I caught a great article over the weekend, actually two. The first one I read was Mitch Albom’s article about how Detroit’s working poor should have a better chance.
The second one talked about Ted Stahl’s blog, a CEO who gets it and offers it out via a blog with statements like this.
“That’s where I got insight about standing in the customer’s shoes,” Stahl says. “You’ve got to talk to them, know their business, what they’re really looking for, what problems they’re trying to solve. It’s not rocket science.”
Back to Mitch.
What I always liked about Mitch Albom’s stuff is the authenticity in what he writes. He’ll tell you about about something and in seconds you’re pulled into the scene like some sort of eyewitness to it all.
So what I gathered from this scene was a family whose fighting for their survival, and deservedly so.
The realization is this.
Unless we can protect this, and by this I mean the American family, the household, the children, the future. We shouldn’t be comfortable with the situation, regardless if we’re sitting there faced with the unhealthy air our kids take in with each breath or if we are miles away in a palace by comparison.
The fact is, we ought to do better. We can do better. We owe it to ourselves, our country, and our future to do better.
Which brings me to the point of this post, why Detroit needs to blog.
Blogging, writing, whatever you want to call it accomplishes something significant.
Awareness.
Ted speaks to his customers via his blog – standing in their shoes. Mitch brings awareness to the problems that persist in Detroit, as if you were standing in their shoes – in a basement with standing water, the scent of which defies justice.
Just like the old saying goes, the squeeky wheel gets the grease.
Well Detroit, sharpen your pencils, there is no better way to find a solution to your problem than by letting the world know your problem exists.
Fortunately, instead of writing your thoughts down on paper for one person to read, you can write it on a blog for who knows, maybe the one who’s ready to hand over a solution.