A month or so ago I walked into my friend Shannon’s office at work and, on his white board (among many other, slightly less cryptic notes), he had the following:
1. Steal underpants
2. ?
3. Profit
At first I thought it was in reference to metal underwear, which made me think of pinching, rust and shrinkage on cold days, but then I noticed the spelling of the first word and realized he was talking about absconding with undergarments. Being the curious (but respectful) guy that I am, I asked him what the hell that was supposed to mean. He directed me to a segment of South Park which, he assured me, would explain all. (See if you agree.)
If you elect not to click on the link above or haven’t heard of this before, a short explanation: One of the South Park kids discovered the reason everyone’s underpants were disappearing was that they were being stolen by gnomes, who were piling them in a cavern. When asked why, they (the gnomes) described their business model as above. Matt, Trey and the gang of writers were poking fun at poorly thought-out business models. Just because you have a good idea (or think you do) doesn’t mean you can turn that idea into profit (or even a revenue stream).
So this got me thinking about groupthink. I would be willing to bet that you have been in situations where you went along with an idea or plan more to be supportive (or not be perceived negative) than because you thought it was a great idea. I know I have. Sometimes it’s a project that I agree to, which then comes back to bite me later when it tanks. And I knew it would when it was conceived, but for some reason I went along.
So why do we do that?
In my case, there’s no one single and consistent reason; sometimes it may be that I feel I have no choice; other times I don’t want to be perceived as “negative.” But more often than I’m proud to admit, I just simply don’t think it through. So I’m back to critical thinking. It takes time and energy to think things through carefully.
And sometimes you have to not go along to get along.
About BigBill
Stats: Married male boomer.
Hobbies: Hiking, woodworking, reading, philosophy, good conversation.
Stealing Underpants
A month or so ago I walked into my friend Shannon’s office at work and, on his white board (among many other, slightly less cryptic notes), he had the following:
1. Steal underpants
2. ?
3. Profit
At first I thought it was in reference to metal underwear, which made me think of pinching, rust and shrinkage on cold days, but then I noticed the spelling of the first word and realized he was talking about absconding with undergarments. Being the curious (but respectful) guy that I am, I asked him what the hell that was supposed to mean. He directed me to a segment of South Park which, he assured me, would explain all. (See if you agree.)
If you elect not to click on the link above or haven’t heard of this before, a short explanation: One of the South Park kids discovered the reason everyone’s underpants were disappearing was that they were being stolen by gnomes, who were piling them in a cavern. When asked why, they (the gnomes) described their business model as above. Matt, Trey and the gang of writers were poking fun at poorly thought-out business models. Just because you have a good idea (or think you do) doesn’t mean you can turn that idea into profit (or even a revenue stream).
So this got me thinking about groupthink. I would be willing to bet that you have been in situations where you went along with an idea or plan more to be supportive (or not be perceived negative) than because you thought it was a great idea. I know I have. Sometimes it’s a project that I agree to, which then comes back to bite me later when it tanks. And I knew it would when it was conceived, but for some reason I went along.
So why do we do that?
In my case, there’s no one single and consistent reason; sometimes it may be that I feel I have no choice; other times I don’t want to be perceived as “negative.” But more often than I’m proud to admit, I just simply don’t think it through. So I’m back to critical thinking. It takes time and energy to think things through carefully.
And sometimes you have to not go along to get along.
About BigBill
Stats: Married male boomer. Hobbies: Hiking, woodworking, reading, philosophy, good conversation.