Why you deserve to understand real feelings, firsthand.

Can you really, truly understand how someone feels about something unless you ask them directly? If you’re responsible for an offering, whether it exists online (SaaS) or you produce chewing gum, is it a reliable gauge of sentiment to solely rely on purchased reports or surveys you collect from the comfort of your desk? I say no. It’s certainly easier with that nice cup of coffee and chocolate croissant within reach.

My unlikely example is an annual thirty year old legendary surf contest called “LogJam!” hosted by Santa Cruz’s Big Stick Surfing Association (originally called Surf-O-Rama by contest director Jim Lucas). This past weekend, my Canon 7d in hand (low profile, hand-held, not even an external mic), I walked around the Pleasure Point contest area and simply asked, “Why do you love the LogJam?”, searching for some glimpses into why it was so near and dear (or not) to so many. By recording impromptu responses, I was able to gather the most important ingredients to storytelling: context and meaning. In the sea of information coming from laptops, tablets, and smartphones, the conversational tones and real feelings go sadly missing once they’re converted into data points.

I challenge you to get out of your office, enjoy the nice Springtime weather, and spend time collecting stories to find out what really matters. Go to the source, interact with actual humans (!) rather than a .pdf file, start a firsthand conversation with a friendly question...and your mind could be changed forever. If you do it right, you might even make a few new friends in the process.