The fact that there is a huge gap between the percentage of time consumers spend online (it’s high) and the amount of money major marketers spend advertising online (it’s relatively low) drives executives at Facebook, Yahoo, AOL, the New York Times and every ad-supported startup out there completely nuts.

At conferences and panels, these web execs like to blame the problem on poorly educated advertisers.

We need to do a better job explaining how the internet works, they’ll say. Online ads aren’t interruptive or engaging enough, they’ll suppose.  In both cases, they’re right. But only partly. A huge–$65 billion huge–part of the online advertising problem is that web marketers know exactly how the web works and how to engage its users–on their own.

These big companies know that using popular platforms like Facebook, YouTube, MySpace and yes, the internet itself, they can market their products without paying for any advertising at all.

To this point, it’s worth reading CEO of Media research and advisory firm Outsell Anthea Stratigos’s Q&A with Forbes.

In it, she tells Forbes that over the last eight years, companies have shifted $65 billion in annual spending away from traditional advertising channels and spent it on “page content, Web analytics, search engine optimization and site design.”

$65 billion is a huge number. Here’s how Anthea put it in context for Forbes:

To scale that, compare the total U.S. TV and cable advertising revenue for 2009, which is about $66 billion. The marketing dollars companies now spend on their own sites is equivalent to all TV ad revenue for the year. Eight years ago we said that the Global 2000 would be the dot-coms of tomorrow. That’s what’s playing out.

She says the shift is why she agrees with Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer’s assement that global advertising isn’t just in a recession but has been “reset” at a lower level.

“Advertising which has left the news industries is not going to come back in its same shape or form.”

One of the major reasons so few people reach their goals is that most people don’t set specific goals and the mind just dismisses them as irrelevant. Most people want financial security, but have never considered how much money it will take. The mind cannot begin to formulate the strategies and actions required without specific information. Your mind will simply not respond to a request to get rich, have more, do better or make money. You must act like a bank loan officer with your goals.

The reason loan officers want to see a detailed business plan is that they know the entrepreneurs who are precise and specific are the ones who will succeed and pay off their loans.

If you ever begin to feel that you are losing your drive, if you feel like your energy level is down, your frustration level is up and you just can’t seem to muster the enthusiasm to face a challenge, check the pulling power of your goals. You may have outgrown your current targets and present lifestyle. It may be time for motivation by elevation. Raise your sights and challenge yourself with some goals that are farther out on the horizon.

This may require more knowledge, new skills, a new lifestyle. If so, that’s great! Many people resist goal-setting because they assume it leads to a formula-driven, highly uncreative life. Actually, the exact opposite can be true. People who passively assume that everything will somehow work out in the end can hardly be termed creative. They’re not creating their lives, they’re just hoping against hope that something good will happen to them.

Setting worthwhile goals is a much more imaginative approach. It’s fashioning and molding the life of your choice. It’s approaching your life the way an artist might stand before a new canvas, on which a beautiful painting can be crafted. There are other useful metaphors for creativity in goal-setting. The rudder of a plane, for example, is small and rigid, like a short term goal you might accomplish in just one day. But the rudder can turn the plane in any direction the pilot chooses. In that, there’s a great deal of freedom and flexibility.

Once you set a goal, you can adjust and fine tune it any way you wish. That’s creativity. And persistence is what allows you to keep progressing toward the goal no matter how many adjustments are required, and no matter how long it takes to accomplish.

The mind is the most magnificent bio-computer ever created. But remember, like a computer, it only responds to specific instructions, not to vague ideas. So come alive in 2009! Get laser focus and goals that are just out of reach, but not out of sight.

Get Specific and Achieve Great Things in 2009

Dad boils all of this down into the Be, Do, and Have philosophy.  You gotta Be before you can Do, and you gotta Do before you can Have.  The Be part starts with what you put into your mind.  Until you BEcome the right kind of person, DOing the right things consistently will be very difficult, and HAVING any type of consistent, long-term success will be nearly impossible.
 
Whatever you want to accomplish starts with what you put into your mind.  Simple, I know.  Might as well put the pure stuff in if you want to get pure stuff out.

Over the past two years, a dual-heritage African-British star has captured the eye of the world racing public. Lewis Hamilton is a 23-year-old British Formula One driver for Vodafone McLaren Mercedes. Sports bean counters are toting up some big numbers for Hamilton. That includes the Times of London projecting a possible $100-million annual retainer, the biggest ever for an F1 driver. There’s even speculation Hamilton will rank with Tiger Woods among the world’s best compensated athletes.

Among Hamilton’s achievements to date:

• The youngest winner of the Formula One championship.
• The first black driver to compete in an F1 race.
• The first black driver to win a major competition at Indianapolis.
• The most pole positions and victories in a first season.
• As a rookie, most trips to the podium for finishing #1, 2 or 3.

Hamilton’s achievements may sound storybook, but this is reality sport at its best. The Lewis Hamilton saga is also steeped in preparation with a dose of gumption:

• Hamilton learned karate as a kid to fend off local bullies. Today he’s a black belt.
• His father held three jobs to help finance building his son’s career.
• Lewis Hamilton began racing go-karts at age eight. He had the focused goal of driving for McLaren when he was just nine years old!

Echoes of Tiger Woods are easy to spot. First, the influence of Papa Woods and Papa Hamilton is inescapable. At the tender age of six months, Tiger is said to have gazed at his dad Earl whacking golf balls into a net. And Tiger was tuned into motivational tapes when he was just six years old!

Hamilton, who now lives in Switzerland, still makes it a practice to go back into poor communities in the UK. He’s committed to bringing back the inspiration and success message to kids who need a boost. Who is Hamilton’s own inspiration? His younger brother Nic. Afflicted with cerebral palsy, Nic’s life is confined to a different set of wheels.

Great athletes may get the gold, but to keep it they need to be very disciplined, competent communicators and caring individuals. These traits used to be more or less just afterthoughts. Not so today. There’s no such thing as a one-dimensional competitor any more. Not if one wants to make it to the very top. This reality holds true for business managers and rocket scientists just as well.

What can parents, budding superstars and business people learn from Lewis Hamilton?

• Pursue goals methodically. Hamilton may travel on wheels, but he surely watches his steps too. While he always wants to win, he has great consistency in taking it one step at a time. Hamilton excels at doing it methodically.
• When you’re ahead, stick to it. Murray Walker, race commentator, used to say: “With half the race gone, there is half the race still to go.”
• Don’t let setback spell tailspin. In 2008, Hamilton had impressive results, including winning the Australian and Monaco Grand Prix. In the Canadian Grand Prix, he overlooked a red light on the track, rear ending another driver and putting both cars out of the race. No stall for Hamilton. He came back roaring to his first Formula One championship that season.

Breakthrough athletes—like Jackie Robinson, Muhammad Ali, Tiger Woods and Lewis Hamilton—have surplus motivation to excel. When they smash the ceiling, they soar right on by. Today they’re esteemed as great human beings and not just superior sports stars.

Mackay’s Moral: When it comes to dedication, floor that pedal to the metal

I used to take notes on pieces of paper and torn-off corners and backs of old envelopes. I wrote ideas on restaurant placemats. On long sheets, narrow sheets and little sheets and pieces of paper thrown in a drawer. Then I found out that the best way to organize those ideas is to keep a journal. I’ve been keeping these journals since the age of twenty-five. The discipline makes up a valuable part of my learning, and the journals are a valuable part of my library.

I am a buyer of blank books. Kids find it interesting that I would buy a blank book. They say, “Twenty-six dollars for a blank book! Why would you pay that?” The reason I pay twenty-six dollars is to challenge myself to find something worth twenty-six dollars to put in there. All my journals are private, but if you ever got a hold of one of them, you wouldn’t have to look very far to discover it is worth more than twenty-six dollars.

I must admit, if you got a glimpse of my journals, you’d have to say that I am a serious student. I’m not just committed to my craft, I’m committed to life, committed to learning new concepts and skills. I want to see what I can do with seed, soil, sunshine and rain to turn them into the building blocks of a productive life.

Keeping a journal is so important. I call it one of the three treasures to leave behind for the next generation. In fact, future generations will find these three treasures far more valuable than your furniture.

The first treasure is your pictures. Take a lot of pictures. Don’t be lazy in capturing the event. How long does it take to capture the event? A fraction of a second. How long does it take to miss the event? A fraction of a second. So don’t miss the pictures. When you’re gone, they’ll keep the memories alive.

The second treasure is your library. This is the library that taught you, that instructed you, that helped you defend your ideals. It helped you develop a philosophy. It helped you become wealthy, powerful, healthy, sophisticated, and unique. It may have helped you conquer some disease. It may have helped you conquer poverty. It may have caused you to walk away from the ghetto. Your library, the books that instructed you, fed your mind and fed your soul, is one of the greatest gifts you can leave behind.

The third treasure is your journals: the ideas that you picked up, the information that you meticulously gathered. But of the three, journal writing is one of the greatest indications that you’re a serious student. Taking pictures, that is pretty easy. Buying a book at a book store, that’s pretty easy. It is a little more challenging to be a student of your own life, your own future, your own destiny. Take the time to keep notes and to keep a journal. You’ll be so glad you did. What a treasure to leave behind when you go. What a treasure to enjoy today!

Actually some of the petals were excited at the prospect of being free, of being able to move as they wished, of greeting the ‘Sun’ that they had heard so much about. Others were more cautious – fearing unnecessary change!

Now the report had come back from the top petals that the sun was dulled, and they were being battered by the wind. They were trying to get back in the bud – and all that was doing was increasing the split – and other petals were exposed.

One big petal was very quiet in all the ensuing discussion! He knew he was close to the Sun now. He had waited sooo long! He pushed up and out with all his might. He could see the split just above him now! I’ll try again, he determined. I must get a glimpse! So he focused and tried again. He pushed and pushed and the pressure was too much for the bud and it split down the side. The petal turned his eyes outward! What wonder! What fresh air! The smells! The perfume! The possibilities! The freedom!

“It is wonderful, just wonderful!” he yelled to the petals behind him. “Come on! Let’s show the world how beautiful we are!” He urged.

“But, the risk!” the other petals argued, “Let’s stay here – it is more comfortable now the bud is split!”

Just then a little voice was heard outside. “Daddy, come quick. The bud is opening! Look at the beautiful colour!” “Can you smell the perfume?” was the reply. “No, Daddy, no smell!” “You will be able to smell it when all the petals are open. It will be wonderful”

The petals were all quiet for a few moments. Suddenly they understood! To bloom, would eventually cost them everything! But to bloom is what they were created for! To remain a bud and die on the vine was unthinkable! “We must bloom. We must all push together. We must be the best most attractive bloom. Then the bees will come and sup with us, and though we die we will actually live for ever!”

PS A week later a satisfied petal lay under the vine, blown against the fence. His colour was fading, but his perfume was still strong. They had done well. The little girl had admired them everyday – but more importantly they had opened themselves completely to the Sun – and the bees had come. And as he looked up to the vine, even now he could see the swelling, just below the last few petals, that spoke of fruit, with its promise of new life.

Near him on the ground was a bud – it had never opened itself to the Sun. The vine had dropped it to the ground as useless. How sad to have never experienced the Sun – to never have reached fulfillment! How thankful he was that the big petal had the vision and courage to lead them out!!

More changes are crammed into every day of our lives than our grandparents experienced in decades – and this process is just beginning. Every 15 seconds a new website is launched! Every 15 minutes a new technological breakthrough occurs! Every 15 days a new product or service is introduced, that didn’t exist before! Consider for a moment that the musical greeting card you ordered via the web has more computing power than existed on the planet when the first satellite went into orbit in outer space.

Consider the computer’s impact. Designed as a tool for managing complexity, it also adds complexity, just as freeways add more traffic. The computer enables us to sort, store, retrieve and transmit information with ever-increasing speed. But the faster data can be analyzed, the faster decisions are expected – and the greater the pressure to reach them. And the computer’s efficiency is hardly lost on our competitors. They utilize them to produce goods and services of comparable quality, for less money.

As this year comes to a close and a new year arrives, welcome change rather than try to resist it. Learn how to make change work for you rather than against you. Develop unique strategies and skills that enable you to create opportunities from challenges. In response to rapid change, introduce it in the form of new business systems, pricing, and marketing that increase effectiveness and efficiency; create new products and new services; lower costs and encourage ideas to enhance productivity.

In everything we do, there are more choices available today than at any other time in history. To become the “brand” or “person” of choice, give others what they want in a time-starved world. Save others time and money, and you will gain more time freedom and wealth.

This week embrace change and make it work to your advantage!

Problems are a Normal Part of Change

When asked, “How do you develop mental toughness in life?” my response might sound negative at first. I answer, “Always be prepared for a surprise. The surprise might be a negative surprise. Something is going to happen in your day, whether you are late because you got stuck behind a train or your car had a flat tire — something is going to happen. And the key is your ability not to take mole hills and look at them as mountains.”

Problems are a normal part of change. Things are changing so rapidly that there are going to be problems you face. So you must look at failure as an event, not as a person. I’m not a failure. Maybe I’ve had a failure or a temporary inconvenience. I’ve had a stumbling block, and the idea is to turn the stumbling block into a stepping stone, and step on it instead of stumble over it. So look at failure as the fertilizer of success.

Fertilizer stinks, it smells. You see that guy putting it on his lawn and you say, “Wow, that guy fertilized his lawn.” You fertilize your mistakes. You don’t wallow in them, lay in them, roll in them; you pick yourself up off your mistakes and learn from them. You try not to repeat that same thing again. But you look at it as a temporary inconvenience, as a detour — a detour in life — not as a failure.

Attitude is the Edge

At the world-class level, talent is nearly equal. On the PGA tour only a few strokes for the year separate the top money winners in golf from the rest of the players. In baseball, the American and National League batting champions hit safely about 20 or 30 more times in an entire season than those below the top ten. In the Olympic Games, the difference between the gold-medal winner in the one hundred meter dash and the fourth place, non-medal winner is less than two-tenths of a second.

What´s true in sports is also true in our business and personal lives. There is only a fractional difference between winners in life and those who merely exist. The difference is attitude under pressure. It’s the winner’s edge.

The Edge is not a gifted birth. The world is full of wasted talent.

The Edge is not academic degrees. Education is important, but the world is full of educated misfits.

The Edge is not luck. If it were, Las Vegas would be a ghost town.

The Edge is not capital. Many of today’s self-made, multi-millionaires started building their fortunes with under $5,000.

The Edge is all attitude. Attitude, not aptitude, is the criterion for success.

In this uncertain job market, with employees worrying about the health of their companies and their own futures, encouragement is especially reassuring. In tough economic times, when companies need to re-evaluate raises and bonuses, a positive word can ease tensions and promote productivity.

Send a signal that someone is incompetent or bad at something and you have destroyed almost every incentive to improve. Hey, if the boss already thinks you are an idiot, do you stand a chance?

However, encourage that person and he or she will work even harder to excel. It is possible, and desirable, to criticize errors without destroying an employee’s confidence. A person may not be as good as you tell her she is, but she’ll try harder thereafter and achieve even more.

When was the last time you said any of the following? “You did a terrific job.” “I’m sorry.” “I was wrong.” “I forgive you.” “I believe you.” “I appreciate all that you’re doing.” “You make me proud.” If you can’t remember using these phrases, you’ve got some retooling to do.

The late Mary Kay Ash, the cosmetics giant, was a champion motivator and a “people person” if I ever met one. She put it this way: “The two things people want more than sex or money are recognition and praise.”

The cost of giving sincere praise is next to nothing, but a recent study has found that the payoff can be huge.

Employees want to be praised because it means they can be seen as competent, hardworking members of the team. Good managers want satisfied, motivated and productive staff members.

A Personnel Today survey of 350 human resources professionals found that the greatest factor in workplace productivity is a positive environment in which employees feel appreciated. The survey reports that two-thirds of the respondents said they felt a lot more productive when they received recognition for their work, while the remainder said they felt a little more productive.

Just feeling productive can be motivating in itself. When workers don’t feel productive, frustration sets in, according to 84 percent of the survey respondents. Twenty percent said they felt angry or depressed when they weren’t able to work as hard as they could.

Here are three tips for providing praise effectively:

• Be sincere. Give praise only where it is due. Workers can spot phony sentiments, and resent the implication that they are so gullible that they would fall for such flattery. The Greeks have a saying: “Many know how to flatter; few know how to praise.” Learn the difference.
• Give public praise. Your goal is to encourage the employee to keep up the good work, while simultaneously encouraging others to put out greater effort. Praising in public is a good way to raise general morale. Praise loudly, blame softly.
• Be specific in your praise. Name exactly what it is the employee has worked on and what he or she has accomplished. Don’t just say, “Well done, John.” Remember that if the employee feels the praise isn’t genuine, it could have a negative effect.

Praising your staff may lead to an unexpected result: You, the manager, will come away with a renewed sense of confidence in the people who report to you. After all, if you hired someone to do a job that they are not suited for, you have to assume some of the responsibility for their shortcomings. It’s up to you to help them build the strengths and competencies necessary to deserve some praise. Then delivering those compliments is especially sweet.

I learned an important lesson about praise from my father, contained in a letter that he’d written to my sister and me to be read after his death. He reminded us of some of the things he wanted us to remember in our relationships with others.

One point he stressed was how important it is to compliment and praise others so we can never feel sorry for something left unsaid. I have taken that advice to heart, and I know it has been as important in my business life as it has been in my personal life.

Mackay’s Moral: People have a way of becoming what you encourage them to be.