U2 can be Successful
I am taken with the feedback from last night’s U2 concert in Johannesburg.
Queues for food and drinks were long – not the least because tokens needed to be purchased first. Merchandise was no easier to obtain, as one of my GIBS colleagues can attest – a mere 90 minutes – in a pressing crowd – for a costly t-shirt. And transport? Some say the buses were the best route to get home by 100 a.m., if the swirling masses of options did not confuse you for too long. Trains ensured you were home by 230 a.m. If all of this seems unwieldy, it was, by all accounts. The smooth World Cup arrangements were seldom in operation.
So what did the concert-goers say? “Once in a lifetime!’, “Brilliant – soooo worthit!”, “Unforgettable!”
Why? Because U2 were every bit as engaging, professional and relevant as expected. They “wowed” the audience for hours on end, and the set was spectacular. One lady (for once not a glamour model) will never forget being the guest of honour on stage with Bono.
It seems that when we are looking forward to a great event and are focused on the big picture, we love every minute of the experience, and even danger, discomfort and delay cannot off-set the happiness we feel.
There’s a lesson there, somewhere. Perhaps we found what we were looking for, for a change.