Introduce the term “Daylight Savings Time” into a friendly discussion. Then, ask “Wait a minute–is the proper term, ‘Daylight Savings Time’ or ‘Daylight Saving Time?’
Most people feel the term flows better with the extra “s,” so be prepared to take the opposing view in a friendly wager. Try not to be too smug when you collect. Heehee. Tweet this
“Saving” is used here as a verbal adjective or a participle because it modifies “time.” The term Daylight Saving Time would be more grammatically correct as “daylight-saving time.”
So what’s the confusion?
Daylight Savings Time is now in common usage, which makes it a rather common mistake.
Of course, the phrase Daylight Saving Time is inaccurate, since no daylight is actually saved. “Daylight Shifting Time” would be a more accurate name, but good luck instituting that change.
During DST, clocks are turned forward an hour, effectively moving an hour of daylight from the morning to the evening, giving us the opportunity to enjoy sunny summer evenings by moving our clocks an hour forward in the spring.
Most of the United States begins Daylight Saving Time at 2:00 a.m. on the second Sunday in March and reverts to standard time on the first Sunday in November.
Why does it have to be so complicated?
I wish I lived during the old days, when people had more time.
Want more time management skills?
Time management remains one of our biggest challenges. To maximize your time, you must learn to prioritize and say “no.” Learn more from Michael Angelo Caruso’s audio program, Gain One Hour a Day—Time Management That Pays, which contains dozens of practical tips for better managing time.
Steve Jobs was not known as a sentimental softie, yet his passing is still a tender memory for people all over the world. Clearly, his death has gotten a lot of us to think about how we spend our lives and what we do with our time.
Humans are creatures of habit. We are more likely to do things we’ve done before than to try something new. We drive the same route to work every day, park in the same spot when we get there, and eat the same types of lunches from week to week.
This “routine-groove-rut” is exactly the kind of patterned behavior that prevents us from making new memories. Here are 5 Cool Ideas on how to create new memories.
1. Living in the past doesn’t create memories.
People who dwell on the past often develop a victim mentality about life. Victims perceive life to be a series of negative occurrences because of things that have happened to them.
Their attitude seems to be “People have always taken advantage of me, so I’m not interested in meeting new people.” Old scripts can be keeping you from enjoying new material.
2. Invite new memories by rewriting your slate. Imprinting is a series of repetitive life lessons that help us determine our view of the world, including our self-concept. Most of us are indelibly imprinted early in life. Philosopher, John Locke wrote that, as youngsters, our minds are “tabula rasa” or a blank slate. Early on, people write on our slates, helping us create memories.
Some of us have trouble writing over those old memories. When you can rewrite your slate, you can easily add new memories. Computer experts might describe rewriting your slate as overwriting your disk.
3. Accept that new invitation. A female friend of mine was jogging when she encountered a group of strange men. The men identified themselves as secret service agents traveling with then President George Herbert Walker Bush. My friend told me that the agents invited her to run with the President and his entourage the next morning.
She passed on the offer. I asked her why she declined such a unique opportunity and my friend said, “I guess I didn’t feel like it.” Doing new things avails us to new memories, so make it a habit to step out of your routine.
Memories are generated by a process behavioral psychologists refer to as “experiential learning.” New experiences, of course, are a form of imprinting, which helps us to create memories. Routines do not promote newness.
4. The present is sometimes too predictable.
People who only think about the present condition are so caught up in routines that they cannot seem to try new things. In their determined effort to maintain status quo, they resist new opportunities, thus stifling the creation of new memories.
5. Live as if you don’t have much time left.
Impresario, Steve Jobs, urged us to not live other people’s lives. Do what you want to do. Do it now. Sociologists have discovered that people near death have an overwhelmingly common regret about their life. They usually regret not trying more new things like traveling to foreign countries and meeting more people.
What have you always wanted to do? What would you do this year if you knew it would be your last year? Use the answers to these questions as incentive to generate new memories.
~~~~~~~~~~
More from Michael on his great blog.
I’m speaking in Jamaica and brought some reading material on the trip.
My September/October issue of AAA Living magazine features an interesting article on the dangers of “deering while driving.” It got me thinking about how humans handle problems.
Apparently, there are 1.5 million car-deer collisions annually. The magazine states that the crashes kill some 150 people. These accidents aren’t healthy for the deer, either, as hardly any of them are wearing safety belts. Tweet
Here’s a surprising driving tip
The article lists three ways to avoid an unwanted wildlife encounter:
1) Stay alert. Deer are the most active at dawn and dusk.
2) Deer travel in herds. If you see one animal, there are probably many more nearby.
The third piece of advice is rather surprising:
3) Don’t veer for deer. Experts say that swerving is much more dangerous than hitting the animal. Veering could easily introduce oncoming traffic or an unforgiving bridge abutment into the equation.
Sometimes, it’s best to face a problem head-on
The “don’t veer for deer” lesson is a good metaphor for other types of problem-solving.
Of course, it’s always a good idea to stay alert for communication problems related to customer service, marketing, and such. And yes, these problems often “travel in herds.”
Lots of us try to avoid problems by ignoring them, procrastinating or even denying the problems exist.
Yet, in many cases, it’s best to confront the problem head-on. Face the problem as if you would position yourself directly in front of a camera.
Let the conundrum collide with your personal life or your work routine. This will create a unique opportunity to uncover a solution.
E-mail introductions are a fantastic way to help people, build your network, and upgrade your team.
But it takes a little time to keystroke the verbiage, so I simply save that chunk of text as a template and customize the details each time I use it.
Below, I give you the best way to introduce me, followed by a generic template you can use to introduce anyone. The template is a great time-saver! I’ve been teaching this technique to audiences across America. Tweet
It’s the best way I know to facilitate introductions online.
E-mail introduction for Michael Angelo Caruso
I would like to connect you with a very excellent speaker and author. His name is Michael Angelo Caruso. As both a friend and business consultant, Michael has helped me with many aspects of my business.
What makes him so special is his ability to work with both very large and very small businesses.
He has helped me improve sales, sharpened my product presentations, given me many time-saving ideas and even offered valuable advice for managing my employees.
His knowledge on Internet marketing, including social media, e.g., Facebook, Linkedin, and Twitter, is of the highest order.
I invite you to visit his Web site at www.MichaelAngeloCaruso.com as I am sure you can find a use for Michael. In addition, I’ll bet you instantly think of people you know who can use his services.
Thanks for your consideration and please let me know how things work out!
E-mail introduction template
Hi, PERSON A!
I would like to connect you with WHO PERSON B IS TO YOU. His name is PERSON B NAME. As both a friend and business associate, PERSON B has helped me with many aspects of my business.
What makes him so special is his ability to XXXXXX and XXXXXXX.
He has helped me XXXXXX, XXXXXXX, and XXXXXX.
His knowledge of XXXXXXXXX, XXXXXXXX, XXXXXXX is quite impressive, so I thought you’d like to be connected.
I invite you to visit his Web site at www.ABCDE.com as I am sure you can find a use for PERSON B. In addition, I’ll bet you instantly think of people you know who can use his services.
PERSON B, PERSON A is a fantastic XXXX and XXXXX. She is very good at XXXX and XXXX. I think she may be helpful to you when it comes to XXXX XXXX XXXXX.
Consider yourselves connected and please let me know how things work out!
Quincy has had an amazing life. Most people know him as the producer of Michael Jackson’s, Thriller, but Q has worked with hundreds of famous people, including Frank Sinatra, Lesley Gore, Ray Charles, Duke Ellington, Count Basie, and Miles Davis.
Originally a music arranger, Quincy met a lot of musicians before he turned 21-years-old. By most accounts, Quincy took care of his relationships and one friendship led to another and so on, resulting in a lifetime of fruitful collaborations.
You only have to meet someone once
The French have a delightful way of saying “goodbye.” They say, “à la prochaine,” which means, until the next time.
I like this way of signing off because it downplays “goodbye” and emphasizes the next hello.
With Alex Mandossian in Los Angeles
For years, I’ve said “goodbye” to friends, retail clerks, and even strangers I meet by saying, “See you next time.”
Call me crazy, but I feel that once I meet someone, I never have to meet them again.
Once I begin a relationship with you, for example, we never have to start over again; we can merely pick up where we left off.
My friend, Alex Mandossian, one of the smartest Internet marketers in the land, likes to sign off with the phrase, “I hope our paths cross again.” It’s the same concept.
People are your greatest resource
When asked to speak to students at commencements and other keynote events, I advise youngsters to meet people as fast as they can. That way they can begin relationships that will serve them for decades.
Do this online, as well. The average social media user has between 120 and 150 Facebook friends. Increase that number for better-than-average return from your online networking.
This same principle can be applied in business when it comes to communicating, marketing, and even blogging. Just try to connect in meaningful ways. Give continuous value to people.
A while back, I did something most business people never do.
I started giving away my products and services. And it’s the best thing I ever did for my consulting business.
Every Monday at 4:00 ET, I jump on a conference call to dispense advice on everything from Internet marketing to event planning. The call-in codes are below.
Many callers have booked me to speak at various conferences and fundraisers. I help them save time, increase attendance, promote their events, and get the most from their marketing efforts.
My seminar fundraiser program has so far raised over $150, 000 for Rotary, Chambers of Commerce, and other non-for profit organizations.
Some callers have yet to do business with me. They are prospects who often convert after being on the call.
You should consider giving away your products and services. If you cannot afford to give away any of your current products, think about developing a product that you can make available.
“Set the hook” by sample selling
Fisherman know that you have to “set the hook” when the fish nibbles at the bait. Setting the hook is that small jerky motion that pulls the hook through the fish gill. The hook is a reversed-barbed piece of metal that makes it difficult for the fish to escape once he takes the bait.
That’s what free information and free products do. I call it “sample selling” because its like giving folks a free sample of what you do so they become interested in spending money with you.
It’s an easy marketing strategy to implement and everyone wins.
Free call and great marketing advice
You can hear how I do this and get yourself some terrific marketing advice by being on the call this Monday, from 4 to 4:30 PM ET. And did I tell you that the call is free?
Use call-in number: 218-339-3600, access code: 686134#
What does your company give away to promote business?
Many people complain that they don’t get any juice from their blogging activity.
The problem is usually related to one of two issues.
1) Not enough people are seeing the blog.
2) The blog topic isn’t interesting enough.
By “interesting,” I mean relevant and by “relevant,” I mean something that is in the news. Extra points, if the blog topic is related to what you’re marketing.
Never forget that the Internet works on keywords, so your blog has a better chance of being read if it contains the most popular keywords of that particular day. A good place to get your daily keywords is from news sites, such as www.CNN.com.
Here’s how this formula worked to a tee for me this week.
Peter Falk, TV’s Lt. Columbo, died late last week. I posted a blog about how Columbo’s famous “just one more thing” line became an effective selling tactic and pushed it out to my social media platforms.
Radio show morning host, Michael Patrick Shiels, a connection in my vast social media network, read the blog and had his producer contact me for an interview.
(By the way, another author/speaker in my city also had the idea to post about Columbo, but he incorrectly spelled the name “Colombo,” which no doubt reduced his number of original views. Spelling counts, people.)
You can hear the interview tomorrow morning, Tuesday, June 28 at 6:45 AM ET at MichiganTalkNetwork.com.
Of course, once the interview was booked, I reposted the same topic along with the new development to squeeze extra juice out of the topic. I might even create an “epilogue post” after the interview is completed.
Good luck with blogging and all your marketing efforts!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Anyone can blog. Listen to Michael Angelo Caruso interview with Paula Parisot, a soccer mom and paid blogger. The 60-minute audio CD is titled, Blogging for Profit.
Peter Falk, who played one of television’s greatest characters, passed away last week, but not before giving salespeople one of the greatest closing techniques of all time. Tweet
Falk played Lt. Columbo, a bumbling police detective so unusual, he didn’t need a first name. Columbo was a true original, a slow-moving, hunched over man wearing a rumpled raincoat and carrying a stogie.
Columbo never seemed to know which way was up—until he solved the crime, usually by tricking the perpetrator into talking too much.
The TV detective used what we now refer to as “Doorknob Close.” His patented “close” was to turn around as he headed out the door and say something disarming like, “Just one more thing.” [Watch the 5:02 mark in the above video.]
The Doorknob Close, also known as the “Reverse Close,” works best when the detective/seller has given up and is literally saying “goodbye” to the perpetrator/prospect.
No seller ever plans to use the Doorknob Close, but it can be very useful because it contains the element of surprise. Here’s how it works.
Let’s say a sales presentation does not go well and the prospect has not been forthcoming regarding his reasons for not buying. Perhaps the prospect has ended the presentation by saying something such as, “I need more time to think about it.”
The salesperson thanks the prospect for his time and slowly walks to the door. The seller places her hand on the doorknob and then suddenly turns around and says, “Now that the presentation is over, may I just ask . . . why didn’t buy from me today?”
Peter Falk
The timing of this question makes it much more effective than if it’s asked earlier in the presentation because the prospect, thinking the presentation is over, begins to relax.
The Doorknob Close is powerful because it catches the prospect in an unguarded moment. The question, when posed from the doorway, almost always results in new information, which the seller can then use as an opportunity to reopen the discussion.
Caveat: Do not reward an honest answer by re-entering the room, taking your coat off and asking for another cup of coffee. The Doorknob close is an extra opportunity to close, but don’t try to force the prospect into immediately reversing his decision.
The Doorknob Close in Action
As with all the closes, there are many variations. One of my clients, a national retailer of automobile tires, uses what they refer to as a “second effort” to convert the sale as the prospect is walking out the door.
A person who is leaving the store without making a purchase may not return, so the employee tries to re-engage the prospect before he leaves the premises. This technique can be used on the telephone, too.
Thanks, Lt. Columbo!
The Doorknob Close has rescued countless sales through the years. Never give up on asking one more question and keeping dialog open. Sometimes that “one more thing” is the sale. RIP, Peter Falk and Lt. Columbo.
Every seller should know about 22 ways to close
Want to close more sales and make more money? Learn more sales closes from 22 Sales Closes That Work, a one-hour audio program and 30-page e-book that will help you improve your sales numbers almost overnight.
As with all of Michael Angelo Caruso’s offerings, this product comes with an unconditional money-back guarantee.
The first type likes to mosey through a do-it-yourself program. It’s a comfortable pace and they have a lot of fun.
The second type is always thirsty for ways to get practical tips that save time and produce revenue. This group also has a lot of fun, but they also find ways to build brands and make money.
The latter group likes to “Facebook with purpose” and these are the folks who tend to seek me out for help.
Here’s a partial list of what I teach in my social media sessions, which will help you improve your business almost immediately. This program includes dozens of proven strategies for securing a stronger Internet presence using Facebook (FB), Linkedin (LI), Twitter (TW), and YouTube (YT). Tweet
This is non-technical content:
Facebook is the New White Pages
- Learn how social media will help your biz when you use it as a system
- Appreciate how FB, LI and TW are alike and different
- Grow your friend list without getting slapped by the “Facebook police”
- Use Michael’s “3K Klub” trick to get FB friends to help you sell
- Protect your name online; learn valuable image marketing tips
- Discover the single best way to engage Facebook friends
- Add 100 additional connections in a flash
- Arrange for your FB posts to go to Twitter at the same time
- Use the “Notes” tab to provide more content
- Get Michael’s proven strategies for micro-blogging
- Improve dialog 0n FB, so you’re getting more biz and less small talk
Linkedin is the New Yellow Pages
- Get the most from cyber-introductions
- Learn LI’s best (hidden) feature
- Build a highly qualified list of prospects on Linkedin within 30 days
- Get a secret way to direct message groups of Linkedin contacts
- Arrange five more key Recommendations on Linkedin
- Learn clever ways to re-purpose those testimonials
- Leverage the power of LI groups
- Use LI polls to test-market ideas
- Market targeted messages to Linkedin sub-lists
- Why you should post .pdfs, even though Google can’t read’em
- Use Linkedin to push your competition off the first page search results
Twitter, Video Marketing and How They Work Together
- Use Twitter as early warning system for customer service issues
- Connect your social media platforms
- Harness the awesome power of video marketing
- Learn why Twitter is more important than FB and LI combined
- Establish a Twitter presence by making 100 your firs day
- Improve your Twitter page background and readability
- Integrate your social media marketing with your regular distribution list
- Schedule your Tweets to occur 24×7
- Learn Video production secrets to save you tons of time and money
- Keep YT from recommending your competition in “related” vids
- Use video marketing to get happy customers to sell for you
Let’s talk!
Your first consultation is free! Just give my office a call at 248-224-9667. Let’s get the word out.
Internet marketers and business owners always ask me where they should be putting their marketing efforts. Of course, your company Web site is a critical place for you to spend time and money.
But what’s the second most important Web site for your business? I’ll give you a hint.
It’s not Linkedin. And it’s not your Linkedin business page, although you should have one.
It’s not your Facebook page. And it’s not your Facebook business page. You should have one of those, too.
The second most important Web site for your business is not YouTube.
It’s not even Google.
These are all valuable sites for marketing your products and services, but the one site that should be a part of every online business in 2009 is …
Here’s why in one sentence–Google crawls individual Tweets. Tweet this article.
You can post Facebook status updates all day and night, but Google will not see them. The same is true for your Linkedin status updates.
But, Google indexes your individual messages on Twitter and makes them available to people doing Web searches forever. Of course, you’ll be putting key words in your Tweets, but imagine what will happen when you’re putting your Web site address (or an abbreviated version of it) in 80% of your Tweets.
This is probably hard to imagine because Facebook and Linkedin don’t work like this. Twitter is more powerful than Facebook and Linkedin combined!
That’s why, if you aren’t using Twitter, you are missing out on the greatest opportunity for building relationships with your customers and prospects. You are missing out on the best free branding tool on the web.
And you are missing out on huge amounts of free traffic and increased sales!
There’s just no excuse for any business, large or small, to not be using Twitter, which has improved my reach immensely. I’m on Twitter at @MichaelACaruso
Learn more about using Twitter and other social media platforms from my four CD program–a home or work study course titled, Social Media for Work. For a limited time, I am including a free 30-page, social media e-book with all orders, so click today!
Best of luck on all your marketing efforts. I you want training or other types of help, let me know. Let’s get the word out!
Want to win an easy couple of bucks?
Imprinting is a series of repetitive life lessons that help us determine our view of the world, including our self-concept. Most of us are indelibly imprinted early in life. Philosopher, 
A female friend of mine was jogging when she encountered a group of strange men. The men identified themselves as secret service agents traveling with then President 
I’m speaking in Jamaica and brought some reading material on the trip.
The “don’t veer for deer” lesson is a good metaphor for other types of problem-solving.
E-mail introductions are a fantastic way to help people, build your network, and upgrade your team.
A while back, I did something most business people never do.
You can hear how I do this and get yourself some terrific marketing advice by being on the call this Monday, from 4 to 4:30 PM ET. And did I tell you that the call is free?
Many people complain that they don’t get any juice from their blogging activity.
There are two types of people using social media.
