Last night, I went to Halloween Horror Nights - an annual celebration and scare fest put on by Universal Studios.

There are intense haunted houses, wild scare zones, and spookily-themed snacks. Most importantly, it’s something my daughters LOVE.

So... I do too. (Not really, but I’m not going to pass up a chance to hang out with them!)

There are frights around every corner. I'm so nervous, and my back feels tense - like I've just finished a core workout by lifting a small car.

Here are two photos taken ~20 seconds apart:

The ghouls mean to give you a fright!

At some point in the night, though, I decided I needed to gather myself. This, like most things in life, is whatever I make of it.

I was not going to be afraid. I decided to have fun with it - to go boldly. I even found myself able to anticipate where the next scare would come from and how to face them without fear.

Granted - this was the last 15 minutes of the evening, but an accomplishment nonetheless!

What’s ironic is the similar transition I've made in work and life recently...

That I’m just going to be me, to stare down the things that are scary, to give better meaning to the learning experiences, and greater gratitude to the times I get to do what I love.

There are people that gave me a chance, clients that trust in me and my team to deliver results, and many others we impact with our work and giving of time and resources. There are many that haven't - but they are a lot like the monsters last night - just every day people that have a part to play.

There is nothing to fear in sharing our gifts, skills, stories with the world.

I walked through the last scare zone (and last couple of weeks) unafraid - someone needs me to be brave. I have wisdom to share and a world of change to drive. Probably like you!

So here’s to being courageous and curious and kind. Here’s to doing the hard things - especially to put yourself in a new, maybe uncomfortable, places for growth.

Training Opportunities:

We weren't in the direct path of Helene, but continue to have unstable internet at HQ. We shifted the Marketing Campaign Planning - Process and Templates webinar out one week in hopes this is remedied! You can learn more and still register here for the 11 October session (10:00 am EST).

New mastermind for AI - I joined a mastermind for CMOs. It's open to CMOs and marketing directors with some AI experience. If you are interested in an invitation, please reply with "AI Mastermind", and I'll share the details. (currently free/not run by Advisory 9)

Tools of the Week:

ChatGPT: I demoed this little example during a call, and everyone was surprised about the use case. It's not marketing specific but a good lesson in taking tasks that take too long to AI first. Check out the 2.5 minute video here.

Asana: If you use Asana for project management, definitely give their AI project and other summaries a try. You'll find this option in the Overview section of any project (see screenshot). Huge time saver that project leads and leadership can use to understand the week over week changes to projects without getting carried into the detail.

Ads That Caught our Attention:

Vibe Board - long form content sharing that goes well into the problems it solves, the audience it's for, and more.

Mill.com would have been added here if I could find their amazing video ad anywhere - I'd forgotten to grab the link at the time. I've now searched every one of their social channels and site to no avail. We'll post it if we see it again, but serving this as a reminder to ourselves to be good curators of your own content. If we create it and sit it on just one shelf - there are many opportunities lost.