E-books, eReaders, ebooks, e-readers … while the jury may still be out on spelling, there’s no denying that electronic books and readers are one of the biggest trends happening in 2011.

I bought my wife a Kobo™ for Christmas and she loves it, but being more of a traditionalist, I temper my enthusiasm for new technology with a certain amount of kicking and screaming.

While I know there is some debate as to whether e-books will replace traditional printed books, I think it’s important to remember that it doesn’t have to be an “either/or” decision. Each medium has its own benefits and practicalities. Let’s look at the following five criteria to see how they compare:

1.) Common Format

The electronic book market is currently in a format war, with the Kindle (Amazon), Kobo™ (Borders) and NOOK™ (Barnes & Noble) all battling for supremacy. Who will win is anybody’s guess, but the printed paper/bound cover format gets points for longevity.

2.) Overall Reading Experience

E-books offer a vast array of features to enhance the reading experience. For example, if you are a card-carrying member of the “American Bifocal Wearers’ Society” such as I, you can enlarge the text size to whatever size is easiest for you to read.

Some higher end models such as the Nook™ offer a lending feature, allowing owners to lend their favorite e-books to family or friends.

On the other hand, a printed book is more tactile allowing the reader to engage their sense of touch as well as sight.

3.) Safety

Drop a book and it’s safe. Drop an electronic reader and … well, you’ve got a 50/50 chance.

4.) Archival Storage

Paper has definitely proven the test of time (Dead Sea Scrolls anyone?) The typical lifespan of a high-tech device is somewhere in the neighborhood of 2-5 years. However, since e-books are still in their infancy, this one is hard to call at the moment. Check back with me in 2-5 years.

5.) Ownership

Once you purchase a printed book, it’s yours to keep. When you buy an electronic book, you are technically just licensing it from the publisher who could potentially take it away (rare, but at least one case has been documented).

So there you have it. I leave it to the readers (be it acoustic or electric) to choose the medium that best suits them.

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I believe that knowing your personal learning style can aid you in many aspects of life.

I’ve always been an auditory learner, although I didn’t know it growing up and never even heard the term until well into my adulthood. The visual component of learning is so ingrained in our culture that a vast number of buzzwords and phrases have become linked with the process of learning: “picture this,” “visualize yourself achieving your goal” and “see it in your mind’s eye,” for example.

While all of our senses are integrated in the learning process, it is generally acknowledged that people often favor one sense over another, in much the same way one is considered right-handed or left-handed.

One curious thing I discovered as an auditory learner is that even though I love to read, I am sometimes apt to “drift away” from the actual content and I suddenly realize that I’ve been scanning the text with my eyes, but not absorbing the meaning of the words.

Conversely, when reading aloud, I’ve found that my attention and focus improves, and my overall retention increases. Although, I have to admit, reading aloud to myself feels a little silly.

Knowing that I am an auditory learner has helped me discover other things about myself. For example, when meeting new people, I know it is easier for me to remember them by the sound of their voice vs. what they look like. I also know my love of poetry partly stems from the sound of the words, as opposed to just the literal or abstract pictures they paint.

Knowing what kind of learner I am allows me to perform at my best, both in and out of the workplace.

Find out what kind of learner you are here.

Hear you later!

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Integrated marketing recognizes that ALL contact points with customers are important, from the truck making a delivery to the CEO in the news. I’d take this a step further to say, “When hearing complaints that seem improbable, give your customer the benefit of the doubt.” For example …

A few years ago, when I was living in Eagan, I stopped in Jensen’s Supper Club one night for a beer. I sat at the bar, watched a little TV, paid my $6 tab with my debit card and went home. Upon reviewing my bank statement about a month later I saw, to my horror, that this little nightcap cost me $224.16!

Obviously, someone screwed up and switched my card with someone else’s card. So while I was sipping a Summit Extra Pale priced more like a bottle of a Château Mouton Rothschild ’45, a party of four in close proximity enjoyed a dinner of succulent cuisine at a very, very reasonable price!

Subsequently, around 3:30 on a Saturday, armed with copies of both my bank statement and humble brew receipt, I walked into Jensen’s and asked the host if I could speak with the manager. I was immediately given the bum’s rush and told that they were busy preparing for the dinner crowd. I briefly explained my situation and after trying to blow me off again, the host reluctantly came back with the manager in tow. “Is there a problem?” he asked. I explained the situation again and was told that it must be an accounting error on my part and besides, why did I wait almost a month before noticing it? (Answer: because I didn’t receive my bank statement until about a month later.)

Finally, he agreed to “look into it,” a response that was ultimately scripted to get me out the door.

Next, I went to my bank to advise them of the restaurant’s error so that I would not potentially be hit with an overdraft fee due to the bogus charge. The teller looked at me with tired apathy. She had obviously been down this road before, probably on a daily basis, from clients who didn’t know how to manage their finances and chose to blame a large institution possessing superior financial skills.

She gave me a few forms to fill out, along with her business card, but her look told me that she didn’t believe me. With my personal reputation now on the line, I told her “I will be back with a check from the restaurant, and I am going to ask for you personally when I am ready to deposit it!”

It took about another week of me calling the restaurant and leaving messages, before I finally received a message back from them: “Mr. Madore, we found the error and you are correct. A waitress mixed up your card with someone else’s and the amounts were switched. We are so, so sorry. Please call us to make arrangements to pick up your check.”

Vindication was finally mine (not to mention the cash)!

I picked up my check the next day, where I was given another apology, this time in person. “Please accept our apology, Mr. Madore. We are so sorry for the inconvenience.”

Next, I called the bank to make sure the same teller was on duty (she was). As I approached her, I said “Hi! Remember me? The guy with the bad charge from Jensen’s Supper Club? Well, here it is!”

She looked at me like I had three heads! Her former tired apathy was now replaced with enthusiastic courtesy! Vindication was mine — a second time (not to mention the cash)!

Basking in the glow of another round of “please” and “thank you,” I deposited my check with my dignity restored.

Both Jensen’s Supper Club and TCF Bank ultimately did right by me as a customer.

If only they would have treated me that way from the beginning …

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Estimate approved? Check.

Freelance Art Director to arrive any minute? Check.

Conference call at 8:30 a.m.? Check.

Great! All the plans are set! It’s 8:13 and I’m ready to go …

“Paul – I just got a call from the client and the project’s been put on indefinite hold!”

(Anvil to the head) — CLUNK!

We all know the importance of planning. But what to do when the best laid plans of mice and project managers come crashing down? For me, the real-life example listed above meant taking a couple of deep breaths and getting ready to eat crow when the freelance Art Director arrived.

We don’t like to think our plans will be rendered null and void by some unforeseen obstacle. And yet, we should be prepared to expect the unexpected once in awhile. I like to think of these instances as life kicking us in the butt in order to keep us humble.

I’ve mentioned in previous blogs that I play drums. I recently took a gig with a 16-piece jazz big band. I’m a pretty good sight-reader, and we had a rehearsal, so I wasn’t too worried about playing well.

Turns out the “rehearsal” consisted of three new charts, none of which we ended up playing at the performance. How did it go, you ask? It actually went very well, because having played music most of my life, I’ve come to expect the unexpected. And besides, this is jazz! It’s all about improvisation.

As a fill-in drummer, I use my eyes and ears to guide me through unchartered territory. Sitting in for the first time can never replace the hours logged by the “regular” drummer, so I keep three things in mind:

1.) Play the right groove.

2.) Keep steady time.

3.) Nail the ending.

If I do just those three things, it’ll sound good and anything else is gravy.

With a little bit of improvising, these same principles apply to project management:

1.) Find the right person for the job.

2.) Don’t work so fast that mistakes occur.

3.) Deliver a stellar final product.

Well, that concludes my spiel on percussive project management. May all your plans find you “on a roll.”

P.S. I almost forgot — there is a fourth principle:

When in doubt, play the 17-minute drum solo from “In-A-Gadda-Da-Vidda”.  (I’ve only used it once.)

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Shave and a haircut, two bits.

Did you just hear the Bo Diddley rhythm in your head? Admit it, you know you did. That’s because the power of rhythm and language is so strong, it can create powerful word/sound associations that stick in your brain longer than you may want them there. (No offense, Mr. Diddley.)

Being a drummer, I’ve always been fascinated by the relationship between language and rhythm. So often we use words to conjure up visual images and we forget the impact of their sound. The advertising world, however, has long been aware of this powerful combination and has not been shy in employing it in the process of naming products.

Here are some ways in which product names are regularly enhanced with sound.
1. Onomatopoeia — Words that sound like their meaning. Examples include: “Snap! Crackle! Pop!” (Kellogg’s Rice Krispies),  KABOOM bathroom cleaning products and “Plop, plop, fizz, fizz” (Alka-Seltzer). OK, maybe I’m the only one old enough to remember this last one, but you get the idea.

2. Rhyming — Rhyming words can not only make you groan, they can also serve as powerful memory-joggers. Lean Cuisine, YouTube and  Crunch ‘n Munch all benefit from enhanced memorability due to their simple rhyming structure. (The latter is also a good example of onomatopoeia.)

3. Alliteration — A repetition of sounds in two or more neighboring words, i.e. Bed, Bath & Beyond, Dunkin’ Donuts and Jimmy John’s. These names all have their roots in the “Peter-Piper-picked-a-peck-of-pickled-peppers” school. Although I don’t believe this is where the term “Peter Principle” originated.

4. Neologisms — Making new words by combining two or more existing words. Snapple = snap + apple,  Nyquil = night-time + quiet,   Dayquil =  … well, you get the picture.

5. Haplology — A three-word phrase with the middle abbreviated. Land O’Lakes, Bit ‘O Honey and Rid-X (ok, somebody here was just being lazy) are a few examples. In addition to making every day sound like St. Patrick’s Day, the word “haplology” also contains “lol” in the middle of it, which I like to think is more than just a coincidence.

These are just some of the ways in which naming exploits the sound of words for maximum impact; there are many others.

Well, I hope you enjoyed our little trip through rhythm land. Here’s hoping it gave you a bunch-o-fun, bang for your buck and made your day funny, sunny, and a little less craptacular. (Ba-DUM-boom).

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As a project manager at Go East, I wear a lot of hats. I say that figuratively, which is a good thing since I hate actually wearing a hat and wearing several hats at once is just plain weird.

Does that sound silly? Of course it is. One of the things I love about Go East is that we can be silly once in awhile. We are encouraged to have fun and keep in touch with the playful part of our brains. Creativity is not limited to art directors and designers; it’s asked of every employee. And as a freelance musician and a person who enjoys the arts, I embrace opportunities to stretch beyond the duties of a traditional project manager.

Anyone who knows me knows that I am an avid coffee drinker. There is a mug at the end of my right hand so often, it’s almost like an appendage. It’s literally part of who I am. (ed. Enough with the literal vs. figurative thing — too much.)

Being able to indulge in my over-caffeinated lifestyle at work may be a small thing, but it makes me feel comfortable knowing I can bring that part of my personality to the workplace.

To me, “living the brand” means that I can be myself while staying true to the brand personality of Go East. Some words that come to mind are these: passionate, focused, driven, intelligent, curious, connected. And hats. Lots of silly hats.

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What if the Easter Bunny were on Twitter? This might be his tweet feed:

TwitterBunny It’s closing in on midnight. A stop at Walgreens for those prefab, shrink-wrapped beauties, a delivery at Go East and I’m done!
11:47 PM April 11 from TwitterFon

TwitterBunnyThe Easter Bunny is not an ATM. Discuss.
11:35 PM April 11 from TwitterFon 

TwitterBunnyTraditionalists :heart: plastic eggs – it’s ironic/chic, right?
10:29 PM April 11 from TwitterFon 

TwitterBunnyIs it me or is the toy-to-candy ratio CRAZY?! I can’t even lift a flat screen, let alone find a basket it fits in.
9:44 PM April 11 from TwitterFon

TwitterBunnyTwitter went down today … I got a lot done. Sadly, I still don’t know what Ashton Kutcher had for lunch.
5:36 PM April 11 from the web

TwitterBunnyAgave candy is so hard 2 find. Harshing my mellow. Buy more Peeps!
7:11 PM April 10 from the web 

TwitterBunnyI’m tired. Where R my @!#-ing elves?!
7:10 PM April 10 from the web 

TwitterBunnyCashed in my clunker – Woot! w/that & product placement $ (buy Peeps!) I’ll get a sweet ride!
10:02 AM April 10 from TwitterFon

TwitterBunnyBrown eggs don’t take dye?! @#$!!
4:24 PM April 9 from the web 

TwitterBunny38 splinters and counting.
3:00 PM April 9 from the web 

TwitterBunnyBeen reading Michael Pollan — going all out this year. Cage-free eggs, organic agave candy & handmade baskets!
10:21 PM April 8 from the web

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“Do it right the first time.”  ”Measure twice, cut once.”  ”An ounce of prevention…” OK, we get it. There are a million clichés out there extolling the virtues of saving time and money by “doing your homework” upfront. (Make that a million and one).

In the design world, nowhere is this more applicable than in the creation of good brand guidelines.

Guidelines set the ground rules by providing a framework from which to work from. They take the guesswork and personal bias out of the picture to set parameters on which we can all agree. (“I don’t care how cool it would be to see the company logo in neon pink, it ain’t gonna happen!”)

From a project management standpoint, adherence to established guidelines results in greater efficiency by eliminating costly errors and reducing the number of proofing rounds. This saves time as well as money.

By adhering to the guidelines on the mandatories, we avoid recreating the wheel on things like logo treatment, white space, legal copy, etc., which means we are better able to flex our creative muscle on the non-mandatories and, in the end, provide the client with the maximum value for his or her creative dollars.

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