Even a Nerd Can Be Heard

I have been fortunate enough to locate an artist who is also a bookkeeper. Yes, that's right. You heard me. She's a creative accountant, an organized artist, a visionary who can balance her checkbook. I wonder why I like her.

Her website www.fishchild.com showcases her talent and her sense of humor (a humorous accountant, hmmm.) 

She is working with me on some illustrations and came up with this one which I am turning into my personal/business note card. 

Here's what  I need from you. 

I need a caption to put on the back of the card, along with her credits (Mary Patterson) and a link to this nerdy website. If you know a creative with a sense of humor, please ask them to weigh in on this one. I will give you credit on this website and on the back of the notecard if your clever caption wins. 

So start off the New Year helping an accountant out - 'kay?

James Lipton had Jay Leno as his guest on the Actor's Studio. (I have such a hard time taking James Lipton seriously- I keep forgetting it is really him and not Will Ferrel playing him on Saturday Night Live.) His guests are always entertaining and he asks good questions, especially the one about their favorite cuss word.
But the most interesting nuggest was Jay Leno talking about how to be a good comedian. He works really hard at his material and practices constantly.  Even now. He still goes on the road 150 days a year so he can keep working on his craft and he lives off of the money he makes on his stand up gigs - he doesn't spend anything he makes for doing the Tonight Show. He wants to be able to say he makes his living as a Comedian.

I love that idea. I thought about my own career and what I want to be known for. How do I want to make my living? What is the core competency that pays my bills? Where do I want to spend time learning to be better?

Of all the things you do in your job - which ones are really your life's work? And how much time are you willing to invest in being the best?

He didn't have a favorite cuss word, btw. 

Client Speedtax has just taken my little ole content and turned it into an amazing website. 

In addition to being a big thrill for moi, the site is also a reflection of the design sensibilities that they apply to their software application.  They provide a sales tax solution for gosh sakes, who would ever think that could be cool? (Other than me of course. I love sales tax almost as much as the pythagorean theorem.)

But I'm telling you, these guys get it. They have even created an easy to use questionnaire that a company can complete and then forward to their accountant for help. The resulting report shows a company which of the myriad sales tax traps they may have fallen into so they can take action to address them. Good for companies, good for accountants who can help them.

And let's just talk about Software as a Service for a minute - these are web applications that hook into your accounting application. These solutions are the only way to go when it comes to keeping up with sales tax.

I love working with software and fun companies like Speedtax. It does my little nerdy heart good to see well designed solutions in the hands of smart people. 

Have you seen my presentation on this subject?

Analogies are a powerful way to turn a boring subject into a memorable statement.

Today's winning analogy comes from www.echannelline.com.

In a quote describing the  relationship of two technology players, Greg Schulz, founder and senior analyst at Storage I/O, uses the following analogy

"Imagining EMC without Dell and Dell without EMC is like imagining Britney Spears or Madonna without the media paparazzi."

Who among you doesn't get a vivid mental picture of Dell being hounded by hordes of flash- bulb weilding EMC employees when you read that quote?

Last week I attended a conference for wineries who wanted to incorporate more green practices into their operations.  It was amazing to me how far along wineries already are in their efforts to operate sustainable farms and to take care of their environment.

But, since I am a student of all things presentation, I couldn't help but notice that the "green people" have some communication issues of their own. Now remember,  when I use the term "nerd", I am referring to anyone who has a bunch of special terminology that they live and breathe and talk about when they are behind a podium.  And I discovered ample nerds at this event.

It seems there are a whole bunch of green concepts that have to do with carbon and they get bandied about quite regularly so if you aren't with it, you don't know what these green nerds are talking about. Add to that all of the green certifications and agencies who get involved in the greenery issues surrounding wineries and you can get totally lost. And lost I was.

So I have now learned these three concepts that have to do with carbon :

Carbon Neutral - all carbon dioxide produced is offset by the purchase of carbon credits.

Carbon Offsets - tools for becoming carbon neutral. Basically you buy carbon credits and you get an offset from the universe for any carbon dioxide that you produce.

Zero Carbon Footprint - eliminating all carbon dioxide emissions or consuming all carbon dioxide that you produce. This seems to be the ultimate goal for green initiatives.

We are all going to become much more familiar with these and other green terms going forward.  

But for now, if you are making a presentation (green or otherwise) just take the time to explain your terms, acronyms, and other special sayings so that everyone in your audience can stay with you.

This quote comes from Seth Godin who always has remarkable ideas - but this one really struck a chord with me:

" Getting your ducks in a row is not nearly as powerful as actually doing something with your duck. "

Accountants spend a lot of our time arranging ducks.