The reality sense

I always remember the sense of reality when I see people applying theories and practices which they learned in collage or read in a book. Most of the time I see those people drowned in a world of their own trying to establish and enforce their rules on the real world.

We’ve seen a lot of marketers creating a “bad perception” or even a “bad publicity” because they didn’t study the social impact of a certain campaign. We’ve seen politicians waging wars because they thought it was the right thing to do (no better example than the Bush administration).

Do those people live apart from the “real” world? Or do they lack the “sense of reality” in their actions?

The sense of reality does not flourish in schools or universities; it can’t be obtained from books; and it’s not a talent to be inherent or acquired by practice.

But where does this “sense of reality” come from? I don’t think there is a scientific answer for this; but I have a few suggestions:

• Knowing people. This starts of course by accepting the difference between you and them. Watch other people’s interests, trends, likes and dislikes. How do they react to certain situations;
• Read the news. All kinds of news. This will widen your prospective to other worlds and cultures.
• Read novels, attend movies and theatre, listen to music and survey all kinds of art. this is a relief to the soul and a driver for positive thinking;
• Social studies and psychology are so important especially for marketers. They help the marketer prospect and study the market’s needs and trends.

Do you have something else in mind? Write it down.