Being in the publicity biz, I’ve always used the many “National Day of…” as tools to promote clients.  For example, if you’re a health and lifestyle expert, May 1^st is National Fitness Day, so send a press release to your local media as a story idea with you as the interviewee. 

However, there’s one that so important, it gets a whole month, and truly deserves a whole year.  May is National Mental Health Awareness Month.  Whether you’ve been quarantined this past year alone, with family, or with friends/roommates, you’re probably very aware of mental health.  The Pandemic has affected everyone, literally, everyone on the planet.

It probably doesn’t come as a surprise to you, but music is a great way to make you healthier.  Recent studies have expanded the benefits of music to relaxing the mind, energizing the body, and even helping people better manage pain.  Who among us hasn’t used a fast-paced anthem to pump us up for physical exertion, or been moved to tears by a particularly touching ballad?  

The next time you need to concentrate, even though you think you need quiet, put on some background music and see how your cognitive performance improves.  One study found that playing more upbeat music led to improvements in processing speed, while both upbeat and downbeat music led to benefits in memory.  The study did recommend music without lyrics, as they tend to me more distracting.

Are you trying to lose weight?  Try dimming the lights and playing music.  A study found people who dined in low-light restaurants with soft music playing ate 18% less.  You can recreate the same atmosphere at home during dinner time to give your diet a boost.

Even pets can benefit from music in their lives.  I used to leave music playing for my dog, to reduce her separation anxiety, when I left the house.

So, as you become aware of your mental health this month, also be aware of the soundtrack you’d like to use to make the last days of the pandemic fly by!

It’s one thing to put a positive light on an otherwise bad situation, but you never want to go so far as to lie about it.  And, mostly, just the unvarnished truth is the best policy.

Case in point is a chihuahua named ‘Prancer’ who is labeled as unadoptable.  That is, until this brutally honest ad ran online.  No ‘cute’ or ‘cuddly’ for Prancer, oh no.  It’s all “…neurotic, man hating, animal hating, children hating dogs that look like gremlins,” for him. 

Of course, as always, being brutally honest has worked! The original post has gone viral, the story has been picked up by multiple media outlets, and there’s now a waiting list to give Prancer his fur-ever home.  There is also the ripple effect for the other animals at the Second Chance Pet Adoption League.  If you can’t have Prancer, how about a pet that actually is cute and cuddly? 

Now, one might ask about the original ads that were placed for Prancer?  Were those lies?  Was the SCPAL trying to pull one over on the people looking to adopt?  I say, ‘No!’  I’ve always argued that it’s not a lie if you’re telling the truth as you know it at the time.  If the circumstances change, and you get new information, then your point of view can change to reflect the new-truth that has come to light.  If you continue with your original statement, in spite of knowing it’s not accurate, then you’ve got a lie on your hands. 

So, no matter how tempting it is to “sell” a situation, to dress it up all flowery and perfumed, honesty will always be the best policy.  People are more likely to believe you when you do put on a spin knowing you’ll spin it back, as needed.

Rats!  I never thought while I was in New York in January, 2020, to see a friend in the Broadway play, Grand Horizons, that shortly thereafter no one would be able to see a Broadway show live on stage for over a year.  However, that doesn’t mean the creative expression would come to a grinding halt as well. 

Producing/filming stage shows for broadcast is as old as broadcasting itself.  Even before there was television, operas and plays were being performed on the radio for the “theatre of the mind.”  Ed Sullivan often brought segments of popular Broadway shows to his show on Sunday nights.  In 1957, CBS gave America the full-length musical Cinderella, saving the citizenry the fare to New York. 

The phrase “adapt or die” has been more prevalent during the pandemic than ever, and Broadway is no exception.  With theatres on the Great White Way, and all over the country, shuttered for a year, leave it to an ingenious group on social media, specifically TikTok, to develop an entirely new musical based on the Disney Animated Film, Ratatouille. 

In the family spirit of the theatre community, anyone who pays the suggested donation of $5 to $50 to stream the online version, will have their money donated to the Actors Fund, which helps with emergency financial assistance, affordable housing, health care and insurance counseling, senior care, and secondary career development for anyone in the entertainment industry. 

Now that we’re all slowly returning to some semblance of normal, the next natural step in the creative evolution is to take the production to the stage in Ratatouille: The TikTok Musical. 

Ah, it’s the circle of life … wait, sorry, wrong Disney film/show. 

If you’ve been in the speaking/consulting business for a while, you know how important the referral can be.  If you’re new to it, you’ll quickly learn that having a colleague say, “I know a guy…” and mean you is very important.  What’s more important is knowing you can trust the people you refer to. If they don’t come through then you look bad, which I why I’m very careful about to whom I refer, and whole heartedly refer to Indie Books International. 

Henry and his team are offering one of their Marketing With A Book and Speech Summits. It is scheduled for 11 am PT on Tuesday, April 6. As a bonus, you will receive a copy of Henry’s book, Marketing With A Book.  Virtual seats are limited to allow for interaction. Register at https://calendly.com/henrydevries/webinar

Here are three specific ideas or solutions you will learn more about, including and not limited to:

1. Declare you are writing a book. Make the topic of interest to your prospective high-paying clients. Start researching best practices to share.
2. Start hosting small-scale seminars for 5-8 prospects. Use LinkedIn to fill virtual events and live events when it is safe. This strategy comes from Harvard Business School professor David Maister, the champion of consultants. You speak and control when and where.
3. Get published regularly. This can start with LinkedIn, then graduate to trade publications or even Inc. or Forbes.com (that’s where Henry covers business development).

And as a second bonus, Henry will give you a white paper on how to use LinkedIn to fill your client-attracting small-scale seminars. More impact. More influence. And more cash in your bank account.

As always Henry promises and delivers on:  No cost. No selling. No kidding.

10. It is the base of our decimal numeral system, the most widely used system of denoting numbers in both spoken and written language

9. The first double-digit number

8. Most people are born with 10 fingers

7. Most people are born with 10 toes

6. A collection of 10 items, not just years, is called a decade

5. The British Prime Minister’s address is 10 Downing Street

4. Number of Provinces in Canada, plus three territories to the North

3. The Roman numeral for 10 is X

2. The Chinese numeral for 10 is +

And, the Number One Top Fact About the Number 10:

On March 25, 2021, I will have been the Owner/President/Caretaker/Shepherd of PR/PR Public Relations for 10 years!