Ancient Wisdom

Sorting through my desk I came across two articles from Fast Company, published in September 2003. They both seemed as relevant today as they did then.

The first was Contempt of Consumer: It's a Real Crime, by Seth Godin. He remembers the days of the Fuller Brush Man who knew how to treat customers with respect. Godin goes on to berate modern marketing tactics that attempt to force products on people who don't want them. "Instead of spamming the globe, market to people who want to hear from you."

The second was Becoming a Soft-Side Accountant, by Marshall Goldsmith. He argues that time measuring the soft-side values in the workplace is well spent. Such as "how often we're rude to people, how often we're polite, how often we ask for input rather than shut people out" and so on. He talks about measuring his own time spent with his children. It's an interesting article because it raises bigger questions about the importance of measuring, and knowing what you are measuring and why. Respecting customers and reading that in the numbers.

Fast Company must have liked these two articles about respect too, as the magazine republished them in 2007. No harm in revisiting ancient wisdom.