Erik Qualman - Digital Leader

5 SIMPLE KEYS TO
SUCCESS AND INFLUENCE

erik qualman

Copyright 2012 by Erik Qualman. All rights reserved. Except as permitted under the United States Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced or distributed in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without the prior written permission of the publisher.

ISBN: 978-0-07-179244-8

MHID: 0-07-179244-9

The material in this eBook also appears in the print version of this title: ISBN: 978-0-07-179242-4, MHID: 0-07-179242-2.

All trademarks are trademarks of their respective owners. Rather than put a trademark symbol after every occurrence of a trademarked name, we use names in an editorial fashion only, and to the benefit of the trademark owner, with no intention of infringement of the trademark. Where such designations appear in this book, they have been printed with initial caps.

McGraw-Hill eBooks are available at special quantity discounts to use as premiums and sales promotions, or for use in corporate training programs. To contact a representative please e-mail us at bulksales@mcgraw-hill.com.

TERMS OF USE

This is a copyrighted work and The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. (McGraw-Hill) and its licensors reserve all rights in and to the work. Use of this work is subject to these terms. Except as permitted under the Copyright Act of 1976 and the right to store and retrieve one copy of the work, you may not decompile, disassemble, reverse engineer, reproduce, modify, create derivative works based upon, transmit, distribute, disseminate, sell, publish or sublicense the work or any part of it without McGraw-Hills prior consent. You may use the work for your own noncommercial and personal use; any other use of the work is strictly prohibited. Your right to use the work may be terminated if you fail to comply with these terms.

THE WORK IS PROVIDED AS IS. McGRAW-HILL AND ITS LICENSORS MAKE NO GUARANTEES OR WARRANTIES AS TO THE ACCURACY, ADEQUACY OR COMPLETENESS OF OR RESULTS TO BE OBTAINED FROM USING THE WORK, INCLUDING ANY INFORMATION THAT CAN BE ACCESSED THROUGH THE WORK VIA HYPERLINK OR OTHERWISE, AND EXPRESSLY DISCLAIM ANY WARRANTY, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. McGraw-Hill and its licensors do not warrant or guarantee that the functions contained in the work will meet your requirements or that its operation will be uninterrupted or error free. Neither McGraw-Hill nor its licensors shall be liable to you or anyone else for any inaccuracy, error or omission, regardless of cause, in the work or for any damages resulting therefrom. McGraw-Hill has no responsibility for the content of any information accessed through the work. Under no circumstances shall McGraw-Hill and/or its licensors be liable for any indirect, incidental, special, punitive, consequential or similar damages that result from the use of or inability to use the work, even if any of them has been advised of the possibility of such damages. This limitation of liability shall apply to any claim or cause whatsoever whether such claim or cause arises in contract, tort or otherwise.

I would love to thank the all the people who have helped me along the way. As this would make the book longer than War & Peace, if your name isnt listed, please know I appreciate all you have done for me and I hope to someday soon return the favor.

My Family Leaders This book was particularly rewarding for me as I was able to work closely with my Dad. It was an unforgettable lifetime experience. Aside from his great technical skills, he brought incredible insights and an unbridled passion to this project. Most importantly, it was fun. Thanks, Dad! Of course Mom was always ready at a moments notice to provide invaluable input with a smile. Whenever called upon, my brothers Matt and Jay would give me unfiltered feedback; even when I didnt want to hear itwhich is when its most valuable. Their wives and kids are also a constant source of support. My family in Miami was incredibly patient and encouraging, while also providing a nice break from the intense nature of the work. Thank you to my grandparents for your wisdom and warmth. To my closest friendsyou know who you are and I hope you know how much you mean to me.

To Ana Maria, my partner for life, thank you for making countless sacrifices to make this book possible and for always, always being there. To my beautiful 14-month-old Sofia, thanks for listening when you had Daddys MacBook dangling over the full bath tub.

You all mean the world to me.

My Publishing Leaders Thanks to my incredible team at McGraw-Hill. We were quick with this book, but never in a hurry. An ideal combination and I couldnt be more pleased with the outcome. To Zach Gajewski, my development editor, I still think you have a clone, as I couldnt believe the amount of great suggestions and reworks that kept coming my way. Thanks for caring so much about this particular book. Marketing star Julia Baxterthanks for your openness to trying new ideas and following through on them. Of course, without my acquisitions editor Stephanie Frerich reaching out to me for lunch this never would have happened. Your Midwest values were a constant rock we could lean on.

My Inspirational Leaders These are some of the busiest people I know, yet they have always been generous with their time and advicethank you: Tony Hsieh, Guy Kawasaki, Scott Monty, Tom Izzo, Chris Brogan, Dave Kerpen, Angelo Pizzo, Angel Martinez, C.C. Chapman, Ron Jones, Mike Lewis, Ann Handley, Jeremiah Owyang, David Berkowitch, Alex Hult, Hakan Sjoo, Brian Solis, Chris Loughlin, Sean Cook, Mari Smith, Michael Stelzner, David Meerman Scott, John Hill, Mark Hollis, Lon Safko, Philip Hult, Cristina Teuscher, Josh Linkner, Dan Zarella, Paul Gillan, Mike Volpe, Dean Gilligan, Ralph Bartel, Lutz Bethge, Bill Hallock, Brian Reich, Michael Lewis, Stephen Kaufer, Dean Gilligan, Gary Kusin, Seth Godin, Corey Perlman, Eli Cox, Steve Kaufer, Jane Wooldridge, and Dan Heath.

Must Reads Tony Hsieh, Delivering Happiness Dan and Chip Heath, Made to Stick and Switch Tony Dungy and Nathan Whitaker, Uncommon and Quiet Strength Stephen Covey, 7 Habits of Highly Effective People Bill George, True North Dale Carnegie, How to Win Friends and Influence People Dale Carnegie, How to Stop Worrying and Start Living Jim Collins, Good to Great Marcus Buckingham, Now, Discover Your Strengths Brian Halligan and Dharmesh Shah, Inbound Marketing David Meerman Scott, The New Rules of Marketing and PR Dave Kerpen, Likeable Social Media Howard Schultz, Onward Guy Kawasaki, Enchantment David Kirkpatrick, The Facebook Effect Charlene Li and Josh Bernoff, Groundswell

A man is the sum of his actions, of what he has done, of what he can do, nothing else.

GANDHI

At one time, if you reached a certain level of celebrity or significance, you may have been immortalized on a postage stamp. Neil Armstrong, for example, was the first man to walk on the moon and a stamp was created, chronicling the event. Few people, however, attained this level of notoriety. The digital age has changed this concept: now