chapter 1Oleksandr Staroseltsev/Getty Images/iStockphoto
Marketing, we're repeatedly told, is story telling, but marketing consultant Drew McLellan says we're failing because our stories don't evoke an emotion, don't use data to lend credibility, take prospects on a journey as happens in so many great stories, and too often doesn't include a next step or call to action. Drew's Marketing Minute
Don't focus on closing the sale
The goal of a marketing interaction isn't to close the sale, says entrepreneur Seth Godin, any more than the goal of a first date is to get married. Instead, the idea is to gain the opportunity to move forward, to earn attention, trust, curiosity, and conversation. Seth's Blog
Use shapes for your to-do list
Here's a system for organizing your meeting notes from Simon Fraser University's Craig Changfoot: An open square beside a note indicates a to-do after the meeting, while a triangle signals to watch out for information coming to you later.Organized Actions blog
You're most powerful before you accept a job
HR consultant Alison Green says it's a myth that you should take a lower salary entering a new job as long as you secure an agreement to review it in a few months. Your negotiating power is strongest before you have accepted a job.U.S. News Money blog
Send must-read items right to your device
If you encounter something long to read on the Web that you prefer to tackle on your Kindle, tech columnist Rick Broida says you can use a handy extension on Firefox or Chrome (and in the near future, Safari) to send it to the eReader. Settings with the extension determine which device it should go to and whether or not to bother archiving it in your Kindle library. PCWorld.com
Harvey Schachter