In a recent blog post, Seth Godin talked about how thrills are, by definition, fleeting.
I am likely missing the point of that blog, but I just don’t agree. I get the logic. Thrills have to be gone soon, or they are regular and not thrilling. If they are regular, then they are commonplace; perhaps even boring. Or so the argument goes…
But, is that any way to look at something you love? When I think about riding my bike, each individual ride isn’t necessarily thrilling. Some are; some aren’t. But when I think about cycling overall, it definitely thrills. It is very rare that I can’t find joy in a bike ride. To me, each moment of joy is a thrill. But can I recreate that specific thrill? Probably not.
All Thrills Are Not Created Equal
I went out Friday night in Pittsburgh during a moment of early spring and got a quick 20 miles in. It was thrilling because it was my first outdoor ride of 2016. Is that moment gone? Yes. Can I repeat it? No, because there is only one first. But can I create a new iteration of a thrill the next time I’m on the bike? Yes. I know this to be true because I did it Saturday and Sunday as well. Each ride, thrilling in its own right. I had another thrilling ride today, biking to lunch while it was no longer tilting towards spring on the thermometer. That was thrilling for another reason.
What I am saying is that I get that individual thrills are fleeting. What I disagree with is the semantics of Godin’s conclusion (essentially, that thrilling shouldn’t be a goal). He says, “Thrilling is fine. Mattering is more important.”
Mattering is important. But why not matter by creating a thrill each time you do something? Will you be successful all the time? Of course not. But does that mean you shouldn’t try to matter by creating a stream of thrills? That you should give up on trying to thrill people altogether? Not even a chance that answer is yes. We should matter. And do things that matter. And I think we should do that by creating a string of thrills.
Where do you stand on the long-term potential of thrills? Weigh in below.
If you like the idea of thrilling people in your neighborhood, nothing beats plying them with friendly service and free hot slices of whole grain baked goods.
Learn About bakery cafe ownership with Great Harvest:
Read more about our commitment to thrills:
- For Bakery Cafes, Customer Service is King
- A Sneak Peek at the Crave-Worthy Future of Great Harvest
- Test Tastes Work Like Magic for Franchisees and Customers
Image credits: © vencavolrab78 / 123RF Stock Photo; © mihtiander / 123RF Stock Photo; modified by resizing and text overlay.
