One of the biggest lessons I learned working in the hotel industry was the difference between “old” and “dirty”. My boss, the general manager, would regularly tour the hotel with the housekeeping director and they would talk about furniture being old and/or dirty.
The director had no control over old furniture. Old meant it was worn or dated. But she did have control over dirty. Dirty means it needs to be cleaned. And you can clean old furniture. Obviously, the GM knows it’s a sound business principle to clean the furniture as long as it’s still in good enough shape to use.
I can’t help but wonder if we sometimes apply the “old and dirty” analogy to business concepts. For example, a concept like personal branding is old (i.e. meaning it’s been around a long time) and because it has been around for years, people mistake it for not being effective or overused and abused (aka “dirty”).
Maybe like old furniture, we’ve decided to disregard it and only pay attention to the new, hip topics. The ones that we consider sexy.
IMHO, it’s just as important to talk about the hottest trends and their potential impact as it is to discuss the tried and true concepts and how they might change / evolve over time. Or, even if they don’t change that much, that doesn’t mean they’re no longer just as relevant or critical to our professional development. Just like we need to balance theoretical knowledge and practical experience; we have to also balance the old with the new.
The last thing any of us want to do is throw out a perfectly good piece of furniture, when all it needs is a good cleaning.
Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.
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Tim Gardner says
Sharlyn – This is a great concept to consider. In my personal life, I generally keep a car until it is no longer serviceable. Which can easily be in excess of 10 years. It gets old, but it also gets well-maintained. Kept clean.
The new car, or next new idea in your example, requires and investment of time and/or money. So not only am I giving up on the value of what exists, my time and attention are temporarily turned away from my business to learn and decide how to apply the new concept (or how to choose the next car).
Sharlyn Lauby says
Very true Tim. I use the same thought process when it comes to material possessions as well. Thanks for the comment!
working girl says
I like the furniture analogy – you get the hand you’re dealt but what you do with it is up to you. A little elbow grease can make a big difference.
Sharlyn Lauby says
Nice phrasing – I’m all for a little elbow grease. Thanks!
Dave says
Sharlyn, this is one of those distinctions (the other big one is possible vs. desirable) I’m sure I bang on about slioghtly too frequently, so thank you for writing this: you’ve made a Grumpy Old Man feel validated 🙂
I always think the root cause is the constant selling of things on the grounds that they are ‘new’. Which isn’t a measure of quality or utility, merely of chronological time. Swine Flu is new, but I’d rather stick with the old version thanks very much. We have to promote the new, as innovation and renewal and market churn is part of what our entire economic system is based on, but we do wind up with a slight baby-bathwater confusion scenatio as a result.
Yvonne Hart says
I like the way you think! You nailed it. Thanks for sharing.
Sharlyn Lauby says
@Dave – I like your point about selling concepts because they’re new. Thanks for adding to the conversation!
@Yvonne – Thank you for the kind words and comment!
Scott says
Very good points in this article, i look forward to reading future ones to come.