Have You Added Value Lately? -

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Have You Added Value Lately?

If you’ve been following this blog over the past week you will certainly have noticed that things have been changing rapidly and dramatically. Yup, I’ve been working quite hard at it, studying and implementing all the latest tricks and techniques I encounter. Along the way, I hope I’ve added value.

I have to say that I’m pretty pleased with myself. I always find it amazing when someone can go from being completely inhibited and intimidated (as I was with blogging technology just a few short months ago) to becoming a respected and admired techno-wizard. Well, at least Maggie tells me she is impressed with my progress. Now there’s a lady who knows how to deliver added value!

This morning, as I toiled away installing more features and functions to this site, I was stopped dead in my tracks by this thought, “Have I added value to myself lately?”

How often do we work on our businesses, projects and hobbies, thinking that those things somehow define who we are? For example, there are times I get so caught up in creating added value for this blog that my family gets pushed aside.

YIKES!

Now, I know that kind of thing never happens to you, does it?

Not even a teensy little bit?

Of course, we are all guilty of confusing our priorities from time to time. In my own case, I figured instead of beating myself up over my inevitable shortcomings, I could transfer what I’ve learned from creating added value to this blog and apply it to my own life.

Added Value is Attractive

One of the first things I learned when modifying my WordPress account (the impressive software behind this website) was choosing a template that would stand out and grab people’s attention. I had done a bit of research on colors and found that orange fit nicely with my chosen topic because it was a natural ‘feel good’ hue.

This past week, I have added value by integrating several new ways to be more approachable for my visitors with RSS feeds, Follow Me links, Book marking services and Tell-a-Friend forms, just to name a few.

So how can we apply this to ourselves in real life?

As I mentioned above, Maggie is a master at adding value to people’s lives, especially my own. Her naturally warm, radiant smile is irresistibly inviting. However, she also makes the extra effort to enhance her intrinsic beauty by having a special ‘dress-up day’ once a week just for me. Her outfits and make-up are always stunning. I think she revels in rendering me speechless. All I can tell you is that this brand of added value is definitely appreciated!

As for being more approachable, I have to admit that this is an area I where I can improve significantly. I tend to be a very private person. The fact that I work from home means that I often isolate myself, even from my family.

What works for Maggie and I is that we will send each other an email or two throughout the day, just to share a thought or perhaps a teasing, naughty smile. No matter how late we retire at night, we manage to get in a lengthy pillow talk, recapping the important topics and events of the day. And for the most part, we try to reserve our weekends for shared activities. By making and honoring these types of commitments, it keeps our attractor factor extremely high… our personal way of adding value to each other.

Question: How can YOU make yourself more attractive to others and therefore offer added value?

Added Value is Interesting

Looks attract attention. Not too many people can pass my orange website without saying, “Whoa… what’s this?”

But looks alone aren’t everything.

I was very much attracted to Maggie’s looks when I first saw her; so much so that I was compelled to call her, overpowering even my greatest fear of rejection. However, what made me call her back for a second and third date, and eventually a trip down the aisle, was that she added so much value to my life.

She was fun.
She challenged my thinking.
She was interesting.

My guess is that’s why people come back to this site; because it’s fun, thought provoking and interesting.

In fact, my intention is to make this site so much more entertaining, provocative and controversial that you’ll want to tell your friends and family to check it out. My commitment is to provide added value for you, and you already know how important it is for me to keep my word!

Spot check: How can YOU become more interesting?

Added Value is Informative

OK, so my site is orange. Oooh, so attractive!

I also have videos, pictures, surveys, and more ways to connect with me than an octopus has tentacles. Very interesting.

The real added value – the glue, if you will – is the information.

Let’s face it, the world is full of interesting attractions and diversions. Not only are they nice, they are also quite necessary in our fast-paced and far-too-often-stressful world. But like a steady diet of junk food, continuous mindless entertainment eventually leaves a person brain-dead… quite literally.

You see, if you’re not learning something new on a regular basis, you’re not growing. And if you’re not growing, you are…

(oh, you guys are good!)

That’s right, if you’re not growing, you are dying!

See, I told you it’s quite literal!

I may not always teach you something new. However, because I teach from my own personal experience, you will always come away with a brand new perspective. There’s another commitment for you.

Hey, you and I both know that 1+1=2. But because we have lived different lives, that ‘fact’ will have quite diverse meanings for each of us.

Think of it this way; there is someone somewhere waiting for YOUR explanation of life’s puzzles. Even if it’s only one person, you ARE special to someone because no one else will relate and deliver information exactly the way that you do.

We’ve now come full circle. My closing question brings us right back to where we began:

Have YOU added value lately?