Greetings.  It's the start of a new work week–unless you've been working all weekend–and a great time to think about what it really takes to be a genius. Maybe not in the sense of Albert Einstein, Madame Curie, George Washington Carver, Abu al-Qasim al-Zahrawi, Akio Morita or Leonardi da Vinci.  After all, these were exceedingly clever people and it might not be fair to go head-to-head with them without an extra bit of stretching, conditioning, coaching and practice. Just like you probably wouldn't want to race against Usain Bolt without eating a high energy breakfast.  But let's be serious, what would these people actually know about your business and what it takes to deliver compelling value?  Very little.

In fact, you and your colleagues are in the absolute best position to make a real difference in the lives of the customers, citizens, members and associates you serve.  But in order to do this you will need to take a fresh look at their world and what really matters to them.  Then you'll need to commit to taking a fresh look at how you and your organization could meet their needs in more remarkable ways. Not by making some tiny piddling little insignificantly incremental change (now that's being super-redundant for effect).  After all, who needs that?  But by doing something big, bold, noticeable and possibly dramatic (also super-redundant for effect) that really matters!  

And one of the best ways to get started is by challenging yourself and the geniuses you work with to think about a straightforward and powerful idea.  What if you could create the "ideal customer experience?"  In other words, what if you could deliver compelling value at each meaningful step in the process of being a customer?  By making things easier.  By providing true peace of mind.  By making customers smarter and more capable.  By being faster when it really mattered, or available at a moment's notice.  By making the customer smile whenever they used your product, service or solution.  By anticipating their needs and helping them to create new opportunities or avoid danger.  

So grab a blank sheet of paper and an open mind, and begin to paint a new and awesome picture of the life of your customer from start to finish.  And if you don't know how to get started, you can always wander around–wearing, of course, your most comfortable shoes (see the post below)–in search of other companies and organizations that have figured it out for those they serve.  There are plenty that I'll write about in the weeks ahead, but if you'd like a couple now try Zappos and Whole Foods. 

We win in business by providing the most ideal customer experience. What are you waiting for?  

Cheers!