Try Inspiration instead of frustration

[Yvette Dubel]

Inspiration can come from the most unexpected places. I share this partly to put the questions out there - and partly to make note for myself. This is definitely something I want to explore in the House of Cards installation.


I checked in on the news today and ran across an interesting news story. It was a feature on homes who were being displaced or struggling to keep their homes. Those featured in the news story had changes in their employment situation (laid off) and had attempted to get mortgage adjustment agreements. Time and again people shared stories of being told they could not qualify to have their mortgage adjusted and that there was nothing more they (the financial institution) could do.

The fact that government bail outs had saved a good portion of the financial sector from crashing and burning - this flexibility to create new rules because the context had undeniably changed - indicated an interesting shift of interpretation. So had this shift only impacted banks?

Doesn’t it make more sense to work out an agreement to keep people in their houses - customer retention - focusing on those people who are trying and committed to fulfilling the contract? Instead what is happening is serving to erode social capital from shaky sector at faster rates than they are accruing it.

Looking from the outside, it seems there are some companies, sectors and organizations that have assumed they are indispensible. And even more insanely, taken the attitudes that their customers don't matter. Can you imagine when this starts happening to the banking employees who are handling these communications with customers? Will they have illuminating moments when the shoe is on the other foot?

When people enter a company what happens to their hearts?
Is the change only 9-5 or does it change how they are forever?

The kind of industry cockiness sparks and then fuels innovation. It turns customers into entrepreneurs who become competitors. While cautious funders are waiting on the sidelines to see who is left standing or to reward those that keep innovation under the thumb of the status quos….these are the SoulFood:Ingredients that stir things up. Because the underlying assumptions fail to question the obvious thing.

What if an alternative to business as usual did emerge to dramatically reduce the desire/demand for their financial products?

Now what if they need another bail out and this time not only did the public not support it, the government wouldn't be able to afford it - the history set in motion with yesterday means that their prospects for customer retention would suddenly seem impossibly bleak.

Remember there was a time when it seemed ending of slavery or segregation, women's rights, going to the moon, TV, ,the computer or internet - all seemed impossible or would have been regarded as ridiculous before they redefined the norm.