Running into Reality
By Wayne Pohl
July 1, 1994
The story is told about a major corporation that launched a new brand of dog food. Through research, they developed the most sophisticated, most nutritious dog food to date and poured millions into marketing it.
But it didn't sell.
Out of frustration, the corporation gathered in a Chicago hotel. The national sales manager got up and said, "What's the problem? We have this nutritious product that is cheaper and better marketed than our competitors' product. Why is nobody buying it?"
There was a long, uncomfortable silence. Then, from the back of the room, a salesman from Iowa drawled, "The dogs don't like it."
Vision, it seems to me, is overrated. As this story reminds me, it's no match for reality. I've discovered this truth in the only institution that teaches it: the school of hard knocks.
Several years ago, our church purchased fifteen acres of prime real estate along a main artery in the Detroit metropolitan area. Our current three-acre site was constricting our growth, and so we saw this purchase as a way to fulfill our vision of reaching the lost.
Shortly after purchasing the property, however, we discovered that the cost of building a new facility was prohibitive. To build a facility the same size we currently had would have cost over $14 million--and we needed to expand. We then stumbled upon the fact that our present church facility would not be easy to sell.
To top it off, we discovered our new property lay 400 feet outside the city of Trenton. It might as well have been 400 miles. Our church identifies itself with the town of Trenton; we couldn't move without altering our personality. So, after some huffing and puffing, we opted for staying put; we hired an architect and added space to our current facility.
Reality rarely ...
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