Every once in a while I will post a reminder not only to myself but to everyone to remember to 'Chop Wood & Carry Water'!
What's so important about "chopping wood and carrying water"?
It is this simple: Chopping Wood and Carrying Water is about remembering to do the simple things while doing the right things.
16 January 2012
11 January 2012
Of Twinkies & Kodachrome
When I found out that Hostess had filed for Bankruptcy, I was floored. I never saw it coming. While there was some drums beating out in the distance warning that trouble was just ahead. I was looking into the forest waiting for a Tiger or Lion or heck, even, a Cougar to come charging at me as my eyes were solely focused on Kodak. I was waiting to see how things would shape up after the planned bankruptcy filing. Was the company going to be able to do something with what was left? Was the name Kodak to disappear off the face of the Earth forever?
Oh, please don't take my Kodachrome away :(
However, like a right cross to the jaw from Manny Pacquiao, I hit the mat when I heard Hostess, Inc., filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on Wednesday, January 11, 2012. While it was good to hear that they would continue to keep making the Twinkies and Ho-Hos there was still something fundamentally wrong with the picture. The whole, big picture.
Somewhere, somehow, some one dropped the ball and are letting long standing icons of the US business landscape fall to the wayside. What were once icons of what is Great and Good in America are quickly joining the other once mighty corporate giants as the latest examples of "what not to do."
So Who Is To Blame?
We seek blame in everything that goes wrong. We look to point the finger at others. So who do we blame? The Corporate Officers? The Front Line Managers? The 9-5 Blue Collar Workers?
Let's blame the Customer - the Consumer?
OH NO, WE CAN'T DO THAT!!! Sure we can! We will blame ourselves! We know the products, the services, the name, the legacy, yet we, the Customer, are easily swayed by the shiny objects, especially when they are new.
So what's the big deal? It's no big deal to us, the Consumer. No big deal because we will move along to the next new, shiny object and be satiated until another new, shiny object captures our attention and we move along.
Well, why didn't Kodak or Hostess create and market a new, shiny object to draw us back in to the fold? One reason may be because they rested on their laurels with the old "We've been around forever and people like us, so we'll be around for a long time to come" way of thinking, believing, and acting.
Well, in an age where being healthy is King, there is no room for Twinkies, Ding-Dongs, or Ho-Hos. Is there a low-fat, low-carb, low-cholesterol alternative to the Twinkies?
We are also living in an age where content creation is the Supreme Allied Commander! What did Kodak do to keep its edge over the digital image creation competition (it's a rhetorical question)?
Yes, we can blame ourselves for the downfall of two great examples of American Free Enterprise. It's because they weren't willing to change with the times that we shifted our focus to something else.
AND TO THOSE THAT HAVE OUR ATTENTION NOW:
What are you doing NOW to ensure that we will like your next new, shiny object and not your competition's new, shiny object? WELL?
-Dave
As always you can read this blog post in its original location at http://daveguerra.blogspot.com
Here are some Technorati Tags: • Hostess • Kodak • Bankruptcy • Chapter 11 • Change Now, NOT LATER • Dave Guerra • Leadership • Leading • Leadership Development • Professional Development • Lead, Follow, or Get out of the way • Ready, Fire, Aim! • If it aint broke, break it. • Hire Crazies • Ask dumb questions • Pursue failure • Spread Confusion • Ditch Your Office • Read Odd Stuff • Avoid Moderation • Higher, Admire, Desire, Require, Satire, Inquire, On Fire, All Possible Scenarios • Give to the American Red Cross • Hire A Hero
Oh, please don't take my Kodachrome away :(
However, like a right cross to the jaw from Manny Pacquiao, I hit the mat when I heard Hostess, Inc., filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on Wednesday, January 11, 2012. While it was good to hear that they would continue to keep making the Twinkies and Ho-Hos there was still something fundamentally wrong with the picture. The whole, big picture.
Somewhere, somehow, some one dropped the ball and are letting long standing icons of the US business landscape fall to the wayside. What were once icons of what is Great and Good in America are quickly joining the other once mighty corporate giants as the latest examples of "what not to do."
So Who Is To Blame?
We seek blame in everything that goes wrong. We look to point the finger at others. So who do we blame? The Corporate Officers? The Front Line Managers? The 9-5 Blue Collar Workers?
Let's blame the Customer - the Consumer?
OH NO, WE CAN'T DO THAT!!! Sure we can! We will blame ourselves! We know the products, the services, the name, the legacy, yet we, the Customer, are easily swayed by the shiny objects, especially when they are new.
So what's the big deal? It's no big deal to us, the Consumer. No big deal because we will move along to the next new, shiny object and be satiated until another new, shiny object captures our attention and we move along.
Well, why didn't Kodak or Hostess create and market a new, shiny object to draw us back in to the fold? One reason may be because they rested on their laurels with the old "We've been around forever and people like us, so we'll be around for a long time to come" way of thinking, believing, and acting.
Well, in an age where being healthy is King, there is no room for Twinkies, Ding-Dongs, or Ho-Hos. Is there a low-fat, low-carb, low-cholesterol alternative to the Twinkies?
We are also living in an age where content creation is the Supreme Allied Commander! What did Kodak do to keep its edge over the digital image creation competition (it's a rhetorical question)?
Yes, we can blame ourselves for the downfall of two great examples of American Free Enterprise. It's because they weren't willing to change with the times that we shifted our focus to something else.
AND TO THOSE THAT HAVE OUR ATTENTION NOW:
What are you doing NOW to ensure that we will like your next new, shiny object and not your competition's new, shiny object? WELL?
-Dave
As always you can read this blog post in its original location at http://daveguerra.blogspot.com
Here are some Technorati Tags: • Hostess • Kodak • Bankruptcy • Chapter 11 • Change Now, NOT LATER • Dave Guerra • Leadership • Leading • Leadership Development • Professional Development • Lead, Follow, or Get out of the way • Ready, Fire, Aim! • If it aint broke, break it. • Hire Crazies • Ask dumb questions • Pursue failure • Spread Confusion • Ditch Your Office • Read Odd Stuff • Avoid Moderation • Higher, Admire, Desire, Require, Satire, Inquire, On Fire, All Possible Scenarios • Give to the American Red Cross • Hire A Hero
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