Dirty Secret Confession
So the mortgage business is not booming right now. I have a little extra time on my hands. Sometimes, when my wife thinks I'm slaving away in the home office, I look for a distraction. Since I'm online, naturally I dim the lights and set my computer to games. What did you think I was going to say? Not just any game, but one in specific. A game of luck, skill, frustration and joy. In other words, a game just like life; Bloons Pop 3.
I blame my son! He's the one who brought addictinggames.com into the house! I blame my wife! She's the one who first started playing it. I'd come downstairs and there she was, popping balloons! She didn't just pop balloons, she would draw me into the game. Ask me if I wanted a turn. Sometimes we would play together. All designed to get me hooked.
How Do You Play?
The rules are simple. There is a field of balloons, you try to line up three balloons of the same color by moving one. They have to be lined up vertically or horizontally, no diagonals. When you line your three up, they pop and the balloons underneath them move up. Some balloons are worth more points than others. Some create a different action, such as dropping a "bomb" on the entire row beneath and popping all of those or, a tack that will pop multiple balloons around itself. These subsequent pops lead to higher points. The object, get the most points. You can register your score online and see how you match up against others.
Like Life Itself
I know some of you are out there saying "I'll stick with my solitaire. I don't need some new fangled game." But think about it, solitaire almost screams out "loner." It's a game of great luck and minor skill. Bloons, on the other hand, requires thought and strategy. Why is it like life?
- The best strategy is to play at the top. You try to make your plays in the top rows so that you have better reactions. Don't we all want to play at the top in life?
- Moves you make have consequences. Sometimes a simple move of lining up three balloons will cause a chain reaction that results in huge gains. Kind of like if you do a real good job with one client, you can have multiple sales from that one move.
- You have to choose which move is best. Don't we have to choose what marketing works best for us? What's the best use of my time? (I know the best use of my time is not playing bloons!)
- In solitaire, you either win or lose. In bloons, you are trying to better your previous score. Trying to hone your skill level. Sales are not as simple as winning or losing. Sometimes you think you "lost" only to get that call that you're still in the game.
- In bloons, there are times when you think it's over. After this move, I have no more. I'm playing near the bottom not getting much action. Plugging away getting my 3 balloons and that's it. Just when you think it's over, boom, you're back playing at the top! How many of you think you have no more moves? This is it. Stay in there, you'll be back playing at the top before you know it!
- And yes, some balloons are worth more points. Fact of life is that some sales are worth more money than others. Don't you like the sales that pay more if the amount of work is the same?
Lessons Learned
It's time for me to end my bloons game, close down this blog entry and go practice the things I've learned. As they say, see you at the top!
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