Lewis Carroll Was Right

Recently, I spoke to a group about how to manage in a world of change. In searching for a metaphor to describe how to adjust to a new environment, I was reminded of a course that I taught in which I screened the film Alice in Wonderland in the first class session. The students were confused. Why were they seeing an animated children’s film in a college level marketing course?

But, there’s a metaphor in the Alice story that applies to life today. When Alice falls through the rabbit hole, she finds an alternate universe with a completely different set of rules … and she struggles to make sense of it to survive. That situation sounds very familiar. My favorite scene involves the game of croquet between Alice and the Queen of Hearts. The stakes are high (the Queen’s favorite phrase is “off with their heads”), but this is a game that Alice knows. Or, so she thought. In this strange universe, however, the croquet mallets are flamingos and the balls are little hedgehogs that move around on their own. So, when Alice has finally struggled with her feathered “mallet” to line up a shot, the target has moved. (Who moved my cheese?).

There are a lot of people making money writing books about the current economy and how to cope in it. Lewis Carroll perhaps wrote the first one. It’s worth a review.

Co-opetition In Tourism

Recently, I was named in a news article as someone giving free advice to a new tourism organization in Hawai‘i – the Hawai‘i Tourism Association. I have been approached by many friends and acquaintances asking “what the heck is all that about?” There seems to be a lot of suspicion in Hawai‘i when anything new arises which might appear to upset the status quo.

In fact, I’m a believer that the status quo is always fair game. I came of age in an era when bumper stickers touted the slogan “question authority.” There’s always a benefit to looking at the status quo, especially in unsettled times. I distinctly remember that one of my less-than-stellar grades on a paper in my graduate program came from a comment that I had made indicating that I was following “the conventional wisdom” in coming to a conclusion. The terse margin note from the professor was “NEVER accept the conventional wisdom without critical analysis.”

So, there’s a new organization in the tourism arena in Hawai‘i. That’s not a bad thing. However, some in the industry see competition as a threat. In the case of the Hawai‘i Tourism Association, I would characterize them as an example of co-opetition rather than competition.

In my career, I have worked at the Hawai‘i Tourism Authority and have managed the advertising for the Hawai‘i Visitors and Convention Bureau. I know first hand that, with limited resources, they have to do triage. They can’t be everywhere and they can’t service everyone. They have to choose geographic markets and they have to prioritize vertical markets because of their lack of budget and bandwidth. They have to address the high level strategic needs of the state and the industry. I understand that. But, that means that there are niche markets and vast swaths of geography that go untended.

I definitely can see a role in the virtual world to connect buyers and sellers in these niche markets. Is there a travel agency in Singapore that wants information about travel products in Hawai‘i? Singapore isn’t covered in the state’s plans (because of budgets). But, in the virtual world, an organization like the Hawai‘i Tourism Association can connect buyers and sellers virtually. Are there groups out there representing special interests (the GLBT market, the Hispanic market, bass fishing clubs, cultural tours) that aren’t supported by state plans. Let the free market and the worldwide web make the connections that are missing in the state’s programs. It’s not a case of competition. It’s a case of market self-determination. That’s the genius of Craigs List, eBay and other C-to-C and B-to-B communities.

If the tourism industry wants to rely solely on official and approved organizations and programs, that’s their prerogative. If I were grading them, however, they’d find a big marginal note: “Look Outside the Conventional Wisdom.”

For Job Searchers: One day at a time …

The news, lately, has been pretty breathtaking. Inconceivable drops in the market. Unbelievable amounts in the federal deficit. Unimaginable stimulus legislation. Washington turned upside down with a new administration. Whew. But more breathtaking than that has been news at the personal level. There are friends, acquaintances and colleagues that I know who are out of work and looking for jobs in this bleak environment. The scale of this economic mess is such that I’m sure everyone knows someone who’s been affected. That puts a face on the problem.

The best advice I’ve been able to give to the newly unemployed is the same advice I’ve always given. Keep your networks strong. But, more importantly, think of your job search as a marketing campaign. Start with the product. What are the benefits that you have to offer a company? Take a look at the old résumé and see if you’ve just amassed a bunch of facts about yourself. Instead, you may want to take those facts and translate them into real benefits to offer and contributions you can make. Of course, it’s tempting to pursue a “shotgun” approach to a job search. But, just as in a marketing campaign, you’ll probably find your best results when you hone in on your target market. The most compelling way to sell a product or service – or yourself – is to match what you have to offer with a likely prospect. So, while the internet has made “blasting” your résumé easier than ever, take the time to identify and research your best prospects. Go narrow and deep.

With all that, it’s still tough out there. So, there are two final words of advice. Be patient. There are jobs, there just aren’t a lot of jobs. It will take some times to make the match. And, finally, keep your perspective and your sense of humor.