The Ice Cube

The ice cube is a simple object.  It’s frozen water that comes in many shapes and sizes.  Ice is used for drinks, food and medicine as well as other applications.  As people find different ways to use ice, it is important to remember that the ice cube also serves as a reminder of a phenomenon that MEAPA likes to call “the disappearing middle man.”

Even though people can make their own ice cubes today that was not always the case.  Prior to the 1960s, people usually relied upon ice houses.  Ice houses were a major part of the early economy of New England.  Ice had to physically travel from one point to another in order for people to purchase it.  

Ice house owners and their suppliers made fortunes by shipping ice in straw-packed ships to the southern U.S. and throughout the Caribbean Sea.  In winter months, ice was chopped from a lake surface and often dragged by sledge to an ice house.  During summer months ice was delivered from local ice houses to residences in ice wagons or ice trucks, where it would be stored in an ice box, which was used much like a modern refrigerator.

The ice house was the middle man between where it was and the person using it.  In other words, people could not access ice unless someone did something.  As technology improved and the new inventions of refrigeration and freezers became more common in households, a major shift occurred.   People started to make ice themselves. 

As a result, during the first half of the 20^th century ice houses started to disappear.   Now that people had the ability to create their own ice the home ice delivery business declined.  By the late 1960s the once vibrant ice house industry had almost entirely disappeared.   

MEAPA believes that another major shift is underway due to new online technology.   Thanks to the advent of high-speed technology and online programming, the last few years have witnessed the disappearing of the middleman in a number of industries.  If you want to publish your book, design your own clothing or even display your artwork you now can.  The middleman is disappearing with each passing day.     

Prior to just a few years ago if one wanted to publish a book a variety of middlemen were involved in the process.  An author had to find a publisher, editor, cover designer, distributor and many others.  Such a process often involved years of frustration, rejection and dead-ends.  

In 2002 those middlemen started to disappear thanks to Lulu.  Lulu offers a wide selection of services for people what want to self-publish a book.  Lulu allows an author to determine the size of the book, design a cover and then sell directly from its web site.   There is no middleman in this process and as a result people are more empowered today to become a published author. 

Since 1999 a similar shift is taking place in the clothing industry with the introduction of CafePress http://www.cafepress.com/. 

Customers can upload their own graphics design, logo or text and then add that to a clothing item such as a shirt, hat or pants.  The site also allows the user to have a virtual CafePress "shop" including an online storefront and website hosting, order management, fulfillment, payment processing, and customer service.   No middleman is needed to design, sell and fulfill orders for your clothing designs.  

For artists looking to publish their work there is EBSQ http://www.ebsqart.com/ . 

EBSQ is an online community for artists who want to take control of their own art careers.   It is a hub where you can house your full portfolio, link to all of your online venues, easily establish the provenance of your work with our Digital Certificate of Authenticity tools, and connect with a global art community.

These tools and others allow you to take action and work towards translating your vision into reality.  Years ago you could have blamed the middleman, a publisher, art gallery owner or publisher for standing between you and your dream.  That is no longer the case.   The only person standing between you and your ability to take action is YOU! 

One final note: While it is true that the middleman is disappearing, and you can do far more than ever imaginable, you need to remind yourself that success is still the one constant that takes time.   In a world of instant communication and almost everything else, remind yourself that there is no mobile phone application, desktop shortcut or icon for success.  Use these tools to launch the start of a life filled with intention and purpose and each day travel down your PATH to success.