Well E3, Board Work and then 2 weeks in the land of lakes and cheese with an almost obsessive desire to "unplug" will do it to ya'. Get you (ok, me) some perspective I mean.
For there outside the 415, 650, 408 and 510 (oh heck let's throw the 707 and the 831 in there too) where "real people" live, the world operates a bit differently. A bit differently than the hype-aware, hyper-connected, hyper-what's-new land of the SF Bay Area and its extensions.
And while it's true that so many markets are made on the edges, there's a reason CPG companies do their best testing in places like Eau Claire Wisconsin. Because it's there that money is not so plentiful, where consumables are not as attainable, where people have to make what seems like harder choices on how to spend their hard-earned money.
So get out there into the great expanse between 415 and 212 and spend some time observing how those outside our bubble live. You'll learn something about how to move some markets and be better for it.
