Innovation is Overrated

People love to talk about “innovation” and put it on a pedestal. It feels sexy, and makes us feel important.

We glorify tech founders, spout off about disruption, and dream about inventing the next big thing.

But the reality is that it’s usually not the idea, it’s how you execute on the details, that makes the difference.

Look Forward:

As a recovering “innovation” consultant, I’m working to shift my mindset from architecting big ideas to creating small works that stack.

But what we create matters, so I’ve narrowed in on a few principles I’m experimenting with to guide my efforts:

1. Consider the market

Steve Jobs was great at finding markets with second-rate products. There were often too many products, but they were low quality.

Conventional wisdom would say to avoid crowded markets, but this can be a sign that the market is stagnant and ripe for a differentiated approach.

A reminder that we don’t have to invent something new to succeed. Like Jobs, we can take a boring product and make it sexy, or we can differentiate on how we execute (innovate on the operations).

A word of caution: avoid trendy markets that are a race to the bottom.

2. Consider timing

It’s much easier to ride a wave than to swim against the current. But it’s hard to time the wave, and how do we know if we’re too late?

According to Bill Gates, “We always overestimate the change that will occur in the next 2 years and underestimate the change that will occur in the next 10 years.”

3. Play positive-sum games.

Avoid zero-sum games. Stop and reevaluate before entering a winner-take-all market since your odds of winning are much lower.

It’s better to build in an industry where competitors support each other and all boats rise with the tide.

Most importantly, a reminder to myself that quantity matters.

Get as many at-bats as possible.

Create like Picasso.

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Thanks for reading!

Until next week, keep growing in all directions « 🙂 »

Scott

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