Q&A with Bjørn Holtan

When some members of the US Olympic speed skating team needed to mix up their training program they called Bjørn Holtan, one of only 200 certified Meridian strengthening and stretching trainers in the world. Holtan, based in San Francisco where he owns his own studio, made several flights to Milwaukee leading up to the Vancouver Games to work with two up-and-coming skaters at their training facility. Athletes seek Holtan because he has a reputation for getting the most out of his clients and that’s what they should expect from a guy who swims competitively among sharks.

What is Meridian strengthening and stretching and how does this differ from traditional workouts?
When I’m working on someone, I am trying to find the muscles that aren’t working with each other. When that happens, muscles begin to tighten and the unbalanced muscle won’t be as strong because it’s not getting the nutrients and blood circulation that it needs. Based off the unbalanced muscle that I find in an individual, I get information on what is happening in the body on a physical, physiological & psychological basis. Once the problem area is diagnosed, I then correspond what meridian lines are related to the muscle. In Meridian stretching you’re in control of the stretch by beating the resistance on the contracting muscle to create the stretch.

I’m already confused. Can you give me an example of a Meridian stretch?
Sure, let’s say you want to stretch your left bicep. You would contract that muscle and apply pressure with your left hand into your right hand. The right hand is now beating the resistance on the contracting muscle to create the stretch.

OK, I just did that. Now I get it, thanks. Tell me more about meridian lines.
Meridian lines carry energy throughout the body. There are 16 of them running from your head all the way down to the tips of your fingers and toes. If energy gets blocked, it can cause muscle tension, physiological problems and psychological issues as well. When I first tried Meridian stretching seven years ago, I watched people coming out of the previous session feeling changed for the better; their headache went away or their blood pressure fell down.

How did you help the US Olympic speed skaters get ready for the Olympics?
I worked with Nancy Swider-Peltz Jr. and Brian Hansen. We dedicated the majority of time during our sessions to meridian stretching & meridian massage or “mashing” as it is referred to sometimes. This is done with my feet. So, they kneel down and I walk on their quads to help lengthen the muscle and break up the myofascia, which is a connecting tissue, to help relieve the risk of injury. I love to work with these athletes because they are healthy and injury prevention is really rewarding for me. They will not feel any pain or stress when they hit the ice and get into that starting position. Well, that is the goal!

Did anything about these athletes surprise you during training?
I started working with them almost three weeks before the Olympics and was truly amazed how focused they were with their craft while also being appreciative of the people assembled to help them. They were really personable and sincere and I think they have a lot of integrity. Nancy and Brian both followed up with thank you letters despite how busy they were. From just watching them through training, they are very composed and their stress levels are so low which is remarkable at their level of competition.

What are your expectations of Nancy and Brian at the Vancouver Games?
This is each of their first Olympics and they’ll surely be going back to compete in them again in 2014. I think they will really enjoy the experience in Vancouver and take away so much from it. Right now, they say they feel faster and more confident since I’ve started working with them so close to the competition. I’m confident they’ll rise to the occasion and make everyone in the US proud.

You have quite the athletic resume yourself. As an accomplished swimmer having competed in some big time events, what are some of your most proud moments in this sport?
I guess the most exciting was at the collegiate level with being the conference champion in the 200 meter butterfly and finishing third in the 100 because they’re such hard races. I was a member of the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse swim team and earned MVP honors for those finishes. I’ve enjoyed success in a lot of international swimming events and triathlons but the “Alcatraz Sharkfest" open water swim stands out in my mind. I was competing in this race for the first time, from Alcatraz to Fisherman’s Wharf, against 800 swimmers. I had never swum in the bay before and I was terrified because my imagination ran wild; I could have sworn I saw sharks. They exist in the area but they’re mostly bottom feeders; the Great White’s are beyond the bridge. I was fortunate to finish third in that event.

Reaction to the PR strategy behind Tiger's mea culpa

Tiger Woods emerged today breaking three months of silence with the World he said hello to 13 years ago. The rise and fall of Woods, perpetuated by recent reports of infidelity, has been astonishing and his press conference would serve as only a first step in rebuilding the credibility and admiration he has worked so hard to earn.

From a public relations perspective, there are two critical elements from today’s event to break down; his message and the parameters of his press conference. To begin, and there’s been much debate on this issue, Tiger had to do it. Granted he’s not an elected official and some believe his private life is none of our business. I respect that point of view; however, this issue requires a deeper dive beneath the surface to comprehend the scale of Tiger Woods - the brand, and not just the human being.

Tiger’s wholesome image and integrity is what made him the first billion-dollar athlete. It’s what made him so admired by youth around the globe. Parents now have to discuss Tiger’s behavior with their children and sponsors need to evaluate their relationship with their tarnished pitchman. Accenture, a management consulting firm, made the swift decision to drop him and their “Go on, be a Tiger” campaign just two days after the scandal broke. AT&T also severed ties soon after while other brands are taking the wait-and-see approach. The time has come for Woods to step up and rebuild his image as a role model and endorser. That’s what he owes the public. Everything else however, can remain private.

So let’s talk about the highly criticized arrangements for his presser. It was incredibly controlled; the media was limited to two camera feeds and reporters from three newswires, and no questions would be entertained. This bothered some members of the media more than others. The Golf Writers Association of America really shot themselves in the foot by boycotting coverage of the event altogether simply because they didn’t get an invitation. Their job is to cover golf and this will be the biggest story of their careers! I suspect they will suffer self-inflicted consequence as they’ve just rendered themselves absolutely incompetent and completely useless.

There has also been some grievance about the timing of Tiger’s statement which was scheduled during the third round of the Accenture Match Play Championship. Some golfers see this decision as vindictive toward the first sponsor to drop Tiger. I think it was a stand up act. By admitting his faults along side this PGA event, to me, Woods helped justify Accenture’s decision to break their contract as if to say, “I left them no choice.”

The environment that was created for Tiger was acceptable in my opinion. This is simply the beginning of the next chapter in his career and life and there will certainly be more to come in terms of his words and actions. For the moment, it was his decision to break his silence and make a public statement on his terms.

As both a public relations professional and a casual observer of this whole ordeal, I am satisfied with the omission of the media Q&A. He addressed his justification best when he said, “I understand the press wants to ask me for the details about the times I was unfaithful; whether or not Elin and I were meant to be together. Please know, as far as I’m concerned…these are issues between a husband and a wife.”

Well said. Again, here’s the fine line between what he should be expected to discuss and what can remain private. Imagine the frenzy that would have been unleashed, question after question, about the mistresses and the deception. This is the tabloid garbage element of the story and really has no business being published and aired.

Tiger spent the better part of 15 minutes assuring us he is sorry for the decisions he made and convincingly looked straight into the camera when he said, “For all that I have done, I am so sorry.” Standing before his friends, family and the media the way he did showed some fortitude. His admission and apologetic tone was sincere. He “threw the script away” and spoke from the heart.

I never thought about who I was hurting, instead I thought only about myself. I ran straight through the boundaries that a married couple should live by. I thought I could get away with whatever I wanted to. I felt that I worked hard my entire life and deserved to enjoy all the temptations around me. I felt I was entitled. Thanks to money and fame, I didn’t have to go far to find them. I was wrong, I was foolish, and I don’t get to play by different rules. The same boundaries that apply to everyone, apply to me. I brought this shame on myself. I hurt my wife, my kids, my mother, my wife’s family, my friends, my foundation, and kids all around the world who admired me.”

Tiger really drove home his sincerity with bold statements like that. His defense of his family against media scrutiny and harassment involving stakeouts of his mother, wife and 2 ½ year old daughter were very well played. I believe it’s fair to call out the media when your family is being subjected to sensationalism at its worst.

Early in his statement, he conceded that his real apology to his wife will come not from words, but from his behavior over time. Regarding those crucial next steps, I think he’s off to a good start by not setting a date to return to golf as he puts his life back together. This is part of the process, and his plea to fans to believe in him again should serve as testament that he is really taking the whole role model business seriously.

Overall, this was a successful public statement. His messaging was spot-on, sincere and encouraging. The forum in which it was delivered heightened the perception of his seriousness while keeping the circus out of town.

It’s certainly not over for Tiger but it’s not a bad start.

A punctuation mark for sarcasm? Well, it's about time!

Texting, tweeting and even casual e-mail banter has created a barrage of acronyms that have woven themselves into our lexicon. Quick, succinct communications are filled with “lol”, “l8r” and other chat abbreviations. It’s convenient and saves up space for those character-limited messages; however, the words have been revolutionizing while the punctuation marks have remained unchanged.

Enter the SarcMark. Intended to close a sarcastic remark, it has been created and introduced by Sarcasm, Inc. For a small fee ($1.99), you can download the new punctuation mark to your phone or computer and unleash the fun if sarcasm happens to be your thing. I doled out the cash and downloaded the software out of curiosity. The mark looks like an inverted “at” sign with a period in the middle and I can add it to the end of a sentence by hitting the “control” and “period” keys simultaneously on my laptop to emphasize my sarcasm.

Paul Sak, a retired computer engineer and salesman, co-founded the business with his son, Doug, who maintains his full-time job as a CFO with an after-market automotive parts distributor. Doug came up with the idea eight years ago after writing a snarky note to a friend and realized there was no punctuation to affirm his light-hearted sarcasm. The Michigan-based tandem says their new mark deserves a place in the English language.

“We are serious about this mark and we want people to have fun with it. There is a sarcasm mark in the Ethiopian language so why not have one too. Even the French have the irony point,” says Paul Sak.

While the irony point does exist in the French language, appearing as a backwards question mark, it is not officially recognized. It has, however, appeared occasionally in obscure artistic and literary publications.

According to the company’s website, “The skeptics and the cynics just can’t see the power of the people to get behind a new idea and make it happen. We are not relying on some government entity, academic institution or self-serving organization to give us approval. Spread the word as we promote better communication through meaningful punctuation. Be sarcastic and have fun doing it.”

Speaking of academic institutions, I reached out to Leslie Epstein, Professor, and Director of the Creative Writing program at Boston University to get his opinion (yes, he is Theo Epstein's dad and no, I am not being sarcastic).

“I am against all shortcuts, particularly those used to express human emotion,” says Epstein. “That’s really all I have to say about our plunge into the abyss.”

E.J. Powers, a vice president of strategic communications at Montagne Communications, suspects it will garner some attention but is hesitant about predicting overwhelming success.

“I have learned not to discount any new technologies and trends and feel that there is an audience out there for just about anything. I remain skeptical if the SarcMark will catch on,” says Powers. “Our language and words have become even more abbreviated with the advent of Twitter and 140 characters don’t cost any money.”

I personally find the concept somewhat comical although, just like Professor Epstein, I don’t plan to become a pioneer for its official acceptance. You can buy ringtones for your phone and this is similar in scope as it provides another way for people to express themselves electronically. I think this mark has its place and my endorsement ends there.

The Saks launched their website three weeks ago and while they won’t provide exact numbers regarding sales, they tell me the volume of downloads from their site is “in the thousands.”

Now, here's the caveat. The receiver of a message with an embedded SarcMark also needs the software to view it, otherwise they'll get a placeholder instead. I discovered this after giving the SarcMark a test drive by sending sarcastic messages of my own to some friends who each received them on different devices; a square from a laptop, a filled-in box on a Blackberry and a period from an iPhone is what they saw.

The Saks say their idea is becoming viral thanks in part to media interest, blogger reaction and online discussion. But just remember, if your friends don't have the software too, there's no way on earth they'll know you're being sarcastic.

After spending a couple bucks on this mark, sensibility prevailed and I also logged onto redcross.com and made a donation to the relief effort in Haiti. Please follow my lead if you decide to download the SarcMark software too.

Forget the hype, these ads were mostly funny.

The Super Bowl ads were great this year. First, we had a month’s worth of hype and anticipation surrounding the pro-life spot featuring Heisman winner Tim Tebow and his mother Pam. We all knew this was coming and knew their story well before the kick-off. It had been the most talked about ad before it aired and that's what made it so effective. I’m thankful their message was subtle and delivered with humor. Tim tackling his mother because they need to be “tough” was great. Even better, the ad was topical and invited the audience to visit the Focus on the Family website to hear the full story. I don’t like politics interfering with sporting events but this was tactful enough not to be bothersome.

Moving on.

Can the New England Patriots sign Betty White this off season? We could definitely use her physical and mental toughness on either side of the ball next year. Hats off to Snickers for surprising and delighting 100 million viewers with her hilarious performance in their ad.

As expected, Anheuser-Busch delivered! I’m a big fan of their commercials any time of the year so I expect great things in their Super Bowl campaigns. If you didn’t laugh at the one involving survivors of an airplane crash on a deserted island raiding the plane’s beverage cart full of Bud Light then I have only one question; what’s wrong with you? I thought the scientists partying in the observatory upon impending doom provided a good laugh and the spot where everyone’s voice was harmonized was fun too although the T-Pain cameo was a little predictable.

Humor ruled the night, even Jay Leno and Oprah joined David Letterman on a promo for his Late Show program. This was surprising considering Leno is direct competition. Surely, the flack Leno has gotten for ousting Conan O'Brien from the 11:30 p.m. slot on NBC has bruised his image and this was his way of showing us all he really can be a good guy.

Talking babies were still the go-to gag for E-TRADE and Doritos introduced some laugh-out-loud spots involving fake funerals gone bad and a martial artist defending his forsaken snack using the chip as a Chinese throwing star. Coca-Cola gets some honorable mention for clever ads featuring The Simpsons and once again, using animals to positively brandish their image during a "Safari Sleep Walk“.

GoDaddy.com continues to disappoint me. I’m a guy. There are attractive women undressing. Visit the site to see more. I get it. It’s hack. What I was personally pumped up about was seeing Clark and Ellen Griswold drive back into our lives in the famous family truckster. Newcomers to Super Bowl advertising, Homeaway.com, gets some props from me for shining the spotlight on my favorite comedic family. It just left me wondering what happened to Russ and Audrey…or who would have played them this time.

And then there was the game. Congratulations to the New Orleans Saints for your awesome Super Bowl victory. Mardi Gras just started a little bit early this year.

Welcome!

Do you ever wake up in the middle of the night worrying about the lack of blogs on the internet? It happens. Well, for what it’s worth I’d like to introduce myself to the blogging community. I’m Rick Fink and this is my blog. Perhaps you’ll find my content refreshing, provocative and entertaining. If so, you should follow me regularly. If not, you should follow me anyway.

I’ll be writing and submitting posts to “Fink On Point” with a columnist’s cadence weighing in on what’s going on around us. There is no formal agenda but I will write about whatever I find interesting. For example, I think people are interesting. So, I will periodically feature some Q&A with people who do cool things. Right now, I’m working on a piece about a US Olympic athletic trainer. How’s that for timeliness? I’ll also be interviewing a marketing professor from Louisiana State University about trends in the industry. I hope you find this stuff as interesting as I do.

My professional background began in journalism so I look forward to going about my coverage while honoring ethical standards. All sources will be attributed, quotes and facts will be verified and I’ll only entertain bribes in excess of $500 dollars.

I’m a public relations and marketing professional currently selling my services on a freelance basis while looking to land the next big job. Most recently, I worked at Fidelity Investments here in Boston doing marketing communications. Prior to that, I worked for a leading public relations and advertising agency.

This blog serves as my personal participation in Web 2.0 conversation and interaction. Whether you’re looking to hire a marketing generalist who can do it all, want to hear my point of view about something in the news or just feel like responding to something I’ve posted, please get in touch. You can comment right here on FOP or e-mail me personally at rickfinkjr@gmail.com.

Enjoy the Blog!