A few years ago, a friend told me a story that sounds like the stuff urban legends are made of.
He said that in the initial test groups for iPods before they were released, participants of the study were asked what color iPod they’d prefer. The vast majority voted for orange. Yet when the same group was given the resources to actually select an iPod to take home, the vast majority chose white—hence when iPod’s first released they were only available in white.
Whether or not the story is true (and my doubt-o-meter is pegging a 9.98), the story illustrates a common human experience:
That which we claim we want and that which we actually select are often different.
One of the great (and verified) examples of this comes in using a cell phone while driving. The 2010 Chubb Driver Distraction Survey (yes, that’s the real name, insert snickering sound) noted that 90% of those surveyed felt that using a cell phone while driving should be illegal. But 51% of respondents admitted to using a cell phone while driving.
On a more humorous note, of those surveyed, 3% admitted to have changed clothes while driving though 79% thought the activity should be illegal. (Source: PC Today, November, 2010, p. 9).
The whole issue of what we say we want versus what we actually choose has deep implications in our spiritual lives.
What do we claim that we want in our relationship with God? Yet how do we choose to behave?
What do we say it means to follow Jesus? Yet how do we actually live?
What do we tell others when it comes to loving and serving others? Yet what decisions are we making to embrace love and service in our daily lives?
Where do we need to be honest in our own lives and admit—even if it’s not popular—that we really want the white iPod.
*Photo courtesy of here
