The high cost of seeking product perfection

November 26, 2011 in Blog, Coaching with 0 Comments

Today I almost let perfectionism get in the way of improving my health.

I came across the Jawbone UP, an electronic bracelet that tracks your movements and displays fitness graphs and goals on your iPhone. It’s $99 and thus lies within that magical impulse purchase zone (for me, at least). So I almost impulse-purchased it, but then …

… perfectionism reared its purple head. Just moments ago, I was browsing with increasing glee UP’s drool-worthy features list. To wit:

  • Vibrating inactivity reminders. When I’m sitting too long and not taking breaks, as I am wont to do, it will gently remind me I should be taking better care of my spine, mind, and other important bits.
  • Sleep pattern tracker + sleep cycle alarm. It will track my thrashing and thus help me fine-tune my sleeping conditions, then wake me up at the proper stage in my sleep cycle around my target wake-up time (0520, baby).
  • Meal tracker. I can take pics of my meals and then the app will prompt me later to rate how I feel—so I can see which foods, at least from an energy perspective, are good for me. I’m betting the Bread & Cup pics w0uld be the most energetic.

I could go on, because the darn thing’s pretty cool, and remember, it’s only 99 bucks. A tee-niny investment that pays for itself in one fewer doctor’s visit later on for high blood pressure, heart disease, diabetes … the list goes on. But you know what else goes on? That perfectionist list in my head of what the Jawbone UP does not have. To wit:

  • Bluetooth. The UP syncs by plugging into your iPhone’s headphone jack. It would be so much cooler (so, um, perfect, one might say) if it synced via Bluetooth. Then it could do live coaching while you cycle/run/walk.
  • Heart rate monitor. You wear the thing right over one of your pulse points, for crying out loud.
  • Caffeine injector. It senses inactivity; it’s right over a vein; are you seeing the possibilities? (I. Am. Joking.)

… and so on. You know what? Those features (save, probably, the caffeine injector) are almost certainly coming in UP version 2.0. The perfectionist in me says wait; 2.0 will be so much cooler. But by that time, with technology advancing as it tends to do, there will be yet more potential cool features.

And I’ll be way more than $99 fatter.

 

 

 

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If I have the choice between spending time with a $100,000 donor or a potential candidate for a senior role, hands down it’s the candidate.

The Leadership Deficit

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Three reasons to call them cause organizations, not nonprofits

November 14, 2011 in Cause Organizations with 0 Comments

Why should we stop calling nonprofits that and instead call them cause organizations? Three reasons: People, profit, and perspicacity.

While working with cause organizations, I’ve struggled with what to call them. Nonprofit is the dominant term here in the United States, and has the additional advantage of being short. Social sector organization is more accurate and positive, but it’s unwieldy. The solution (so far): Cause organization, for three reasons.

  • People: No one should be defined by what they don’t do. Do you want your identity to be that you don’t make a profit? I don’t want that for the amazing people I’m blessed to work with. The people I know are making a profit for society every day. Every day they’re doing what Bono says: Tearing a little corner off the darkness. So I’m not going to stand for defining people by what they don’t do, especially when that definition is wildly inaccurate. Which leads me to the second reason …
  • Profit: Folks, the old government grants and philanthropy business model is not coming back. Cause organizations must be generating their own revenue—I daresay, profit—as a portion of their overall revenue models. I don’t have time right now to cite the extensive evidence to back up this point, but trust me—it’s there, and it’s awfully solid. More on this in future posts.
  • Perspicacity: Alright, I’ll admit I was going for the alliteration first. But think about it, friends; perspicacity means sharpness of sight; acuity; insight. What are we in cause organizations for? The cause! It’s about the mission, folks. No other focus compares or will do with all the dark corners waiting to be torn.

What’s your preferred term for cause organizations? Why? Has your view changed over the years? Let me know in the comments or on Twitter.

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