Speak to Lead

Donate Life--6 Reasons You Are Needed as an Organ Donor

Several years ago I checked the organ donor box when I renewed my driver's license. I didn't give it much thought; it just seemed like a good thing to do.
I hadn't thought much about it since then until Bridget Burke and Courtney Jones, co-founders of American University Students for Organ Donation, asked me to participate in a Dialogue on Spirituality and Organ Donation that was held last night as part of Organ Donor Awareness Week.
If you are not yet an organ donor, here are 6 reasons to become one. If you are an donor, here are 6 reasons to encourage others to sign up.

1. In the U.S. nearly 90,000 men, women, and children currently await life-saving organ transplants.
2. An average of 17 people die each day due to a lack of available organs.
3. In addition to donations of life-saving organs (heart, pancreas, kidneys, liver, lungs, intestines), many other parts of the body (bones, tendons, ligaments, corneas, skin grafts) can improve health and quality of life.
4. Regardless of your age or medical history you should consider becoming a donor. Your medical condition at the time of death will determine what organs and tissues can be donated.
5. Every donor can save and enhance the lives of up to 50 people.
6. It's easy and painless to sign up. Go to www.donatelife.net for information on the procedures for signing up in your state. (If you live outside of the U.S., do a data bank search for "organ donation" to find what options are available to you.)

Imus Advertiser's Self Delusion: We Can Say One Thing & Do the Opposite

Lesson: What you say as a leader will have a lot more impact if it represents what you do. Which brings us to the news this morning that two advertisers have pulled their sponsorship of Don Imus' radio show.

While I applaud Staples and Bigelow Tea Company for doing so, I was amused and dismayed by the statement issued by Bigelow, which earns the tea company the BS of the Day Award.

"While Bigelow Tea has been an advertiser on the 'Imus in the Morning show,' the company does not condone or support in any way the unacceptable comments made by Imus with regard to the Rutgers University women's basketball team," Cindi Bigelow, the company's co-president, said in a statement. "Bigelow Tea is a family company that prides itself on honoring and respecting all individuals." [emphasis added]

Really? Let me get this right, Ms Bigelow. You pride yourself on "honoring and respecting all individuals," yet you've been advertising on a show whose host's shtick is cynicism, insult, mockery, and ridicule. Didn't you ever notice the disconnect between what you were supporting and what you claim are your company values?

You would have done better to limit your statement to the first sentence. It's specific and believable. The "prideful" tag line is belied by Bigelow's actions and comes across for what it is, BS.

Positive 60 Minutes Coverage—How to Pitch a Favorable Story

For many executives and their public relations counsel, the farther away from 60 Minutes, the better. But what does it take to get America’s most popular investigative show to do a piece that’s favorable to your organization?

Recently Captain Matthew C. Bates, Acting Director of the Air Force National Media Outreach Office in New York City, was in Washington to discuss his 60 Minute success for a group of Air Force public affairs officers gathered together from around the globe. Here's how Bates created a win for 60 Minutes and a win for the Air Force.

Beginning in February 2006, Bates pitched 60 Minutes a story on the Air Force’s role in saving the lives of American troops injured in Iraq.

If a soldier or Marine is injured in combat, time is of the essence. The Air Force established a hospital at Balad Air Base in the heart of the Sunni Triangle so that the best possible medical care would be available. After the point of injury (by a roadside bomb or sniper), the injured could be rushed within minutes by medevac helicopter to the hospital. At the hospital, medical staff run an impressive ER, OR, triage that rivals any inner city hospital in the States. An amazing 96% of patients

Story Power: Help Audiences Remember What You Say

Yesterday as I read the newspaper accounts of first quarter fund raising by GOP presidential hopefuls, my mind jumped back to the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) where I had heard all (except McCain) of them speak. (See also Non-Partisan Lessons Learned at CPAC) Now, one month later, what content did I still remember from their speeches? The answer: Vivid stories--ones I could picture in my mind.

If we consider content in the broader aspect of general themes, then all the speakers did well. I remember Romney's record of solving problems and cutting taxes; Giuliani's success in reducing crime, cutting the size of government, and responding to crisis; Brownback's family orientation; Tancredo's passion about controlling the borders.

But in terms of helping me remember specific content, former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee wins big time. Here, in abbreviated form, without having reviewed the notes I took at the time, and using direct quotes which are actually paraphrases, is what I can tell you:

No Evidence Mind & Mouth Are Connected

Recently a colleague of mine mentioned to the leaders of a local association that we needed to "incentivize our members."  I gagged. Incentivize is an awkward, artificial, self-important word created when highly-paid management consultants (I have no idea where the blame lies, but management consultants seem like a  reasonable guess.) decided to make incentive into a verb.

A few days later, he wrote me, saying my reaction had prompted him to see if incentivize was in the dictionary. He was kind enough to include two results of his search.

The first, from dictionary.com, fully accepts its use. The second, American Heritage Dictionary, agrees.  I am glad the two sources have concretized the correctness of the usage.

Although I find most 'ized" words unpleasant, I will acknowledge that at least they do maintain the meaning of the core word. "Have concretized the correctness of the usage," may be unwieldy prose, but it does convey the sense of solidifying the meaning.

I have greater wrath for times when people speak, but are on poorly programmed autopilot. The mouth never engages the brain in what it's saying. Here is one of the more common examples:

Great Question? Stupid Comment.

I've noticed there seems to be an increase in the number of interviewees who begin an answer with "That's a great (or excellent) question."

Well, maybe it was a great question, but saying so was a dumb response. (What's that you say? You've had media training and the trainer encouraged you to say that? For your sake, let's hope the trainer's other advice was a lot more accurate.)

Why is it dumb? Four reasons: