Caveat, Et Cetera...
I scrapped it.
The whole thing. Gone. Done.
Business plan, marketing plan, these new-fangled organic instruments of inspired implementation: Toast.
A shiny new gadget came out of Cupertino, and people lost their ever-loving minds. And I lost my socially-open, operationally transparent, and technologically inclusive business plan. Come to think of it, I'm going to lock down my life, too. Instead of being an engaged citizen, I'm going to withdraw. I may still vote - still mulling this one over - but I may vote for everything I'm against. Or against everything I'm for. Still a little fuzzy on that point. That's why I'm mulling it over.
Why? In a word: manufactured consent. Ok two words. But when I'm encouraged to study - even emulate - companies like Apple Computer, the only thing I'm left with is this counter-intuitive cynicism that I've simply got to hypnotize people with hype and hyperbole in order to sucker them into giving me permission to deliver less than before (just call it more), and charge them more for the less (just call it greater value). If I'm to do this whole business thing right, I've got to throw over openness, transparency, inclusiveness and well-established technological standards (and completely disregard sound partnership and customer service standards - do NOT get me started...), and replace it with... well frankly, that's a moving target because I'm manufacturing consent: so I can engineer your permission to replace substance with any style I so choose. And I can even charge a premium for it...
...And as a citizen, I'll simply line up with almost everyone else in the hope that the rhetoric around public service and all that are true. While special interests, unscrupulous politicos, and bureaucrats continue their assualt on our system of government. So if I let them convince me the that obfuscation and the most murky opacity are good for me, then it's ok if they completely corrupt the system, bankrupt our instituions, and corrode our entire culture. I mean, what's the point of wanting public servants to be transparent and accountable for their performance in the context of doing what is in the best interest of our nation, rather than what's in it for their selfish desires? That'll never happen, so I'll just let my wants be changed! Works with all sorts of freedoms already: strip search me, wire tap me, comb through my online stuff - both public and private - tell me what's good for me, take me for granted, restrict all manner of civil liberties and access to information in the public interest and public trust, do the worst possible job at it, waste untold amounts of money on it, but just tell me it's for my own good (even though it's really not). Easy peasy!
I've learned a lot in the past week or so. If it works for Apple and it works for nefarious political spin meisters, then it's gotta be good, right? Why don't I just do this myself? In my work and my civic life? Eureka shazam! I've just invented the Next Big Thing: Screwitology: The Art and Science of Scewyouism and Screwitallistic Practices In Business and Community.
Look: that little e-reader came out and it rocked my world. I know it's like a giant iPhone (of which I'm a proud and deeply conflicted owner), with less features than any smartphone on the planet. And I still want one. I love the increasing richness of the web and of other evolving mobile and visual technologies - things that are standard in any web browser and available on nearly every (other) smartphone. Can't get any of that on that sexy new e-reader, and I still want one. Hell I even design and develop using well-establesd technologies, following well-established standards, and some of the most impactful stuff I can imagine won't run on it. I'll have to figure out some other, less efficient, more closed, harder to build, maintain, and grow whatever it is I make if I want it to run on that thing. Hmmm... Wait. What?
Ok. I don't want one anymore. Not now. I just remembered. My undying devotion and hard-earned dollars were given to Apple for devices which were undoubtedly revolutionary but which were also predicated on an implicit promise to open up more, not less. I can read books and newspapers on any smartphone. If I want a biiger font and something marginally heavier than that, I'll go buy a book and an actual newspaper.
So I've found another extremely successful business to emulate. It's still a technology company (duh, I'm a pixel-pushing propellerhead), but exemplifies qualities that I admire from visionaries in other industries, like Chip Conley and Joie de Vivre Hotels. It's Adobe. That's right. Adobe embraces openness. It encourages active public participation in the development of its products and services. It also actively encourages its employees to engage with folks online and in person. And in civic life, Adobe takes criticism and coverts it into a catalyst for positive change and greater impact. Want some proof? How about the Open Screen Project, Design For America, a recent open forum for PDF best practices (for facilitating efficient, effective delivery of government information to end users). Oh, after looking around, I found even more to model around Adobe's openness. The publication of key specifications of some of it's most closely held and highly successful technologies, the varied and vibrant communites leveraging these to facilitate richer integrations and interactions with all manner of information. One of the best things I've read in regards to this dust-up, the supposed turf war between Apple and Adobe comes from the Adobe government solutions folks. Its clarity and frankness are refreshing, and the best thing is its honesty. You can check it out here.
I like this route much better. I guess I'd better go fire up my Adobe Creative Suite and get cracking. Yeah yeah, it's all in my Apple MacBook Pro, but watch where you cast your stony aspersions, you pots and kettles. I'm not perfect. Oh yeah, I guess I'd better get over to the DMV and ask for a voter registration do-over, too.
