Conventional Wisdom

These days, "conventional wisdom" is akin to: "what almost everyone believes to be true", but upon closer examination conventional wisdom is not always, er, conventional.  By that I mean,  the conventional wisdom we speak of  is often incorrect. Here is an example:

I recently read "Quiet: The Power Of Introverts in a World That can't Stop Talking"" by Susan Cain.  Ms. Cain claims that she got the message early: there was something wrong with her introverted and quiet style and therefore she should try to change it since extroverts were "the ideal" and she just didn't measure up.  In our society, talkers are widely perceived as smarter, even though SAT scores did not confirm that hypothesis.
Look at Moses, Jesus, Gandhi and Eleanor Roosevelt.  Not an extrovert in the bunch!

This is just one example of conventional wisdom being wrong.
Want some more?

"If man was meant to fly, God would have given him wings." - Anonymous
"Nobody will buy a personal computer." - IBM
"Automobiles are just a passing fancy." - Anonymous
"We're in the railroad business." - Pullman  (He should have been in the transportation business, right)

• Have you examined the conventional wisdom about marketing your bowling center and have you challenged it or have you waved off  "the weird," "the absurd," the-never-worked-here-answers" of those with more (ahem) experience?
• Have you questioned all the conventional answers, or questioned the questioners or asked different questions? One question you should always ask is: "Why would I buy this product (promotion), (program) if (and depending on the target)
• a- I haven't been bowling in years, 
• b- Bowled once or twice a year 
• c- Was a league bowler
• How can I embrace or look for something that is a breakthrough.  No "IT" hasn't all been done before.  And that type of conventional wisdom will kill any presumption of birthing a new idea. There is allot out there and technology is opening up new doors for you every day.  Embrace it. Change it.  Punch it in the mouth and shake it up.

Here's the lesson: Conventional wisdom, no matter how we feel about,  is often dead wrong. If we assume it is right, then we limit our options to solve a problem or take on a new task and ultimately it limits the range of our debate. 

So go out there, shake it up.   Maybe even ask an introvert. Hey, you never know :)