your Wheaties. When schedules get crazy, it’s easy to skimp on eating or fall back on quick and easy food choices. Make a deliberate decision to eat as few processed foods as possible and lay off the booze. Your ability to keep your head in the game is directly linked to what you’re putting into your body.

4. Reserve time for paperwork. Whatever it takes, make sure you do not get behind on your administrative work. Incoming orders should never sit more than 8 hours on your desk before being submitted to your manufacturers. When things heat up, customers expect (and deserve) immediate responses and piles of paper prevent this from happening. Carve out dedicated administrative time on your calendar every day. This might mean getting to your desk an hour earlier or staying an hour later.

5. Kill the emotional vampires. Surround yourself with positive people and make a point to only expose yourself to positive things. Unplug your television, the 24-hour news feed on your desktop and ban any newspapers or magazines that dwell on the crappy state of things. You need a positive infusion, not the poison of the media right now. If you want to watch tv to relax, pick something funny and lighthearted, like Bugs Bunny or old “I Love Lucy” episodes. Yeah, really.

No matter what, don’t just disappear on your customers or manufacturers. It’s one thing to recognize you’re worn out. It’s another thing to get stuck there. Sometimes you just have to power through, knowing your reward is on the other end.

Taking care of yourself mentally, physically and emotionally is not selfish or slacking. In fact, every sales manager and group principal should encourage it. When crunch time is on though, you may just need to position yourself as best you can and power through.

Like most Americans, I'm preparing to don my eatin' pants and roll on up to a Thanksgiving Day table surrounded by my family and the most ridiculous spread imaginable. I have every intention of eating and drinking and being merry. And this year, perhaps more than in the past, I will be especially thankful.

I hope you take a moment (or two or three or twenty) to seriously think about and appreciate all the good things you have (even if you have less of them) and all the ways that you are fortunate and blessed by the God of your understanding. I know times are tough out there, believe me. I'm in the ring right next to you. Regardless of how down your numbers are or how much pressure you're feeling, we're mighty fortunate to have the kinds of lives we have. Please don't lose sight of that.

I am so incredibly thankful for all of my customers and clients who have made my amazing and totally wacky life possible. Thank you to all of you for your continued business and support.

So, in the spirit of Thanksgiving and in mad support of Small Business Saturday, Road Rage is thrilled to feature the single best Thanksgiving display we've ever seen. It was spotted in downtown DC at the legendary gift shop Chocolate Moose.

Yes, those are inflatable turkeys hanging from the ceiling.



Have a great holiday, dear readers!

Q4 isn’t just busy for retailers. It should be just as busy for sales people. One of the biggest misconceptions among sales reps is that not much happens in late November and December. Starting right now, I say lose that lame-assed thinking. Just because your customers may not need to see you, it doesn’t mean you don’t have plenty of work to do. Don’t be scared by that notion. Since most reps don’t think beyond the next order, just a few simple steps can put you way ahead. So, here you go:

5 Ways to Destroy Your Competition With Holiday Cheer

1. Smoke What You’re Selling. If you are anywhere near the greeting card industry, you better plan on sending holiday cards to (at least) your top 100 customers. This doesn’t have to be a big deal. Run labels off your customer database and dig out some old samples from the basement (just a make sure they don’t look like old samples). Schedule time to write out them out. Don’t whine about how there are “too many” or you’re “too busy”. Plan on hand writing and personalizing each one. Start now and write 10 or so a night and by early December, you're done!

2. Give Fat Stacks. What do you get for the best buyers as a holiday gift? I say you give nothing. In lieu of gifts for your customers, make a generous donation to a charity. Include a note in your holiday cards saying you’ve made a donation in honor of your customers and thank them for their business over the past year. Don’t cheap out, either. If you’d spend $50 per gift basket for 10 accounts, give $500.

3. Give Your Time. For your top 5 customers, offer to work a shift, including weekends, for free during the holidays. Be willing to do anything from keeping the store merchandised to staffing a gift-wrap table. Don’t think for a minute that won’t make a huge impression, even if they don’t take you up on your offer. Plan on buying lunch for everyone during your shift too.

4. Be Available. Plan on working or at least being available to help your accounts with last minute orders through 6pm on December 19th. All indications are that holiday reorders will be smaller but more frequent. If you can be a hero by getting a last minute order submitted and shipped, why wouldn’t you? Just be sure you’ve got current stock status reports and manufacturer shipping deadlines to insure your rockstar reputation.

5. Keep it in the Family. Do your holiday shopping with your customers. Don’t expect a discount either. Imagine the surprise on the buyer’s face when you walk in and they look confused. “Did we have an appointment?” they ask. You say, “Nope. I’m just here shopping.” Dang, you’re good.

None of this is hard. All of it will go a long way to countering the notion that reps don’t care about customers and are only in it for the money. A little attention, a little time, and a little extra effort is all it takes. Don’t get derailed if your competition (or co-workers) cut out early, cut corners, or just disappear during the holiday season. Instead, watch them get jealous when your customers rave about you, when you win the sales awards and when you take a bigger commission (and a bigger bonus) check to the bank.

Mama's on a roll today. I realized this morning I've spent the last 18 days immersed in Guns 'N Roses. I feel like I could eat glass and breathe fire. Damn, these boys stir up the very deepest parts of my heart and soul.

I want to share this with you, dear readers. I know you're working your asses off and you might feel like you're dying out there.

While this isn't especially safe for work (or maybe even home), I say crank it up anyway. Look past the wonky editing, the fact Axl's not wearing any pants, and hone in on the message here lovingly delivered by one the best rock 'n roll frontmans in history.

You know all this stuff is about taking it and making it your own. We all have our own version of "the press" so insert your own haters 2:50 and prepare to get in the ring.



Wanna sing along? You can see the lyrics here

One of the first lessons anybody in business and every sales rockstar needs to learn is the importance of bounce-back. It doesn’t matter who you are or how good you are, you will experience pushback and flat-out insults during your career. Sometimes those things can feel personal and sometimes they really are.

Hurtful words are sharp and they sting. It sucks when they get shot at you and the people who say those things – no matter what their motivation or intention — suck hard. I will never, ever understand what happens in a person’s mind that they feel the need to viciously tear down others with razored, serpent tongues or knowingly throw someone under the bus for their own, selfish gains. I guess it’s to feel better about themselves or to affirm their position of authority (at least in their own minds) or feed into some screwed up idea of what it means to be a tough negotiator. I think Nametag Guy, Scott Ginsburg said it best: “Being an asshole is not a business model.”

Maybe you’ve heard the phrase, “just like a duck” and maybe that phrase has even been offered to you as a word of advice. You know, be like a duck. Let it roll off your back like water off a like a duck. If you’re still not quite getting it, it’s a way of saying, “don’t let it get to you.”

If you’re out there getting verbally or financially clobbered on the business and economic battlefield, take a look at today’s gentle reminder to not let the haters get you down. In fact, your ability to bounce back, bigger, stronger, smarter and better than ever is the best “up yours” you can issue.

Roll with the punches, dear readers. Regroup and redirect and, if necessary, be sure to pick your teeth up off the floor on your way out. You don’t need a coach, mentor, therapist, self-help books or an expensive business class to teach you this. Just watch the baby ducks.