Consultant's Corner
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by Bill Cowley |
| It started simple enough. A small painting beckoned to us in a museum. I had heard of the painter but I couldn’t spell his name. It was Klimpt or Klimp or Klimt. Some of his work reminds me of Van Gogh and others reach to me surrealistically. I was intrigued and my wife was enthralled. We bought a nice reproduction of “The Kiss” in the museum gift shop or maybe a store nearby. It doesn’t matter. It will hang in our house and remind us of the artist and our trip. We found a sturdy cardboard tube to bring it home in our luggage. Life is good. |
| We brought it undamaged through customs. It was a nice print but not too nice to cause any suspicion. It accented my urban life without any bothersome details. We brought it home and found a safe spot for the shipping tube. We had outgrown the “Pin it on the wall” college dorm style and we wouldn’t need it unwrapped until we could have it framed. |
| Framed! There was a commitment. Now, we had to find a suitable frame and matting for our reproduction masterpiece. This would remind us of the artist and our trip overseas. It sat and I meditated about the perfect frame. It sat and then I fretted. It sat and then I agonized. It sat until I grabbed it up and took it to some experts I knew. We negotiated an equitable settlement. The experts could render it in a fashion that suited their expert eye and I would appreciate their efforts. I had succeeded. I had triumphed and slayed the dragon. I brought it home to show it off to my wife. She grew excited. She was pleased. She looked at me with anticipation and asked, “Where should we hang it?” |
| My stomach knotted as I looked around. We didn’t have a bare spot big enough to accommodate it. No problem, we can adapt. We looked around and found the perfect spot. Piece of cake! I chided myself on my lack of faith. We moved the other pictures, prints and accoutrements. We had found the perfect place to show it off. There were only a few nail holes and scratches to be repaired before placement. I grabbed the spackle and had a grand time. I filled in the holes and the scratches and even a little crack in the adjacent wallboard. I felt proud. |
| That feeling lasted until the spackle dried and I had to sand it. Then I noticed the spackle didn’t match the paint. That wasn’t a big problem. I can paint. In fact, I am good at it. I began to drape furniture and prepared to paint. And as long as I am painting, I should look at the other walls. They can be tidied up, too. This will provide a special place to remember the artist and our trip abroad. |
| Off-white is rather dull. We don’t rent anymore, so why should we be blasé? Colors will brighten the room. I had read somewhere that if you paint dark at the bottom and light at the top, the room appears to expand. And sponges and glazing can hide imperfections while adding depth and complexity. I believe “complexity” was the key word. But, we overlooked it. We were excited and…well, what more can I say? |
| The entire room was eventually painted. It was darker on the bottom and lighter towards the ceiling. We added the faux glaze sponging or rubbings or whatever. And finally we hung our masterpiece. It was perfect. It reminded us of the artist and our vacation. (And years later, truth be told, it now hangs in another room in the house entirely). |
| My wife and I learned a lot when we purchased a simple poster reproduction. We refer to it as, “Damn Dominos”. You start the simplest thing and it bumps into another which bumps into another which keeps the chain falling and tumbling on and on. The chaos created is a magnitude greater than the initial disturbance. |
Don’t forget the “Dominos” when you start planning your upgrade, your new function, or your new project. They will bump into every process and internal control you set up. Your reports will be outdated and your assumptions will be wrong. Your testing will be too limited, in hindsight, considering the changes. Your testers will be too complacent and miss the subtle differences. However, on GoLive everything will become crystal clear. Everyone will know what is wrong and how poorly it was handled. What is obvious to you will remain obvious to only you. |
| But, knowing how it works provides a source of power and control. Plan out your project like it is brand new. Have your champions prove to you (and themselves) the new upgrade/function/process works. Getting everyone involved in the solution quickens the results and stymies the blame. |
| Got the picture? |
| About Bill Cowley |
| With over 30 years experience in materials and manufacturing systems, Bill Cowley is principle of gurusome consulting where he helps Expandable customers in Southern California increase their usage of the Expandable system. Bill enjoys the challenges of working with interesting people in a diverse range of companies and sits as an officer on the IEUGA Board of Directors. Due to constant freeway gridlock, Bill is now addicted to audio books. |
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