I was reading my local newspaper this morning and in the business section, we have a small column just for “briefs”–there is a 3-paragraph article stating that “business savvy can crop up in the most unexpected places.” The article goes on to say that we can learn a lot of business sense and customer service tips just from watching old television reruns. Of course, as a home business owner who is always looking for ways to learn and absorb more about the business world, I was drawn in.
According to the article, Alan Gregerman, an author who has written “Surrounded by Geniuses: Unlocking brilliance In Yourself, Your Colleagues and Your Organization,” we can learn from the characters in these old programs, and get exposure to different types of “customers” without having to do an expensive focus group. Things like manners, preferences, and cause-and-effect customer service tips can all be found in old situation comedies and dramas that are rerun on television every day.
This got me to thinking about all the other opportunities for “lessons” that we see every day. Eating out at restaurants or waiting in line at the post office and library–these all give us an opportunity to see both good and bad ways of “doing business.” Instead of just reading business books and articles, getting out in the world and doing a little field research can give us all sorts of ideas about marketing, branding, customer service, market trends, and other elements of running a business. According to the article and Gregerman, even sitting and idly watching some television can benefit your home business–so now we don’t have to feel guilty for a little slacker or leisure time. After all, we can just tell everyone we are doing market and business research when we’re watching those old reruns of the “Brady Bunch.”
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