Page 231 - Free the Idea Monkey

Every day on vacation, my sons and I stepped off the directions
from the map. There were some challenges to overcome. First, we
didn’t know if Bonito was short or tall so we experimented with
giant steps and baby steps. We also had to figure that 175 years was
a long time ago so we were probably looking for trees that had fallen
down. It was quite the challenge. Still we would choose our tree, or
where we thought the tree might have been, step off the pace, and
dig for about ten minutes.

And every day we’d fail.
On the last day of the vacation, after many, many failed attempts,
we tried again. My son tapped something at the bottom of the hole
and yelled, “It’s the TREASURE!” The boys worked to pull out a small
wooden box filled with coins from around the world. It was a glori-
ous moment and a memory I’m hopeful that they will never forget.
Go to YouTube and search “Maddock Treasure” to witness the
end of the treasure hunt or simply go to this address:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0BS0R0JWl64
Finding treasure is an amazing moment. In our business, we get
to see the eureka moment all the time. When a team finally hits on an
idea—a treasure—after sometimes years of digging, it is absolute
magic. And from my experience, it feels the same whether you are
eight or eighty-eight. Finding treasure is an ageless thrill.
Post script: Four years after older son Gunnar found his treasure
in Jamaica, Cody found his in Costa Rica. With his teenage years
clearly on the horizon, Gunnar stared at what his brother had found
and you could see he was about to put pirates in the same category
as Santa when I approached him.
“So Gunnar, why do you think we found the treasure?” I asked.
“Because we had a map?”
“Yes, when you have a proven process, a road map, you’re more
likely to be successful. What else?”

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