By Saul Kaplan, on Mon Jul 28, 2014 at 8:30 AM ET  I have to admit when I was growing up and when we raised our children I thought weird was out. Weird was isolated, ostracized, dismissed, and definitely not cool. Turns out I was wrong. Weird is in. Weird is unique, refreshing, remarkable, and definitely cool. It just took me a while to figure it out. The evidence is all around us. Two personal reminders of how weird can be an advantage are a recent trip to Austin, Texas and reading Delivering Happiness by Zappos CEO, Tony Hsieh.
I was asked to give a talk on business model innovation to a group of association leaders in Austin, Texas. It was my first trip to Austin but the city’s reputation for embracing weird preceded my visit. I love the city mantra Keep Austin Weird. How many cities would have the guts to rally around such a weird positioning? I think it is brilliant. It is differentiated and sends a clear message to both residents and visitors that Austin is an edgy and interesting place where creativity is central and you just might learn something new. It makes me want to live and invest there. The night I arrived the positioning was realized immediately as I joined an eclectic crowd forming on the Congress Street Bridge to watch North America’s largest urban bat colony emerge from under the bridge. You don’t experience that every day. It was delightfully weird and the gathered crowd was a great manifestation of Austin’s community aspiration for a collaborative fission of coordinated individualism.
The discussion I went to Austin for with a diverse group of association leaders focused on declining association membership and how to design and test new business models. Turns out that many young professionals are not joining associations and the group wondered if those professionals most receptive to innovation and changing the role of their professions are the least likely to join associations leaving an aging membership uninterested in being and celebrating weird. Maybe associations could benefit from a little more weird.
I just finished reading and highly recommend Delivering Happiness by my friend Tony Hsieh. Tony reveals his Zappos playbook and no surprise weird plays an important role. One of Zappos’ 10 core values is Create Fun and a Little Weirdness. Can you imagine your company explicitly celebrating being weird as one of its core values? Zappos means it. Not crazy or extreme weirdness but comfort with unconventional approaches, learning from mistakes, and the ability to laugh at themselves. Zappos wants a touch of weirdness to make life more fun and interesting for everyone. Tony is serious when he says the company must have a unique and memorable personality.
I experienced the weirdness first-hand when I visited Tony at Zappos headquarters in Las Vegas. It is remarkable to see the Zappos culture up close and personal. If you are going to Las Vegas definitely take Zappos up on its standing offer to visit the headquarters. None of what you have read about Zappos is as powerful as seeing it in action. From the way you are greeted at the airport to a memorable stroll through the company. On the outside the buildings look like any one of a million suburban office complexes but once inside you will not forget the experience and uniqueness of being warmly greeted by each department with an eclectic mix of streamers, parades, kazoos, cowbells and what ever expression strikes the Zappos team at the moment. The Zappos culture Tony talks about is obvious, tangible, and infectious. In Tony’s own words to Zappos employees, ” We want the weirdness in each of us to be expressed in our interactions with each other and in our work.” I am thrilled that Tony is joining us as a storyteller at BIF-6 (not to be missed, hint, hint, only 60 seats remain).
If the goal is to get better faster and learning is optimal at the edge we could all benefit from a little more weirdness. We need to make room in our personal lives, organizations, and communities for embracing weird. Everything else seems boring and stagnant. Weird is in.
By Julie Rath, on Fri Jul 25, 2014 at 8:30 AM ET Do you ever wish you looked a little taller? Many of my clients, even if they are above average height, list this as an image goal. At 5′ 1″ myself, I appreciate the sentiment. Luckily for us vertically-challenged folks, we can use clothing as smoke and mirrors to achieve (or at least get closer to) the look we want. Below are 11 tips on how to dress so you look taller:
Patterns and Color
1) Wear the same color (or at least similar tones of color) on top as you do on bottom. That way, you avoid the horizontal line of a color break across your middle, which would cut you in half otherwise.
2) Similarly, you should avoid wearing a belt that contrasts strongly with the rest of your outfit, as it will abbreviate you.
3) Wear socks in the same color as your pants. It makes your legs look longer.
 4) Everyone knows to wear vertical stripes, but did you also know that diagonal lines create illusion of length? In addition to vertically striped pants, suits, jackets, and socks, try a repp (diagonal stripe) tie.
Lines of Clothes
 5) Dressing in layers allows you to add lots of elongating verticals. Think a hoodie or sweater with a zip or a cardigan left open (try under a sport jacket or a casual jacket).
6) Wear a pocket square. It draws the eye up to your chest favorably.
Sportcoats or Suit Jacket Details
7) Opt for peak lapels, as the detail and upward-pointing angles guide the viewer’s eye in an upward direction, making you look taller.
8) As in #1, the diagonal lines of a suit jacket or sportcoat’s lapels will extend your height. Choose one with a “low button stance,” which means it buttons lower on your body, extending those diagonal lines.
9) The gorge on your jacket is where the collar meets the lapel. If you’re buying custom, tell them you want a “high gorge,” which will have the same upward-orienting effect as in #7.
 10) Buy your jacket on the short side (or have it tailored that way) so that it just covers the curve of your seat. This makes your legs look longer.
11) When you have your jacket sleeves tailored, ask for at least 1/4″ of shirt cuff to show. If not enough or no cuff shows, it can make your arms (and the rest of you by proxy) look short.
Is there anything about your appearance you’d like to balance or camouflauge? Let me know in the comments below, and I’ll tackle it in an upcoming post.
By Josh Bowen, on Thu Jul 24, 2014 at 8:30 AM ET  The title of the blog may seem confusing and even appalling to most. It may lead you to question my sanity after 11 years as a personal trainer. “How does he not know what his job is?” Just hold on for a minute. For years I have had this approach when it came to clients, focus on more than fitness and nutrition.
See I believe fitness is a vehicle that we use to improve people. People HATE exercise, for the most part. For one reason or another most people disdain the process of trying to get into shape. They have goals but most of the time those goals are deeper than fitness. They impact every aspect of their lives. So, if it deeper than fitness why do we not concentrate on more than fitness? This approach may actually help you jump start your fitness and go on a quest to better yourself.
In my mind exercise/fitness and good nutrition affect every aspect of my life. Therefore, not only do I affect the physical part of me and they way I look but I also affect several other aspects of my life; relationships, better sleep, energy, confidence etc. So if you knew that working out would help boost your confidence and help you have the courage to ask a pretty girl on a date or make a great speech in front of the CEO of you company, would you be more aped to do it? Of course you would. Here are 5 of the most impacted areas of our lives that fitness increases more than anything else.
1. Confidence
The picture on the left is from my high school graduation in 2000 and the picture on the right is from last year. On the left I weigh an astounding 140lbs on the right 200lbs. Forget the numbers and the obvious physical difference, the number one benefit that fitness has provided me is confidence. Without it, I would not have been able to speak in front of hundreds of people, write a book, go on a bootcamp tour for 14 days across the US or be a personal trainer. Physically I am different but the most effect has been in my confidence.
So many of my clients will list confidence as their number one benefit from working with a trainer and starting an exercise program. The proof is in the pudding.
2. Relationships
As a continuation from confidence, I find that increased relationships with others is a direct reflection from being fit. Often times clients will meet new people and friendships are born or their existing relationships improve because of heightened self confidence.
3. Diligence
A direct reflection of being fit is increasing one’s diligence and determination. Get tasks completed because they have more energy or confidence is common place.
4. Clarity
The hormonal effect of exercise is documented but what you often forget is the increased ability to think clearer. This aspect comes in handy in todays fast moving world. I always have told people I never make decisions until I have worked out that day. Working out will give me the extra time and mental clearness to think about making a decision.
5. Self Esteem
Confidence and self esteem are different. Self esteem is how you view yourself and how you feel about it. Fitness supplies the increased self esteem that one feels like they can conquer anything. Feeling better about the way you look is the best feeling in the world.
All in all, I do not concentrate on fitness. I concentrate on the effects of fitness and how it effects and impacts our lives. Anyone who has started an exercise program an continued with it can tell you that there are more than just five aspects that help better their lives. Focus on the effects working will give you, instead of thinking about whether you can do it or not.
By Lauren Mayer, on Wed Jul 23, 2014 at 8:30 AM ET People have often used ‘the melting pot’ as a metaphor for immigrants from all over the world, coming together to make America a great and diverse country. (Although when I was growing up, I had a creative teacher come up with ‘fruit salad’ as a better metaphor, implying that immigrants retained some elements of their native culture and blended together in a tasty mixture – unfortunately, California also became known as the ‘granola state’, full of flakes & nuts, but I digress . . . ) However, immigration has become so politicized lately, it’s hard to find any common ground. The Senate was able to put together a bipartisan reform bill, but apparently the House won’t take it up because they’re too busy repealing the ACA or deciding whether or not to sue the President. Still, one would think that all sides could at least come together over the plight of thousands of children fleeing violence in Central America who have crossed our border recently. (Oh, I know, I’m just an eternal optimist . . . stop laughing at me!)
The nasty, xenophobic reaction by so many politicians and pundits has been appalling, but also ripe for ridicule (starting with the “Go Home Illeagels” signs and protesters swarming a bus from the local YMCA). So in that spirit, we might as well update the iconic poem inscribed at the base of Lady Liberty . . .
By Erica and Matt Chua, on Tue Jul 22, 2014 at 8:30 AM ET Most of the year being away from home is just fine. Daily life doesn’t give us much to miss, but the holidays are a different story. Do we want to be at an ugly sweater party? Yeah, you betcha! Do we want to be feasting on unhealthy food just because it’s a holiday? Of course! Here are the key things about the holidays we miss.
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HE SAID…
December is a deceptively good month at home. The fun of the holidays outweighs the fact that in Minnesota the temperature drops below freezing; a mark it won’t rise above until sometime in May. While the air outside becomes frosty, inside it’s a different story, the warmth of people abounds. Everywhere becomes festive, downtown Minneapolis hosts a nightly parade, stores that seem barren in the summer are wrapped in decorations, and people open their homes to share great food, catch up, and drink a little too much eggnog. Overall, December is a month that I wish were longer.
Ever seen The Hangover? At the end they find a digital camera with photos of the night before that show scenes that are unbelievable for even those that were there. Our friend’s holiday party is like that. Part of you wishes there were no digital cameras and facebook, but you also realize that’s a big part of the fun. The party doesn’t really celebrate the holidays, rather it uses the holidays as a reason to party, in costume. This year’s theme, Punk Rock Christmas, will celebrate the decade we were born in, but too young to rock mohawks and leather jackets without our parents’ agreeing to pay for them. Being the season of giving, there is a gift exchange where you can expect to walkaway with household essentials such as stuffed bobcats and profane inflatable objects. This is one holiday party that is a shame to miss.
Stuffed bobcat!? You know you want one and the gift exchange is a great place to get it.
A close second to missing Punk Rock Christmas is being able to indulge in eating without shame. The holidays are a time when it’s seemingly OK to catch up with family while holding a plate that only contains prime rib, lamb, and turkey.Sure, there are plenty of other things I could put on my plate, some carbs for example, but why? Spending time with loved ones and a plate of meat is what makes December different from Thanksgiving when people will plop sweet potatoes onto your plate against your will. The holidays are all about food, family and friends, which makes December a great month.
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SHE SAID…
I have always had a white Christmas, being from Minnesota having snow on the ground is a sign that the holidays are just around the corner. While we have chased summer weather around the world, I miss the snow that tells me it’s time for holiday parties, ice sculptures and long standing family traditions. Sure I wish I could attend friend’s ugly sweater parties and play secret santa, but what I miss most is our traditional Christmas Eve meal and our eclectic Christmas Day gathering of friends and family.
My plate of food with Swedish meatballs, Swedish sausage, lefse and a tiny bit of obligatory lutefisk.
Read the rest of…
Erica and Matt Chua: He Said-She Said: Missing the Holidays
By Saul Kaplan, on Mon Jul 21, 2014 at 8:30 AM ET  I tried. I really did try to take a break from all the design and innovation buzz while on vacation last week in Spain. It didn’t work. Throughout an incredible ten-day sojourn across northern Spain design and innovation reminders were everywhere. It wasn’t premeditated. I am sure the lens through which I view the world has a lot to do with it but I also credit Spain, which has a clear case of the design and innovation bug. Then again maybe my perspective was colored by all of the great Rioja wine. Here are the design highlights from this innovation junkie’s summer vacation.
We started our Iberian adventure in the great city of Barcelona. On our first day we set out to see Casa Battlo and La Sagrada Familia designed by Spanish architect Antoni Gaudi. Both were on our must do list and unanimous recommendations from many Twitter friends who had been to Barcelona. Goodbye jet lag. Wow. I wasn’t familiar with Gaudi before our trip but will never forget his work after seeing it. Gaudi was ahead of his time. He was more modern than the Modernist Art Nouveau period in the late 19th early 20th century he lived and designed in. Throughout Gaudi’s life, he studied nature’s angles and curves and incorporated them into his designs. His works are iconic and seem to flow directly from nature. Gaudi said, “The great book, always open and which we should make an effort to read, is that of nature”. Amen.
Casa Battlo, or as the locals refer to it Casa dels Ossos (House of Bones), has a skeletal, visceral, natural feel throughout. I don’t think there is a straight line in the entire house. The way Gaudi used color and light to draw you in is amazing. He devoted the end of his life, unfortunately cut short in 1926 by a tram accident, to the monumental church La Sagrada Familia. He completed the amazing design but barely saw the work started. The work continues on today and the iconic church spires define the Barcelona skyline. There aren’t enough times in your life when design takes your breath away. Visiting Barcelona and seeing Gaudi’s work took my breath away.
From Barcelona we drove into Rioja wine country for some rural relaxation and leisurely wine tasting. Surely my obsession with design and innovation could take a rest there. No such luck! The concierge at our beautiful Relais & Chateau advised us to visit a couple of wineries in the small village of La Guardia. As GPS guided us toward the Marques de Riscal winery there was no mistaking the iconic design of Frank Gehry as we pulled in. I had no idea that Gehry did Rioja. But there they were, those signature metallic ribbons that remind me of the ribbon candy that we ate and got stuck in our teeth when we were kids. I knew we were going to see his famous work in Bilbao later in our trip but wasn’t expecting to see it in Rioja country.
As we visited the winery it began to make sense. Marques de Riscal is attempting to create a new positioning for the winery and its wines to blend tradition with innovation. What better way to execute a transformational positioning strategy targeted at employees, visitors, and customers than to hire the iconic architect Frank Gehry. I would like to think that wine is about grapes and fermentation but the business is all about brand, customer experience, marketing, and price point. It makes great sense to differentiate brand and customer experience through the power of design. As a bonus the Rioja was pretty darn good.
After several days in wine country the last leg of our journey took us north into the Basque region. We headed for San Sebastian and took a side trip to Bilbao. This time it was by design that we visited the Guggenheim Museum to see Gehry’s iconic work and its great collection of modern art. It was wonderful to visit and I couldn’t help but think about the power that iconic design can have on a community. Bilbao is an old industrial port city that has been transformed in part by the iconic Guggenheim into a design and innovation center in northern Spain.
I will spare you the details of every tapas bar, pintxos crawl, great restaurant, and winery we visited. Trust me when I say that a good time was had. Batteries are recharged and inspiration to advance the mantle of purposeful design and innovation is renewed. Gracias Espana. El gusto es mio.
By Julie Rath, on Fri Jul 18, 2014 at 8:30 AM ET It’s never too late to pick up a gift for your pops (or to make pointed suggestions to your loved ones). From token to total splurge, below are 6 Rath-approved gifts for you to choose from.
 Black and Tan Beer Utensil $10 – There’s nothing like a good black and tan, and with this, your dad doesn’t need bartender skills to make one.
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 Leather Key Fob $35 – A nice key chain is a small pleasure he might not actually purchase for himself. I love the rugged leather combined with brass hardware.
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 Luxury Toys Volume 2 $41 – He can dream big as he flips through this gorgeous coffee table book reading about underwater motorcycles and personal spaceships.
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 Garmin Approach S1 GPS Watch $140 – Pro or no, if your dad’s a golfer, he’ll love this watch, which will allow him to measure individual shot distances and track how far he walks on the course.
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 Hartmann Garment Bag $445 – With travel, it’s key to keep your clothes neat so you don’t create extra work for yourself (or the hotel laundry) when you arrive at your destination. A bag like this is a frequent traveler’s best friend, as it keeps your hanging clothes in tact, and has pockets for shoes and toiletrees. It also fits nicely in an overhead airplane compartment.
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 Hermes Croc Clock (call for price) – For the Dad who has everything: an Art Deco crocodile clock by Paul Dupré-Lafon for Hermès, circa 1930.
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And for the new dad, here are my tips on keeping stylish while keeping your cool.
By Will Meyerhofer, on Thu Jul 17, 2014 at 1:30 PM ET  Here’s what you never hear anyone say at a Biglaw firm – followed by a discussion of why you never hear anyone say it.
Here we go…
Let’s work on this together. It’ll be more fun.
People write me all the time, complaining I’m too down on Biglaw. Nothing new there, but one guy, recently, expanded on the topic, adding that he works at a firm where everyone, so far as he knows, is happy – enjoying a rewarding career in a supportive, non-exploitative environment.
Perhaps you can see this coming: It turns out this guy owns the firm – and specializes in oral arguments before federal appellate courts. Prior to becoming managing partner, he attended top Ivy League schools.
By way of a reply, I opined: “Your experience might be considered atypical.”
In reality, his experience should be considered ridiculously atypical. Redonkulouslyatypical. Yet this presumably brilliant legal mind couldn’t manage to grasp that reality from where he was standing – at the top of the heap.
This man claims, without irony, that every lawyer at his firm is happy. But, that little voice in the back of your head begins to counter, before you’re even aware of having the thought: it’s your firm.
They work for you. Of course they act happy, just as the maid cleaning your hotel room – the one without a green card, with a family to feed, smiles and acts delighted to see you when you pop in to grab your extra iPad mini and she’s on her knees scrubbing the shower.
Presumably, someone else, some possibly unhappy little person at this guy’s law firm, is doing the work he would rather not think about – the work that has to be done. Maybe it’s a junior he’s never met. And I’d bet good money that other guy’s doing it all by himself, probably late at night or on a weekend.
Read the rest of…
Will Meyerhofer: What You Never Hear
By Josh Bowen, on Thu Jul 17, 2014 at 8:30 AM ET
The hardest thing to do in life is to be yourself when everything around you wants you to be someone else. I struggle with the status quo. I struggle with being like other people. I have to be me. Like it or not. Arnold was a polarizing figure. A bodybuilder, with perhaps the best physique ever, turned mega movie star, turned Governor of California turned back to move star. He defines success, perhaps when success shouldn’t have been attained. A guy with a lisp from Austria, new to the United States takes the world by storm.
Because of the following 6 rules that we can all live by…
1. Trust yourself
At the end of the day we can only rely on ourselves. No one can care about our success or failure more than us. We must trust ourselves and go with our gut feelings. Continue to strive for personal greatness and always remember nothing is fatal or final.
2. Break the rules…
To hell with the rules. Your not suppose to do this or do that. Screw them. We don’t need them. We set the rules. We are the measuring sticks by which all are judged and we didn’t get there by playing it easy and playing by the rules. Break them and break them often.
3. Never be afraid to fail
You will fail. I will fail. However, we must not be afraid to fail because where there is failure there is success. The only way to succeed is to fail. If you have never failed you have never tried. Push the envelope of what you think is possible. You will learn a lot about what it takes to succeed.
4. Don’t listen to the naysayers
Nothing is impossible. With a strategic game plan and a hellacious work ethic, anything is possible. Don’t listen to people who say you can’t do it. They are only feeding your drive to do it. Haters will hate, do not listen to them. Follow your heart an your gut.
5. Work your butt off
Hard work is a given. Nothing will be given to you. You want it bad enough you will go get it. Work your ass off every day with your goals in mind. When you take off remember there is someone out there working towards what you want. Keep pushing and never let up.
6. Give back
Pay it forward. Give back to what has given to you. When you succeed teach others your ways. Mentor young minds to stimulate greatness in them. Leave a legacy no one can match. Be the measuring stick.
All things are possible through fitness. The above list, if followed, will produce success in any field or endeavor. This is short, simple and easily applied. Go toward your greatness.
By Brooke Masters, on Wed Jul 16, 2014 at 1:30 PM ET  When most US investors do not like the way a company is heading, they vote with their feet and sell their shares. But a new generation of activist investors is challenging that tradition by opting to amass shares and demand board representation and strategic change instead.
Hertz, the car rental group, became the latest US company to come under such pressure. It is now said to be considering selling or spinning off its equipment hire business after stakebuilding by investors including Dan Loeb and Carl Icahn.
While activists have been around for decades, the scale appears unprecedented. Such hedge funds were managing $90bn as of last year’s fourth quarter, almost triple the total five years ago, according to Hedge Fund Research.
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