We’re all struggling to manage the torrent of information out there today, to get information to work for us. One basic scenario runs like this: To get ahead, you need to come up with that next brilliant, account-winning, boss-pleasing insight. To come up with that account-winning, boss-pleasing insight, you have to bounce yourself up against…
Posts by Seth Schulman
Seth Schulman is a novelist and professional ghostwriter, editor, and coach specializing in business, memoir, public affairs, how-to books, and fiction of all kinds. He has worked as a Research Associate at the Harvard Business School and as consumer trends consultant to several leading national advertising agencies. Seth earned his Ph. D. in cultural history from Brown University and has spent years thinking about media, culture, and communications. He regularly contributes research and writing to the Firm Voice website. More information about Seth and his work is available at www.providenceword.com.
Idea Alert!—Ten Tips for Coming Up with A Wicked Awesome Idea Now!
More than ever, public relations is a creativity business. As PR professionals move increasingly into the boardroom, and as they compete with professionals in other disciplines to provide integrated social media campaigns that spur engagement, the need to come up with great ideas—and to do it now!—becomes ever more intense. So what’s the secret to…
Kick It Up A Notch!: The Council’s Pick of Optimistic Summer Reads
Need a jolt of optimism this summer? Well, I suppose your options are limited. Going to see the Hunger Games or Prometheus probably won’t do it, nor will clicking on your favorite news website. If you’re like me, poring over the most recent statement for your 401K is a definite no-no as well. Yet clicking…
Retreating to the past: Interpreting (and Lamenting) the Current Retromania
The other day, while waiting for my plane to board, I was treated to a throaty remake of the Beatles classic “Penny Lane” running over the airport PA system. Didn’t catch the artist, but didn’t need to: The re-make, of very recent vintage, was decent, but it didn’t ring half as true to my forty-something…
Can Time Away from Work Make Us More Creative? Seven Tips for Getting the Most from Your Next Vacation
Now that we’re back from the holidays and possibly planning time off for the year to come, it’s worth asking: Were your recent days away a true creative vacation? Common sense tells us that vacations provide a chance to clear our heads and refresh so that we can become more productive upon our return. Yet…
Thought Leadership 101—Tips for Writing Better White Papers
I encountered my first white papers somewhere around 2002. I don’t remember what these documents were about, but I do remember why I took the time to read them. An ad agency had called asking if I could write a “white paper” for a major car brand that was their client. “Of course I can,”…
Books that Matter: Mastering Social and Cultural Trends
It seems we can’t take anything for granted these days. As a columnist in the New York Times recently noted, men and women alike are now botoxing their faces to such an extent that it’s becoming difficult to discern the visual cues we rely on as part of normal, everyday communication. Meanwhile, that erstwhile mainstay…
The Greatest Brainstorm Session Ever
We admire it. We crave it. We want to have more of it than the next guy. And for good reason: Our business depends on it. I’m talking about creativity. In public relations as in other creative industries, the workhorse of creativity has traditionally been the brainstorm session. Gather people in a room, assign a…
Summer Reading: Three Books to Help you Get Away from Twitter (While Maybe Helping You Get Better At It)
It’s summer again, time for lazy days at the beach, and of course, summer reading. Some of us will pick up the latest thriller or romance, but what if we want some measure of personal and professional edification? What should we read if we want to open our minds and gain a few insights that…
