The moment when it all clicks

As we are just hours away from what may be the last encounter of the greatest rivalry in tennis, that is Nadal vs Federer at the Australian Open final, I'm still marvelled at Rafa's friday's semifinal performance, where once again he wrote another page in the book of tennis history. I'll probably won't write a follow up entry after the result of the finals, because at this point, it simply doesn't matter.

Nadal celebrating his semifinal victory

Rafa had already made a statement on his third round match when he faced up and coming, rising star 19-year old Alexander Zverev, beating him in five close sets 4-6/6-3/6-7/6-3/6-2. Zverev played as great as anyone could, and there is no doubt in my mind that had he won that match, it would have been him playing Dimitrov in the semifinals.

Nadal shakes hand with rising star Zverev.
He probably said something like
"Maybe another time you'll beat me, but for now, I'm still the man"

But Nadal simply refused to pass the torch to the new guard, instead out-playing and out-lasting Zverev with a combination of shots, strategy, fitness and experience, and in the end he sent a clear message to everyone on the tour: He's still around and he's still hungry.

Dimitrov's new coach Daniel Vallverdu
has become a significant positive force for him.

Against Dimitrov -known as Baby Federer for his similar game to Roger's-, the story was a bit different. Dimitrov had a remarkable second half of 2016 after hiring a new coach, who worked on the mental aspect of the game, which is known to be Grigor's weakness. Success included his first victory against Nadal, after seven losses. So when both men met at Rod Laver's arena on Friday, there was a considerable amount of fans who thought that this time Dimitrov would beat Nadal, especially when you come to think that Nadal's recovery may have impacted his endurance and stamina, probably folding against Grigor's overwhelming forehand and dazzling backhand. While Nadal is known to exploit one-handed backhand with his heavy top spin, tennis experts agreed that Dimitrov's backhand would not be threatned by this, due to Grigor being taller and more athletic than other players, hence more able to handle Nadal's top spin. Zverev was a good test, but Dimitrov was going to be the real deal.

This proved true as the match progressed, and as the scoreboard read 6-3/5-7/7-6/6-7/3-4, things were starting to look gray for Nadal's future. Then, they turned dark, when at the eigth game, Nadal was serving 15-40, which meant that if Dimitrov broke, he would be serving for the match.

Then, all of a sudden, something happened: something inside Nadal, "clicked".

Playing the best tennis of the match, Rafa saved both breakpoints, sent the game in advantage to his favor, and won the game to tie the score at 4-4. Dimitrov's skin went pale, his eyes looked lost and his body language began to tell the story of a man that would soon lose the match. Nadal on the other hand, looked as if he was ready to lift the trophy. So what exactly happened in that 15-40, the point where the sealing of Nadal's victory started?

Nadal pumps himself up after saving both breakpoints

There are moments in life when suddenly everything you have heard, learned, known, dreamed, believed, and you have the ability to do, just happens. To one degree or another, and to a certain extent, there is a special moment when you realize that you are able to achieve great things in life. Those moments are huge, monumental confidence boosters, because they are the ones that take you from being good at something and turn you into being great at something. Some of them come in the form of an awakening call at a very low point in the career of the involved person.

Most people around the world probably don't even know who Steve Kerr is, and that's nothing to be ashamed of, because he's not exactly a great NBA player with a legendary status such as Jordan, Magic, Bird, Thomas, and so on.

However in 1997, Steve went from being a good player, to a great player. Earlier in the season, he had been punched on the face by Michael Jordan during a heated practice session for missing a few shots. Kerr was new in Chicago and he was brought as an alternative great shooter, to support Jordan, Pippen and Kukoc. However during the first games, Kerr's supposed great skills at shooting didn't show up. He lacked concentration, passion and that special edge that was needed in such a competitive team as Chicago. Jordan probably got fed up with it, and it all blew during a practice game.

The incident went unnoticed back then and only today it has gained popularity thanks to both Jordan and Kerr openly talking about it. Kerr states that being punched by Jordan was an awakening moment. He realized that Jordan didn't punch him because he was bad at shooting or because he had missed shots in practice. He punched him because he wanted Steve to raise his competitiveness, to raise his skills, and to raise his game so that while he definitely would never be legendary material, at least he would be teammate enough to work next to Michael Jordan, so that in a moment of crucial need, Michael -as the leader of the team- could count on him. That moment came in game six of the 1997 finals.

With 28 seconds left in the game, the score was tied at 86 between Chicago Bulls and the Utah Jazz. A timeout had been called by the Bulls, and most of the world watching the game believed and expected that Jordan would be the one taking what would probably be the final shot to win it for Chicago. The Jazz probably expected that too. Jordan -being the wise and intelligent player he was- also expected it, so he came up with a solution: since the Jazz would likely double-team him, he would need someone to pass the ball to, so that that person could take the shot. That person had to be a great shooter, and that person was Steve Kerr. Jordan told Kerr what would happen (the Jazz double-teaming on him) and he told Kerr to "be ready". Kerr's reply -now immortalized on youtube- was: "I'll be ready".

From that day and on, Kerr became known as a great shooter and master of the 3-point shot. Eventually, the moment would bring a larger and broader impact on Steve's career as a player and as a coach.

It would be pointless to say that Nadal's achievements depended on that 15-40 3-4 game against Dimitrov. However I will go as far as saying that the remaining of Nadal's career from that night and on, depended on that whether he won point or got his serve broken and faced Dimitrov serving for the match.

In a few hours, Nadal will face Federer for the 35th time in their careers, for the 2017 Australian Open Grand Slam title. I believe Nadal will beat Federer and claim his 15th Grand Slam, all because of him winning that 15-40 3-4 on Friday night.



EDIT: In an amazing breathtaking performance, Roger won. I really thought Rafa would win; then again, on Dec 30th Roger tweeted this:

Talk about the moment when it all clicks.

Thanks Roger and Rafa, for teaching us what true motivation is.

Building a personal brand

Happy New Year Everyone!

Happy New Year 2017!

While I'm still shocked and sometimes even wake up thinking I'm still in some kind of weird dream in which somehow Donald Trump became the President of my country, I still impressed by how effective the building of his personal brand was able to pull a victory for one of the hardest if not the hardest jobs in the world.

I am literally speechless everytime I try to come up with a reasonable explanation for what happened and how did we get here. To make matters worse, Trump hasn't even been sworn yet and he is already starting to break some of his promises. During the campaign, he:

• Said that if he got elected, he would appoint a special commission to look into Hillary's "situation". Now he's saying he's gonna let the whole thing pass, just because.
• Claimed he would build "a beautiful wall" across the US-Mexico border, and Mexico would pay for it. Yesterday, he said that for the sake of speed, Congress should approve construction of the wall and he'll make Mexico pay for it later.

I wonder how things would have turned if during the campaign he would have made promises such as:

• If I get elected, I will let Hillary get off the hook with her "situation"
• If I get elected, I will build the wall quickly and will get a deal with Mexico's for them to pay later

As I wrote in my entry about Trump winning the US presidency, I think that this is just the result of a masterful marketing lesson Trump gave us about personal branding. And if there is one thing we all have clear, is that we can actually learn a thing or two from him.

So, if you are beginning or already in the process of marketing your own personal brand, here are a few pointers to start the New Year 2017 on the right foot:

1. Social Media is your friend.

Ever wondered what people think about at work? at class? at your condo? Well, now you have to wonder about what people think of you on Twitter, on Facebook, on Instagram. Social media can be your biggest friend or your greatest enemy, and personally, it's better to have it as a friend.

Social Media is how you reach out to not only your friends, but to the world. Who knows what piece of information is shared by any of your friends to their friends, and so on (with your without your consent). The amount of weight this has is large enough to build a virtual persona of yourself. An image that has its own pulse, presence, thoughts and ability to become a significant player in our society. While most people pay little to no attention to their posts on Social Media, managing a personal brand demands lots of attention.

• Twitter: 140 characters are enough for you to make a statement. The saying "less is more" couldn't be more accurate when talking about Tweets. Pick your words wisely and make sure to double check for spelling errors. Also, use hashtags accordingly, so that your voice can be heard by more people.
• Instagram: "a picture says more than a thousand words" is another saying that couldn't be more on the spot on this matter. Branding yourself on Instagram requires good quality pictures (the higher, the better), with the images having a definitive purspose. With the inclusion of videos, you have a larger range to cover, but pretty much with the same guidelines. If you are playing an instrument or giving cooking tips, make sure your voice is head and the sound is crystal clear.
• Facebook: more and more, Facebook is becoming like a huge undesirable bulletin board. The unfollow function serves as relief to keep being friends with that person who likes/dislikes gay people, Barack Obama, or the New York Yankees. The way I see it, Facebook is falling under the "birds of a feather flock together" saying, meaning it's the one Social Network where those who want to read you, do so because they REALLY want to read you.

Do you think Trump's usage of Social Media helped him win the election? I have news for you... it did.

2. Image is (with a few exceptions) everything

Whether if you are in your house, or commuting to your work while you read this, please allow me to ask you a single question: Did you mom or dad dressed you today? I'm very sure that 99.9% of the time your answer will be "Of course not! I dressed up myself!" Great, that's good news: in that case then, you are the sole responsible for the way you look and the appearance you give to the world.

Now let me ask you another question: let's say you're driving around the city, and for a moment you come across two McDonalds restaurants, next to each other. The one on the left has the McDonalds logo shining, with the yellow color in the arcs looking as if it was painted yesterday. The one on the right has the McDonalds logo broken, and the yellow color is long gone, now turned into something whitish-pale. The question is, which one would you walk in to buy food?

You pretty much get the picture my now.

The image you transmit of yourself, is the image that your brand will transmit. It's going to be a bit hard to brand yourself as a personal trainer if you aren't seen training or look like you don't have any muscles at all. It's going to be hard to brand yourself as a piano teacher, if you don't show your piano skills. But more importantly, the aspect that deals with personal care, neatness, appeal and eveything that can be perceived by the eye of your consumers or prospects, can and will make a substantial difference when it comes to reviewing you and your brand.

Remember that most of the time, you walk into a clothing store because you liked something that you saw.

Do you think Trump's image help him win the election? Well, with over dozens of hotels, buildings and resorts with his name on them, as well as a successful TV reality show, I have news for you... it did.

3. Stay loyal and consistent to your message

Consumers like consistency, so give it to them. That's why you see most republicans following republicans, and most democrats following democrats, just like you see most people who own a PlayStation 3 buying a PlayStation 4, and most people who bought an X-Box buying an X-Box 360. It's incredibly hard for consumers to switch from liking one message to another.

Do you ever heard of the monumental failure of New Coke? In the mid 80s, the Coca Cola company was completely convinced that their soda did not taste as well as the other sodas in the market. So they came up with this idea of launching a new product that would replace the Classic Coca Cola, and they called it New Coke. Results were a complete disaster. Coca Cola learned -the hard way- that their consumers were loyal and consistent to the message the Coca Cola brand gave them, more than to the product itself (and it's not like they weren't loyal to the product). Using Trump's example, like it or not, he always stuck to his message from the beginning of the Presidencial race.

The product or service you're offering through your brand also has a core message and a core competency as well. Early in the development of your brand, it is your objective to determine what will the message that your brand will transmit, and while you can improve your message to adapt to the needs of your consumer, you shouldn't not drift away from it. It's one thing to upgrade or re-invent yourself, and it's another to be something you are not.

It doesn't matter how many products Apple comes up with, they will always be perceived as the "cool" brand, just like Samsung is perceived as the "techie anti-Apple" brand, and Microsoft is perceived as the "classical" brand. Audi, Mercedes and BMW will always be perceived as German luxury cars, and Toyota, Nissan and Honda, will always be perceived as middle class cars. Feel free to differenciate yourself.

Do you think Trump's constant never-ending talk about anything else that wasn't the wall, or making America great again, or "crooked" Hillary, helped him win the election? I have news for you... it did.

4. Impress your consumers, and more importantly... don't lie to your consumers.

If you have a product or a service, the relationship of your product/service with your client has three options:

• You don't meet your consumer's expectations
• You meet your consumer's expectations
• You exceed your consumer's expectations.

I believe that the more satisfied your consumer is, the more likely things will fall into place for everyone. He will be loyal, he will buy more from you, he will recommend you new clients, and he can even become a partner of yours.

Keep in mind that your consumer has two stages of being impressed with you: the first one is when he sees "the box", and the second one is when he "opens the box" and uses your product/service. The first one is managed by the consumer's expectations, and the second one is managed by how those expectations were met.

I don't think it's fair to use Trump on this one, because he actually hasn't taken oath yet, and although it seems he's already changing his speech on some of his promises, we still have to give him time to see how it all works out. Also, well, it's politics.

A brand new cell phone though, or a camera, or a stay at a hotel, that's something we can talk about. Think about how big is your smile when something you buy is better than what you expected. Now think about how frustrated you feel when something you buy is worse than what you expected.

Start by offering what you promise and always try to push a bit higher, towards the sky.

And if you don't like Trump being used as an example, then think about him...

Like it or not, he knows a thing or two about personal branding