According to Pink:

We’ve moved from an economy built on people’s backs to an economy built on people’s left brains to what is emerging today: an economy and society built more and more on people’s right brains.

To survive in this age, individuals and organizations must examine what they’re doing to earn a living and ask themselves three questions:

1. Can someone overseas do it cheaper?
2. Can a computer do it faster?
3. Is what I’m offering in demand in an age of abundance?

If you answer yes to 1 and/or 2, or no to 3, it’s time to rethink what you are doing.

I would highly recommend adding this to your reading list, as the book is filled with ideas that can really make you think about where you stand today.

So of course, I took an hour out this morning and looked at my business, and reworked some of the things we’re doing, adding new tasks and goals.

Ultimately everything we do comes down to how well we can share our ideas and information with others, and how well it is perceived by others.

If you are trying to sell what everyone else is, you’re going to have trouble.

But if you find a creative way to sell what you have, you’ll be a success.

People don’t want things the same old way. They want something new and different. They want to be able to put their own flare to it, be creative with it, and share their ideas in their own way.

Which is one of the reasons social networking is booming. People aren’t being marketed to; instead, they find new things by relying on “friends”.

It’s time to look at your business in a different light. What can you do to become more creative with what you do? What can you do to create something no one else is offering?

In traditional marketing, the large companies knew the secret to success was having a huge pool of prospects and customers to go to again and again. If someone requested information, or made a purchase from you, chances are you could turn them into repeat customers. The key was staying in touch with them through a variety of methods.

That same philosophy applies more than ever in today’s technological world as well.  

Blogging is great. So is gaining followers on Twitter, Facebook or LinkedIn. But what happens 5 years from now when Twitter isn’t the top way of communicating? What happens when attentions move to Twitter to “Insert new name here”?

Your followers no longer stay in touch with you on the old media. They move onto something new – something that you may no longer be using yourself.

But if you maintain a web/blog presence, and have your own in-house list offering free reports, free white papers, or a free e-class, you’ve now brought prospects back to your own sources. And you have full control over how you maintain a relationship with them. You can email them regularly with ezines. You can send out new offers and put them on new, more segregated lists. You can ask for more information, and put them on a snail mailing list. The options are endless.

I’ve been reading a lot of interviews from bloggers lately, and most wish they had started their own email lists sooner rather than later. If you have a business and are trying to attract customers, you have to build your own list. I’ve been using aweber for years and love their service. You can create an unlimited amount of lists, and can send as many times as you desire for the same low monthly fee. You can also have autoresponders as well as ezines, giving you two services for the price of one.