5 Business Lessons from Phineas and Ferb
I will be the first to admit that I absolutely love cartoons. I have always been a Scooby-Doo fan and generally find that the cartoon-like characters of today aren't really geared towards children as much as they are towards adults in a "tongue-in-cheek" fashion. That was until a few years ago when I stumbled upon Phineas and Ferb™, a Disney channel cartoon. The show is about 2 young boys that aim to get the most out of their summer vacation, often with the help of their friends. As the title sequence explains, "There's 104 days of summer vacation and school comes along just to end it. So the annual problem for our generation is finding a good way to spend it…" then the lyrics go on to list the various ways in which the kids spend their summer.
What does this have to do with business you ask? An excellent question! I think that Phineas and Ferb are very enterprising, and it is the definition of that very word that I will use to provide you with the lessons I've learned from them.
Lesson 1: Maximize your time. Every morning, Phineas and Ferb™ wake up and they normally go outside (although sometimes you can catch them still in the house) and brainstorm about what it is they would like to do to get the most out of the day. Once a decision is made, Phineas gives his tagline "I know what we're gonna do today." How many days do you spend where you drag out of the bed, or drag to work with no real direction for what it is that you want to get accomplished in that particular day? Try jotting down some ideas or creating plans in your head so that you, too, can declare each day, "I know what we're gonna do today!"