What makes a celebrity special? She was just an ordinary person a month or a year ago, but now, suddenly, your heart goes flitter-flutter when you meet her, or you want an autograph.

One way to consider fame is that it increases the options for the person at the same time the number of demands go up. In other words, celebrity makes the celebrity's attention more valuable.

It's exciting to shake hands or get an autograph from a famous person, then, because the celebrity has something others want, you're getting a slice of attention from someone who has other options. But she didn't exercise those options--she chose you.

By this definition, you're famous. Compared to just a few years ago, more people know you, you have more options and your attention is far more precious than it ever was.

Not just you, of course. Your customers too. They're famous now.

Time to start treating them that way.

Every once in awhile, you hear of an idea so blindingly obvious and inarguably wise that you wonder why in God’s name it’s still a notion and not a reality.

That happened to me this morning when I heard about the Taxpayer Receipt, the brainchild of the folks at Third Way.

In a brief and readable policy paper, David Kendall and Jim Kessler propose “providing each taxpayer with a receipt that shows them exactly how their money is spent to the penny.”  That’s it.

Well, why aren't we doing it?

Showing up: the power of presence. There's a well-known saying that 90% of success in life comes from just showing up. It's a cliché because it's true. Digital and other remote communications are efficient and helpful, but there's much to be said for being there, face-to-face with others. I coined the term Management by Flying Around to reflect the work of CEOs of the vanguard companies in my book SuperCorp. Instead of ruling from headquarters, they go out to the field, meet major customers, and press the flesh with government officials.

Rosabeth Moss Kanter suggests five ways we can ideas of the ground. Follow the link to find out about the power of voice, the power of partnering, the power of values, and the power of persistence.

1. America missed a golden opportunity to showcase its Constitutional freedoms. The instinctive response of Americans should have been the same as President Obama's: Muslims have every right to build there. Where one religion can build a church, so can all religions.

2. The First Amendment comes down to this: "I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it." It does not come down to: "The First Amendment gives me the right to shout the N-word 11 times on the radio to an

inoffensive black woman, and when you attack me for saying it, you are in violation of my First Amendment rights."

Here's the first two poins from Roger Ebert's post about the mosque proposed in New York City. If only we were all capable of analysis and discourse at this level. Follow the link for the rest of the post.