The Moscow Rules

As Denis has already mentioned we are back for this year's AMA Leadership Summit -- themed "Mission Possible". It was a fantastic opportunity to learn from other chapters around the country (and Canada too), as well as a chance to help others learn from our success -- we were recognized for both Leadership and Membership excellence. And our Jet Blue event was one of the most talked about case studies at the Summit.

I attended the programming breakouts and heard lots of great ideas for delivering better, more valuable programming to our membership -- regular monthly programs (our speaker luncheons), ideas for SIG events, and some fun ideas for valuable networking events. I am excited about what programming RAMA will deliver to you in the coming year -- it is such an important part of our membership value we even created a second board position to help with it in the coming year.

But the biggest "ah-ha" moment for me were the Moscow Rules that were presented by our speaker on Friday night. Paul Bosch, COO of the International Spy Museum presented an intriguing look at how marketing and spying were very similar activities -- the structure for this comparison was the Moscow Rules ... here are some of them:

• Assume nothing
• Never go against your gut
• Everyone is potentially under opposition control
• Don't look back; you are never completely alone
• Vary your pattern and stay within your cover
• Don't harass your opposition
• Pick the time and place for action
• Keep your options open

Paul also had one personal addition to the Moscow Rules -- PB Rule #1: If nothing changes, nothing changes. Intuitively obvious? Yes, but rarely acknowledged and followed.

My favorite Moscow Rule is "assume nothing" ... and as a member of your RAMA board, I plan to live by this in the coming year. I would like your help though ... you will be receiving a member survey in the next week -- PLEASE fill it out! It will make sure that we can deliver to your expectations -- no assumptions, just real hard data on what is important to you, our valued members. Let us know what is most important to you and we will "pick the time and place for action" based on your response.