Max Riffner

The Parlor

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To Grandpa's House I Go

Once a week, I stop by my grandfather’s to pick up the previous week’s issues of the Wall Street Journal and to chat about business over a beer. We usually end up on the topic of Google and their impending IPO, which leads us into internet companies and trends. Sometimes we talk about companies like Friendster or eBay, but lately it has been about the Google IPO and the search wars (who’s going to win and why).

Inevitably, the topic wanders onto what I’m doing at work or what I’m working on at night. Last night I explained that I have a blog, its benefits (using tools to quickly, painlessly, and constantly update fresh content) and the reasons for why I use it. Without a beat, he stops and declares that blogs would be good for businesses.

It should be fair to mention now that my grandfather has never surfed the internet; in fact, he doesn’t even own a computer. We are just now starting to see blogging in businesses after about 3-4 years (give or take) in its popularity. He was able to understand the concept, add it to his existing knowledge of business, and make a well-formed cognitive leap in less time than a blink of the eye.

I almost dropped my beer as it sunk in. The whole conversation (and remembering all of our previous ones) made me wonder if perhaps he was born at the wrong time. How many times have my generation tried to explain the abstract natures of their work to their parents and end in failure? You explain it to this guy and he’ll not only keep up with you but make you think of aspects you’ve never thought of.

And he doesn’t even own a freaking computer. Amazing…

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