Archive for: October, 2016

Simplicity Wins But It’s Not Without Its Challenges

Picking up your kids from school shouldn’t be a pain in the ass…

One of my latest ventures is a solution to the “waiting for kids at school” problem all parents face. In the U.S. it might be a little different than in Mexico, but the problem is universal: all parents wait a long time to pick up their kids at school!

This is not a problem I have, but a friend of mine does. So, my buddy and I created On Time to eliminate this pain.

Want To Hire Innovators? Here’s How You’re Dismissing Them

 Rebels and nonconformists are often the pioneers and designers of change

Most organizations are not setup to hire innovators, rather they filter them out. Why? Because they follow the tried and true solid advice for making good hiring decisions: hire for culture-fit.

To hire for culture-fit is to hire for comfort, the short-term, sameness; to keep optimizing what is rather than creating what’s next. The problem with hiring for culture-fit is that if your culture doesn’t reward risk taking and learning from mistakes then you will filter out innovators.

This is how most organizations work.

Focus On What Won’t Change

focys on what won't change

The most common strategy all innovators use to create new industries is to take advantage of an emerging trend or technology. It’s becoming harder to pull that off because we’re living in the “next big thing” economy, one where every new product and service is a gimmick looking for a market.

Still, a good 99% of the conversations about the future are about what’s changing, what that means and what to do about it. I’m guilty of it myself. And while it’s important to discuss these matters, the flip side of that is even more important: what won’t change.

Embrace Weird To Find The Next Revolution

Established companies don’t like misfits, renegades, weird people. It’s a fact. I always ask leaders of established businesses if they keep their eyes open for a Steve Jobs to hire; their answer is no.

I’m not surprised. See, most leaders of established businesses are preoccupied with maintaining the status quo, keeping the wheels turning, making sure nothing disrupts their day to day. So, bringing in misfits is out of the question because it means chaos.

Yet chaos is what’s needed to find the next revolution!