Don't Promote... POSITION!

The most important ingredient in a thriving business is passion. Passion for your brand... to find your niche and create your work around it. It's not the promotions, the hooplah, the noise. It's the position, the core, the brand.

Here are five insights on discovering your niche and focusing all your energy on those unique strengths:

1. Recognize who you (your company) are and who you are not. this takes a lot of self-reflection and self-acceptance.
2. Constantly ask yourself, how can I look at at this differently? Make a habit of playing "devil's advocate" with yourself. Force yourself to make a viable argument for the opposite side of the coin.
3. Develop creativity. Diverge before you converge.
4. Listen to and learn from many people.
5. Find the things in life that really excite you, that make you feel passionate. Your passion will give you energy and fuel your life.

The toughest job of a company is to define the "work." Expertise is not self-evident... define your niche and grab a bullhorn.