Calling it like it is.

*Note: This is both a 'build in public' personal journal entry and shameless plug for my company.

For a while now, I've been going through a process of throwing a flag on myself whenever I realize I've fallen into the same-same traps I call others out for. I suppose losing perspective with our noses pressed against the wall happens to the best of us. At some point, however, my 'Jiminy Cricket' conscience was swapped with a trunk monkey with an attitude, and I've been getting J-slapped (jargon slapped, or 'Jay slapped' as it happens) with increasing frequency as of late.

My LinkedIn "headline" was the latest example.

I had been using "Veteran brand, marketing, and consultative storyseller" or some variation for several years. Then LinkedIn AI suggested I use "30+ year leader and strategic problem solver" in my profile. So, I did. (I AM a problem solver. Thanks for noticing.) But after awhile I thought, "Would I say that if someone asked me what I do?"

Nope. So, I changed it.

"I silence noise, and..." was a much better description I thought, patting myself on the back for my succinct descriptive prowess. But before long, that headline reached out and J-slapped me too. I ignored it. Then it slapped me again today.

What the actual you-know-what does that mean?

"I silence noise."?!!! (Am I noise cancelling headphones now?) People don't talk this way. I don't talk this way. So, I asked myself, "Exactly what do you do, self?" No jargon. No fluff. No CV-ready thesis.

My Irish muse had the answer immediately, but either the Holy Spirit or years of dogma immediately responded, "I can't post that." What will my company think? What will my family and friends think? What will my momma say? (Actually, I get it from her, so...)

Can't stop. Won't stop. It's what I do.

I fix sh*t.

And there it is. As bald a truth as I can muster. The marketing acronym addict in me required I spell it out so that you're clear on my consultative specializations, but it also means exactly what it says.

If something is dated, unscalable, unclear, without process or clarity, inefficient, irrelevant, impersonal, underperforming, excessively expensive, over-engineered, bogged down by committee, not market-aligned, not ready to sell, failing to engage, failing to convert, failing to retain, or failing to drive measurable and sustainable growth ...it's sh*t and needs fixing.

Seth Godin says, "If you can't state your position in eight words or less, you don't have a position." Well, I did it in three. (?? to self)

What I don't do.

You can't clearly state what you do, unless you're clear on what you don't do (or are not).

• I don't like marketing to or selling people things they don't need.
• I don't create a false sense of urgency to compel strangers to act quickly.
• I don't accept the status quo or ignore house fires.
• I don't settle for "good enough" or mailing it in.
• I don't do clichés or impersonal business development that companies, marketers, and sellers seem addicted to like nicotine.

If I see broken: strategy and tactics, sales and marketing, operations and collaborations, internal and external communications, or performance and returns, I fix them (or more accurately, I help others do it themselves or lead expert teams who do it for them).

I am qualified to do this after learning from my mistakes and wins over (yes, LinkedIn AI) 30+ years. In fact, I can usually tell you in minutes what tweaks and pivots are needed to get more out of what you have, and a pretty good idea of why you're falling short or failing.

For a long time, I thought this "fix it" knowledge wasn't as valuable as my ability to come up with creative ideas, to craft better stories, or deconstruct the latest best practices. It wasn't so much imposter syndrome as much as everyone seems to want new and shiny because we all chase and pile on the latest bandwagon trends without fail.

And seriously, who wants to listen to a sales, marketing, communications, operations, and tech "handy man with a hammer" when they can calm their FOMO by clamoring for, consuming, and creating (or copying) trendy thought leadership?

Hard truth ...I'm not cool enough to be an edgy disruptor, and I don't have a large enough following to be an influencer change agent (working on fixing that sh*t too).

But then a funny thing happened a year ago.

I involuntarily left the fast-paced world of SaaS product marketing (after years in global enterprise IT before that) and landed at an honest-to-God anomaly in the Matrix.

How does a privately-owned, business and IT service consultancy grow to a profitable mid-market company over the course of 47-years, without best practice sales and marketing strategies, methodologies, or investments? How can a company have the largest global titans listed as its competitors, and still be largely unknown outside of its hundreds of active and thousands of past clients in good standing?

The answer is: they do IT the old fashioned way and earn retention and loyalty with a "fix it first" and holistic approach to helping clients achieve their desired business outcomes - while reducing IT footprints, shifting wasted dollars, reducing spend on tech and marketing, and "modernizing" companies for scalable growth.

J-SLAP!!!

Apologies. Let me rephrase.

The answer is: customers stick around for decades because Weidenhammer is really good at fixing what's broken, making things work better together, cutting waste and spend, and getting the most out of what you already have (before helping you measure twice and cut once on any new builds after that).

While more well-known service firms and IT body shops make similar claims and push "transformation" through new and improved, our company meets you where you are, makes business personal, and delivers with a "family business" white glove customer experience.

We're not slick. In fact, we're blue-collar old school, headquartered near Quaker country, and Pennsylvania proud, but as Einstein put it,

"Information is not knowledge. The only source of knowledge is experience. You need experience to gain wisdom."

A half-century of serving people with honesty, integrity, and artisan quality brings uncommon wisdom, and offers a 'Welcome Home' for saged nerds like me.

I'm leaning into my fix sh*t superpowers because I'm in good company.