One tangent led to. . .
Anyone who knows me well knows that one of my hobby horses is the whole idea of “critical knowledge” – all the little things you know that help you do something easily and well. Usually critical knowledge comes with time and with practice or we learn it by trial and error.
When I am brand new to something, I can be clueless about the simple tips and shortcuts that others who use a program or do a task have absorbed. In fact, I have learned how to do something I don’t even think about all of the steps and short cuts anymore. We forget what it was like when we didn’t have that knowledge Knowing these critical bits of information - or having them handy to refer to - can make learning a new process or a new task or even a new program much easier and less painful. Isn’t great when we can share our critical knowledge?
another tangent, then . . .
That’s why the Chamber proposed creating the “Doing Business in Arlington Hotsheet” to Community Planning & Development. Thanks to Dave Berry, the department’s assistant director, we now have an easy to use and valuable guide for the right people to talk to for all the different aspects of doing business in town.
then to another. . .
If you know Margy Rydzynski of Arlington Entrepreneurs, one of my favorite serial entrepreneurs, you know her brain never stops working, especially when it comes to anything Internet related. She has immersed herself in blogging and learning the in’s and out’s of using social networking sites to grow a business. As a contributor to Vibrant Nation, she has begun creating tip sheets to help people navigate these new ways to connect. The beginning of the tangent. . .
and still another tangent. . .
Yesterday, I saw another one of my favorite serial entrepreneurs, Craig Rabe of The Computer Cafe, when I stopped by to pick up my repaired hard drive. Like Margy, his brain never shuts down. I had just learned from Alan, the store’s manager, that the reason my computer had been acting so strangely was because I had “upgraded a program in order to view” something on my computer and instead of upgrading, I downloaded a virus or infection. Alan recommended I always upgrade from an accepted and trusted source, like the maker of the product. When I told Craig about my mishap, he mentioned he’d been thinking about writing a tip sheet called “Ten Easy Ways to Infect Your PC with a Virus.”
. . .to a brainstorm
Then my brain kicked into tangential high gear. What if the Chamber created a new page on its website where we could share expertise like this so everyone has access to the critical knowledge of our members? The tip sheets could help others get up to speed faster on a given topic. Oh, and did I mention it would be one more way that your Chamber promotes its members? From one tangent to another and from Dave Berry to Margy Rydzynski to Craig Rabe. . .
Ta da! The first Critical Knowledge™ Tip Sheets are one click away.
