I read an article in Sales and Marketing Magazine ©
by Tim Houlihan, Chief Behavioral Strategist at Behavior Academy. He bracketed his thought leadership with a
couple of opinions about history. Here’s
the first:
In
1450, the printing press was expected to render the brain useless by making
memorization obsolete – it didn’t. In
1600, most people were certain the Earth was the center of the universe – it
isn’t. In 1700, most sailors believed drinking
malt whisky cured scurvy – it doesn’t.
In 1985, my sales manager told me that mobile phones (then hard-wired
into cars) were only good for one thing: calling your customer to say you’re
going to be late.
It’s easy to criticize the mistakes of those who came before
us, true? I mean, part of gaining
subject matter expertise is learning from mistakes; ours and others:
An
expert is a man who has made all the mistakes which can be made in a very
narrow field.
Niels
Bohn
It’s not surprising that people today discount the value of historical
knowledge and experience. They cite
examples of failure in our companies; our communities; and our country that
have failed - and there are many.
However, if historical knowledge and extensive experience is
no longer of value then who will we follow, and why? What do you think of those with “credentials”
vs. those with “accomplishments”? There’s
a big difference.
Here’s Tim other opinion that stood out:
Maybe we’ve met. Was it at a trade show or a conference? You said you’ve built a lot of sales
incentive programs as a manager, and, not to toot your own horn, but they have
worked pretty darn well. So why read
this article? With 20-plus years and
more than 1,500 sales incentive programs under my belt, I’ve got something to
share.
What do you think? Is
20-plus years valuable; or should we discount it? Is Tim’s experience with 1,500+ programs “Old
School”? If so, is that term a
compliment or a criticism? I wasn’t sure
myself. I found this amusing, etymological
debate about Old School (link).
Does your company value experience and the people who
possess it? Does your company believe “old
guys” are too Old School to have value?
Is your company engaged in a youth movement?
Lest you haven’t realized - and I don’t know how you
couldn’t - but just in case and to set the proper context, I’m definitely Old
School with all the trappings… gray
hair; a 4-decade resume; deep historical knowledge; the works.
Yet, I’ve noticed the rise of occurrences at my company and
others of this phenomenon cited by none other than our favorite, Unknown Sage:
Success has many fathers while
failure is an orphan.
Russian Proverb
Today, I’m witnessing an increase in people claiming
unearned success. Is this a business
world spillover originating from youth sports and participation trophies? I’d like to believe they mean well. But is bypassing the time it takes to “earn
your stripes” too Old School?
Our Unknown Sage reminds us of Hershiser:
Hershiser's
Rule:
Anything
labeled new and/or improved, isn't.
And goes on about ungrounded claims of success:
When
dog food is new and improved tasting, who tests it?
Is today’s “Subject Matter Expert” title declared or
earned? If earned, based on what
criteria? If their criteria span history
and experience, should their expertise be discounted?
Yes, they have met us Old Schoolers before. Should they discount our value? Well… do you?
GAP
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