Kiss Me:  An engineer on a hiking vacation stumbled across a deserted logging road in north-eastern Maine. Sitting on a grassy strip between deep wheel ruts made decades ago by logging vehicles he saw a small grey-green tree frog. The frog appeared to be looking directly at him.

“If you kiss me I’ll turn back into a beautiful princess.” The engineer heard the words and saw the frog’s lips move to shape the words, but he didn’t believe what he saw or heard.

“If you kiss me I’ll turn back into a beautiful princess,”repeated the frog. He bent over, looking carefully into the frog’s eyes as though he were trying to see inside. The act seemed to freeze the frog in place. The engineer quickly brought his hands around the frog, picking it up and putting it into his fanny pack, all in one motion.

The frog spoke up again with a muffled voice from inside the pack, buckled around the man’s waist “If you kiss me and turn me back into a beautiful princess, I will stay with you for one week.” The implication was quite clear. The engineer took the frog out of his pack, smiled an admiring smile at it and returned it to his fanny pack.

The frog then again cried out, “If you kiss me and turn me back into a princess, I’ll stay with you and do ANYTHING you want.” If there was any confusion about the frog’s meaning, everything was now very clear. Again, the engineer took the frog out, smiled at it and put it back into his pack.

Finally, the frog asked in what was an obvious state of disbelief, “What is the matter? I’ve told you I’m a beautiful princess, and that I'll stay with you for a week and do anything you want. Why won’t you kiss me?" The engineer said, “Look, I’m an engineer. I don’t have time for a girlfriend, but a talking frog, now that’s cool.”

Why customers buy a particular product may, on the surface, seem obvious. Historical and conventional thinking, once sound, may be the result of habit or assumptions that are no longer relevant. Conventional research tells us what is done, not necessarily why a thing is done. If corporate or product brands are to be developed, enhanced or expanded, it is important that everyone responsible understand the motivations behind the choices made rather than with ancillary facts and figures alone.

See the Whole Board:  A frequent admonition of every chess instructor, this competitive and insightful mantra cautions each student not to get lost in details at the risk of being surprised by an attack from an unexpected quarter. On the other side of the intellectual “heads up” is the need to be prepared for the unexpected opportunity.

Businesses that have survived, even prospered, during difficult times must be doing something right. Yes, be proud of your accomplishments but consider what will you do with your success? It is human nature to focus on what you’ve done well rather than to identify those elements that might inhibit future or continued achievement. This is the time to see the whole board and prepare for what ever is next.

The act of objective and critical appraisal of your organization’s communication strengths and weaknesses is a daunting task. It implies there is a need to change where there may be no obvious indicators for change. Why attempt to fix what isn’t broken? We feel by continuously measuring each communication device against its defined goals is an act of quality control and performance evaluation. By regularly assessing and affirming the role of each communication component with the organization’s long-term objectives, pitfalls will be avoided and opportunities anticipated.

Visit our website for examples of how Essex Two has helped its clients assess, evaluate, focus and reshape their communication efforts.

Worth your time:  Walter Isaacson’s book Benjamin Franklin, An American Life, is definitely worth your attention. Isaacson presents one of this country’s “founding fathers” as more than a historical figurehead, but a man of infinite intellectual and mechanical talents.

One gift consistent throughout Franklin’s life was his ability to hold strong opinions and convictions on a variety of subjects but be willing to adjust or even reverse his position when new information became available. His greatest contribution to our collective culture may be by demonstrating that change is inevitable and our capacity to accept and incorporate it into our lives is only practical.