According to Gladwell, you need to spend/put in 10,000 hours to become in expert in any subject matter.

If a normal work week accounts for an 8 hr day/5 days a week (hey, I am thinking positively here) and you spent no other time on anything–other than becoming an expert in one subject matter, and took no vacation, it would take approximately 250 weeks (approx 20 yrs) to become said expert.

Since new and engaging digital promotional opportunities evolve and emerge every day, I would like to offer up the idea that none of us call ourselves “experts”. We are skilled in our field and/or looking to attain a larger understanding of the “how”, “why”, “when” and “to whom” …or we wouldn’t be reading this post. Most of us reading this post are passionate about emerging technology/multi-channel promotion & how we can best apply them to our company/client/personal needs based on the preference of where our target audiences want to be addressed, and how they want to receive information.

In order for us to successfully address the challenge at hand: applying feasible and realistic solutions to support the paradigm shift of turning “advertising” into “engagement” within pharmaceutical marketing—we must infuse new thinking amongst clients and colleagues and understand how to integrate myriad digital offerings into the marketing mix—to complement and augment ongoing/traditional efforts. Based on our change as marketers, I’m not sure (depending on what type of business you are in) being an “expert” in 1 area will cut it.

So, I choose to be proficient; (not average), but fluent within all relevant digital technology/promotional opportunities as they relate to my particular line of business (and personal) needs and desires. My list includes much of what Jon has listed, however some did not make the cut (as I’ve also resolved to sleep more in 2010).

How do you become proficient in a group of things without acquiring D-ADHD? And what is the group of things?

Complete a needs assessment on your current business- where are the gaps- what do you need to fill? Prioritize the immediate and long-term needs of your business based on realistic application and return on impact/marketing spend and get to digicating yourself, and others (clients/colleagues) BEFORE you try to implement them.

By spreading the wealth of knowledge, we all benefit drives towards becoming fluent in evolving digital opportunities and won’t be spewing gibberish to our clients, colleagues (or the FDA) when recommending new ways to engage customers.

Additionally, Jon asked us to share links and resources on digication.

I’m very into learning; teaching myself, and others on perfecting the user experience via digital and active learning platforms. I frequently reference a specific article, one I quote often in my strategic recommendations entitled “Pharmaco-Cybernetics as an Interactive Component of Pharma-Culture: Empowering Drug Knowledge through User-, Experience- and Activity-Centered Designs from the International-Journal-of-Computer-Science-Issues-IJCSI-Volume-3-August-2009

Google it.

Another huge area of interest to me: engaging the user & perfecting online design principles for the best user experience. http://www.smashingmagazine.com is a GREAT resource for information. Novice, competent, average, proficient or an expert will benefit from the info in this blog, specifically this post: http://www.smashingmagazine.com/2009/09/24/10-useful-usability-findings-and-guidelines/

One last article (I promise) that is relevant to this topic is called “Information Addiction” recently sent to me by a friend (http://scienceblogs.com/cortex/2009/08/information.php) explains how the brain is a bounded machine, an information processing device with limited computational power; able to absorb only so much information at one time before your brain runs out of space and starts replacing stored knowledge with new knowledge.

Lesson: Pace yourself.

Lastly, let us not forget the greatest video posted on YouTube last year “The Social Media Guru”. The whole world hated on that guy- no one wants to be him aside from his arrogance, tomorrow when the new “Google”, “Twitter”, “Sermo” or “PatientsLikeMe” pops up, you’ll be out of a job.

From one overachiever to the next, be well. Be fluent. And remember to sleep.

@jaeselle

According to Gladwell, you need to spend/put in 10,000 hours to become in expert in any subject matter.

If a normal work week accounts for an 8 hr day/5 days a week (hey, I am thinking positively here) and you spent no other time on anything–other than becoming an expert in one subject matter, and took no vacation, it would take approximately 250 weeks (approx 20 yrs) to become said expert.

Since new and engaging digital promotional opportunities evolve and emerge every day, I would like to offer up the idea that none of us call ourselves “experts”. We are skilled in our field and/or looking to attain a larger understanding of the “how”, “why”, “when” and “to whom” …or we wouldn’t be reading this post. Most of us reading this post are passionate about emerging technology/multi-channel promotion & how we can best apply them to our company/client/personal needs based on the preference of where our target audiences want to be addressed, and how they want to receive information.

In order for us to successfully address the challenge at hand: applying feasible and realistic solutions to support the paradigm shift of turning “advertising” into “engagement” within pharmaceutical marketing—we must infuse new thinking amongst clients and colleagues and understand how to integrate myriad digital offerings into the marketing mix—to complement and augment ongoing/traditional efforts. Based on our change as marketers, I’m not sure (depending on what type of business you are in) being an “expert” in 1 area will cut it.

So, I choose to be proficient; (not average), but fluent within all relevant digital technology/promotional opportunities as they relate to my particular line of business (and personal) needs and desires. My list includes much of what Jon has listed, however some did not make the cut (as I’ve also resolved to sleep more in 2010).

How do you become proficient in a group of things without acquiring D-ADHD? And what is the group of things?

Complete a needs assessment on your current business- where are the gaps- what do you need to fill? Prioritize the immediate and long-term needs of your business based on realistic application and return on impact/marketing spend and get to digicating yourself, and others (clients/colleagues) BEFORE you try to implement them.

By spreading the wealth of knowledge, we all benefit drives towards becoming fluent in evolving digital opportunities and won’t be spewing gibberish to our clients, colleagues (or the FDA) when recommending new ways to engage customers.

Additionally, Jon asked us to share links and resources on digication.

I’m very into learning; teaching myself, and others on perfecting the user experience via digital and active learning platforms. I frequently reference a specific article, one I quote often in my strategic recommendations entitled “Pharmaco-Cybernetics as an Interactive Component of Pharma-Culture: Empowering Drug Knowledge through User-, Experience- and Activity-Centered Designs from the International-Journal-of-Computer-Science-Issues-IJCSI-Volume-3-August-2009

Google it.

Another huge area of interest to me: engaging the user & perfecting online design principles for the best user experience. http://www.smashingmagazine.com is a GREAT resource for information. Novice, competent, average, proficient or an expert will benefit from the info in this blog, specifically this post: http://www.smashingmagazine.com/2009/09/24/10-useful-usability-findings-and-guidelines/

One last article (I promise) that is relevant to this topic is called “Information Addiction” recently sent to me by a friend (http://scienceblogs.com/cortex/2009/08/information.php) explains how the brain is a bounded machine, an information processing device with limited computational power; able to absorb only so much information at one time before your brain runs out of space and starts replacing stored knowledge with new knowledge.

Lesson: Pace yourself.

Lastly, let us not forget the greatest video posted on YouTube last year “The Social Media Guru”. The whole world hated on that guy- no one wants to be him aside from his arrogance, tomorrow when the new “Google”, “Twitter”, “Sermo” or “PatientsLikeMe” pops up, you’ll be out of a job.

From one overachiever to the next, be well. Be fluent. And remember to sleep.

@jaeselle