Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving!

May you have a wonderful day of relaxation, food and thankfulness while spending time with family and friends!

Lessons from the L

Lessons from two months of riding the Chicago CTA "L" - or elevated train transit through the city. 

Silence is golden.
On the Metra and other trains I've taken, it's normal to chat with the person sitting next to you or talk on the phone. On the L, this is silently banned and you are the odd ball out if you even speak to your neighbor or dial someone. 

Reading is not a hobby, but a talent.
As the trains take constant turns, it's easy to get jerked around and difficult to maintain balance. Those that are reading books, newspapers & magazines, tablets or material on their smartphones are not just in it for the ride, but are challenged to actually read the material (especially if they are standing up). Moving and reading is hard! 

Sunglasses in the dark are normal. 
Maybe it's laziness, maybe people haven't done their makeup yet, maybe they want to avoid eye contact...but even though the red line is an underground Subway, many riders keep their sunglasses on.

It changes from the city to the suburbs QUICKLY.

Especially on the blue and purple lines of the L - you are seeing urban neighborhoods one minute, and then immediately transition into seeing grass and brick homes. It's crazy how fast you can get from Chicago to Wilmette, or Chicago to Rosemont. 

Weird people exist, and a lot of them ride public transit.

There are a lot of strange individuals you come across on public transportation. It reminds you that cities really are diverse not only ethnically, but personality-wise. I regularly see men and women singing along to their headphones, whispering to themselves and taking on other strange habits, and remember how transit exposes you to every type of person in a large city. 

Documentary power

A few years ago, conversation around the documentary How to Die in Oregon caught my eye and I added it to my list of movies to watch. Now that the Roku is finally set up and homework isn't a distraction in post-graduate life, I took the time to sit down and watch it. 

Watching this showed me the important role of documentaries in our lives, and the power they have to educate us on history, figures and important societal issues. Physician-assisted suicide is legal in only three states: Oregon, Washington and Vermont. The documentary, for the most part, takes a pro view on physician-assisted suicide by interviewing multiple individuals interested in the medication and their family members. It provides insight into non-profit organizations that support and go against the cause, especially a group called Compassion of Oregon. I'll never forget the scene where volunteers at a calling center are calling households in Washington to try and sign the petition in support of physician-assisted suicide, and when a man starts to argue on the phone, the caller says, "We are offering choice, not selling a process."

In fact, it comes at an interesting time in society when views on end of life medical treatments continue to fluctuate, as shown in this Pew Study released late last week. As someone who had heard about this debate but wasn't very familiar, the nearly two-hour documentary was an insightful and personal way to learn about the matter. 

#Millennialproblems: the Roku

Last summer, I won a Roku at work. A Roku is a box that connects to a wireless network and streams Netflix, HuluPlus and online subscription TV shows straight to your television, instead of plugging an HDMI cord into your TV or watching shows on a computer or tablet.

After 15 months of sitting in the box, I finally went through the step-by-step manual and the Roku up to the TV at the apartment. After logging into Netflix, setting everything straight and selecting a movie, the sound was not audible. The Millennial in me was about to call & complain, or just give up - but a friend nearby fiddled with the audio cord's fit to the TV, and found a more practical solution.

In the photo above, she used our coasters to prop up the audio cord into it's true spot, and now we have a functioning Roku and I've already watched two movies on the big-screen TV.

What this taught me: as we drown in technology, it's important to realize the simple solutions in life before blaming it on the devices themselves.

My first hockey game

Last week, I was invited last-minute to go to a Blackhawks game at United Center with some clients at work. Of course I took up the free offer, especially having never attended a professional hockey game. This was the case because when I grew up watching more American sports, and never saw its appeal. A mixture of the Stanley Cup victory halo and an extremely loyal fan base in Chicago quickly proved me wrong, ans I was shocked at what I observed at the game.

Out of all of my Chicago sports experiences (the Bulls, Bears, White Sox and Cubs), I've never seen a more energetic fan base present. Every seat was filled, every fan wore a red Hawks jersey and everyone was engaged in the game. After every goal, the whole audience stood up to sing the Chelsea Dagger goal song, cheering like crazy. Although the game went into double overtime and ended in a shoot out, no one left.

Overall, I'm incredibly impressed with the Hawks spirit and don't attribute it to the Stanley Cup, but rather a loyal base of hockey fans in the Chicagoland area. My high school hockey team won the state title back in 2006, and because of the sport's niche appeal, people who follow it REALLY follow it. In the meantime, I'll be a Chicago fan more than a hockey fan, but will always recognize the momentum of a Blackhawks game and never turn down an invitation to one :).

Airport customers: priority travelers are special

A few Mondays ago, I arrived at O’Hare Airport for a 7:30 a.m. flight. Monday mornings are notorious for business travelers and consultants for the week, so I anticipated long security lines.

When I got to security, there were two lines:

1. The regular line

2. The “priority” line

Frustrating observation from the line: the single priority line had two security lanes, and the normal travelers only had ONE. As I stood in the ‘normal traveler’ line for a long 30 minutes, I thought long and hard about why this would be the case.

It’s one thing to cater to your most loyal customers and spenders, but in an industry such as travel – why are airlines inconveniencing the average travelers that are paying for their flights…themselves? And don’t want to continue traveling and buying flights if they have negative airport experiences? 

As Millennials age and digital communication works to make life more convenient (i.e. – apps like Passbook), customers expect to feel SPECIAL. It’s no longer a privilege to have these special rights; it appears that priority groups feel like they earned and deserved the right to wait in a shorter line. 

This “special” treatment and entitlement to priority customers continues throughout the airport, like when you board the plane itself. When I checked into my flight early, I was excited to see that I was in boarding group 2. I later learned that this doesn’t mean anything anymore, because people board a plane in the following order:

• First-class
• Priority access
• Group 1
• Those only traveling with one bag
• Group 2
• Everyone else 

So much for my excitement! I was pretty much the last person to board the plane anyway. While the ideas of fast-passes and priority treatment to loyal, high-paying customers have been around for awhile with Disney rides and more, it appears that consumers seem to be actively pursuing control in this space. Earlier this month, two frequent flyers sued United Airlines for charging different amounts of mile balances for the same flights, using preferential pricing. How far will the special generation go to get what they want?

Restroom mirror ads: they exist

Spotted in the Time Warner Center in New York city: mirror ads in restrooms. What stood out here:

• The ads were subtle yet noticeable. They weren't covering the mirror entirely, and still had a faded 'subliminal' effect.
• There were no patterns in the types of advertisers - everything from food, to business, to data, to the AARP. 
• Each ad only lasted about ~five seconds, running very quickly.

Check these out!

AARP screen advertisement

Who isn't thinking about big data in the restroom? Even Experian advertises here.