“You can’t change the past, but you can change the present and ultimately your future.”

This interview was made possible by our friends at DomainNameSales.com:

 

The marketplace for domain names.

Gary Szenderski (zen-der’-ski) is a branding specialist, internationally acclaimed as an expert on the subject. Gary is an accomplished image building branding strategist and proven team leader with extensive front line experience in advertising, design, strategic planning and marketing.

SZEN Marketing is a specialized brand development and strategic planning company that provides essential strategic and creative solutions for leaders, top-tier owners/management and agency partners to successfully navigate their companies and brands through critical transitions.

MO: What influenced you to start your own marketing firm and how has your background and experience contributed to the development of the company?

Gary: The current company SZEN Marketing is a spinoff of a company named ERGO Worldwide which I co-founded in 1996. I started my own firm when I realized that I wasn’t going to be successful where I was and I felt that I knew how to help companies grow if I could tap into the energy that was driving their decisions.

MO: Can you talk about your exclusive accelerated planning regimen and how it works?

Gary: The main difference between what has been available and what we provide is an understanding and appreciation for how the internal engine needs to work. If you think about how Apple faltered when Jobs was fired and Skully and Amelio took over you can begin to appreciate the power of the corporate culture and how leadership is the key to generating common cause and motivation to deliver on the brand promise.

MO: What influenced your decision to focus on companies going though critical transitions?

Gary: Originally I didn’t focus on transitional companies, I just happened to be involved: DHL and its North American launch, FOX broadcasting’s change in agency partners, The packaging of Classic Foods and their new products, etc. It was the companies and brands that were moving that had the challenge and caught my interest, perfect fodder for developing the matrix. The reality is that all companies must change or die and I simply made it a point of difference for my firm. Once I stated that transitional companies were the target everybody seemed to be a potential client.

MO: What professional accomplishment are you most proud of so far?

Gary: Our success in helping companies and their people deal with the challenge of having to change. We developed an awesome process for navigating change that works every time. That process named the Szen Matrix (used to be called visionization) is now the foundation for a course I teach at UCI. The best part is that I LOVE doing it.

MO: What keeps you inspired professionally and in life in general?

Gary: My inspiration come from my readers and clients who ask great questions, have difficult challenges and are willing to ask for an opinion that I’m readily willing to provide.

MO: Can you tell our readers a bit about the book you have coming out this month?

Gary: The book was written long ago, one week at a time, and honestly I can’t remember all of the stories, but as I compile my favorites for this book I also learn from my own insights and interpretations on life and change that somehow seem fresh to me even if I wrote it 5 years ago. Honestly, I look at these stories and sometimes I think I’m quite a hack, but other times I get choked up and actually re-inspire myself and think this guy is pretty good. It’s been the encouragement of the readers that has created this book and their support and pushing me to get it out there is the only reason it lives. They thought it needed to be shared and I hope you agree. Many of the stories are true or based on actual events. All of them are written to make you think, smile, and be inspired.

Book of Szen challenges readers to create positive change in their lives. It is a compilation of endearing short stories and thought provoking observations that celebrate the power in each of us to be what we want to be. You can’t change the past, but you can change the present and ultimately your future. Book of Szen encourages us to listen to our sometimes forgotten voice, a voice that yearns for a better life. It is an inspirational “why not” book.

Book of Szen is now on sale and can be purchased here .

More information on Book of Szen