Never thought I’d be writing a blog. Seems more like something my kids would consider. But there are some new ideas simmering at Shamrock, and I realize the best way to them, and what’s new in the industry, is a blog. Hopefully, this will give us a chance to engage in some problem-solving dialog, answer questions and talk about trends heading our way faster than a high-performance sports car at Le Mans.
A true story
Recently, I was walking through our building with a customer. He saw several kaleidoscopes on display, and asked me why I collect them. I thought about it, and immediately realized why I’m so fond of kaleidoscopes. They’re so simply designed that, with a slight turn of the wrist, they create a pattern that pleases everyone who looks through it. A kaleidoscope really is just a simple tube with a circle of mirrors containing loose, colored objects such as beads or pebbles and bits of glass. But when the viewer looks into one end, those pebbles and bits of glass come together to create a whole vision that is complex yet so simple in its balanced perfection. Essentially, a kaleidoscope simplifies chaos.
Aside from the complementary principles of complexity and simplicity inside a simple tube, what fascinates me about kaleidoscopes is how each particle inside this cylinder works as part of the whole to create symmetry and a uniquely perfect outcome. (Unlike my golf game, which, lately, seems to lack symmetry — or anything close to perfection.)
Our problem-solving process is like a kaleidoscope. When a customer comes to us for help, we gather a group of smart people with individual talents. Think of this group like those small objects in a kaleidoscope, working in harmony. They may use the Raving Fans Theory, plus their combined talents and Shamrock’s cutting-edge technology to create an individualized solution to a customer’s problem. Not too different from the symmetry inside a kaleidoscope.
One Last Word
In this era of business enterprise where solutions are defined by new technology, we try to remember that it’s the individuality and different talents of the team who solve the problems, to actually make the technology work.
And One Final Thought
I’ve heard that the first post is the hardest. I’d like this blog to be about you, your company and what you’d like to discuss. Anything, from innovative ways to use mobile marketing to the latest techniques in digital printing, to innovations in testing direct mail. We’ll do everything we can to get answers and share them in future posts.
