A “meme” (rhymes with “steam”) is an idea or piece of information that, once stated, takes on a life of its own. And meme’s are either good or bad; never neutral. Meme’s have incredible power and need to be understood so you know how to use them and how to keep them from using you.
Here is an example of a “negative meme” I personally experienced in my work life. The company I was with had an account that was gave us a lot of trouble in the on boarding stage of the relationship. It’s not that the people at this account were bad, or that they were just being difficult with us, it was just a complicated case and a lot of challenges arose in the early going.
So at one point in the process a member of our Management team referred to this new client as a PITA (hopefully you get the acronym!). To that Manager, I know it was just a “throw away “comment, but to those that heard it, that comment took on a life of its own. It became a “meme.” That meme manifested itself in the minds of the teammates who heard the Managers remarks. It changed how they viewed this account and that change was not for the good. This account became known as the “PITA” account. Soon everyone, right down to the front line service team knew them by this unfortunate label. That underlying negative tone was now a living part of everything having to do with this account. Sure we worked to serve them well and by all appearances, we did. But that meme was alive and well and it exerted its force on every person who worked with this account.
Sadly, the account ended up being lost. Was it because of the little throw away comment that Manager made on that one day? It’s hard to say, but it’s worth considering. That PITA label, especially coming from a person in a position of authority, had an impact. It was heard by the team and spread from there. It was in the minds of everyone who worked with this account. Did the team have less patience with this account because of the meme? Did they hold back just a little on going the extra mile? Again, it’s worth considering. Meme’s do have the power to do that, and a lot more.
All this said; remember that a meme can work for the good too. What if this account had been described by that Manager using a very positive term or acronym? What if the team felt this account was greatly honored and appreciated by that Manager? Would they have worked a little harder; gone the extra mile?
Either way, the message here is to consider the impact of your words. Words are ideas and ideas can take on a life of their own. And once released, they can move from person to person and exert a far-reaching impact on things you would had never imagined.
So think about what you say. In your selling, in your daily interactions and in your personal life, consider how a thought you share might travel and the work it will do. Whether that work is for good or for bad, it all started with you!
O&U!
PS: if you would like to learn more about MEME’s, I recommend the book “Virus of the Mind” by Richard Brodie