The good doctor

I took my son to an eye doctor who specializes in baseball vision, Dr. Bill Harrison. He has worked for numerous famous baseball stars, including some Hall of Famers. It was a long drive (about six hours) to see him, so we made it a family weekend.

I hoped that Dr. Bill would be helpful; after all, he's worked with some of the best athletes in the world. I was more than satisfied with his expertise.

But I found it was his passion that was most impressive. He personally greeted us as we walked in, he spent hours with my son making sure he had the right corrections for his contact lenses and then we went to a baseball facility and worked on exercises that help hitters "pick up" the ball as it's traveling 80-90 mph.

Since then Dr. Bill has emailed my son to see how he's progressing and has called me to talk. That's passion, that's a person who is making a difference. What an inspiration!

You would think that the doctor would be too busy to waste time on a young boy and instead focus on other things, but for Dr. Bill his passion is helping people see better.

He's helped me see better, too—I see clearly how passion intersects with expertise and creates a magical experience.

Barry LaBov
LaBov Marketing Communications and Training
www.labov.com

Jump

There are so many chances to do something great, to save a relationship going bad, or to grab an opportunity and make it a reality.

Too often we look at those things as being available forever, but they're not. They come in the blink of an eye and they vanish just as fast.

The answer is to jump. Jump, run, act or do whatever you need to do in order to make that difference.

Barry LaBov
LaBov Marketing Communications and Training
www.labov.com

Simple is Better

Sometimes we try to make things too complicated. Companies throw a bunch of people at a challenge and hope that one of them will find a solution. Or we take a project in too many directions and end up losing sight of or diminish the one great idea that could have made all the difference.

Keeping things simple can actually be harder than letting the details run rampant and roughshod over a project. Steve Jobs said, “Simple can be harder than complex: You have to work hard to get your thinking clean to make it simple. But it’s worth it in the end because once you get there, you can move mountains.”

In a world full of complications, details and distractions, simple can be a breath of fresh air. It can differentiate a company or product from its competitors. It can win you fans for life. It can earn you the respect and admiration of your peers. I’ll take simple over complicated any day.

Barry LaBov
LaBov Marketing Communications and Training
www.labov.com