I hadn’t been to a class reunion yet – so this was a big deal for me.  Many of my classmates were on facebook so I was feeling really warm and fuzzy before I got there.

This is what I wrote in my secret squirrel notepad:

1. People remember quirky things about you. Whether personal or business, the goofy, extraordinary and remarkable things we do stick in peoples’ memory. How can you be remarkable?
2. You must be authentic. Don’t fake ANYTHING. Personal and business contacts know when you are being less than truthful. They also know if you genuinely care or are just talking to hear your head rattle.
3. We can always learn from one another. You find juicy bits of information from the most unsuspecting people. Point in fact: the class jock is now a marketing guru, online and offline – who’da thunkit?
4. Stand up for others. It only takes one person to “share the love” and others will follow… Be willing to step forward and make a difference.
5. Your actions live on forever in the memory of others. Did you unmercifully tease, harass and torment classmates? One item on our pre-reunion questionaire was “If you could go back, what would you change?” This answer brought tears to my eyes, “I would have handled the teasing better.”  I can’t imagine how horrible her school days must have been.
6. The scrawny skinny kid – matured into a steamin-hot Hottie. Just like the ugly duckling – your business has components that will mature over time and become your best asset.
7. Be Empowered: share the love. This is nothing new for me – but its worth repeating… Kind of like what I tell my kids at church at the end of our small group lesson: “EVERYDAY do something kind for someone else.”
8. BONUS: Connections Matter. One bit of “marketing” that really brought the folks out (to the reunion) was connecting on Facebook before-hand. Being on FB gave everyone the deets of family, job, etc before they attended – so conversation was easy. We had much more to talk about and in groups, everyone understood what the others were saying – yes, we get the inside joke!