Iceland is a small country with a small population, but among them are some of the strongest men in the world. Here’s a little clip of these big guys with the Minnesota Vikings.

Daniel Defoe – poet, novelist, journalist, travel writer, and adventurer – was also (according to some sources), a spy.

The Typewriter Artist

Change.org is an interesting organization. Subscribe and you will get daily promotions for all sorts of causes. If you want to support any particular one of them, you can sign a petition and/or contribute and/or pass the promotion along.

I am reticent to sign every petition that appeals to me. There is seldom enough information to make a considered judgement, and I don’t have the time in many cases to do any research. But some causes are pretty easy to support. And when you do and change happens, it feels – perhaps delusionally – that you’ve done good.

I wouldn’t call Dan Kennedy a friend. We were acquaintances. I knew him by reputation first, then as a fellow speaker at AWAI events, and then as a reader. We had a few conversations. Exchanged a few faxes. (He never got online.) I can say this about him. In an age of internet marketing impostors, he was the real deal.

At the time of publication, Dan was in hospice care. This is a letter he wrote that was forwarded to me:

A PERSONAL LETTER FROM DAN KENNEDY

 TO: Magnetic Marketing|No B.S. Inner Circle Members, “Lifers,” Friends and Advantage Family Members

I find myself in the unusual position of regretfully announcing my death. Usually people are having to do the opposite; deny rumors of their passage. I am writing this in Hospice after a 10 day maelstrom of multiple overlapping infections, surgical procedures, and diabetic and heart conditions. This set in motion an irreversible downward spiral and I am now on the final journey of no more than a few days before exit. Consequently I won’t be interacting here anymore.

I have a couple of things to say to you. First, it has been a great privilege to have worked for you, and with you, and to have had your interest and patronage. You have made it possible for me to do work that interests me, that I chose and that I felt meaningful and worthwhile. Second, I never thought of this as just a transactional business but also as a genuine relationship, a community, and a Movement.

As I said to you at the 2018 SuperConference in Orlando right after Adam Witty purchased GKIC, I never had a son, but if I had one, I would want it to be Adam because of his big heart, integrity, and commitment to help entrepreneurs grow. Adam and I have worked closely together for the past 12 years. He has integrated and used my teachings in his business so successfully that he is the person I place my confidence in to pick up where I am leaving off.

As I enter my final days, I hope OUR community, OUR TRIBE will stick together. Adam and the Magnetic Marketing|No B.S. Inner Circle team need YOU, now more than ever. Although I will no longer be with you, the community we have created together, the camaraderie we share, and the support we provide must continue. As my last request, please help me to keep our entrepreneurial community thriving to benefit you, your business, and entrepreneurs in the future.

All my best,

Dan

Examples of Successful USPs

* Anacin’s slogan – “Fast, incredibly fast relief” – was created by Rosser Reeves and his team after learning that the caffeine in Anacin did indeed bring faster relief (to some) than other pain relievers on the market.

 * Head & Shoulders– “Clinically proven to reduce dandruff.” This USP, too, was based on research. Ten years of study had confirmed that an ingredient in Head & Shoulders (pyrithione zinc) effectively reduced dandruff.

 * Domino’s created a USP around a common problem with pizza delivery – the time it sometimes took. Their USP was a guarantee: You get your pizza, hot and fresh, within 30 minutes after you order it or you get your money back.

* FedEx did a similar thing with this USP: “When it absolutely, positively has to be there overnight.”

 * Walmart’s USP was very simple: “Save money, live better.” And it worked. Did it ever work!

 * Apple took a daring approach with its slogan for its line of desktop computers: “Beauty outside, Beast inside.” You would think that a practical USP – something about functionality – would be the way to go. But Steve Jobs felt differently and went with aesthetics. As a result, millions of consumers paid a premium price for Apple’s sleek desktop computers, even though they could have bought others that were equally good technically but cheaper.

Biggest Building

Your fingernails do not grow at the same rate. The thumbnail grows the slowest. The nail of the middle finger grows the fastest.

What’s interesting about this is that the pleasure of the performance comes as much from the story as from the skill, which says something truthful about performance art.

Niagara Falls has receded 7 miles in 10,000 years because of erosion at the base.