Bezos was on his phone the whole time

It’s celebration season. Typically, this would mean New Year parties and fancy dinners.

That may be less prolific the last couple years. Yet, we’ve found safe methods to observe holidays. I saw some in action a few nights ago.

My wife and I had a rare date night, as we were able to leave the kids with family.

One goal was to eliminate distractions from devices. Not everyone at the restaurant shared this goal.

As masked couples entered, every single one of them took out their phones. Without exception.

Perhaps we’ve all forgotten how to interact in person? Or maybe we need the mind numbing screen to distract us from these unprecedented times?

Before we were too deep into this philosophical discussion, we remembered we had done the same when we arrived. The restaurant had no physical menus. Everyone had to scan a QR code, then keep a device in their face until they decided what to order.

It reminded me of a story a friend told a few years ago: he was out in Seattle, celebrating a big anniversary. They splurged on a really fancy dinner.

At a nearby table was Amazon founder Jeff Bezos.

On his phone.

The entire meal.

At one of nicest restaurants in Seattle.

This is a guy who can get a table anywhere and afford whatever number is on the bill… for every single meal of every single day.

Perhaps he’s immune to “special occasions.” Or maybe he was closing a big deal.

Regardless, we all get stuck in what seems normal. It requires a shift in perspective to see how something looks from the outside.

Jeff Bezos may not have recognized how his behavior appeared to my friend. Similarly, my wife and I quickly forgot we’d used our phones to view the menu.

To attract and engage developers means you need to constantly consider their perspective… while attempting to hit your marketing goals.

We created the D.E.V. Content Framework to help you shift your perspective in all your work with developers. As you look to next year, consider how you could use it to attract more developers to your product.

Happy New Year! Let the EveryDeveloper team know how we can help.