How to win in this age of anarchy

“Technology may have some benefits for a smart brain, but no capacity to produce compassion” — Dalai Lama

Sometime in the 21st century, we crossed a tipping point and a revolution happened: Technology became democratized.

Technology that once belonged exclusively to governments and rich corporations is now available to everyone… our cellphones today are more powerful than the supercomputers that NASA used to put man on the moon.

Just a few decades ago, publishing was limited to books, newspapers and magazines. Broadcasting required the expensive infrastructure of radio and TV stations.

Now, the Internet has grown up. For the first time ever, anyone can instantly capture a live event with their phones, then broadcast text, images and even video to reach millions of people around the world… within seconds… for free.

There used to be a time when communication involved only 2 people talking. Now, we have Super-hearing and we’re tapped into everyone’s streams of consciousness… all the time, anywhere in the world.

Rich or poor, anyone from a toddler to Grandma has access to this technology. Everyone with an opinion is now given the ability to express it. Anyone with a finger has access to a mind-boggling glut of tools, gadgets, software and widgets.

With this immense power in everyone’s hands, comes a new crisis:

“How do you use it… correctly?”

And if you have a business, therein lies the danger…

“That’s a sharp knife, but do you know what to cut with it?”
You might have heard of this one: In 1995, a Tampa surgeon sawed off the wrong leg. Oops.

“That’s a fine aircraft, but do you know how to fly it?”
In Kegworth, England, 47 people were killed in a plane crash— not because one engine malfunctioned —because the pilots mistakenly shut off the other working engine.

American folk musician John Denver— famous for songs such as “Take Me Home, Country Roads”, “Leaving on a Jet Plane” and “Rocky Mountain High” —fell out of the sky and to his death because his custom aircraft’s primary fuel tank ran empty (and he didn’t know how to switch to his backup one).

“That’s a fine ship, but do you know where you’re going?”
Passenger liner Titanic’s Captain steamed into a dangerous area at too high a speed. When they spotted the iceberg, it was too late. (There’s a 3 hour movie that shows what happened next.)

A chisel is a chisel in any person’s hands. It doesn’t transform cold marble into a human form — the person wielding the chisel does.

Michelangelo claimed that it was his job to free the human form trapped inside the block of stone.

Like the chisel, knife, aircraft or ship; the tools of the 21st century— Websites, Email, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Blogs, Vlogs, Webinars, Mobile Apps, Analytics, Games, etc —are just that… tools.

That’s why if you hear anyone claiming to be an Internet marketer, Facebook marketer, “Social Media” marketer, Video marketer, inbound marketer, relationship marketer, etc…

… understand that’s as silly as saying Michelangelo was chisel sculptor or Leonardo da Vinci was a paintbrush artist.

No tool will magically solve your problems (or transform you into Michelangelo).

Because action without thought is like shooting without aim. Without proper foundations and a supreme purpose, the tools are just more ways to shoot yourself in the foot. Philosopher Seneca cautions, “If a man knows not to which port he sails, no wind is favorable.”

But there’s good news. Like a lighthouse in this sea of anarchy, there is a simple key to a Good business:

Serve —
Know your Ideal Customer,
Find out how to best serve him (or her)…
Then do so.

That’s it. This is the foundation of everything you’ll read here. And with this foundation, you will never be lost.