I know, we hear that a lot, making sure simple things remain simple…but let’s face it: The world is complex. We are consistently challenged to adapt to new input, harmful situations and global threats. How do we prosper in the face of so much uncertainty?        

This week’s book suggestion: Think Like a Rocket Scientist: Simple Strategies You Can Use to Make Giant Leaps in Work and Life. Sometimes life is hard and the path ahead seems murky. We can all relate to that! Rocket scientist Ozan Varol prompts us to embrace simple formulas for success. He divides the book into three parts:

• Launch. We must learn to harness uncertainty and embrace the unknown. One of his suggestions I particularly loved was writing out concerns in an effort to handle anxiety.

• Accelerate. Just as a rocket must gain moment to leave the Earth’s atmosphere, your business must grow. He suggested looking at your business plan more critically, finding flaws and repairing them before you crash and burn.

• Achieve. Make a commitment to a new marketing strategy or display and then evaluate its success. Some trials will crash and burn, but others will soar.

Rocket science sounds complicated, but it begins with simple studies, adding layers of complexity. Success in life is much the same.

       The value of reading new books is the way it nudges an old idea into greater clarity. Look at Varol’s way of mesmerizing you with his storytelling. What would happen if you could create that same mystique for your customers and clients? The value of enticing others into your world is the heart of marketing…use blogs, Facebook posts and pictures to create those stories which help you stand out from the pack.

               Simple steps are made simpler when you begin incorporating them in phases. Let’s look at a specific example. You decide to entice people to your website and business. You need to pin your stories somewhere—a custom website may be pricey, but Word Press offers a lot of templates you can personalize at a fraction of the cost. However you choose to move forward, create the platform.

               Begin telling stories and teaching the public about your wares. Remember that no one likes to be sold something. They do love to learn new things, love to be distracted from life and love to know you. Blogs are the perfect medium for teaching, sharing information, telling a story, introducing yourself. Once it is posted to a site, you can share that site on platforms and within Facebook groups where you attract new business. It isn’t hard, and if time is not your friend, hire someone to do that for you. It’s not expensive, and it’s the cheapest form of advertising out there. Launch your business.

               Create the image your public will love with pictures. When you share a picture of an accomplishment, it doesn’t have to read like an advertisement. There are a hundred nuances and hints that make the connection without selling or bragging. If you’re worried about tooting your own horn and being misunderstood, again, bring in a consultant to make you look good. It’s worth a couple dollars a day to accelerate your business.

               If you launch, if you accelerate…you will achieve. It may come slowly, it may come in bits and spurts dependent on your business, but success is more common than a crash & burn. We don’t very often lose a space shuttle, and you won’t very often fail when you embark on these tried and true strategies. Ask a rocket scientist. He knows.