You Sleep When You Die

Sometimes outsiders wonder why I am so insistent about not resting on our laurels at Zimmerman. The answer is really pretty simple: I refuse to let complacency kill a great agency. And as long as I am still above ground and breathing, it’s not going to… Complacency is an epidemic in our industry. And it is never, ever going to be the way we do business at Zimmerman.

Over 26 million Americans live with diabetes. It is deadly, and it leaves amputation, blindness, and kidney failure as its calling cards. This disease is what the subway ad campaign was trying to address. Instead of playing “gotcha” and getting all worked up about Photoshop, the Times should have used the blog to praise the city for doing something constructive about a major public health problem.

If you didn’t have a great family experience growing up … you can get back in the batter’s box and keep swinging. If you were deprived of the blessing of a good education … you can keep swinging. If you don’t have access to a lot of money … you can keep swinging. If your competition has just suckerpunched you … you can keep swinging… The only question that really matters is: Will you?

During competitions, she uses what little vision she has to focus on someone who’s running right in front of her, and then just keeps running … unless that runner gives out. At that point she finds someone new to follow… Until she passes them, too.

If you are the leader of an enterprise, people are going to be looking to you to set the standard for quality in the organization. If you set the bar low, intentionally or unintentionally, then your organization will fail. You have to set the bar high, consciously, and keep it high, if you want to succeed.