My Kids Made It Rain… and So Can You

It’s raining here in St. Louis, MO, USA… 

…which reminds me of the time my twin kiddos summoned a drought-ending thunderstorm with a rain dance.  

We were at my inlaw’s farm in central Missouri. It was bone dry for weeks.  

But (finally!), we adults could smell and feel the rain coming.  

As the wind picked up and the air got thick and the temperature began to drop, we walked outside with 3-year-old Maddie and Jake and encouraged them to dance.  

They shook their bones with enthusiasm — arms all akimbo, legs kicking like Rockettes. And then… 

…it started to drizzle and then rain and then pour. Buckets of water on our thirsty land. The kids kept dancing — including some of those spin-on-their-back moves.  

They returned to the house — muddy and delighted. And we adults thanked them for their rain dance that ended the horrible drought.  

About a month later, Jake cornered me in the kitchen, looked at me with his big doe eyes and said, “Can I have some Golden Gwams?”  

He wanted a bowl of his favorite cereal, Golden Grahams, but I said, “Sorry, no. It’s too close to dinner time. We don’t want to spoil your appetite.”  

Jake was not fond of “Sorry, no…” so I braced myself for combat. 

But he stood there silently, with a calm, pensive look on his face. Several seconds of silence passed and then……he began to jump up and down, wave his arms, kick his legs — smiling all the while.  

“WHAT are you doing?” I asked. “A dance,” he said. “A Golden Gwams dance!”  

I laughed, grabbed the cereal box, and poured him a bowl. 

As I handed him the cereal, I said, “You’re a smart kid.” And I meant it.  

Pay attention. Study what works. If it works once, try it again. 

That’s what smart kids do.  That’s what smart marketers do.  

It may not work the second time or every time. But if you take this approach, the odds are in your favor.