by Brook McCarthy | May 8, 2020 | Communication, Digital marketing
The Queensland Department of Agriculture and Fisheries has a big remit: to help get scientific research on land and livestock management into the hands of farmers, landowners and land managers. The Department’s audience are often older, technologically-unsavvy,...
by Brook McCarthy | Nov 26, 2019 | Communication
Daikin is a Japanese multinational air conditioning company with a 50-year history in Australia. Sold exclusively through its dealer network, Daikin runs a cooperative advertising model which funds up to fifty per cent of dealers’ advertising as long as they comply...
by Brook McCarthy | Oct 5, 2019 | Communication, Creativity
When I read Austin Kleon’s Steal Like an Artist, I realised I was robbing people already. I write for a living. And while I offer only a limited copy writing services nowadays, I do a lot of writing for my own business, including blogs, emails, sales pages, and free...
by Brook McCarthy | Sep 1, 2019 | Branding, Communication, Entrepreneurism
Nothing is a sure bet in life – except that anything that could go wrong, will go wrong. This is particularly true if you’re busy and especially cannot afford anything to go wrong. This cheery little message isn’t intended to contribute to the concerted worldwide...
by Brook McCarthy | Aug 12, 2019 | Creativity, Entrepreneurism
In 1972 in Jerusalem, Leonard Cohen, accompanied on stage by a full complement of musicians and singers, abruptly stopped singing “Bird on the Wire”. “I really enjoy your recognising these songs,” he said to the audience. “But I’m scared enough as it is out here, and...
by Brook McCarthy | Nov 9, 2016 | Entrepreneurism, Money
I made all the mistakes in business so you don’t have to. Although after eight years in business, mistakes are somewhat inevitable. And I do like to double-check that something really didn’t work before I move on. To celebrate the latest launch of The Non-Planner’s...
by Brook McCarthy | Oct 20, 2016 | Creativity, Entrepreneurism
I love rock-climbing – throwing yourself at a wall and shimming up, crab style, towards the ceiling. Climbing is great for entrepreneurs, especially if you’re over your stories and tired of your own rubbish. Getting over the first hurdle The first hurdle to climbing...
by Brook McCarthy | Oct 18, 2016 | Creativity
By Guest blogger, Nicola Rankin. A few months ago I had a really unproductive week (yes, a whole week). At first I thought the problem was the work was really hard and I wasn’t feeling well. But the real problem was procrastination. It was a tough week. But my...
by Brook McCarthy | Sep 29, 2016 | Communication, Creativity, Entrepreneurism
Australians love plumbing the depths of self-deprecation. Concurrently, we have a macho culture of “getting on with it”, being proudly independent and hiding any weakness. It’s an uneasy marriage, and when applied to self-employment, it often results in depression,...
by Brook McCarthy | Aug 31, 2016 | Entrepreneurism, Thought leadership
Five years ago, I ran my first face-to-face course on digital marketing in late summer in Sydney. It was out the back of a divey café in inner city Newtown and it was a ridiculously hot day, even for summer. I remember the heat vividly. I tried to cool the room down...