By Morf Morford
Tacoma Daily Index
I’m reading a book titled 2030 by Mauro F. Guillen from Wharton. The premise is that a multiplicity of forces and trends, currently active, with bear their full force by 2030.
His basic premise was a simple principle; many basic rules or standards which held true for centuries or longer, no longer hold true.
By 2030, those essential guidelines, he insists, will be distant history, if that.
He describes 2030 as the final death knell of “life as we know it.”
He insists that too many politicians, CEOs and leaders in all kinds of fields act as if they can make their own rules, and that the principles that have held for millennia suddenly don’t apply – at least for them.
He doesn’t mention these, but consider old sayings that seem to be no longer true; simple things like “Honesty is the best policy”, “The customer is always right”, “Play fair”, “Pick on someone your own size” and many others.
If customers, companies and agencies lived by any of these, consider how different life would be.
To pick an easy one; what if companies acted as if “Honesty is the best policy”?
Wouldn’t you love to live in a world where food producers for example, were honest about their food ingredients? Or how about product liability?
If we had honesty, we wouldn’t need class action consumer lawsuits against companies or government agencies.
What if companies were honest about product side effects, hazards or problems?
What if, when it came to toxic materials or potential hazards, the emphasis was not on public relations or marketing, but on actual long-term safety?
If companies stood by their products and we, as consumers (or workers around those products) knew that these products were safe to use and work with, don’t you think that company – and its reputation – would be held up as exemplary?
If a business of any kind held the policy “The customer is always right”, I’d be their customer forever – wouldn’t you?
From grocery store to coffee shop or gas station, wouldn’t you far prefer to spend your money – and your time – with a company that respected you and valued you for more than your spending?
The premise of business used to be to provide a good or service to a community. I know it’s a crazy, even archaic idea, but what if a company existed to be of service to a community instead of just to siphon out money in exchange for shoddy products or inadequate service?
I think that is what people are looking for in what is called brand loyalty. We are looking for a name, a brand that we can trust.
We have a climate now where too few are committed either to their product or their community.
I don’t think of myself as locked in the past, or even unusually conservative, but I have learned to appreciate honesty and good work, and I’d hate to see them both sacrificed in the pursuit of the quick dollar.
“Take the money and run” is not a philosophy one can live by for very long.
Consider these sayings and principles, some like those from Confucius are centuries old, others are recently coined, though enduringly true.
Please do yourself (and all of us) a favor; do work you can be proud of and, make, and leave, a legacy of contribution, good work and decency.
The superior man understands what is right; the inferior man understands what will sell. – Confucius
The man who will use his skill and constructive imagination to see how much he can give for a dollar, instead of how little he can give for a dollar, is bound to succeed. — Henry Ford
There are no secrets to success. It is the result of preparation, hard work, and learning from failure. — Colin Powell
“There are two types of people who will tell you that you cannot make a difference in this world: those who are afraid to try and those who are afraid you will succeed.” — Ray Goforth
“Would you like me to give you a formula for success? It’s quite simple, really: Double your rate of failure. You are thinking of failure as the enemy of success. But it isn’t at all. You can be discouraged by failure or you can learn from it, so go ahead and make mistakes. Make all you can. Because remember that’s where you will find success. — Thomas J. Watson
Think of how simple life would be if we lived by these.
