dispatches from the new world of work

100 Ways to Succeed #21:

It's ... SHOWTIME! ALL THE TIME!

Joe Pine and Jim Gilmore gave us the Great Gift ... the book The Experience Economy: Work Is Theater & Every Business a Stage. OH HOW I LOVE THAT TITLE! As well as the Fundamental Hypothesis: "EXPERIENCES ARE AS DISTINCT FROM SERVICES AS SERVICES ARE FROM GOODS."

Or, in TP lingo: IT'S ALWAYS SHOWTIME!

"Showtime" =

Every speech!
Every PowerPoint presentation!
Every individual slide!

Every Client phone call!
EVERY INTERCHANGE WITH A "FOURTH-LEVEL" CLIENT "ADMIN ASSISTANT" ... who may make a negative (or positive!) comment to her boss's boss (who signs my check!) about an off-the-cuff comment I hastily made.
Every employee interaction ... especially when I'm stressed and/or grouchy.

Every Post at tompeters.com!
Every 7(!)-second eye contact with someone who asks me to sign a book!

And so on.
And on.

Am I hopelessly uptight about all this?
Sure. (Why do you think I revise the font-choice on a single slide 15 minutes before an A/V check?)

But no, too; "it" (being on) has become a way of life, as natural as breathing. (My beloved wife says it takes me 2 or 3 days, after I've been on the road, to quit "preaching to 4,000 people.")

Is this "no way to live"?
Hell, no!
I love it!
I love what I do. (Remember ... Love-a-holic!)
I am ... Desperate to ... Make a Difference!

I hope you are too.

SHOW TIME ... ALL THE TIME ... is Very Cool!

NB: "Experiences" are as distinct from "services" as services are from "goods"!

Tom Peters posted this on 10/25/04.

Comments

Tom Peters is a fabulous example of something that all successful educators implicitly know: It's not about the textbook! Any seminar or class is only as good as the experience that the leader/teacher provides to the group. Education is part of the experience economy! WOW!

Posted by Timothy Connor at November 28, 2004 5:57 AM