Cutting back on the holiday cookies & communications trend #8 – SCN Encourager
Some “trending” trends are more fun than others.
Sorry.
#8 just isn’t of them.
This one will require new levels of self-discipline and awareness.
It’s probably fitting for us to now have a toughie.
Santa would want it this way.
So, as we continue counting down the remaining shopping days until December 25 in conjunction with my unfootnoted rundown of future communication-related trends, a speedy-kwik review might be helpful.
Even if only for me.
Future Trend #10 highlighted the growing importance of understanding”cycles.”
Nearly everything – an initiative, a program, or the latest tech tool – has a life cycle or “stages” that impacts it.
The best project planners in 2015 will be those who acknowledge and account for the role that “cycles” or “stages” play.
They’ll be the ones who will effectively move their projects forward past the entry level community awareness stage all the way to the optimal community trust stage.
Trend #9 pointed out that we should all stop dreaming for a white Christmas (just like the ones we used to know) and accept the fact that in 2015, all of our dreams better include a greater emphasis on “more mobile” and “more video.”
You better go first.
I’m dying to see your dreams go viral in video!
But the problem with pivoting toward the strategic course of “more mobile” and “more video” is the relatively high cost attached.
Inevitably, 2015 will also be another year of re-allocating our time, money, and training resources.
So… get ready to tough it out. (Like you have for the last 13-17 years!)
And we might as well begin by eating fewer Christmas cookies.
(This is where the heightened self-discipline requirement pops up.)
While it brings me no joy to tell you this, I believe this is what Trend #8 is all about.
Trend #8 is not something that will surprise you, but it’s something school communicators should no longer ignore in their work to enhance their district’s brand and image.
What you and I formerly knew as losing a few pounds, watching the scale, and walking the dog, many people today are trumpeting as their LIFEHACK.
That’s it.
The LIFEHACK.
It’s not new.
You may not think it’s a big deal at all.
After all, there has always been strong interest in self-help and self-improvement.
But people in 2015 are going to be even more jacked-up about improving their personal nutrition, sleep, health & fitness, inner contentment, and relationships.
And these five LIFEHACK topics are going to be an even bigger part of the public discussion in 2015, and school leaders and communicators should explore tactful ways to join in and be actively engaged in this conversation.
I sure hope you appreciate the risk I take every time I scribble out a list like the LIFEHACK one.
Sometimes I get caught when I leave my scraps of paper laying around.
Nutrition. sleep, health & fitness, inner contentment, and relationships.
Cindy saw my notes on the coffee table and wondered about them.
“Tom,” Cindy asked. “What’re these? Are you going to try these out for a month and then write about what happens?”
“Hey, great idea,” I admitted. “I only wish I could.”
“But…” she interrupted.
“BUT,” I continued. “That’s just a list to go along with Trend #8. It simply shows popular LIFEHACK interest areas. It’s a list of topics, not my ‘to do’ list.”
“But…” she repeated. “Why not?”
Dang, I thought,
Trend #7 can’t get here soon enough.
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