This was far from my first trip to see Mickey. When my brother was about Abby's age, my parents had the foresight to buy a timeshare condominium in Orlando. Having that "home base" allowed our family to be able to afford far more trips to Disney World than we would have been able to otherwise. So I've really had the unique opportunity to grow up with Walt Disney World - to see it change and grow and evolve over the course of my lifetime.

 

 

On this trip, I had the chance to not only reminisce about trips past, but show Abby the things I have loved for years while discovering with her the new rides, shows, characters and little hidden gems that Disney has added on over the years. In some cases, my memories effectively kept her off a ride in the case of Snow White's Scary Adventures in the Magic Kingdom, for instance. Other times, we had the chance to discover a new favorite (brand-new for Abby, welcome update for me) as in the case of the newly redesigned Spaceship Earth ride in Epcot.

 

And yet, I know that the next time we take a family trip to Disney World, there will be still more that's new and different, at least judging by the number of areas of each park which were blocked off by Disney-fied "Pardon Our Appearance" barricades. And that's part of the magic of Disney: adding new and exciting attractions while keeping the essential magic alive and well.

 

So much of what we do in our new product development work functions in much the same way. We help our clients connect with their consumers to uncover new and different big ideas while maintaining their brand's essential magic. It's a delicate balance, making sure a product fits into a Brand's overall scheme while still being differentiated enough from other products to be successful.

 

Much like Walt Disney World will never be complete so long as there is still imagination in the world, consumers will never run out of a need for new products. And we'll be here, keeping that magic fresh and new and exciting. When we're not at Disney World, that is.

 

I've often used the phrase, "it's not rocket science" to describe a situation where people seem to be overcomplicating a simple idea. But in early April, I had a chance to work with some of my favorite facilitators and it really was all about rocket science.

 

Dr. Liz Monroe-Cook invited me to be on her facilitation team for a project for NASA. Working at the Goddard Space Center in Greenbelt, MD., I was one of 5 facilitators helping a very diverse team of people who are interested in the idea of bringing geospatial technology into high schools. The subject matter is pretty complex - remote sensing, gps, etc.

 

It was fascinating to see that the tried and true creative problem solving techniques I've learned at CPSI work just as well in these rarified circumstances. And I didn't have to go back and take any basic courses in astrophysics to be able to be helpful! One of the participants said, "We've learned PNT (Post-It Note Technology)."

 

Thanks to Liz as well as Deborah Potts, Kitty Heusner, and Clare Dus for a truly wonderful experience.