Habit of Thought

The King of Innovative Thinkers is Dead, Long Live the King

I confess I have only a couple of Steve Jobs' products, two different types of iPods. Yet his innovative thinking and all the products that resulted from that thinking are part of stuff in my everyday life that I can no longer do without.

Jobs drove the ultimate usability concepts into his products so any regular human can use them. He set the course that freed computing power from being the sole domain of immense mainframes in locked rooms accessible by only a few anointed caretakers.

Innovation is not just ideas, it's ideas made real. It takes outsized drive, personality, and just plain guts to override naysayers, move past small thinkers, and tell the world that THIS is what it needs.

Jobs has thrown such a large shadow for years that it's difficult to name any other person driving such breakthrough innovation in today's world making a difference at the same scale he did.

Perhaps someone else's light will have a chance to shine now. I sure hope so. It scares me to think that we won't see another of his intelligence, reach, and creativity for quite some time.

Rest in peace, Steve Jobs. I like to think of you now comparing notes with Ben Franklin, Thomas Edison, George Eastman, John Jacob Bausch, Chester Carlson, and other visionaries on whose shoulders you stood and and shook the world as they did.

My condolences to Steve's wife, children, and company. May the love of family and friends bring you comfort and your memories of Steve bring you peace.

Walmart Says No To a Sale

Yesterday I shopped at my local Walmart. I perused the aisle where they had gathered all the leftover back-to-school supplies. I found a small student planner, one of those calendars that runs from September to June, the school year. It was about 3"x5", and it was perfect for a little project I have in mind. It was only $2.50--a bargain to boot.

So I took it to the cashier and handed over my credit card.

The checkout clerk said I couldn't buy it.

At first I thought she meant something was wrong with my credit card or they had a lower limit on the total purchase value that could be charged. But that wasn't it. When she scanned the bar code, the system refused to allow her to sell it to me.

She scanned it three times with the same result, even though she said she had encountered this before. I offered to take it over to customer service to see what they could do. She said not even the store manager could override the sale. She couldn't accept cash and just let me take it.

There was nothing wrong with the planner; in fact, there were at least six more like it on the shelf.

This was a first. A store with merchandise on the shelf would not let me buy something.

I was speechless, which, if you know me, really says something about the situation.

The clerk was very pleasant and obviously was frustrated and embarrassed, so I decided to end the conversation and move on.

When Walmart says no, the answer is no, even to a paying customer with cash on hand.

So, what do YOUR computers or management policy or stocking policy or seasonal product policy make impossible for customers to buy?