Business | Ashton.Gustafson

Mar 14 2012

Business, Creativity, Imagination, Leadership

Passion Exposure

We are not one-dimensional.

We are full of colors, sounds, passions, systems, processes, ideas, and dreams – all of which need their exposure.

You can be a venture capitalist and a lover of poetry. Connect the two and your deals may start to fuse poetically.

You can be a mom and an entrepreneur. In hopes that your passion, leads to purpose, which leads to profit. AKA – (The Gospel According to Tony Hsieh)

You can be a mathematician and a master gardener. And while you’re at it, write a book called Garden Math (just a thought..I’m sure there’s some connection between the two).

Careful. What you care about the most just may lead you down numerous career path opportunities.

If you’re brave enough to expose us to all of you, the world, as you see it, will turn into one big office you get to go to everyday.

Alas, a planet of passionate workers is where my hope is pointed and where my passion lies.

Tagged Ashton Gustafson, ltmp, passion exposure

Mar 12 2012

3 Comments

Business, Creativity, Focus, Imagination

Inspiration and Shared Air

The word inspiration, literally, means “breathed upon” in Hebrew.

To be breathed on, it would appear that nearness and proximity with those who inspire us is quite important.

In other words, you can’t be breathed on from a distance.

In other words, pursue mentorship with someone who is inspiring and hang tight.

In other words, our music, or lack thereof, will be defined by those who we share air with.

Tagged Ashton Gustafson, blog, inspiration, ltmp, shared air

Mar 09 2012

1 Comment

Business, Creativity, Imagination, Marketing

Nordstrom, Ritz-Carlton, Chick-fil-A, Southwest Airlines all have excelled at predictability. We know what we’re getting into with these brands. And because of their predictability, they will be around for a long long time.

Now enter the new day and age where predictability coupled with unpredictability wins.

Do business with Zappos and you will understand this better. They deliver incredible customer service and offer free shipping both ways (predictable). But more often than not, you will find that FREE SHIPPING = OVERNIGHT SHIPPING (unpredictable). What is their unpredictable success formula? Under promise, over perform, and blow their socks off. To them “wow” is a verb.

Unpredictable goodness leaves us always saying “wow.”

Something very predictable about you and me is that we cannot help but share “wow-like” stories. Something inside us thinks someone has to hear about what we experienced. And when that happens, you get music math.

Predictable and unpredictable is the new yin and yang for all of us no matter the brand, product, or service.

We love revisiting (repeat business) with things that have us wondering “what will they do next?”