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“Poetry is…

…just the evidence of life,” Leonard Cohen once observed.

Always humble, wasn’t he?

Because poetry is about a lot more than just the evidence of life.

Poetry is also one of the best remedies for washing away the dust of everyday troubles from the soul. 💖

// Pictured here: A year after his passing, murals depicting Leonard’s image are peppered over his hometown of Montreal. Image via cbc.ca //

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The New Essential.

Email is like Facebook for work: it’s the professional social network that everyone uses. This is why you’re probably already sending out an email newsletter.

But do you appreciate the power of putting a real drop of ink into someone’s hands? 🤔

One brand that does just shipped the first issue of their mini newspaper.

Listen, having a mini newspaper is not for everyone. And it’s especially not for those who are running their business like it was a sprint.

But it might just be the new essential for all those who wish to signal that they love what they do, and that their service is a labour of love.

Because labours of love always pay off, just not always how or when you expect.

Concept, copywriting, design.

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“Culture eats strategy for breakfast.” —Peter Drucker

The above quote implies that how you do your what matters. A lot.

How do you feel about Peter’s idea?

One person who lives by it is Dan Gilbert, aka the founder of Quicken Loans, which is now the 2nd largest mortgage brokerage in the US.

Over the last 30+ years, Dan fuelled the growth of a once-tiny mortgage firm through a work culture that’s a lot different from what you’d ‘expect’ in his industry.

Specifically, Dan believes in simplicity; in giving his clients less paperwork; in less bureaucracy; and in being faster and friendlier than his competitors. (For a bit more on Quicken Loans’ culture, see this.)

“If culture matters so much, why don’t more businesses copy that approach?” you may be thinking.

Our 2¢: a. Because it’s a slow process. Most biz people shudder hearing that it took Dan Gilbert 30+ years to build a successful biz. b. Because typical employees tend to quietly sabotage the idea.

“Wait, what?”

You see, through their own experience, and through the stories of their family and friends, most employees feel like they already ‘know’ what holding a job is all about.

For instance, they don’t typically recall hearing their parents talk about the ‘culture’ at their work.

Instead, they learn that, in most companies, it’s normal to get a fair bit of the ‘what,’ and only a few hints as to how exactly do the ‘how.’ (The exception to this is Starbucks and similar beloved brands.)

So, basic manners aside, one implication is that anything goes re the ‘how’ in most jobs.

Just look around: In so many businesses, 10 different employees are likely to give a potential customer 10 different greetings. (But is the same person even going to get 10 solid hellos?)

More often than not, when a former employee from a typical company becomes a new employee at a rare company where culture is valued, the same person typically and quietly bucks at the idea.

Because it feels unnatural, and because they already ‘know’ what holding a job is all about, right?

Moving on.

Businesses that fly tend to have defined their ‘how-tos.’ And the sum of those makes their brand culture.

(Even a piece of paper, something a lot simpler than a business, will fly only after you craft it a certain way.)

This is why one of the first things we do for our new clients is help them fine-tune their brand culture, and make it accessible.

Listen, we get it: Hiring people who out-of-gate believe what you believe, not just those who need a job, is hard.

And, yes, it takes time and hard work to train them.

But if you want to build a good business that folks love, isn’t investing in its foundation, its culture, worth both your time and your effort?

We’re listening,
your friends at krisp 💞

p.s.
You likely already know this, but here’s a reminder about the things we believe in.