Are You Status Quo?
I know fast food is bad for me and I rarely touch the stuff. I’ll will admit to enjoying a Big Mac a couple times a year, which is what got my attention on a recent indulgence. The golden arches is no longer the golden arches of which I am familiar! McD’s has been trying to overcome status quo, which has translated into lagging sales. My status quo towards McD’s is they consistently deliver salty, sugary, fried fast food. The Big Mac I buy in Asheville, NC looks, feels, smells and tastes exactly like the Big Mac in my hometown of Dayton, OH.
To maintain the status quo is to keep the things the way they presently are. Wikipedia
McDonald’s is trying to re-invent themselves to overcome status quo. Some people are “lovin’ it” as shown in McDonald’s stock price that has doubled since 2015.
Several of the McD’s in our area have gotten face lifts. The buildings inside and out have a minimalist, hard, contemporary look. As you walk in, you get hit with big bold pictures of McDonald’s “signature collection.” Personally, I’m not lovin’ it. In fact, on my recent visit, I got frustrated trying to find my McD’s status quo Big Mac and price on the McMenu.
Signiture is your copyright, a one-of-a-kind, an extension of your fingerprint. Your signature is your unique handwritten tattoo. Signature is your promise. It represents for what you are known, your accountability, your responsibility and your integrity. It is one of the reasons I choose to write handwritten notes over email because the note ends with my signature, my promise, my integrity.
Sorry, McDonald’s, I’ll have just a status quo Big Mac to go, please. If I want a “signature” burger here in Asheville, I’ll go to the Rankin Vault Cocktail Lounge or The Pine Club back in Dayton, OH.
Galileo challenged the Catholic church on status quo of the belief the earth was the center of the universe. It nearly got him killed. I remember a couple of my college professors who taught using status quo. Their lectures and tests were the same semester after semester. Tenure insures status quo. Blockbuster operated in status quo when Netflix challenged how we saw movies. Where is Blockbuster today? Even though Kodak engineers invented the first digital camera back in 1974, Kodak maintained status quo continuing to produce photographic paper, film and chemicals. Where is Kodak today? The NRA is operating and upholding status quo. How is that impacting the United States?
Do you work under status quo? Are you willing to ask others for their opinion about your status quo?
Breaking status quo means getting out of your comfort zone into your learning zone. It begins with incrementalism, with simple things like driving home from work a different way. Going to a different place to eat and ordering something unfamiliar. Visiting a museum instead of attending a football game. Reading a new book instead of watching television.
Breaking status quo means getting out of your echo chambers. It means meeting and talking with people with whom you don’t normally speak. Breaking status quo may mean stop telling and start asking, start being interested rather than trying to be interesting.
Breaking status quo means choosing different, challenging assumptions and lifestyles. This includes your leadership. It may mean becoming known for something better than your status quo.
Are you willing to mess with your success, relearn, retool, and even reinvent yourself and overcome your status quo?
