Outside the Box?

 I think many of us have heard the expression that we should think outside the box. But what does that mean? What is the box? Why worry about what is outside. I think that when people use that expression they are thinking that inside the box is where you are comfortable. But you have to think outside the box, look around and see that there is much more.  If you get too comfortable you will miss out on a lot.  One important think business need is people with imagination.  Imagination is the ability to see things differently.  What would the world be like now without the imagination of Steve Jobs with his work on the Apple computers, iPad, iPhone and iPod?  It was not very long ago that we had none of them.  If you have a smart phone you can hold in your hand more computing power than was used to send men to the moon.  I had a grandfather who used a carriage to go on dates.  After the date the horse knew its way home.  It can sound romantic, but I would still rather use a car.  But when he was born in 1883 a vehicle known as an automobile did not exist and anyone who proposed such a vehicle was probably considered crazy.  But now we could not do without them. 

Thinking outside the box opens up a whole world of new opportunities.  Ten years ago Landmark maintenance personnel would  arrive in the morning, get a list of service calls scheduled for the day and answer the calls.  If we needed to get talk to a worker someone had to go out in the field and find him.  Now every maintenance employee is provided with a cell phone with GPS tracking.  If you call with an emergency, we know where everyone is and are able to contact them quickly.  Somebody had to think outside the box to permit this type of service.  This is one of the things which sets Landmark apart from other property management firms