Here is part two of my conversation with Anthony Eaton on Leadership and More.
In this part we talk about influences from other leaders and MP proposes a leadership technique: “Understand what drives each of your team members and work with that knowledge to align their goals to yours.”
For part one of the conversation, click here
“I knew zombies would be chasing me” Danielle Simon told me – “but then a helicopter crashed and it was up to me to run for medical supplies!” The app 
Zombies Run! applies many of the techniques of Gamification to motivate behavior. Turns out having a zombie on your heels is very motivating: that day Danielle ran a half mile further than she typically runs.
Danielle is Senior BizDev Manager at a company called Badgeville. Badgeville is in the business of Gamification. By now we all sort of know what this means – or at least we think we do. Danielle told me that Gamification is not about play, it’s a serious business that sits at the intersection of technology and lifestyle and behavioral psychology. It rests on the past 4 decades of psychology learning.
Whether its the threat of the Zombie apocalypse, or the community support of Fitocracy that engages you to lose that 10 lbs; whether your competitive co-workers are pressuring you on the leader board, or you made it to a new level in your professional training, or you’ve finally completed that profile, it could well be that that your behavior has been managed. The components that make this work: rewards, feedback, competitive scoring, levels – are called Game Mechanics, so clearly Game Mechanics is far much more than just badges.
Danielle says sometimes she wishes it was not called Gamification (and I wonder if they wish they weren’t called Badgeville which sounds to me like the Boy Scouts). So when pitching her wares to ad agencies, she pivots quickly to call it Behavior Management – this language helps agencies when they talk to clients who may not be in a game-playing frame of mind.
Gamification is not an end in itself, nor is it about making games. It is a tactic that can be employed to solve a problem, applying the tools of Game Mechanics to Behavior Management and Motivation Design. The problems addressed could be the effectiveness of employee training programs, or the nightmare of getting time sheets completed; it could be implementing a physical therapy program or teaching kids their multiplication tables. A brand can apply Gamification across the entire lifetime of a customer relationship, to help lower acquisition costs and manage loyalty. These are all serious areas where Behavior Modification is the ..er ..name of the game.
Sometimes the technique is manifested in a very simple idea – the no-brainer, why-didn’t-I-think-of-that execution. When LinkedIn added a graphic that visualized and quantified how far you had completed your profile, it understood the competitive best-in-class spirit of the LinkedIn user who just had to get their progress bar up to 100%. This simple tactic led to a 20% increase in profile completion. This is strong stuff and it works.
Major brands across many sectors are already in the game: American Express, IBM, Samsung, VW Kaiser Permanente. It is predicted that by 2014 70% of the global 2000 will have at least one Gamified app.
In the words of The Wire’s Omar Little “It’s all in the game yo. All in the game.” And he knew a thing or two about Behavior Modification!
Think of it this way: when you are pitching yourself, you are pitching your own reality show, with you as the central character!
You have to tell your story: the one that shows you are one-of-a-kind. You have to help your potential employer understand how your chapter one will be and how your chapter six will be. You have to show appropriate heart and emotion. You have to show how you can hit the ground running and how you can sustain. Just as you would if you were pitching a reality tv show.
But somehow we see pitching ourselves as different from the work we do every day. We know how to pitch a show or a product. We know we have to pitch it to someone who we believe should be receptive, and that if we have misjudged it they may never take another call from us. So we do our homework and we find out what they like and we go in with a quick clear presentation – led by a sizzle reel
that knocks them off their feet – of why this is the idea they should buy and why we are the person to make it happen for them.
All this makes sense to us – whether we are a production company pitching an idea to a network, a film-maker to a financier, or an executive pitching a marketing plan or program schedule to the boss.
But for some reason, all too often, when it comes to trying to get a job we check all this smart behavior and insight at the door. We don’t like to talk about ourselves. We don’t understand what they want or why they called us in. We don’t know how to describe our value to them and we don’t …we don’t sizzle. (Ask a recruiter if I’m right or wrong!)
So to prep for your own pitch, be clear as to who you are and why anyone should care. Be clear as to what they are looking for so that you can fit the bill. If you realize you don’t fit the bill, don’t force it, move on – leaving them with respect for your ability to think on your feet, saying: you know maybe this won’t be right for us at this moment. So they will remember you positively when their need, their mandate, changes and you are just what they need.
So think of yourself as a show. If you are a creative with work to present – start with a sizzle reel that gets them excited and begging to see more. Don’t make them sweat through everything you’ve ever done – present them with the highlights that hit the main points of your pitch. Really – it is all show business and anyhow attention spans are tiny. Quickly tell them the highlights of your successes – and the great shows and brands that have been entrusted to you. And talk with excitement about how your time with them will unfold. Sizzle for them. How could they resist?
MP: I grew up with the narrow and specialized curriculum of an old fashioned English boys school – By the time I was heading to University, my English boy’s school had only qualified me to read Physics or Chemistry. And I never really mastered Organic Chemistry – so Physics it was. There was no liberal arts……..
L&M: Like you I believe you learn just as much if not more from your encounters with bad leaders. Have you ever thought about how great they could have been if they had better leadership skills?
“How the prospect behaves in courtship can be indicative of how they will behave in the job,” said the head of a global PR firm. “Do be reasonable and respectful,” “Don’t be super-needy. Unless you are bringing in a huge portfolio of business – in which case exceptions can be made!”
“Ask for what you want before you get hired. You get more when you’re dating than when you’re married.” “If there are any intricacies at all regarding your deal, don’t be afraid to ask for it in writing. The job description is really fundamental and important. When you get your deal in writing you should also get a clear statement of whom you will be reporting to. And not a name, a job title.“
Many firms are looking for an entrepreneurial spirit; your willingness to accept variable compensation is one indicator of that attitude. What this is based on will depend on specifics – but revenues and profits fluctuate, so there should be a way to craft something that can provide a variable upside for you.
There are other ways to boost your compensation beyond the base salary. One firm offers all staffers a 10% commission on all new business they introduce. This does make employees feel there is something extra they can aim for. In that company 10% of staff are getting these commissions on top of their salaries.
Staff referrals can be an important source of hires for many firms. For employees this is another good way to boost your income. Existing staffers can get significant cash bonuses for introducing people who are hired – $3000 is not unusual. (And so, job seekers, don’t underestimate the potential of making friends who work at a company you’d like to work at.)
As to the big question – how much should I ask for, there was a strong sense at a recent panel discussion on this topic that you should let the employer speak first. Then come back with the highest package total you think is possible. Remember there will likely be no raises. And don’t fall for the old “we’ll review your salary in 6 months.” That line is less than worthless!
Do your research into what people at your level are actually earning – there is a lot of information to be found on the internet. Find people at the company you are looking at, or its competitors, and see if you can get some actual salary ranges out of them.
The panel also suggested getting advice from a lawyer or an agent. They know what is happening in the compensation field and can be a powerful objective guide and spine stiffener – even if you do the negotiation yourself. There are up and coming lawyers who are less expensive than the big boys, so use your network to find one. I can say from personal experience that on the occasions I had a lawyer help me with my own deals they were so effective that I recouped their fees in just a couple of months. My initial outlay paid off in orders of magnitude.
One final technique that is recommended by some is what is called the “Last Ask.” When you have gone through the negotiation process and just before you get to the handshake, the Last Ask has you say: “I am all set to do this, I just need this one more thing…” Employers of course hate the Last Ask, but it is a ploy worth considering.
Finally, however you proceed with your negotiation, bear in mind that this cannot be a confrontation: at all times you must remember to be reasonable and respectful. If you can’t manage this at this stage of the relationship, then maybe that particular position is not for you.
“Salaries, perks, benefits, severance…are all down”
This according to the head of the Executive Compensation practice at a leading NY media business law firm. 
Compounding the pain, he shared a graph showing that employment in what the US Government calls the information industry rose dramatically from 1990 to 2000 and then fell all the way back by 2011. Not an attractivepicture.
“But,” he says, “it looks as if 2013 is starting up from 2012.” So things are getting slightly better than awful.
This is very much a buyers’ market for talent – but be aware that when you do eventually get to discuss an offer, it means that they really want you. The employer will have been through all sorts of hoops and to come to a decision and now they will want to get it over with. The New York Times reports for example that the average Google interview process, always..ahem..thorough, has expanded in the last two years, to 30 days from 21.
Digital businesses are often looking for thought leaders. “I can’t interview fossils.” “Creatives have to live in the now, they can’t live in the past.” “I am looking for people who can enlighten our clients and these people are hard to find.”
So blog about your field and what is going on and where you see it headed. When hirers look online to check out prospects, you’d better be there with an effective and relevant digital presence – don’t be one of the “disappeared.”
As to that old “middle manager” level: be aware that in this economy you are expected to go back and utilize your core skills yourself, no-one is likely to hire you to just be a manager, however good you are.
And then there is the elusive Purple Squirrel. This is the candidate that all employers are dreaming of: the next to impossible find who has, according to Wikipedia: “precisely the right education, experience, and qualifications that perfectly fits a job’s multifaceted requirement. In theory, this prized “purple squirrel” could immediately handle all the expansive variety of responsibilities of a job description with no training and would allow businesses to function with fewer workers.”
It is the lure of the Purple Squirrel that makes hirers take so long. When you are going back for the fifth interview – know that they have been picturing this rarest of creatures – and it is your job to convince them that you are as purple as they are going to find!
A Purple Squirrel is what recruiters call that elusive, more-than-perfect candidate that all employers dream of and hold out for: the one who will make their business 
sing. A Purple Squirrel will meet all their constantly evolving job specs – and far exceed them. But Purple Squirrels have to be sought out – they don’t just show up. “Keep hunting” hiring managers say.
So how do you become a Purple Squirrel? Mainly it’s how you behave in your current situation; because the Purple Squirrel is totally focused on his work and won’t be wasting time looking around. So then let’s assume you’ve been discovered and tapped for an interview. Here is some of what it takes.
I asked a recruiter about her experience finding these elusive candidates. To my dismay she had not heard of the Purple Squirrel – so I told her what one is and she immediately said “Oh you mean a One Legged Unicorn.” But what’s in a name.
(this article is a version of the one that first appeared in Cynopsis Classified Advantage)
If your vid-call experience is limited to talking to your BFF at 2 am then you might need some new polish before you face a video job interview.
A video interview is just your normal pulse-quickening, career-defining, potentially-life-changing event – but this time with added levels of difficulty. It is a production, and its success is dependent, as with all successful productions, on careful pre-production.
You may not have to fly across country, or get stuck on the subway or get lost on the highway – but the way you are perceived on the little screen is just as important as when you show up in the flesh.
1. Test the system and your equipment.
Some interviewers use Skype, some use browser-based systems like MegaMeeting, they could use GoToMeeting; are there any interviews yet on Google Hangouts? Be sure you know which set up they will be using. Do this at least a day in advance so you can get signed up if necessary and solve any tech issues. Is your Internet connection up? Is your display name professional (eg not fratboy18)? Is your camera working? (If you are using a Mac you can open PhotoBooth to see what your camera sees.) Does a separate mike sound better than the built-in? Are your speakers working? Be sure – test it all – because on the day you don’t want to be fretting about technical nonsense.
2. Dress the set
Recruiters say they like to see you in front of an uncluttered white wall, but taken too literally that can result in you looking as if you are sitting weirdly in a vacuum. According to Deirdre Mars, a partner in Idealicity, a start up consulting & business processing outsourcing partnership, you are working a delicate balance: you can use some props to set the tone, but they should not be a distraction and draw attention to themselves. So no team flags, Bieber posters, coffee cups or half eaten donuts. You can have a glass of water nearby for before the call, but don’t drink while you’re on the call. Now see how the whole things looks to your camera and tweak as necessary.
3. Light the scene.
Check the natural light 24 hours in advance. Window light from the side or three quarters front should give your best look. Avoid heavy shadows that will make you look old and tired. Strong light behind you will cast your face into darkness like an anonymous witness, front light will flatten your features and overhead light is ugly. If it’s dark, bounce light from a desk lamp or two.
4. Close apps and noisemakers
In advance of your call, make sure that other applications and phones are shut off, and that your spouse, baby and dog know not to disturb you.
5. Get dressed up
Don’t just dress your top half – a smart interviewer will sense those bunny slippers! Some collars can look messy, patterns or bright colors can distract. Deirdre Mars suggests that if you normally wear make-up, you might try a little extra to strengthen your features as the camera will tend to soften them; apply it in a mirror, but then check it out on camera.
6. Practice looking into the camera.
The big trick here according to Tim McDonald (who is Community Manager at HuffPost Live – so he knows what is what), is to look straight into the camera and not down at the image on your screen, this way you’ll be addressing the interviewer and not your desk. If you’re using a laptop, try placing it on a pile of books so the camera is at eye level. And move the application image up to the top of the screen so when you’re listening to the questions you are still not looking too far down. You could even print a picture of the interviewer and tape it so their eyes are very close to the camera – then talk to the picture. This is hard – practice it.
7. Do a full dress rehearsal
A day ahead, do a full run-through. Have a friend call you and record it. Sit back a little for a wider shot, don’t slump on the desk. Be very aware of whose turn it is to speak as voice overlaps are problematic. Review how you come across and if necessary do another rehearsal.
8. Going live on air
On the day, with production well under control, you still have to do all the things you’d do in an in-person interview: know what they are looking for and tell your success stories with enthusiasm. You’ll have to be a little more animated than usual to come across well on a video call. Be passionate and curious, listen well and don’t ramble.
Thorough preparation will have you looking good and let your strengths shine through. And what is more, Deirdre tells me that these techniques are not only good for job interviews, but she uses them when Skyping with her overseas boyfriend.
So now, are you ready for your close-up?
Everyone on both sides of the hiring equation today is super-connected and hyper-resourced. So, as Thomas Friedman points out in the NY Times, “every boss now has
What is your Hirability Quotient?
cheaper, easier, faster access to more above average software, automation, robotics, cheap labor and cheap genius than ever before.”
In order to stand out as a dream hire in this cacaphonic cornucopia, like the kids in Garrison Keillor’s Lake Wobegon we each need to be able to demonstrate that we are well above the average hirability in our sector or niche.
But wait I hear you cry – it is statistically impossible for us all to be above average. Well, you are talking to someone whose first statistics lesson was themed on Disraeli’s (or was it Mark Twain’s?) observation that there are “lies damn lies and statistics.” So be it. I am not condoning lies here – so dig out the nuggets in your work history that’ll make your case where it counts. And bear in mind if everyone is doing this, then that average above which we need to place ourselves is necessarily a moving target – and it’s probably not moving down. So keep your hirability story constantly refreshed.
Critical to your hirability, and I have been banging on about this for years, are your passion and your curiosity. It is your passion and your excitement about your work and where your field is headed that helps make you special – these are critical to maintaining your above average status. Caring a lot about what you do (passion) and constantly exploring what is new (curiosity)– well how could you want to be any other way?
So Friedman – and here’s why he gets the big bucks – has put a catchy riff on this. He’s named what he calls the Passion Quotient (PQ) and the Curiosity Quotient (CQ) and says they are becoming more important than the Intelligence Quotient (IQ). I wonder whether he read in Inc Magazine how John Mackey, Whole Foods CEO, came up with SyQ, which measures how different parts of a system interconnect.
Herewith my own (frivolous) attempt to increase my QQ (Quotient Quotient). Maybe as you demonstrate that you are above average you could find a way to quantify that. Just as LinkedIn is asking us to broadcast that we appear in the top 5% or 2% or 1% of their searches. Let’s call it our HiQ. Your HiQ of course is your Hirability Quotient. We could put it at the top of our resume – finally a metric that can save people from having to think for themselves.
But seriously. Whether it has a Q number on it or not – our hirability is something which requires eternal vigilance.
More on reality TV. Herewith some remarks from network execs on pitches and formats and genres:
That show feels like kissing your sister.
In crime and justice programming the bar is unusually high.
Why are you against recreations? If you want males you gotta give em recreations with lots of blood.
This show is the Biggest Loser meets The Voice – these have both been done so well already – I don’t believe you can live up to either when you are trying to combine the two. Do one thing really well – don’t do a hybrid and try to do well at both and fail.
That’s an MOP. (Most Often Pitched = I’ve seen this idea so many times) And if you are going to pitch an MOP you have to have something that makes it special.
This is car pornography at its absolute best
Boring.
I love the character.
So your idea: how does it sustain? Who is it for?
I understand chapter 1 and I understand chapter 6 but how do you see chapters 2 through 5.
Does it have authenticity, heart, emotion?
Anyone who knows me knows I don’t buy dating shows
Oh no – not Coldplay on your sizzle reel. So many reels are cut to Coldplay. As you showed it, I just thought – it’s Coldplay again.
Behind me is a debris field as well as a pile of hits
Shiny floor shows: that’s what we call game shows.
Formats are hard.
In the food space: the simplest food shows are the dump stir and pour category. Then there is the barbeque world. Then there is the 10,000 lb Rice Krispie treat we made for MegaBites.
We have been accused of throwing a negative veil over reality – but come on – we are an entertainment group! We used to take ourselves too seriously.
Agents prowled the halls at the Realscreen Summit, and on panels they indulged in smug self-mockery: we know you hate us but we’re doing fine. Awkwardly, network biggies aimed “agent” jokes right in their faces on the platform. “The difference between a dead skunk in the road and a dead agent in the road = no skid marks leading up to the agent … Har har” thrown right at the agent on the stage. No wonder they put up defenses. But really their contribution to the ecosystem is praised on all sides for oiling the wheels of the deals and taking on the heavy lifting of negotiations so the people who do the work don’t have to sully themselves with contentious deal points that they don’t have experience with.
And finally there is of course Here Comes Honey Boo Boo. Described by Discovery’s President Eileen O’Neill as “utterly wonderful, utterly absurd.” But then she also runs TLC, the channel that carries it.
