The Psychology of Quality and More

Harmonise

The Tao of Branding by David Straker -- Part 4

Start - Be - Sense - Harmonise - Lead - References

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Extending senses and discovering your interconnectivity into the world is a very illuminating act. Yet it is not enough. A moment’s touch, a burst of enlightenment, does not provide all of the answers. To harmonize is to extend sensing from the static into the dynamic.

It means sensing not only where others are, but also where they are going, and at what speed. It means following their present and future locus. To do this requires being and becoming with them, as one.

Tao connection

In the Tao, everything is connected and hence part of one thing. Being sensitive to that connection means being a natural part of the one.

A truly good man is not aware of his goodness,
And is therefore good.
A foolish man tries to be good,
And is therefore not good.

-- Tao Te Ching, by Lao Tsu

Connecting through the Tao is as natural as flowing water. If you think about the act of harmonizing, then you are not harmonizing. Being and sensing lead effortlessly to harmony, and in harmony is ultimate truth.

Knowing constancy is constancy.
Knowing constancy is enlightenment.

-- Tao Te Ching, by Lao Tsu

Tai Chi flow

There is a story of a master who was sitting when a sparrow alighted on his finger, then could not take off again. Whenever the bird tried to push off, the master’s hand moved down to completely neutralize the force. Likewise in combat all attacks are sensed and followed so completely that there is never an impact.

Even the mosquito finds no place to land on you without causing you to move.

-- Treatise of Master Wong Chung-yua, in Tai Chi Classics, by Waysun Liao

Brand harmony

A brand which is in harmony with people effortlessly follows and anticipates their every move. Like a glove, it gently envelopes them, connecting and becoming one with them. It also knows when the glove slips on and slides off: brands do not live people’s lives, but they do help them in their journeys.

Toyota, in Japan at least, gets very close to its customers. They seem to know when they are thinking of buying a new car. They even know when their customers’ children will start driving. They genuinely seek to become real friends of the family.

Generic brands may harmonize with the leaders they follow and hence find the secondary vibrations of end customers. But sensitive leaders will feel this attempted snagging and will as easily escape the generics as they follow their real targets.

 

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