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Easter - Australia's Biggest Holiday

Australia isn't overly religious.  The world's major religions are all represented.  And there's a clear pattern of decline in attendance at traditional churches and a growth of Christian, evangelical churches. 

But that doesn't stop Easter.

In America the pumpkins aren't even carved when Christmas decorations appear.  Here in Australia you can be buying the finishing touches for your Christmas dinner when Easter chocolates appear near the cash register.  By late February every retail store has a massive display of chocolates.

Not ordinary chocolates - here the emphasis is on varietals.  M&M Easter eggs.  Tim Tam collector sets.  The Simpson's have an egg out.  Rocky Road, Violet Crumble, Dark, White, Milk, Butter crunch, Marzipan - every type, variety, shape and size is available.

The weekend of Easter includes two public holidays - Good Friday and Easter Monday.  On the Friday it's hard to find a chemist or grocer open.  It is the quietest day of the entire year. 

I'm not sure shy the nation goes goo-goo for Easter.  Ideas? Historic rationale? Insights?  Help me crack this egg....

Walking 2007 With a 40 Pound Pack

We've changed the way we manage performance reviews - instead of an end of year formal review we've shifted to ongoing “Performance Conversations.”  We meet every quarter to keep each career on course and to ensure the two-way flow of communications is maintained.  Clearly we talk more often.  That said it’s great to establish a routine of quarterly updates instead saving it for an end-of-year review. 

As part of this each leader is developing 2007 Objectives.  These cover five key areas:

1. Financial Goals (developed in consultation with finance and each team’s 2007 budget)
2. Client and New Business Aim (maintenance and expansion of the client portfolio – new areas? “Must Have” brands?)
3. Team Leadership Objective (How each aims to develop the team and their skills)
4. Career Goals (New skills, career progression, next steps)
5. Personal Goal (How can we help each other develop OUTSIDE the office!)

Try it yourself - and when you’re done take a look at what you’ve written.  Your objectives should fit like a 40 pound backpack at the start of a journey.  It shouldn’t be light like a beach bag – you need to feel this, and be a tad apprehensive.  But it shouldn’t be a 200 pound crippling weight. 

I hope you’d say, “Wow – that’s a stretch.  But when I achieve that at the end of the year I’ll have really done something.  And I’ll have grown.” 

It’s your journey.  Your boss is always happy to add a weight or two to your pack, but it's better if you  pack it first and then let them see.

Enjoy the journey - and all the accomplishments you have yet to achieve in 2007! 

PS: The photo at right is from iStockPhoto - a great resource for cheap, copyright free photos.  Amazingly this is taken at the top of Mount Marcy in the Adirondack Mountains, Upstate New York.  It's where my Grandparents went on their honeymoon!  Newlyweds Deitrich and Elsie Wortmann ascended the peak to celebrate their wedding back in the late 1920s. 

Fear and Loathing in Melbourne

Having presented to Burson-Marsteller staff in Washington DC and New York City, I returned to my home in Australia and told staff what the meetings were like (see post for 2 March '07).  Wednesday I presented to the Sydney team and the next day to colleagues in Melbourne. 

(In Australia B-M has two offices and yet it is run as one business - I spend time between each city trying to create 'one culture.'  It ain't easy!)

There's an opening slide in my presentation to the Americans where I ask - "When I say Australia, what do you think about?"  The folks in Melbourne were aghast to hear people immediately said kangaroos, Steve Irwin, Opera House, Fosters and that big rock (aka Uluru). 

"People didn't really say that," exclaimed one.

"Surely they know more than that about Australia," said another.

I was saddened to report that was all.  Americans have caricature versions of Australia firmly embedded in their minds.  But then in discussions we realised we're guilty of our own propaganda campaigns.  Look at our cultural exports - Lantana, Jindabyne, Priscilla, The Castle, Steve Irwin, Crocodile Dundee.  All promote a rough, desolate continent peopled with swarthy land-locked Australians. 

Yet in reality 85% of Australians live in urban centres.  We've got innovative, fresh cuisine.  Australia is predominantly a services-based economy.  We travel constantly. 

And no, we don't secretly wear Akubras and strap large knives to our shins. 

Well, not always....

Message Framing

Berkley scientist George Lakoff introduced the concept of message framing - when word combinations are so potent they become "hard wired" to our brain and make it impossible to counter.  A recent business trip to the USA had me thinking about these "framed messages" in politics.  Below is the start of a list of these message pairs.  Can anyone add to the list?

• Patriot Act - How could anyone vote against this one?
• Healthy Forests - Allows logging in old growth forests
• Clean Air Act - Decides how much pollution is allowable
• Partial Birth Abortion - Meant to stop late term abortions
• Tax Relief - Great way to ensure no one challenges
• Freedom of Information - A way to get to the heart of all these issues

What else might be added to the list?

Rewarding Work

It's a hard work, no play kind of industry - most times.  The stress of life at a public relations agency can be formidable.  There are multiple clients, competing demands on time and then the high profile issues that break on short notice.  It's a perfect role for the adrenalin junkie or those with some forms of ADHD - you get to swap back and forth across a wide range of subjects daily.

But there are rewards.  This week we paid local staff bonuses in Australia.  This is the second year in a row and comes after a year of incredible change.  Throughout the team focused and delivered.  And tonight after work we had a drinks celebration to honour the accomplishment. 

Catching Flu Season

Yesterday client Influenza Specialist Group (ISG) launched an economic impact report highlighting the annual cost of flu to the Australian economy.  Held in the centre of Aussie Stadium, the impact was spelled out - in beds.  Each year some 18,000 hospitalisations are required by flu patients. 

Given the visual element the event attracted widespread attention on television news. 

The primary goal is to ensure Australians demand flu vaccines - before it's too late!

Thank you, New York!

This morning I gave a presentation to Burson-Marsteller New York colleagues.  It was so, so cold this morning that I downloaded a heap of photos to showcase Sydney in summer.  Before I began there was a slide show with Chicane "Behind the Sun" playing over loudspeakers.  It really set the mood - the group was hostile at the outset!

Why do I say hostile? Extreme jealousy.  Today it is 19 below zero outside with the wind chill.  It is one of the coldest days on record.  And here I was showing beach scenes and talking about my weekend plans to play in the ocean.  It was a great way to warm up a crowd.

Well the hostility didn't last (or maybe I'm just kidding - they were all lovely).  After the presentation there were two questions.

What is Australia's view of America today? I said Australians love Americans but hate America.  The personal connection is still as strong but there's a groundswell of resentment against the political approaches.  Australians love traveling yet hate being fingerprinted and being treated like a threat when they enter the country.  It's a sad strain on a long term friendship.

Next question centred on last year's race riots in Cronulla.  I said Australia was a melting pot that hadn't quite melted - people maintained strong connections to their ethnic homelands.  This lower level of integration has led to flash points - especially against a backdrop of global conflict in the Middle East.  It's another sad state of affairs that seems to be increasing.

The whole New York team was very welcoming and gracious.  There was a lot of interest in Australia.  One team member won AU$20 by naming nearly every state and territory!  It's great to see a passion to better understand Australia.

Thank you everyone for your wonderful hospitality.

I leave you with one more gratuitous beach scene!

Spot the Difference

This is New York in winter - today there's no snow but it's minus 19 degrees (at Celsius and Farenheit they converge this far down - it's bloody cold). 

This is Bronte Beach - fifteen minutes from the centre of Sydney.  In March it's late summer and still warm enough to swim. 

Guess why I left New York at the end of winter in 2000? 

I love the sunshine and hate windburn!

Australia 101

Traveling in the USA makes me an ambassador for Australia.  It's disappointing how little Americans know about our great country.  I suppose in the vast world Australia is a little holiday paradise - one country you can take lightly and not risk a global diplomatic gaffe. 

But that's for those who have never visited.

I suppose it's okay to keep it a secret.  Entre nous.  Mum's the word.  The fewer who find out about Australia's rugged beauty and relaxed lifestyle the better.  Then there's more for us - us "in the know."

But it does feel wrong.  Mom (sorry I meant Mum) always said to share.  So for those who've never considered Australia seriously look again.  It's a marvelously diverse country with plenty to offer. 

Just don't tell anyone!

Explaining Australia to Americans

It's not easy.

People have so many preconceptions.  It's hard to move Americans past their mental images of Crocodile Dundee, Koala Bears and Kangaroos.  Not to mention Russell Crowe (ugh)! 

For our offices in Washington, DC and New York City I had a short presentation put together.  This helps "explain it all." (See attached!)

Hope you enjoy it....

Download bursonmarsteller_introducing_australia_whj_feb_07.pps