I get hatemail.
For wearing a nametag. To make people friendlier.

I’ve had people start fights with me.
For wearing a nametag. To make people friendlier

I’ve received death threats.
For wearing a nametag. To make people friendlier

And only from men, too.

I don’t understand this.

Is it resentment? Jealousy? Animosity? Does a sticker threaten their sense of self?

Oh well. Better to be hated for who you are then loved for who you aren’t.
Besides, they get the laugh once – I get the laugh forever.

The point is, revolution without ridicule, isn’t. You’re nobody until somebody hates you. And if your idea isn’t being attacked, it’s not big enough.

Being attacked is a sign that you are important enough to be a target.

It’s like Nietzsche said: “Those who were seen dancing were said to be insane by those who could not hear the music.”

LET ME ASK YA THIS…
Who hates you?

LET ME SUGGEST THIS…
For the list called, “52 Random Insights to Grow Your Business,” send an email to me, and you win the list for free!

* * * *
Scott Ginsberg
That Guy with the Nametag
Author, Speaker, Publisher, Artist, Mentor
[email protected]

Never the same speech twice.

Now booking for 2012!

Watch The Nametag Guy in action here!

Next year is going to be the best ever for your business.

But only if you enhance your company’s usage of the following three words: Knowledge, reassurance and conversations. Straight from my regular column on American Express Open Forum, consider these ideas:

1. Knowledge. The tendency is to hoard knowledge is a seductive one. It makes us harder to replace, enables greater leverage, increases promotability and gives us a competitive advantage.

But a lot of the time, in those moments when we operate from a scarcity mentality, we act selfish with our knowledge. We avoid telling people what we know for fear of losing power. And then everybody loses. Like pushing a rock up hill with one eye over our shoulder, it’s not especially productive, it doesn’t contribute to the greater good and it rarely proves to be a worthwhile investment of time and effort.
But thanks to the connective beauty of the Web—via blogs, social media, discussion boards, forums and other digital platforms—we’ve found a way to reverse the trajectory. With the click of button, we send the snowball down the hill, hoping it will grow a little bit more with each revolution, growing a little bit stronger with each person’s individual contribution. Knowledge might be power, but sharing that knowledge with others is priceless.

2. Reassurance. When privacy is at stake, reassurance is priceless. I once gave a workshop to a document destruction company. Their specialty was paper shredding and hardware demolition, mainly for large financial institutions. Stockbroking firms paid them big bucks to destroy old client records, annual reports and other sensitive materials.

Naturally, prospective clients were skeptical. Outside of the standard disclosure agreements, and outside of whatever trust was established between the firm and the destruction company, there was really no way to guarantee that their information could be fully protected. So I asked the president how he handled the issue of client privacy. And said that most players in his industry struggled with it. To the point that it became a barrier to growth.

“But at our company, it’s easy,” he said, “Most of my employees can’t read.” Wait. What? That’s right. The majority of his warehouse staff was blind, mentally retarded or cognitively impaired. They didn’t steal the information because they couldn’t read it.

That’s reassurance. And don’t forget, this document destruction company staffed dozens of permanent and temporary workers each year, most of whom could never get a job anywhere else because of their preexisting conditions. That’s reassurance too. I wonder what your company does to deliver it.

3. Conversations. Our priorities are way out of whack. The assumption is that we need to make something better, sell something cheaper or ship something faster. No, what we need is to have smarter conversations. We might change the interaction model, by being unreasonably accessible where the rest of the world is hard to reach. That’s a smarter conversation.

We might build our listening platform, by turning social media into a hearing aid while the rest of the world uses it as a sales tool. That’s a smarter conversation. We might position ourselves as teachers who solve expensive problems while the rest of the world is selfish with their knowledge. That’s a smarter conversation.

We might create acts that make emotional connections while the rest of the world is bothering and interrupting people with advertisement. That’s a smarter conversation. Point being, customers already have everything they need. Except us. In the flesh. Ready to listen to them. Why don’t we sell that?

Next year truly can be the best year ever, as long as you implement these three words.

LET ME ASK YA THIS…
Will your business be ready for January 1?

LET ME SUGGEST THIS…
For the list called, “17 Behaviors to Avoid for Effective Listening,” send an email to me, and you win the list for free!

* * * *
Scott Ginsberg
That Guy with the Nametag
Author, Speaker, Publisher, Artist, Mentor
[email protected]

Never the same speech twice.

Now booking for 2012!

Watch The Nametag Guy in action here!

I published my first book when I was twenty-two.

There was no plan. No marketing strategy. No publicity campaign. No social media push. No finely orchestrated plan in perfect alignment with my personal vision statement and life purpose.

I just handed out copies to every single person I knew. With one catch:

Every copy of the book came with two free nametags.

One for you, one for a friend.

Readers loved it. They showed everybody. Some even wore the nametags in public to start conversations – with complete strangers – about my idea.
What’s amazing is, people didn’t care that much about the book itself.

They just wanted the free prize inside.

So I spent dozens of hours staying up late the night before speeches, gluing those little buggers into the back of each book. Wasted tons of money. Signed every copy. Burned my fingers with hot glue a hundred times. And hated every moment of it.

It was worth it.

Extras matter. People don’t want the cookie – they want the fortune.

LET ME ASK YA THIS…
What’s your free prize?

LET ME SUGGEST THIS…
For the list called, “7 Ways to Out Attract Your Competition,” send an email to me, and you win the list for free!

* * * *
Scott Ginsberg
That Guy with the Nametag
Author, Speaker, Publisher, Artist, Mentor
[email protected]

Never the same speech twice.

Now booking for 2012!

Watch The Nametag Guy in action here!

I published my first book when I was twenty-two.

There was no plan. No marketing strategy. No publicity campaign. No social media push. No finely orchestrated plan in perfect alignment with my personal vision statement and life purpose.

I just handed out copies to every single person I knew. With one catch:

Every copy of the book came with two free nametags.

One for you, one for a friend.

Readers loved it. They showed everybody. Some even wore the nametags in public to start conversations – with complete strangers – about my idea.
What’s amazing is, people didn’t care that much about the book itself.

They just wanted the free prize inside.

So I spent dozens of hours staying up late the night before speeches, gluing those little buggers into the back of each book. Wasted tons of money. Signed every copy. Burned my fingers with hot glue a hundred times. And hated every moment of it.

It was worth it.

Extras matter. People don’t want the cookie – they want the fortune.

LET ME ASK YA THIS…
What’s your free prize?

LET ME SUGGEST THIS…
For the list called, “7 Ways to Out Attract Your Competition,” send an email to me, and you win the list for free!

* * * *
Scott Ginsberg
That Guy with the Nametag
Author, Speaker, Publisher, Artist, Mentor
[email protected]

Never the same speech twice.

Now booking for 2012!

Watch The Nametag Guy in action here!

LET ME ASK YA THIS…
What’s your act?

LET ME SUGGEST THIS…
For the list called, “71 Things Customers Don’t Want to Hear You Say,” send an email to me, and you win the list for free!

* * * *
Scott Ginsberg
That Guy with the Nametag
Author, Speaker, Publisher, Artist, Mentor
[email protected]

Never the same speech twice.

Now booking for 2011-2012!

Watch The Nametag Guy in action here!

The problem with wearing a nametag everywhere is that people assume you’re an employee of whatever store in which they find you.

While shopping for office supplies recently, an elderly woman stopped me in the middle of the aisle. She asked a question about printer cartridges, so I was happy to help.

I sold her the most expensive one.

Never did get my commission check for that sale.
Another time I was at the copy shop when a fellow customer assumed I was an employee. He asked me a question about using his credit card on the printer, and I told him that it would probably work fine.

Then his card jammed the machine. I walked out of the store immediately.

Woops.

This kind of interaction happens to me all the time. Over the years I’ve been mistaken as a clothing salesman, produce sanitizer, high school teacher, game show contestant, coat checker, furniture mover, underwear salesman, lounge singer, customer service agent, fitness trainer, computer technician, stock boy, stripper, reality show star, restaurant manager and video game mechanic.

Maybe I’m too nice.

It just seems like the right thing to do when somebody asks for help.

LET ME ASK YA THIS…
How many customers did you help today?

LET ME SUGGEST THIS…
For the list called, “7 Ways to Out Attract Your Competition,” send an email to me, and you win the list for free!

* * * *
Scott Ginsberg
That Guy with the Nametag
Author, Speaker, Publisher, Artist, Mentor
[email protected]

Never the same speech twice.

Now booking for 2012!

Watch The Nametag Guy in action here!

Screens are fine.

But we can’t solely filter our lives through pixels. Not if we want those lives to matter.

Face-to-face is making a comeback.

Which doesn’t mean information is irrelevant. It’s just that contact offers an unquantifiable humanness that content can’t provide.
Only face-to-face can you truly learn who you are. Only face-to-face can you truly discover how the world works. Only face-to-face can you truly resonate with the soul of another human being.

I don’t care what line of work you’re in.

Every time we touch each other’s skin, look each other in the eye and talk to each other with our mouths, the world feels a little bit more connected.

Create an act of humanity in a moment of distance.

That never goes out of style.

LET ME ASK YA THIS…
How many people did you go out of your way to ignore last week?

LET ME SUGGEST THIS…
For the list called, “23 Ways to Learn a Lot at a Really Young Age,” send an email to me, and you win the list for free!

* * * *
Scott Ginsberg
That Guy with the Nametag
Author, Speaker, Publisher, Artist, Mentor
[email protected]

Never the same speech twice.

Now booking for 2012!

Watch The Nametag Guy in action here!

“I just have so many questions!”

I get that a lot.

When people find out I wear a nametag everyday, they’re instantly curious about a number of issues. And I’m happy to oblige. Comes with the territory.

I once met a guy in a jazz club in Hell’s Kitchen. Noticing my nametag, he asked me if I had just come from an episode of The Price is Right.

Good guess, but no. Even though I’ve always secretly wanted to be on that show. Just let me play one game of Plinko and I’ll be out of your way.
People are enthralled by mystery. They never grow tired of things that invite constant interpretation. And our ability to fascinate them is a tremendous asset.

Like Houdini, we have to emanate an aura of delightful unpredictability.

We have leave the public always wanting more, wondering about our next move.

Never underestimate the profitability of mystery.

LET ME ASK YA THIS…
How mysterious are you?

LET ME SUGGEST THIS…
For a list called, “10 Reasons (Excuses) You’re Not Blogging Yet,” send an email to me, and you win the list for free!

* * * *
Scott Ginsberg
That Guy with the Nametag
Author, Speaker, Publisher, Artist, Mentor
[email protected]

“After investing in your mentoring program, I’ve become centered on who I am and what I have to offer. Now, I am attracting clients I want to work with. Life is great and I just wanted to thank you from the bottom of my heart.”

–Melanie Jatsek, Diet Busters

Rent Scott’s brain today.

The greatest gift you can give someone is to shove them over the wall.

I remember the exact moment this happened to me.

I was twenty-two years old.
I was finishing the manuscript for my first book.
I was working full time as a furniture salesman to make ends meet.

I got a call from the president of a local Rotary Club. He asked if I could come give a speech to his group. Being just out of college, I replied, “What the hell is a Rotary Club?”

I reluctantly agreed.

By the time I was finished, I’d never sweat more in my life. My hands trembled as I clenched the ten pages of notes that I never even looked at once.

But when I asked if there were any questions, a ninety-year-old retired surgeon named Harold raised his hand.
“Scott, do you have a job?”

“I sell couches.”

They thought that was hilarious.

Not a laugh line.

After we adjourned, Harold pulled me aside and said a four-letter word:

“Quit.”

That was a gift. A shove moment. An interaction that made my path brighter.

So I took his advice and never looked back.

Sometimes we need people to shove us.

To help us see something we’re too close to ourselves to notice.
To applaud our risk, elevate our hope and provoke our decision.
To believe in us more than we believe in ourselves.

To shove people is to love people.

LET ME ASK YA THIS…
Who have you shoved this week?

LET ME SUGGEST THIS…
For a list called, “9 Things Every Writer Needs to Do Every Day,” send an email to me, and you win the list for free!

* * * *
Scott Ginsberg
That Guy with the Nametag
Author, Speaker, Publisher, Artist, Mentor
[email protected]

“After investing in your mentoring program, I’ve become centered on who I am and what I have to offer. Now, I am attracting clients I want to work with. Life is great and I just wanted to thank you from the bottom of my heart.”

–Melanie Jatsek, Diet Busters

Rent Scott’s brain today.

I often wear multiple nametags.

One on each layer of clothing.

Not just for consistency purposes, but also for safety purposes.

It’s a dangerous world out there. Should I run into trouble, should I encounter somebody whose behavior is threatening, or should I confront an individual who needs to calm down, it’s always good to know I can simply open my jacket and say:

“We got a problem here?”
I remember getting into a fender bender once. The guy that I hit leaped out of his car, charged toward my window and starting yelling at me. He made accusations that I was drunk and stupid and didn’t know how to drive.

I didn’t move.
I didn’t say a thing.
I just stayed calm, stared him right in the eye and let him finish.

He huffed back to his car to get his insurance information. About a minute later, he returned a bit calmer. Noticing my nametag, he said, “I’m sorry Scott – I may have overreacted back there.”

That’s my weapon of choice: I don’t pack heat – I pack friendliness.

Carry nametags, not guns.

LET ME ASK YA THIS…
What do you carry?

LET ME SUGGEST THIS…
For the list called, “38 Ways to Make Customers Gasp,” send an email to me, and you win the list for free!

* * * *
Scott Ginsberg
That Guy with the Nametag
Author, Speaker, Publisher, Artist, Mentor
[email protected]

Never the same speech twice.

Now booking for 2012!

Watch The Nametag Guy in action here!