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photo credit: krishnamohan01

By now,  I think just about everyone in the world has heard about the “Butterfly Effect.”

But if you haven’t heard of it – or you can’t remember – the phrase refers to the enormous potential for change that can be triggered by very small acts. Like the possibility of the flapping of a butterfly’s wings triggering a tornado on the other side of the world. (Mouse over the photo above and you’ll see the photographer’s sense of humor about this.)

The concept is part of Chaos Theory and the whole idea of “sensitive dependence on initial conditions.” Since there’s a lot of chaos showing up in economic markets across the whole globe, I’ve been thinking alot about the Butterfly Effect lately. And wondering what actually triggered the whole mess we’re in…

It’s not like I believe there’s a definitive answer to the question. But that doesn’t keep me from wondering.

The funny thing is that my musings led me to a short video that makes an important point about making small changes in a sweet and funny way. Take a look:

So, what’s the point? Well, as soon as I quit chuckling, it occurred to me that what’s going on between this man and woman is the same thing that happens between me and other people who are watching me enjoy virtual meetings… and wanting some of that sweetness for themselves.

I’m always telling clients – and potential clients -  that they can have a bite for FREE, any time they like. I pass out links to different kinds of sites where they can try all kinds of virtual meeting tools – for FREE.

But a surprising number of people are still having a hard time getting the sweetness from these new possibilities without some help from me. Just like the lady needs to borrow the man’s chompers to take advantage of the Butterfinger. That’s why I started this blog in the first place.

So, for what it’s worth, it seemed useful to share the video. Not because I want to brand myself as a pair of false teeth (although that’s a pretty funny idea).

The point is that if you’re not already having your clients and your coworkers jump all over the idea of having virtual meetings with you (instead of spending their precious time and money driving and flying all over the place), then maybe they need a little more help from you so they can get some of the sweetness for themselves.

photo credit: TheTruthAbout…

Does that make sense?

If so, what small change could you make in the way you’re pitching virtual meetings to your clients that would allow you to trigger an avalanche of savings for you – and for them – in 2009?

My change-of-the-week: making an analogy, using this nutty video, that you can pass along to YOUR clients and coworkers. The analogy is a little out-of-the-box, but if you enjoy it, you could use it to open the conversation with clients and coworkers about how you could help

I invite you to share this post with every client you’d like to share a $5K to $50K savings with next year. Or pass it on to coworkers, so you can start saving your time this year for what’s most important…

What might happen if you actually did this? It can’t hurt …and you just might just trigger an avalanche of well-being.

At the very least, if you got one person to start meeting with you virtually, you would be walking your talk about reducing the carbon footprint you’re leaving with your business travel.  And that would be a valuable contribution to the whole planet!

Want to play? Tag, you’re it…