Note: This following post is from Shannon Kohn, who has been a part of the Brains on Fire movement (as a Kindred Spirit) for over 10 years. She formally joined us about three months ago and took on the role of Fiskateer Community Manager. We love the way way she bakes and cooks for us. And the way she looks at the world:

Orange. It might only be a “second-from-the-left” color in your world’s rainbow, but for me, it’s more.

Orange is the color that connects me with my client. It instantly summons the loudest, proudest voices in my client’s customers. It flies fast and frantic like an unfurled flag—high above the spectrum of mediocre colors (sorry, periwinkle) that are constantly battling for my visual attention. It has me, the anti-shopper, scouring after-Halloween sales in the hopes of grabbing some small quantity of cute, pumpkin-colored treasure. It’s a happy color…and it shines brighter than a mo fo up in this joint.

Two nights ago, my daughter wrote a cute little note to Twinkle, our “Elf” (the little critter who comes to life at night and wreaks havoc downstairs). One question she asked him was, “What is your favorite color?” Well, I’m no elf (although I’m as cute as one), but when I really step back and think about it, orange is my favorite color now. I see my world through orange-colored glasses (set inside uber-fashionable frames, of course). Did my sharp-edged client know that when I stepped back aboard the Fire train, I would be preaching the gospel of this secondary, color-wheel staple? I think the answer is “Yes.” It’s an easy thing to do when you feel empowered.

Truth be told, I’m a little late to the big, orange-lovin’ party. 6,700 other craftily creative folks beat me there (they saved me a beautifully-embellished seat, though). My tardiness does nothing to lessen my desire to spread my client’s gospel, though. So, if you meet me on the street, at the grocery, or in the carpool line…look out! I’ll have you seeing your world through orange-colored glasses in no time at all.

So, what’s your favorite color?

The following comes from Kathie Conway, Brains on Fire’s CFO/COO:

I was in CPE class on Tuesday, November 24th, learning about “The Administration of Trusts and Estates.”  Yeah…I know I have you on the edge of your seats. CPE stands for “Continuing Professional Education” and as a CPA, I am required to obtain 40 hours a year to maintain my license. Forty HOURS people! Forty hours of sitting in a class taught by other CPA’s. You can only IMAGINE how painful these classes typically can be.

But yesterday, I was enlightened by Erin Cook. I even posted a tweet that Erin was rockin’ our CPE class and Greg Cordell, our Chief Inspiration Officer, posted back in disbelief. What made this class so different? What made me feel compelled to post something on Twitter while I was sitting in class?

It was the stories she told.

The stories she told us about real people. Situations we could relate to. Things we could laugh about. The “EVIL PEOPLE” that tried to steal their aunt’s money with their power of attorney. The people who want to set up trusts or leave people more money than they actually have. Classic.

We talk a lot at Brains on Fire about digging deep and finding the soul of a company. What stories do they have to tell? How do those stories connect us all? While I was sitting in CPE class, I realized that stories are a thread to our lives. They can even make a CPE class come alive. You don’t have to be an identity guru to know that people connect to people. Erin kept inviting us to share our own stories of real life situations with clients. Probate examples, crazy clients, funny stories - whatever we could come up with. She asked us to throw it all out there to keep the class interesting and engaging. So today, when Erin Cook was trying to leave the class, she was bombarded by people who wanted to speak to her. People connected to what she told us. People want to refer clients to her. Seems to me like she has figured something out - maybe without even trying - which made her so very real.

If I know someone that needs a will, estate planning or a probate situation, you know who I will refer them to. I will send them to Erin the storyteller. The real person who has real life situations and knows that people are her business.

Thanks for the class. Refreshing.

This post was written by Brandy Amidon, our Princess of Particulars

No, this isn’t about Bon Jovi. But it could be, because they are quite possibly one of my favorite bands of all time. I mean really, how many of those guys still have hair from the 80’s after all that teasing? Then go on to sell millions of records in the 90’s and 00’s? Just sayin’.

No, this is an obvious question. If something’s wet, is it wrong to assume it’s probably slippery? Throw in a little common sense and you’ll say it’s probably slippery and to watch out.

Some things can be so obvious to one person and another person can be totally oblivious. Money is a good example. Some people are constantly on this roller coaster financial ride of lots of money then lots of shiny things to lots of debt to lots of stress to stabbing their significant other with a fork. It’s obvious to me they have a money problem. But to them it might be a “I’m not making enough money” “My credit card rate is too high” “I need a new bmw cause this one has a scratch” problem.

What’s obvious to one isn’t always obvious to another. Why not find the strengths of our friends and relatives and use them to our advantage. Ask questions, get suggestions, and make a change. Probably an obvious simple change to someone else but so hard to imagine for you. Just sayin’.

BTW – Bon Jovi totally rocks!

The following was written by Matt Reese, the Keeper of the Gates at Brains on Fire.

My wife often claims that I’m a hater. She’s worried that one day I’ll work myself into such a frenzy that I’ll drop dead from a heart attack (and my life insurance isn’t good enough according to her). She’s right in some ways, I do work myself up over little things. Like when the cheese isn’t all the way melted on my cheeseburger. Or when people ask me how I’m doing when they obviously couldn’t care less (and especially when people say they “could care less” when that certainly isn’t what they mean!). So I vowed to stop being a hater.

That lasted a little less than an hour.

Because in reality, I’m not a hater- I’m a noticer. And there is a tremendous amount of value in taking the time to notice things around you. Think about all of the things in your life that exist because people noticed things they didn’t like. Steve Jobs and Apple thought MP3 players were too difficult to work, so they invented a new one (perhaps you’ve heard of it?). Three dudes noticed that it was hard to upload home movies to the Internet so they invented Youtube.

The bottom line is that you don’t have to accept things the way they are and if you notice something that annoys you- fix it. You will more than likely get some pushback (just like Apple did) but that is to be expected when you challenge the status quo and the way it’s always been done.

Oh and your wife might call you a hater, but such is life.

This post comes from Matt Reese (Keeper of the Gates)

This question came from a very nice woman I met at a cookout who was starting a company that specialized in home veterinary visits. It’s such an interesting question and there are a lot of different ways to answer it. You could focus on the tactics of word of mouth marketing, or talk about social media but I think what gets lost is what makes people talk about your product or service in the first place. For people to talk about you in an authentic way you have to give them a reason, and that reason should be how much they loved using your product or service.

Negative, positive and ambivalent word of mouth can happen for a lot of reasons but in general they fall into a few different categories. According to a study from Wilfrid Laurier University, which I think is right on point, people will engage in negative word of mouth for three reasons- anger, disappointment and regret. When people are angry, they’ll talk negatively about you to get revenge. If people are disappointed they’ll talk about you in a negative way to warn others and when people regret doing business with you they turn to their social circle to make themselves feel better. Then there are the customers who are merely satisfied- who won’t talk about you at all unless asked and even then their comments won’t exactly inspire anyone.

The people who will spread the word and preach to the streets how awesome you are, are the customers who are amazed by your product or service and also feel that they can trust you. These are the people that will stick by you when the economy sucks and these are the people that will help grow your roots and help you weather the storm so your tree isn’t the first to tumble. (Link to Tallest Trees Post)

Most examples of a company encouraging you to talk about them while simultaneously selling a sub par product are local, since most of those companies don’t make it long enough for others to find out about them. I’m sure you have your own but a great example in Greenville was a small shop that was so busy trying to convince people to talk about them, they forgot that people weren’t willing to pay eight dollars for a mediocre fried hot dog! Needless to say- they didn’t make it past a year.

Negative word of mouth is a killer for new businesses, it’s tough to overcome a loud critic of yours when there are only a few people talking about you. By the same token, having a loud a proud advocate of yours telling everyone about your service can be a huge boost to a new business. So before you focus the tactics of word of mouth, focus on having an amazing product or service that will blow customers minds without fail!