The Backlash of Being Cool

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So many people are out to become the next "in" thing.  To be the next cultural hit, always taking home run swings, when all they need is a single.

I started thinking about this when I had the thought, "Damnit, when will Apple just shut the fuck up?"  Apple jumped on a cultural shift and hit a massive home run with the IPod, and reinvigorated it's brand like John Travolta.  Everything's kicking in high gear, with far and wide praise, computers flying off the shelves, destruction of all other mp3 players, annoyingly smug ad campaigns, and on and on. 

But the thing about cool brands, they always have a relatively short shelf-life.  The cooler you get, the bigger the faction of people that hate you for your coolness.  There is a direct relationship between amount of cool, and amount of haters. 

It's just like any new wanna-be Studio 54 club in town.  When they first open up, there's long lines, VIP, and plenty of press.  But, eventually you won't be so new, and someone just as cool, but now newer will open and render you obsolete.  All the while, the laid back neighborhood bar can keep kicking for 20 years because they offer what cool can't, consistency.

I guess the point is, sometimes it's better to be consistent than it is to be cool.  You'll have a lot better shot of sticking around when this trend passes, and a new trend starts.