The Difference That Makes A Difference

Gregory Bateson, an English anthropologist is credited with this phrase. He was talking about information and how it can affect things. What information can we know that will completely change the situation/experiment/culture?

The subtle difference that makes a huge difference?

• Difference between orange juice and a mimosa? Champagne.

• Difference between kissing a person you love vs. kissing a person you love who is married to someone else? Integrity.

• Difference between playing basketball in tennis shoes or playing in flip flops? Enjoying yourself. 

This goes for your business too. There are a ton of little differences that you can add that will make a big difference to either your internal culture or your customer’s experience. 


• Difference between emailing an angry customer back or calling them personally? Diffusion of the issue and potentially game-changing feedback.

• Difference between listening to your employees feedback or telling them “This is how it’s always been done.”? Your employees feeling valued and better ideas coming through the door. 

• Difference between packaging your product in a brown cardboard box or finding something beautiful to package it in? The customer has a totally different experience with your product.

Find the difference that makes the difference in your business.