Maxim Behar's Blog, page 3

Maxim Behar for TBmagazine: Should I go to the office at all?

Maxim Behar has launched his weekly column "Max's Column" for TBmagazine. He will be short and to the point, up-to-date but different, insightful and share useful tips based on his years of experience and knowledge. He is Maxim Behar and he has a lot to tell you...


Well, the pandemic has come, almost two years now, and hundreds of millions of people around the world have discovered one simple truth - why on earth would we have gone to our offices before? But it was so nice at home - you have coffee, stay in your pajamas and slippers in front of your laptop, log into your mailbox, check your Facebook or Instagram and come across all mirror and bathroom selfies and analyze the phone angles they take the photos... And most importantly - you don't have to take the bus or run for the last subway train because you might be late for work.

There's an undeniable truth in that first paragraph. We've discovered something important - we can work from home. Modern communications allow us to be infinitely well connected, accurate, get along perfectly with "half a word" written in an email. What's more, online communication now gives us two undeniable advantages. First - we can meet an entire team, large or small, at any time for as long as we want. We can all look each other in the eyes, chat or exchange videos and a bunch of other goodies that are simply impossible to do in the office. And second - being in Tokyo at 9am, then talking to a client from Nairobi, then waiting for those from New York to wake up so you can discuss with them too, and finally someone from Bulgaria also joins you on Zoom to ask when the strategy for his new factory will be ready...

Of course, we could list a third and a fourth... but one thing is more than clear - the business has changed forever. That's why we need to make our strategic plans from now, so that "tomorrow" we can succeed in business even more.

These days I don't know any business that doesn't need teamwork, fresh and smiling people who have common goals, interests and friendships. Teams are the ones that succeed, that innovate and break stereotypes, increasingly rarely is this the case with individualists. And there's still no formula that shows how to make a successful team online... unless someone else comes up with it. I'm sure I can come up with one by the end of this year. But until then, as conditions allow, we should see more of each other in our offices. And to succeed together with our colleagues in these rather controversial business times.

Source: https://www.tbmagazine.net/statia/dali-da-khodya-v-ofisa-vobsche.html

Priceless Lessons by Maxim Behar: A Story with Jozsef Varadi

Maxim Behar shares one of his many exciting meeting with an unexpected ending with Jozsef Varadi, the CEO of Wizz Air - a man who very much values the opinion of the PR consultant and there is a reason why. This is the story of an unforgettable press conference in Sofia, which Behar shares in his author series Priceless Lessons for BGLOBAL magazine.


The manager with high-experience, who invented the low-cost flight...
How from a consultant I became a "driver" of the Founder and CEO of the tremendously successful airline Wizz Air - Jozsef Varadi

When I first went to the Wizz Air's office not far from Budapest Airport, I was amazed by three things that seemed more than obvious in modern business. The first was that the reception in the central office was smaller than the reception in my office in Sofia. I sat down on a small sofa, and since I had an hour until my meeting I asked for coffee and the Wi-Fi password to work while I was waiting... Coffee was not served, a helpful girl hurried down to the subway near the office, to grab a coffee from the machine there, but for security reasons the Wi-Fi passwords were not disclosed...

I carefully tried to crack some friendly jokes with the colleagues from the marketing department, who agreed to a conversation with me, but I was controverted by the completely formal business response of the director: "Maxim, we are a low-cost company, we spend the money of our customers, passengers, and we do it very carefully and sparingly...���

I was really fascinated and when months later we started talking to them almost every week, each of our conversations was imbued not with redundant or unnecessary frugality, but with a business reason for each expense, even for every minute of time spent on decision making and discussions. It was a whole new vision of reality and our habits of what is worthwhile and what is not.

Probably none of these successes of the company, often really called low cost (cheap), but already obvious to everyone with very high standards, would have been possible without the Founder of this incredible adventure - Jozsef Varadi. Having gone through all the stages of the aviation industry, reaching the top management position of the Hungarian national airline Malev, he naturally managed to transfer his vast experience to the then just starting Wizz Air company, which is now on the London Stock Exchange and is certainly one of the fastest growing airlines in the world with its 145 top class Airbus aircraft and with more than 10 million passengers in the last year alone...

And one day I received an email with a strange request��� It was from Andras Rado, the international corporate communications manager of the company, who told me that his biggest boss Mr. Varadi would be in Sofia in just a few hours and since he had a lot of meetings, he needed a driver with fluent English who is very reliable, accurate, speaks in English, bust most importantly - to be able to rely on him.

- Andras, instead of wasting time looking for a driver, I will be with Mr. Varadi everywhere, I will hold a press conference with him anyway after that. It would be best to take him with my car, so we will be completely sure that everything will go smoothly.

This was really a key visit of the head of Wizz Air in Bulgaria. He met with the directors of the airport complex, with representatives of various institutions, without even knowing why he was returning to my car and was rather interested in my opinion on certain issues, which made me very proud at one point and I said to myself, "What a manager... the opinion of the PR consultant is obviously very important to him."

- Certainly, a lot of effort is needed to make Sofia Airport, Terminal 1 meet European standards. Many people think that as a low-cost company we cannot afford to have the best airports, planes or services. Just the opposite, we must be the best in service, whether on the ground or in the air...

I nodded understandingly and then shared stories about the airport, about Wizz Air's competitors, about the market in Bulgaria, about the peculiarities of the Bulgarian passenger (Varadi was startled that all passengers applauded together on landing), about Bulgaria, politics and business. The Hungarian was taking notes carefully, and so when we arrived at the hotel a few hours later for the press conference and I parked at the front, he saw that I was getting out of the car, turned sharply to me, and told me:

- Wait, wait, you stay here, please. My time is calculated in minutes, we have to leave as soon as I'm done, or I'll miss the flight... I'm flying with Wizz Air, but no one will be waiting for me...

It was only then that I realized that, in fact, all this time he had been sure that he had talked to the driver, and that it was the driver's opinion that interested him.

Not mine, not the consultants, but the independent real-life observer.

I waited for him to come out, then quickly parked to the side, ran up the stairs while Varadi was on the elevator, and when he entered the hall, I was already at the main table, which had only two signs, mine and his.

I saw his great astonishment, his tense questioning face, but also the embarrassment that overcame him, when he realized that in fact my company was organizing everything, and I would moderate the press conference. I saw his apologetic look, leaned over and said to him:

- No problem at all, I know I look like a driver, but sometimes I have other roles...

The press conference went brilliantly. Jozsef Varadi is really a man of great knowledge and incredible charisma, and from my position as a ���driver��� I am not only observing, but together with all my colleagues, I am also contributing to the remarkable success of Wizz Air...

It's worth it, really.

Maxim Behar: The Only Race That Matters is With Yourself

Maxim Behar is a visionary in many fields, has always been up to date with new developments, and is different in that he sometimes sets the trend himself, changing the way we think and communicate. He shares the secrets of his success and the creative tools he uses along the way in an interview - part of the project of the Daily Newspaper 24 Chasa and TREND Magazine called "Men who set the TREND".

What are your company's values and what is your personal professional mission?
- Ethical business, professional business, and clients and partners delighted by our professionalism. Our mission is more than clear - bringing happiness to our team, peace to our clients, and learning something new every day.

Why did you choose this particular field to pursue a career in - what attracts you, challenges you, provokes you? At what point did you realize this was the right direction?
- I always knew this was my direction - communication, networking, leadership. The moment of choice is irrelevant, it's the outcome that matters. I am provoked by the great dynamics of my business - Public Relations, there is nothing that makes it difficult. 27 years ago, when I started my business, I was hindered by the fact that the market developed slower than my thoughts and wishes... Now the market is well developed, thank God, I have enough competitors, which I didn't have back then, and the market now knows well what PR is and there is a growing need for it. ��

What differ you from your competitors?
- We are super different. We have nothing in common. Both me and my colleagues. We're visionaries, we know a lot, we know literally every day what's going on across the state, who's thinking what and what they want to do. We're always thinking several moves ahead, we know the media to perfection, we create great content, we are in love with our work and we give our soul in everything we do. In fact, that is how we achieved to be high-rank professionals. As I do, so does every one of my colleagues, from the manager to the assistant. ��

How do you motivate your team to perform well? Do you keep your distance or keep close to your colleagues? And do you know what your colleagues think of you - is their opinion important to you?
- I only keep my distance when someone on the bus is not wearing a mask. This is just a joke, of course. There is no point in keeping distance from anyone in my team, but just the opposite. This year another book of mine came out, The Morning After, in which I share my concept of a modern and totally horizontal management. Everyone in a successful office should now be on the same level and everyone is a leader in their workplace, with their own projects, clients, and responsibilities. And in this sense, for me the opinion of my colleagues in the company is not only important, but it is also the most important. Without them, the company can not take a step forward. ��

How and from whom do you learn to manage?
- I've learned something from everyone and then applied it in business. First - my father, then colleagues, friends, business partners. Every day I learn something new and remember it. What's different about me is that a lot of people say, "we learn from our mistakes". On the contrary - I always learn from my successes. I carefully analyze how I achieved one thing and make a short strategy on how to achieve even more. This is a unique model. I haven't seen it anywhere, I made it up myself and it works perfectly. ��

How did you find your calling?
- I never really looked for it. I was 13 years old when I was publishing the neighborhood newspaper, which - I have no explanation why - even then I had called the Daily News. I always believed that if you made �� business out of your hobby, you would never have to work in your life. So I worked fifteen years in journalism, and now nearly 30 years in the PR business. The calling just found me, whatever that means.

The most interesting competition you have won?
- I literally win one or two every day. I compete with myself and what I accomplished yesterday to make it better today. The only competitions that matter in a man's life are with himself.

Which battle did you lose?
- I don't count them, I don't evaluate them, I don't remember them. And I agree with Dalai Lama who says, "If you lose, don't lose the lessons."

How often do you wake up with the feeling that everything depends on you?
- Every day. I also fall asleep with that feeling...

Many men are rethinking their lives, giving up things they previously thought were important. What would lead you to such a life turn in your case?
- Only experience, nothing else.

Is it important to have someone by your side to share your successful career with?
- Yes, it is very important and I am lucky to have her.

Have you learned the formula for a healthy family or are you still looking for it?
- I am not looking for it because there is no "one size fits all". As my uncle Moshe, who lives happily in Israel now at the age of 91, says: "To have a good family, the most important thing is that the two of you can laugh together at the same things."

How do you define and explain success - yours and others?
- Well, there is only one definition of success - being happy and feeling useful...

If you lose everything you have achieved, what will you do?
- The same again. Meeting lots of people from all over the world, connecting them with each other, and figuring out ways to make them and their businesses better. It's not just a business, it's more of a state of mind and there will always be a place for it on the planet. It's even becoming more necessary to have people like that every day. Now more than ever.

Fortunes Crown: Maxim Behar - An Incredible Man Who Overcame Adversity With Creativity, Ethics, And Responsibilities

Self-confidence, knowledge, quick decisions and... a little luck are the ingredients of the recipe, M3 Communications Group, Inc. CEO says in exclusive interview for the prestigious American magazine Fortunes Crown. He was recognized as one of "The 10 Most Influential Media Leaders of 2021" and his influential story made it to the cover. ��


The whole business world including the communication business is currently witnessing the total change of everything ��� from sales to communications to industrial production. For a couple of years, we have been observing a very dynamic and fast merging of the three main elements of the public communications business ��� advertising, public relations, and digital. It is so obvious that they will unify and work as a new business soon but for now, there is a constant dispute for leadership.

The advertising industry claims to be the winner as they own media shops and creators, and so the digital experts as their leadership abilities allow them to create applications, tabs, and software. However, the CEO & Founder of M3 Communications Group, Inc., Maxim Behar strongly feels that Public Relations experts and managers will be the leader of the future big, merged business. The thought that supports this concrete belief is quite simple, they are the ���Kings of Content.��� They are the masters of words and visions and in the modern world, wisdom comes from social media content.

The Visionary CEO

Maxim Behar has done graduation in the Executive Program on Leadership Decision Making from Harvard Kennedy School and now, he is pursuing a Ph.D. in Global Public Relations Changes at Sofia University. His first graduation was from Prague University on International Economic Relations. As learning was/is his passion, he collected many degrees from Universities across the world including The Pacific Institute in Seattle, USA. At his initial stage, he started working as a machinery worker in a plant that was based in Sofia. After graduation, he worked as a journalist for 15 years and then launched one of the first private daily newspapers in Bulgaria ��� Standard News. Even with so much success, he decided to resign from the post of Managing Editor remembering what Sir Winston Churchill said, ���you can achieve a lot with the journalism, but you should know exactly when to quit.���

When Maxim was in high school, he ever since wanted to be a brilliant journalist. Even when he decided to quit this job the next logical step that came into his conscious was to upgrade his journalistic knowledge. Although jumped into Public Relations, he did not realize that it���s nothing but pure unique business surrounded by creativity, ethics, and responsibilities.

About 27 years ago, Maxim from proudly launching a one-man-show company in a one-room rented apartment of a friend to owning a leading Public Relations and Social Media company, is streaming like water; partnered with one of the largest international US-based PR corporations, Hill+Knowlton Strategies with hundreds of clients from all over the world. With great projects come great challenges every single day, and that���s what Maxim loves to invest his life for.

A Trusted Service Provider

M3 Communications Group, Inc. was established in 1994. After 6 years Maxim Behar met the Executive Vice President of Hill+Knowlton Strategies, late Terence Billing, who turned out to be his teacher, mentor, partner, and of course, best friend. Through the journey, they witnessed failures and successes, and last but not least they emerged as a modern and successful corporation ��� a leading PR company in Central and Eastern Europe.

Today, we provide the full range of public communications services ��� public, governmental and media relations, social media management, event and conventions, graphic design, web creations, and project management. We create a unique package for each of our clients ensuring the top-notch quality of our services. We also provide services such as social media development, content management, creating visuals, and more which keeps updating every week. With 35 clients on a retainer fee and at least double the number per project, we are available 24/7 for our clients that makes us ideal for crisis management, employers branding, and corporate communications.

We serve what customers deserve i.e; increasing sales, better branding, and media presence. We believe in transparency that gives us the confidence to deliver exact reports back to the clients. Also, social media in addition to providing information targets messages properly. The most important aspect that affects us is ���outcomes��� and to match those we focus on being creative, innovative, proactive, and knowledgeable. In the process, we pull out preparation for every post. We ensure every word, every picture should be catchy and effective on social media.

Achievements To Appreciate

Maxim Behar was twice awarded the Best PR Consultant in the world by Stevie Awards. Recently, PR Week announced him the Best Global PR Consultant. With more than 100 international business and leadership awards and books that top on Amazon, Maxim is proudly elected as an Advisory Board Member of one of the largest European Universities ��� Engage.eu, Germany. It is a privilege for him to be on the Board of the World PR Museum in New York City. In 2017, he was inducted into the Global PR Hall of Fame in London as the first-ever East European expert. The greatest achievement in life is his children, family, and the excellent M3 Communications Group family.

PR���s Absolute Best

Customer preferences are like seasons, they keep changing. Of course, this affects how clients emphasize themselves on social media and the reason is quite clear ��� these interactive technologies are fully measurable ever since the very beginning of the Guttenberg Press Machine. Social media is exponentially succeeding against traditional media only because clients can optimize their messages to certain target groups, and in minutes can analyze too. Clients have become sensitive and quick towards creative involvement and decision-making. This practice brings a big boost to our business ��� one who can take fast decisions and can communicate successfully will win, the others will be out of the business.

We cannot deny the fact that customer feedback is crucial, however, we try to prove our point of view that our experts are devoted only to making their experience rich. ���Zoom lockdown times��� made our life a bit convenient which we appreciate through meeting clients and discussing tons of ideas. But also, we do not celebrate our self-esteem instead we delve into convincing clients that sooner or later their success with us will speak.

Opinion About Media Bribery

In my opinion, the concept of media bribery almost disappeared a decade ago. Nowadays, the world worries less and less. Social media is glorifying modern business and fading out the traditional media day by day. Since the very beginning of M3 Communications Group, Inc. we adopted the values of professionalism and integrity. Our experts are sensitive towards clients and their needs, which kept us reliable and relevant for a long period. However, the way social media is expanding may bring risks of fake news and unwanted disturbing elements that can create skepticism among readers. We are confident that these worries are repulsive to our business as we are completely transparent to our clients. Everything transparent is ethical!

Looking Beyond

The COVID-19 pandemic has affected almost all businesses over the world. Home-based offices brought a somewhat alienated business environment, leadership rules, and management styles. We did not have any expectations that everything we had before 2020 will be changed and should not expect to be back in the same position. The crisis has tested our endurance and we molded according to the required environment. This sudden change for sure made us stronger and much better PR experts. We have learned lessons for good that made us help many clients to accommodate better and faster in the new business environment. We had arranged successful conversations among their teams and stakeholders which resulted in them taking their decisions properly and on time. As we had already mastered crisis management for decades, we had the advantage to tackle the challenges with ease. It just took us a week or two to organize ourselves and analyze the scenario. Soon we were able to take the right management decisions and start consulting clients.

The more the market is developed, the more corporations develop their marketing and PR needs, hence responsibilities will be much bigger. For instance, in my latest book ���The Morning After,��� written during the COVID-19 pandemic, I have described the dramatic changes that happened in the management style and obligations of the CEOs. In my opinion, a CEO should be more of a leader than a manager. Nowadays, people involve themselves as a leader in their working environment, hoping for a horizontal structure where employees, experts, and consultants can understand their responsibilities.

Decades ago, Late Konrad Hilton was asked, what is important for a hotel to be successful?, to which he answered, ���Just three important things: location, location, location������ If I am asked, what is important for a business project or corporation to be successful? I will answer in the same style: communications, communications, communications. For instance, 5G for sure will bring a sea of opportunities from developing not only faster communications but also witnessing changes that have never been seen before. From the Internet of Things (IoT) to mobile services, humanity will evolve and so will the business world.

The Success Mantra For Entrepreneurs

The business of Public Relations is so vast that the services themselves will develop into another name. We will try to remain trustworthy by providing services in real-time, live, immediate, transparent, and exact. What we are currently involved in is the preparation for our evolution in business ��� the Era or Real-time Video Communications on all possible levels. It will require us to increase skilled and updated teams who will be prepared with better knowledge.

The success mantra that works for every industry is 3S: Speed, Simplicity, Self-Confidence. By following just these three words can create magic for the people doing business. Speed is significant ��� taking decisions quickly but effectively. Either it is answering emails, learning new things, keeping deadlines, talking sense to the right people, raising salaries or firing people who do not fit the team, or motivating people. Simplicity is delightful ��� making priorities for business or personal life, what are the important things, what to read, what rules to follow, or what are the to-do lists. Self Confidence ��� a person cannot be successful unless he/she has self-confidence. Not being brave and not ready to take risks invites unpleasant circumstances that can push your life into misery.

And be sure that crisis periods are the best time to cook your success as you can easily overcome obstacles which you will never have during other times. These obstacles are making us stronger and more successful.

Maxim Behar for Bulgarian National TV: The Words of 2021 in Bulgaria

Maxim Behar was a guest in the Bulgarian National TV 's studio and commented the most searched three words in 2021 in Bulgaria, according to a survey on the Internet platform "How to write", in which all Bulgarians could participate. How the words climbed the rankings, on what occasion they are used, and whether their meanings have to do with politics are the questions answered by the PR expert.

Host: Judging, anti-vaxers, and scratching - the Bulgarian words of 2021. How and why these words become part of our daily lives and what is the contribution of the political elite to this. Good morning to Dorothea Nikolova from the literacy platform "How to write?" And to the expert on political PR and communication Maxim Behar.
But is it clear who first used the winning word this year, namely "judge" and on what occasion?

Maxim Behar: This was a politician in my opinion, if I'm not mistaken, a former minister. But look, this is Bulgaria - I judge, I delete, such slightly more aggressive verbs, not to mention that I judge is not part of the Bulgarian language at all and never was. There is only one word in the world. First, the methodology in the world is as follows - it is very clear which is the most mentioned word in online media, whether social media or websites or anywhere. There is only one word in the world for 2021, according to Oxford, and this is the shortest word in the history of word verification in general, for the last 50-60 years and this is VAX. V-A-X (VAX) or vaccinate.�� 2021 was the year when the first anti-covid vaccine was introduced and that's the word. Of course, I appreciate this with respect to the methodology they put into the site, I see here that Gogo Lozanov, Kosta Kostov, Valeria Veleva, Joro Toshev, said their words or shared their words, but I think that 2021 had two main words in Bulgaria, one is ���battle��� because it was a battle, a battle, a battle - for covid, against covid, for vaccines, against vaccines. And the other, unfortunately, is "fear." All of last year we were numb, in fear of what would happen.

Host: Now, however, you say that "VAX" or vaccinate is the word of the year worldwide. How, then, can we explain the phenomenon that the word "anti-vaxer" is in second place in our country? ...

Maxim Behar: I am surprised that it���s not at first, looking at what is happening.

Host: What is the contribution of politicians in the imposition of this type of words, because we remember and "vacation", just as "judge" suddenly became so much a symbol of a word years ago?

Maxim Behar: You know, if words like ���judge���- fictional, incorrect words in the Bulgarian language are the most popular for any given year, they are, in the end, they were popular because they were mentioned with irony. Well, who will say "everyone judges for themselves" seriously in Bulgaria, except for a minister, for example, somewhere on some television? And then it all comes up like a ball of irony, I mean come on, who's going to seriously say judge or scratching? Politicians, unfortunately, use very few words and we all know that and some of these words are sometimes made up from somewhere and they start to become an ironic orb, attached to the politicians so that they can somehow be made fun of or show that they are people who handle few words.
Host: I interrupt you because a ball of questions arises in my head and I recall, we all remember the elite political speech of the early ���90s, we all remember the oratory of Lilov, Lukanov, Blaga Dimitrova, Stefan Savov, Ginyo Ganev, and many others. How did we come to this brutal rape of our language? Why did we allow it?

Maxim Behar: I am sorry to say so directly, but the political class, not only in Bulgaria, in many other countries, all over the world is at an extremely low level. Who is involved in politics? Many people know that politics is about people who can't make money any other way. Generally speaking. There are decent people and there are capable people, people who want to change something, but in the end from these people, young people who are currently "We Continue the Change" I hear much more meaningful sentences ��� with a verb, adjective, noun, things they want to say, they say them in an interesting way, Boyko Borissov was also an atypical politician, he had a very interesting way with words, Kiril Petkov, current Bulgarian Prime Minister, I also see that there is a speech we have never heard, but the mass of politicians they speak as they speak at home or in the neighborhood. Why? Because they don't know another language.

Host: Now this is the question - is it because they do not know another language or is it because they think that this is the easiest communication channel?

Maxim Behar: No, no, no. If they could talk like the politicians you mentioned in the 1990s, if they could talk like that, they would, but this school of thought simply doesn't exist anymore, it is not only educational, it is intellectual - a school of communication, a school of writing.

Host: However, we see more and more people in the parliamentary rostrum coming out looking for words in their pockets. What can we expect such people to do for the state?

Maxim Behar: This is a continuation of my idea that people are unprepared, not only in terms of speaking, but they do not know how this system works and this is proven by one of my topics in one of my books - the Global PR Revolution. Maybe I've devoted 30 to 40 pages to it, what we call democracy doesn't work anymore - It doesn't work. It is not possible for a person who does not have enough education, training, does not even know how to do something right - to wait four years for them if this happens in a corporation or a company and the general manager makes a mistake - the next day he leaves. Here, however, we are waiting for four years until the next election cycle, and these are people who can have their comfort for four years only because they were elected for one reason or another on a proportional system, that is, elected for their party.

Watch the whole interview here.

Priceless Lessons by Maxim Behar: A Story with Zbigniew Brzezinski

��axim Behar talks about his meeting with a man whose ideas and theories are listened to by politicians and experts of high rank - the famous American political scientist and sociologist Zbigniew Brzezinski. This is a story of priceless experiences and lessons that Behar learned on the road to success and now shares in his author series Priceless Lessons for BGLOBAL magazine. ��


���The Fifth Season��� of��� Zbigniew Brzezinski
The man who wrote the history of the collapse of communism at least twenty years before it happened.

For me to see Zbigniew Brzezinski in Sofia was tantamount to a miracle.

And it happened.

Dimi Panitza, the founder and honorary chairman of the Bulgarian School of Politics, called. He is an incredible friend, a great advocate for a free Bulgaria in the first years after the fall of communism, and one of the most active "advertising agents" of our country.

- The Great Zbig is coming! There will be no time for any interviews, but he will be speaking at a dinner at Sheraton Hotel in Sofia. I've secured you an invitation and a seat, from there on I'm counting on you to get at least two sentences from him for the Bulgarian media...

The truth is that Brzezinski foresaw that the system in Russia and Eastern Europe would "wither away" as early as the late seventies in his book on the theory of "convergence", in which, in general, he foresaw that the West and the East would exchange the best things of the two systems and unite them in a common future system. Because of this fact, he was totally denied in Bulgaria, but fortunately, his books reached my student backpack, thanks to the now-deceased professor Vesela Tabakova, who got them in ways unknown to me.

I arrived at the dinner an hour earlier and while explaining to the policeman, who closed the parking lot in front of Sheraton Hotel, where I was going and with whom I was going to have dinner, he raised the barrier but did not forget to say, "Well, only this one had not come to Bulgaria yet...". He knew his name and that in itself was no small thing.

Besides being a character, an incredible scholar, and a political scientist, Brzezinski was also an institution. Not only because he held one of the most important foreign policy advisory posts under President Jimmy Carter, but also because long before that he had built a name for himself as an astute and analytical mind who knew what would be years from now on the map of the world. And his predictions always came true.

Dinner was already ending, it must have been around midnight, and Brzezinski had been standing up straight for about three hours ��� first, he had a lecture, then he answered dozens of questions, and as he passed by my table on his way out of the restaurant, Dimi gently directed him towards me and whispered, "Zbig, didn't I tell you we had a journalist with us already. If you buy him a drink, you might learn some interesting things..."

Brzezinski stopped, gave me his hand, and when I spoke to him in Polish, despite the tiredness on his face, he visibly brightened up and said, "Well, I won���t fall asleep early anyway because of jetlag - the time difference - we can grab a Jack Daniels somewhere here in the bar...".

Actually, serious political conversations, even in those glory years, after midnight I don't remember having, but this one was really unique in its accuracy and its analysis. And thankfully, the bar was empty.

And even before we've ordered, I start asking:
- Does it now mean that we, in Eastern Europe, who were together in both the COMECON and the Warsaw Pact, now have different paths - the Czech Republic, Poland and Hungary are moving fast, while we and Romania are lagging far behind?

��- Not so. There is only one path - market reforms and democracy. But do not forget that neither the European Union nor NATO are charities run by philanthropists who hand out money.�� Your presence there simply has to be worked out...

I reminded him that the democracies themselves are still weak, there are no prepared politicians in Bulgaria, the media only now understand what it means to write freely and analytically.

- Do not underestimate your President Zhelyu Zhelev! He may not have a rich dissident biography like his counterparts in the Czech Republic and Poland, Vaclav Havel and Lech Walesa, but Zhelev handles all the strong winds at the top amazingly well, and we in Washington believe that you are an island of ethnic stability and understanding.

Brzezinski took a slow sip of whiskey, elegantly and carefully returned the glass to the glass table, and while holding the glass of soda in his hand, continued:
- I have always been against changes under Indigo, each country has its own peculiarities and it is up to its citizens to decide what they want and how they want it... For example, the end of Franco's regime brought back the monarchy in Spain and it proved to be very useful because it stimulated peaceful transition and democratic reforms. In neighboring Portugal, however, the fall of Salazar did not bring back the monarchy, but we see that socialist governments in both countries are doing equally well���

We talked a lot about Bulgaria, although he is hardly as deep an expert as he is about his native Poland or Russia, which he has been dealing with professionally all his life. He said he had read dozens of books about our country before accepting the invitation to come to Sofia for a day and that he was most surprised by the coarse vocabulary of politicians here. And as he talked too long about his friend Dimi Panitza, both of whom grew up together in Washington in immigrant families, he made sure to say how much he admired him because Dimi's wife, the Frenchwoman Yvonne, speaks Bulgarian much better than his own, the Czech Emily, speaks Polish.

But then his face stretched and clarified:
- I wish I could do for Poland what Dimi is doing for a new and modern Bulgaria. Keep people like him. Because I don't see Bulgaria having any dangers or enemies from outside in the next decades. You will have what you make yourself - a market economy, politics, democracy... If you make them well, you will live well. The world is now such that everything depends on you, Bulgarians. Don't ever forget it.���������� ��

It was past two in the morning when I remembered I had a present for him and nervously pulled it out of my then old-fashioned journalist's bag. I'd been thinking all day about what one might give someone who has everything and not leave it at the hotel or throw it in the trash at the airport. ��

I bought him a CD with a wonderful performance of Vivaldi's The Four Seasons and while my host was signing the bill, I wrote on the cover "To Zbigniew Brzezinski - the man who foresaw for Eastern Europe the fifth most important season - the season of democracy." He picked it up, read it several times, and said to me in Polish: 'Thank you very much. This disk will always be in my office in Washington. I love Vivaldi, but I appreciate democracy even more...".

Maxim Behar for Manager: The Most Important Year in Business is Upcoming, The Year to ���Adjust���

The communication expert Maxim Behar shares in an interview for Manager magazine what are the most important elements in the PR profession, what role traditional and social media play today, how to use them successfully and what challenges do experts face in Bulgaria.

What does a good creative message mean from the point of view of your business?
In our business, PR creativity is everything. There are a number of additional, some of them extremely important, elements, but without creativity, without an interesting and clear message, all our work will remain solely on paper��� This question completely corresponds to my understanding of PR - to tell the truth so that it can be well understood. The first part ��� truth, is undoubtedly the most important one; however, the second one contains the creative part, a message which to be developed in such a way that it can be understood by anyone��� This is exactly what good, true creativity means. Very short messages need to be used, any word should be well considered, even each comma, to decide where to put the verb, how dynamic it should be ��� and what matters the most ��� to know that each media has its unique language. We all write either in Bulgarian or in English, but the language of Facebook is one kind, that of Twitter another one, the language of Linkedln is more business-oriented, that of Instagram - with very little text and great vision, that of Tik Tok is the most complicated one, because an original and super interesting video must say in 15 seconds what we said only five years ago for half an hour���

What was the nature of the stories you told in 2021 with your clients? In what type of communications did you predominantly invest?
We tried to be correct and creative. We perfectly accomplished it with all our projects, which can be easily proved by the clear results as well as the opinion of our clients. What matters the most is that we used all possible social media, in order to find the most suitable mix for our messages and depending on what we want to accomplish. We told real life stories about young people and not that young, people with great opportunities and for a small circle of professionals, we talked about changes in Bulgaria and how the pandemic changed our whole life and our attitudes to goods and services for ever. However, on the other hand, we did not underestimate traditional media, which also have their impact on audiences and fortunately the already paid content in them is quite well regulated and signified ��� thus we achieve the use of one of the most important, not to mention the most important element in our business - ethics. Readers know that this is a sponsored content, a way for the client to send important messages to them.

What are the crucial challenges communication departments of companies in Bulgaria face?
To adjust quickly to the entirely new conditions of doing business, as the pandemic is not the only reason. On a global scale, there is one constant tendency, quite accelerated by the pandemic, which cannot pass by Bulgaria. This is the relatively rapid merger of the three main businesses in the field of public communications - advertising, PR and digital services. There are too many theories about which one is expected to be the leader of this new, big, united and, to a certain extent, quite new business. I have always said at all world forums, where I give speeches almost every month, that it is PR business that will be the leader, as the arguments are obvious to me - we, PR experts, are the ���kings of content���, and without it every project tends to fail. Now the most important is that any expert in communication business should understand this huge change and begin studying its details. In Bulgaria and around the world.

Maxim Behar for TV Evropa: Young Voices in Parliament Can Change Bulgaria

Maxim Behar was a guest on the Europe Morning show on Europe TV with host Diana Radeva and shared his opinion about the new Bulgarian Parliament, composed of business people, about the political forces and the role of the President. Whether the PR expert's predictions are optimistic you will read in the interview.

Host: Hello again. This is the Europe Morning show on TV Europe. I am Diana Radeva. The start of the new Bulgarian Parliament is already a fact. Yesterday we saw brand new MPs, most of them with an average age of about 40. This is shown by the statistics, the youngest or one of the youngest chairmen of the National Assembly in modern Bulgarian history, but whether in the whole history of Bulgaria, this will be discussed in the coming minutes with PR specialist Maxim Behar. Hello, welcome. And the lady in the studio, professor Antoaneta Hristova, a political psychologist. We talked about the fact that the new parliament looks quite different. What are your impressions?

Maxim Behar: I think that the main feature of the new parliament is not so much the average age as the fact that about 90% of the new people are people with a business background. These are people who have made no less responsible decisions every day than they will have to make now. That is, they have an exceptional experience, they have made their money, they know how to make money because a large part of the parliament, there are people in the parliament who do not have a single working day in their life and have always expected someone to give them a salary somewhere or to take some commission or something - to earn some income. Business people, in my opinion, should enter politics as soon as possible, as it is, but this policy, maybe in ten years, will change completely and this whole system, which no longer works and we have repeatedly talked about it in your studio, for some strange reason we still call democracy, one day it will undergo great changes anyway, because the whole world has changed - social networks, communications and everything else, the business has changed, the political system remains the same, it's completely absurd. But it is very important that there are people who have made business decisions and are very experienced in this regard, as far as the new Speaker of Parliament - 34 years is a very dignified age, by the way, for contemporary times. Has anyone asked Bill Gates how old he is? Has anyone asked Steve Jobs in his garage, when they made the first Apple computers with screwdrivers, had they asked him how old he is? Mark Zuckerberg, how old was he when he created Facebook as a student at Harvard. 34 years is an age at which the new Speaker of Parliament probably has ten years of work experience ��� absolutely, absolutely enough. You know Diana, I work with people, the average age in my company is 27 years. Many students, but these students, I do not want to offend anyone, are much better in practice than their teachers, and therefore I think it is a step forward.

Host: So, you are an optimist and for you, this is a step forward? That a lot of people come from business, not theorists, so to speak?

Maxim Behar: Well, I've always been optimistic. Practice is super important at the moment and is much more important than theory.

Host: I understand. And do you think, watching the consultations, some criticized that they were publicly broadcast, and now there are other agreements away from the cameras. Are you optimistic that a cabinet will be formed? We also listened yesterday to Kiril Petkov and Asen Vassilev, who said that agreements were being reached, that nothing was 100% certain until the final moment.
Mr. Behar are you optimistic about the formation of a new government?

Maxim Behar: This government will be normal, elected, and consisting of four political forces that have sat down and understood each other intelligently, properly. You mentioned that there were opponents of this transparent debate. I do not find a normal person who would be against this. Everything that is transparent is ethical. Everything that is transparent is accurate, honest, and fair. And I think that this government, as well as in Germany, by the way, the same can be said, that this government is under duress to wash their eyes, have some clear vision, someone to govern. Modern conditions and political relations put us for the first time in Bulgaria at such a table, where we can understand each other, we can have the same goals and these goals are called Bulgaria, which must be taken seriously and improved.

Host: Who holds, however, the key to creating a cabinet?

Maxim Behar: In these (parliamentary) talks, the positions of all political forces on the most important issues were heard. This has never happened in Bulgarian history. They were broadcast live, politicians were heard. Of course, the agreements for ministerial posts, for deputy ministers, who will be responsible for what, how the ministry will be structured - of course, they will not be public.
��
Host: In your opinion, can finding people who can do the job, as Kiril Petkov said, stumble upon a stone? And those who suspect that Cornelia Ninova is a very strong figure in this equation, are they right Mr. Behar?
Maxim Behar: I think they will find a good way to put the right people in the right positions because I have said many times, Bulgaria is full of young, intelligent, capable, well-motivated people who can do the job. They just need to be motivated and have a sparkle in their eyes. Now there are these conditions, they will find people, I hope they do not enter, of course, into political games, negotiations.

Host: Any comment on the names that revolved. For example, Boyko Rashkov as Interior Minister was named after Cornelia Ninova, again the resigned BSP leader.

Maxim Behar: Let's see the lineup first.

Host: There are so many different goals, different values. Is there a danger that this government will find itself in a situation where different partners want different things and therefore nothing happens in the end?

Maxim Behar: Politicians should know that they face a huge challenge, and it will be very difficult in Bulgaria in a global crisis, Bulgaria in a pandemic, I would say a great deal of poverty, complete disappointment, and devaluation of authorities in Bulgaria, authorities in politics. Great disappointment. It will be very difficult to activate and motivate the Bulgarian people so that there is support, broad support for the government. We will see what happens, but it will be extremely difficult, and these young people need to know that.

Host: What will be the life of this government, first and foremost, the role of the president? What is signaled at the beginning of his second term? And why, by the way, was there a draft budget proposed by the caretaker government, which so far signals the new parties that will negotiate a cabinet? It turns out that they will review it, but it is not certain that they will implement it.

Maxim Behar: We all have questions. I agree that We Continue the Change is a function of the President and will work together with the President. I guess that's good news, and I guess it's useful at this point because there needs to be some broader consensus. I am absolutely convinced that there will be autonomy, that they will separate, they will have their own platform and program. Let's see how far they go. However, what I see so far is very positive, because finally, after so many years, I finally see smiling people in politics. We are seeing people, I���m talking about Kiril Petkov, Asen Vassilev, the people around them. People who speak normally, who have a subjunctive, a predicate, and a compliment. People who speak to you in such a way that you understand them and say to yourself, and this is evident in the elections, yes 30%, 30% - so much God has given. However, it is clear from the election results.
The We Continue the Change Program is a brilliant program. With many specific things, which, if they happen next year in Bulgaria, we will simply be much better than now. There are many ways to make things better in Bulgaria.

Host: They are preparing for a 4-year term. As we move towards the end, we have 2 minutes until the end. What is your forecast? Will good things happen, who are the strong figures in this cabinet, and with what perspective, in terms of duration?

Maxim Behar: We have a great chance. We must use it in the best possible way and really the people around We Continue the Change must know that it will be very difficult, very, very difficult and we must be ready for any battles because really the way we live is actually the most important thing that needs to change. People want change and they strongly think that the smiles we see now from young people in Parliament are not artificial. These are the smiles of people who want to change something in Bulgaria and will do it.

Host: Do you have any comments on the rapper Hristo Petrov and his interview? Was he rather ironic about the reporter's questions or not?

Maxim Behar: His whole campaign was ironic. All the videos he had were ironic. I can't comment on one or two or three things. During these 15 years, we have seen such statements, such nonsense, that what a rapper or another young person has said is a flower in comparison��� We shall see, we have some interesting political months ahead of us���

Host: Thank you. We expect more news about the agreement tomorrow. And next week, towards the end, there will be a government, as are the requests at the moment, we will see.

Watch the full video here.

Maxim Behar for Capital: Pandemic Have Made Us Much Better PR Experts

Leading PR expert and CEO of M3 Communications Group, Inc. Maxim Behar shared in an interview for Capital newspaper how the pandemic affected his company and team, how he managed to retain and increase its clients, what role social media play in communications today and how he defines the PR business in 2022.


"We managed to leave behind the untypical for our business activities�� and now we are focusing at our indisputably strong side ��� excellent consulting business." ��� says Behar.

Were you ready, were your clients ready for the crisis?
- Of course not. What happened is much more than a crisis and no one was ready for it. What helped us is that we in the company are experts in crisis management and just for a day or two we succeeded to work out a strategy how to deal with this one. Immediately afterwards we introduced our strategy to our dozens of clients who expected us to advise them. Their problems were significantly more - how to communicate with partners, with their clients, but also with their teams. We were and we continue to be in touch with our parent company, the great professionals from Hill + Knowlton Strategies, who constantly�� support us for about 22 years. This summer I called the manager of one of their European Offices and expressed my intention to visit for two or three days with several people from my team to see how they deal with the distance work, the pandemic and all new changes in business. He was silent for a while and answered me, "Max, are you kidding me? I was thinking to come to draw experience from you, that���s a surprise. We all in the corporation know how successful you are and innovative not only in Bulgaria but also throughout the Eastern European region."

Which of the affected by the pandemic businesses are your clients and what happened with their businesses and campaigns? Did you gain or lose any clients?
- In practice, all our clients were affected by the pandemic to a different extent and in different ways. What makes us very proud is that for these 18 months we did not lose a single client, just the opposite - we won 11 new ones, something that we have never achieved even for three years. The main reasons were our rapid reaction and clear approaches. And something else important - we did not lay off any of our colleagues, the opposite, our team was growing, especially in the Social Media Department. Among other things, we changed the concept of our working process, the system of allocating tasks and responsibilities, and the communication between us. In my opinion, we are now more effective, but we will need more time to become the very best of this new way of working and end up as winners.

Did the focus of your clients change, their demands, or the environment for communicating their messages? Did the importance of social networks in communication and the place of traditional media change?
- Yes, and this is normal. First, live events were suspended, platforms like Zoom and Teams took over the whole area, and for me that was the best thing that ever happened at M3 Communications Group, Inc. at least for a decade. We just left behind the untypical for our business activities like taking care of catering services, stages, sound systems, transport. And we got all this time to be able to focus on the most important thing in our business - consulting. This marked a slight decline in our revenues, but in practice it did not affect our business at all, as these were funds that only went through our company to go to subcontractors. The trend of social media being a priority for us and our customers continued to move with the same force, rather the traditional media changed by introducing a new policy for paid publications, and thus things became even clearer and more transparent.

What are the main differences in your way of working before March 2020 and after?
- We learned how to work remotely, something unheard of before, and I see a lot of positives in this. Now I am able to meet my main team and make direct eye contact with each of them every day, we can discuss our projects, clients... and so many other topics. This was nearly impossible in our ���previous life���, to gather every day around 40 people in a room every day and to talk to them ��� simply not possible! Now we have a completely different relationship ��� better and stronger. There is just one element that I still need to handle successfully�� ��� how to create a great team online ��� But be sure I���ll manage to do it soon; I am on it! Many of the possible outcomes are described in my latest book The Morning After, which I published, provoked by the new living and business conditions.

What happened to your team? Have you changed your strategy for finding new staff and do you have any observation for a change in the perceptions of newcomers to your company?
- We have a very sustainable team composed of wonderful professionals. There were colleagues who just decided to change their career field, but we immediately found new awesome people who, after a long process of interviews and tests, managed to fit perfectly in the team. The team is actually the most important in a company, in a business at all. Next to me there are amazing professionals who are reliable, well-prepared, devoted and loyal. The most important thing - motivated to defend the company's great brand, which has been among the leaders on the Bulgarian market for 27 years.

What are your latest projects and what is your medium-term strategy?
- We are doing what our customers need more and more successfully. We are especially focused on strengthening our social media campaigns by developing and studying each new media channel in detail, in order to provide an even more accurate measurement of their results. With one of our subsidiaries - "Headline", we launched two new projects - weekly analysis of individual topics of interest to our customers, as well as measuring the results of PR activities of a company. We do great educational programs online at M3 College - the only fully licensed college for communication skills in Bulgaria.

What are you changing in the office environment?
- We also launched three new projects, which are not directly related to our clients, but are important for the team. We started doing the so-called Power Talks, when we meet interesting business people who present their point of view on interesting topics. Quite logically, the last month or two the meetings were dedicated to world-famous professionals in the field of vaccines and immunology. These meeting are always recorded and posted on our social media. For the first time in 27 years, we have announced our Advisory Board, part of which is the former Bulgaria���s Foreign Minister Dr. Solomon Passy as chairman, indisputably amazing professionals in their fields such as the journalist Anna Tsolova, professor Lubomir Stoykov, professor Grigor Gorchev, media ���gurus��� Martin Zahariev, Valeri Zapryanov, Petar Punchev, Valentin Panayotov, business representatives Tsvetelina Nikolova, Maria Shishkova, Nikolay Vasilev and Stefan Ivanov, and many others. Their advices are powerful motivation to me and my team for our future development in the years to come. And last but not least, we made our office Plastic Free. That is our small step in the path of keeping the nature clean.

PR is a very personalized business. To what extent do you rely on your team, in general how do you manage your company ��� as a team or individually? This year you published your book The Morning After in which you predicted a total transition to a horizontal version of management.
- The days of running a company on ���manual control��� are long gone. As I mentioned in the book: now everyone is a leader with their own responsibilities, projects, successes and - sometimes - failures. Making quick decisions is the most important key to success for projects, but also for a manager or just an expert. The most important decisions in the company are made by the Board of M3 Communications Group, Inc., which presents the most important departments of the company - the PR department with directors Kristina Radkova and Svetoslava Nedyalkova, our Legal and Financial department with Ivanka Velkova and the Graphic Design department led by Yana Georgieva. When we are making decisions, we often ask the directors of the other two important departments - Marina Grudeva who is in charge of Social Media department, and Nikolay Gladkov, the director of Headline, who is in charge of media analysis. These are wonderful professionals that I have been working with for many years. We have done many super successful projects; we have had incredible successes and we have overcome many difficulties together. In a company, there is nothing more important than the team and the understanding that the manager manages the projects in detail, while the leader gives the right directions in the process. There is just a small difference in the wording but great difference in action. The concept of M3 Communications Group, Inc. is to be a company made up of leaders.

You are well known for your visionary mind. What is your definition of PR in 2022?
- To always tell the truth in a way that people can understand it. The key word here is truth. This statement is even more important now after the incredible wave of misinformation surrounding the pandemic and the recent Bulgarian elections for President and Parliament. In our business, the truth must be on a pedestal. And after that comes the important role of creativity - how to convey this truth in an understandable and engaging way.

Maxim Behar as Judge at Vietnam PR & Communications Excellence Awards 2021

Maxim Behar was named as the judge for this year's prestigious Vietnam Public Relations & Communications Excellence Awards, hosted by the Vietnam Public Relations Network (VNPR). He was invited to join the jury of global leading industry experts and provide his great knowledge and valuable experience to the numerous professional participants.

The Vietnam Public Relations & Communications Excellence Awards 2021 aim to honor the most outstanding achievements and best efforts of agencies and professionals in the field of Public Relations and Communications.

This year, the Awards are honorably accompanied by the International Communications Consultancy Organization (ICCO) and the Public Relations and Communications Association (PRCA).

Winners and finalists will be announced at the awarding gala event in January 2022.