This blog post was inspired by a with Kira Wampler, Word of Mouth/Social Marketing Leader at Intuit Inc.

What do I care? Why should I care? What do your customers care about?

For the company that doesn’t, “care” is a four-letter word. For the company that does, “care” is a big word. Huge even. Because when you care, emotion enters into the equation. For some companies, emotion is a scary thing. Because emotion doesn’t show up as a line-item on a P&L report. Emotion can make things very sticky. And emotion is unpredictable.

But caring can be your greatest asset. Because when you allow your employees to care about their jobs, care about what happens to their fellow employees and care about their customers, there’s a shift in culture. I guarantee that when you walk in the doors of a company or have your first interaction with them online, you can tell the difference between a company that cares and a company that doesn’t care.

Yes, we all care about the bottom line. Because, like the Tequila Shots book says, we can’t make a difference if we cease to exist. But that’s a different kind of caring. I’m talking about the caring that comes when the times get tough. The kind of caring that comes with making sure you’re doing everything within your power to solve a person’s problem - even if they are a chronic complainer. And the caring that comes from believing that your customer’s success is your success.

So if you don’t care, then it’s going to be obvious to your employees and customers. And since love (or the lack of it) is a circular transaction, guess what? I guarantee that they aren’t going to care about you either. And good luck with that.

If I’m sitting in a meeting, or an airplane, or at dinner… I’m usually doodling. I’ve kinda refined my doodle’s to be a personal gathering spot for ideas, reflection, and fears. Last week I was traveling with Robbin Phillips to Austin, Texas and she spied on one my doodles. Robbin thought it was worth posting.

This particular doodle is a continuous doodle thought…

Photo by the Hotel Saint Cecilia pool via Geno Church and his trusty iphone

Okay. I woke up this morning – a gray day in Green Vegas – but the sun was shining in my heart. Can’t explain it really. Maybe it is because I am getting out of town.

Austin. One of my favorite cities.

And I have decided I might stay the weekend and play around.

With that smile in my heart, I read this direct message from someone on Twitter. I won’t give his name but I want to share.

Indulge me:

yrs ago, i sent my wife a link to your site and said, one day i’m going to build my company like that: “a tribe of true believers”

Those of you that read our blog know I blow very hot and cold on this twitter craze. Or daze.

Whatever you want to call it.

It is additive and sometimes weirds me out when I find myself getting completely sucked in. You got to know how silly I think it for people to twitter to each other at dinner. (Geez, as I write this I realized I did that with Geno last night. Shouted out to my friends that I was with Geno have a really cool little drink before bed. See, it sucks you in. Guess there are something you just long to share…)

And if you hang out here often, you probably know this about me too. I get my jollies by inspiring others to believe in themselves. I read somewhere that leaders create leaders. That is my job here on this planet. To inspire strong and powerful leaders to lift others up in life. To elevate and empower their employees and their customers. To find the shared passions. To connect people. To give everyone a voice and supportive venue to use their time and talents wisely.

Period.

So that message from Twitter only intended for my eyes is proof in a funny sort of way that it’s working. That Brains on Fire is a movement and and not just a place to work. Those kind words from someone I may never meet but we have inspired feels like “twitter love”.

Forgive me if this post feels like horn tooting. But see in a funny sort of way, I get it now. Connecting with people you don’t even know can be a powerful thing.

So today. I will love and appreciate the value of twitter. Silly, silly twitter.

Now you go: tell me your favorite “twitter love story”.

P.S. I actually wrote this yesterday but didn’t get to post until Friday morning. Now I am in Austin with the amazing + delightful @genochurch at one of the most soulful little hotels I have stayed in long time. Check it out. Hotel Saint Cecila. I recommend this to all my friends. All of you. Even the ones i don’t know. Yet.

Who’s heard of Robin Dunbar? For those of you who haven’t, his most widely known work as an anthropologist is called “Dunbar’s Number,” which proposes that the ceiling of ’stable interpersonal relationships’ that the average person can maintain is 150. Though his initial work studied groups of people offline, he has recently moved his research online to study the same principle in social networks.

Aside from being thought-provoking in and of itself, the variety of responses that Dunbar’s research has drawn is also interesting. Some people use the measure to decry the online frenzy of friends and followers, others use their idea of the massive influence of social media to discredit it. Many people approach their interpretation of the number through personal networking experience and some have even made it their goal to ‘beat’ the number.

One thing, however, seems to be consistent among both supporters and critics: the number of deep, meaningful, trusting relationships that you can have, either online or offline, is a much smaller figure than gigantic number of acquaintances you can achieve.

And I think many people (and companies for that matter) could be missing one of the most important lessons in the conversation. On some level, it doesn’t matter as much whether Dunbar’s number validates or invalidates connections in social networking, it’s a reminder that you can cultivate a core group of fans that have a vested interest in you.

It begs the question, what are you doing to fascinate, inspire, reward and engage that smaller number of people who have the closest connection to your company or brand?

Maybe you’re not in a formal ambassador program or even consider yourself an ambassador of, well, anything really. But when you start thinking about it, you might be surprised that you choose or not choose to be an ambassador every day.

Case in point, if you’re a runner and like to run outside in public places (like downtown), more than likely you’ve been stopped and asked directions by pedestrians or even drivers. At that moment, you have a decision to make. Because in that moment, you can choose to be an ambassador for your city. You can choose to take the time to stop and get them where they need to go and wish them well on their way. You just became an ambassador. You just gave that person a “customer experience.”

My point is that you don’t have to be involved in a formal program to be considered an ambassador. You don’t even have to be a loud and proud evangelist to be considered an ambassador. We make decisions everyday when we interact with others. And many times, brands are a part of those interactions. So take the time to become aware of your conversations. Because those are the same ones your customers are having. And each and every one of those are an opportunity to make both your lives better.