What a disappointing year for the Carolina Hurricanes! 

The media and the front office did a poor job of setting the expectations of their hockey team. This was the first year in Carolina Hurricanes history where the expectations of going deep into the playoffs were off the charts.

Even back in 2006, when the Canes won the Stanley Cup, no one expected them to perform as well as they did. 2013 should have been a very exciting year, but instead we are left with frustrated fans and fuming armchair coaches. 

I was hit with a slap shot in the face. The puck severed the nerves between my teeth and my mouth, completely closed off my right septum, and broke my nose in three different places.

In one instant, my entire outlook on life was forced to change. For years I only saw myself as a hockey player, but a career ending injury forced me to rethink how I see things. I had to rebuild myself from inside out.

I came from a hockey background and played for nearly 25 years, and for the past 10 years I have been coaching hockey. I’ve made it a habit to study coaches and teams, and how they perform best.

It was Tuesday, October 9th, 1990 at 5:30 pm and I remember getting called into the head coach’s office before practice. I was 16 years old and scared. I remember it like it was yesterday, a meeting I will never forget.

Yep, you heard me. Quit. Quit more things than ever before. Make this your Happy New-less Year!

Here we are again, reviewing our past year, looking at what we accomplished and what we didn’t, becoming more determined that 2013 is the year. Yogi Berra said it right, “It’s deja vu all over again.”

Hey, I’m all for having a positive attitude and great expectations, but let’s get real.

Last week, I had an appointment with the COO of a very large company in my hometown of Raleigh, North Carolina. I wanted to conduct a little experiment. So I sought out to ask one question with every person I met before sitting down with the COO.

As I walked into the lobby, I introduced myself to the first person I saw and found out he was a client of the company. So I promptly asked “What’s the vision of this organization?” His expression was priceless, he looked at me as if I was asking for his first-born son. “I have no idea” was his reply.

This is Part II of Mastering your Brand Promise, if you missed it, you can read it here.

One week ago, on November 6, 2012, America voted and chose Barack Obama as President for the next four years. Whether you love it or hate it, the only way you and I will thrive in this climate of uncertainty is to leverage our own God-given vision.

Branding is more than just the logo, name or slogan — it’s the entire experience others have with your product or service. From our experience in working with entrepreneurs, CEOs, and leaders on marketing strategies, we’ve learned the most important part of that experience is the brand promise.

Oh boy...Its the last thing you want to do right? We can all relate to being forced to do a hard reset on your phone, computer, or tablet. You never want to do it, but it's always a relief to get your device back up and running again, the way it was designed to work. There is always a lot of anxiety, stress, and confusion leading up to it, but in the end it's a good thing.