I learned a long time ago that I am NEVER the target audience. As early adopters (if you’re a regular reader of this blog you’re probably an early adopter) it becomes easy to lose touch with reality. If you’re a fellow blogger then you live in a world filled with other bloggers and after a while it becomes a bit of an echo chamber.
Seriously who really cares if Twitter is down?
99.9% of the people on the internet don’t know what Twitter is. But to listen to some bloggers (myself included sometimes) you would think it was the end of the civilized world when “Something is technically wrong.”
I had an old classmate from high school find me on Facebook. After reading my profile she asked me, through Facebook, “What’s Web 2.0?” She really didn’t know. And really why should she care?
Some people like to “unplug” from the internet. While some people may need that I hate it. I like being connected. I do however have a strange little ritual I do a few times a week.
I go to Target or Costco.
Not to shop, but to look at stuff. I’m not people watching either. I do love people watching though. Target and Costco represent the middle of the adoption curve. This is main stream America, love it or hate it. Wal-Mart doesn’t work either because that’s the back slope of the adoption curve. Wal-Mart was the last place I saw VHS being sold.
I like to walk the technology section and think about what those devices were like 5 or 10 years ago, and what’s not there that was 5 to 10 years ago. I like to walk through their video and book sections to see what’s poplar right now. I walk through their clothing section to see how trends from the fringe 5 years ago have translated into main stream fashion.
This is my way of staying grounded. I know what’s happening on the fringe. I know what early adopters are thinking. I don’t know how all this cool stuff will be “watered down” and taken main stream. And it will.
What about you? Do you have any tips for staying grounded? I could really use some more.
I would especially appreciate thoughts from Jeremiah Owyang, Chris Garrett and Chris Brogan. These guys are even more plugged in than I am but still seem to have a good sense of what’s really important.
Technorati Tags: Jeremiah Owyang,Chris Garrett,Chris Brogan,trend spotting,Twitter,reality check,Web 2.0,Target,Costco,Wal-Mart,technology,adoption curve
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