I love Sunday mornings with a pot of coffee, listening to British radio station Soul Central Radio, and the real paper version of the Wall Street Journal. (Online scrolling just doesn’t cut it for me…)

As I mentioned last week, I’ve just completed seven days of travel for technology conferences, private leadership retreats, brand strategy development, and acquisition integration. 

I took an extra day to myself before flying home and sleeping for ten hours straight. So Sunday morning was even more meaningful when I got to enjoy the cool California morning and read these thought provoking pieces. 

Each could have been featured alone in this week's VALuable Insights as its own topic but I couldn’t pick between them so you get the rapid version of each!

YES I know these are behind a paywall but I really do recommend you subscribe and get the old school style paper delivered to your door each morning. It’s worth it. 

Should Mayo Have A Purpose?

• Love this particularly as I have been working a lot lately with Chief Marketing Officers on brand strategy and how companies can define who they really are (and how much their customers and employees really care!)
• Terry Smith, one of Unilever’s largest shareholders gave my favorite quote.
• It supports my belief that you can’t pretend to have a purpose or reason for being that is made up or doesn’t deliver return on investment for your shareholders. 
• This article is packed full of examples where chasing a purpose for the sake of a marketing campaign is a waste of time and money!

Why Social Media For Making Connections Isn’t All Bad According to Those Younger Than Me

• Reed Hoffman has the 10th Edition of the book he co authored out The Start Up of You, and offers some interesting insights into those younger than me (or is it younger than I? My British / American grammar confuses me no end these days…but you get the point.)

Where Peloton Went Wrong and Can’t They Fix it?

• Peloton executives must have whiplash from the speed they have gone from superhero to villain and back again so many times in the last few years. 
• The deconstruction of the events of their Rapid Growth certainly will feature in a future new edition of Rapid Growth Done Right as an example of what not to do during Rapid Growth!
• This fascinating case study is unfolding before our eyes as we peddle, run, and meditate through endless classes…
• I’m sure the PR shot of the executive team breaking ground on the new Peloton Factory doesn’t fill everyone with the optimism and hope that it once did!

If you want to read more about how creating a Company Purpose that isn’t based on marketing fluff or nebulous claims check out Words That Work, Kogan Page, 2022, to learn more or text / email me and we can talk live!

…I’ll be in Europe in July, and traveling very sporadically in June and August, so if you are thinking of a strategy retreat, conference, workshop, or event let me know now so you get your preferred dates on my calendar for 2022 and 2023!