A Business Lesson: Sugar Coated
This imaginative and truly gorgeous Willy Wonka themed event pictured here inspired me to revisit the classic book, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Wonka was a great marketer, but he had something bigger in mind when he ran the contest that would let five children take a tour of his factory and win a lifetime supply of chocolate. As you may recall, he wanted to find someone worthy of succeeding him.Charlie Bucket was chosen not only because he survived all the tests put in his way but because it was in his nature to be good and ethical. The rest were led by their ego, greed or stupidity to bizarre fates such as being sucked through chocolate pipes, turning into a blueberry, or being scrambled by television rays.Certainly, people can become huge successes overnight and who wouldn't want that? But chances are pretty good for most of us that success will come at a more personal level, and be much more of a long game. I like to think of success and life as a well-written article -- it's all in the editing and revisions. We get a good first draft at life and then we edit, and edit, and edit. We travel toward a goal trying not to look at the awesome challenge ahead of us but instead enjoying the ride. The author, E.L. Doctorow, said, "Writing a novel is like driving a car at night. You can see only as far as your headlights, but you can make the whole trip that way." That's the best advice about writing I've heard and it applies perfectly to life and business.Charlie's success wasn't based on his personal brand worth, Instagram hits, or celebrity status. It was simply based on how well he traveled through Wonka's amazing world.Without knowing the ultimate destination in store for him, he took it three feet at a time and ...Remained present;Stayed open minded;Was true to himself.We can't all be as as wise or crafty as Wonka, but we can be as real as Charlie. And if we take life three feet at a time, setting our business and personal intentions with each leg of the journey, before we know it, we'll have reached our destination, or better yet, a destination we couldn't have foreseen in our wildest imaginations. It's a great business lesson; a sweeter life lesson.
“Mr. Wonka: "Don’t forget what happened to the man who suddenly got everything he wanted."Charlie Bucket: "What happened?"Mr. Wonka: "He lived happily ever after.”Roald Dahl, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
The pure imagination of the event shown here was created by this talented event team:
For more on the event, visit these blogs: Revelry Event Designers, Empty Vase, and Images by Lighting
