Clark B. Montgomery Fast Company Article August, 1999

"THIS TIME, CONSULTANTS ARE IN THE DARK!" Chadderon, L. September, 1999. Pg. 64-66.

Summary

In the Dark is a "tongue-in-cheek" article appearing the September, 1999 issue of Fast Company posing as a supposed report from the publishers Consultant Debunking Unit (CDU). According to the article, the CDU's function is to "serve as a beacon of honesty, a virtual lighthouse - showing the way to truth and keeping consultants away from the rocks of error." Following that description, the article is quick to express its dismay on learning that "consultants" were also using the lighthouse metaphor to present their management theories.

The article continues with a disclosure of the activities of certain consultants in promoting their services. Utilizing a supposed story about the erroneous confrontation of a U.S. Navy warship and a Canadian lighthouse, the parable's message seems to be that even the big and powerful can lose direction, and consequently run into obstacles that can spell defeat. Furthermore, just a small investment in caution (consultants) is the surest means to avoid disaster/achieve success.

The remainder of the article goes to great lengths of time and effort (on Fast Company's part) to "debunk" this supposedly true story told by consultants. Those efforts include searching U.S. Navy records, inspecting U.S. Lighthouse Society records, and conducting a personal interview with a Canadian lighthouse keeper. Their conclusion - the story is a complete myth. It never happened.

The article concludes with the caution, "the next time consultants try to brighten their sales pitch with the lighthouse story. Tell'em to douse the glim[mer]!"

Reflection

Although this article appears to be written primarily for its entertainment value, it does contain a serious message. Basically, it includes a caution to look beyond the bells/whistles, glimmer/glamour, and outlandish promises before committing your resources or turning over the keys to your future. You'd think that in this day and age of literacy, unlimited information and instant communication such a warning would not be warranted - that we're beyond the tentacles of hype. However, in view of the successes of this country's multi-billion advertising industry, perhaps we're just as vulnerable to hype as we were 150 years ago, i.e. Fast Company's warning is valid. Can it be that P.T. Barnum's famous quote, "there's a sucker born every minute" is a truly timeless proclamation? Perhaps. You really don't have to build a better mousetrap to have the world beat a path to your door; you just have to convince the world it's better.

My own experiences would attest to the accuracy of that statement. Human beings seem almost eager to accept messages as truth that appeal to their interests of self-indulgence, personal gain or entertainment. The acceptance is immediate and often contrary to the considerations of rationale and/or common sense. That's not to say that plain, honest truth is rejected. But, it often lacks the appeal to become readily and eagerly accepted. Why that occurs is a topic for another writing. The fact that it does occur creates a bit of dilemma for most traditional educators who, for the most part, insist on dealing in dull, boring facts in the same old dull, boring manner.

For many (most?), traditional education methods are trials of endurance appealing only to the intensely interested or those that have mastered the skills of succeeding under that system. Although we, as a nation, take great pride in our literacy and educational accomplishments, perhaps we should be equally dismayed at the waste of talent and ability this system perpetuates. If shyster consultants and circus hucksters can cause the public to accept and adopt complete fabrications through hype, couldn't traditional education adopt some of the same techniques to market their product? Unfortunately, it appears that the connotation (within traditional education) of what constitutes a teacher and effective education is not expansive enough to accommodate the "P.T. Barnum Theory of Instruction".

Discussion

In discussion with one of my close Extension associates, we recalled an incident where we received criticism from other Extension associates as we described the design of a public educational event we were about to deliver. The criticism was over our use of the word "entertaining", a tool we were going to incorporate to facilitate attendance and audience (student) receptivity of the programs contents. We were informed that "entertainment" was not education and its use was not in keeping within the teaching profession. An isolated attitude, I think not.

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-- Anonymous, August 18, 1999

Answers

Clark Montgomery

The summary and reflections were well written and organized. The disucssion regarding entertaining is a familiar one. "Edjutainment" or "content-free" seminars and workshops do exist. Maybe the value is in the socialization. How many of us have learned more during the coffee break than during class. You may want to look at some articles on the marketing of education and effect of asynchronous learning on our institutions. Keep up the great work!

-- Anonymous, October 01, 1999