We’re living in exponential times, the Big 5 tech companies – Microsoft, Google, Amazon, Apple, Facebook – occupy the top 6 spots of the most valuable companies in the world, thus driving the Next Economy. It’s safe to say that we live in a world dominated by technology.
This means the way we work, collaborate and do everything on a daily basis changes; and organizations that don’t adapt will certainly become irrelevant.
Still, there are highly educated and influential people out there who advocate for an economy that values stability over progress. I don’t know if economists just have a bad relationship with technology and therefore see it more as a distraction than an augmenter. But, technology changes the playbook and the status quo is not safe from it.
As I wrote in my last post, the status quo police need a serious kick in the pants.
Exponential technologies require exponential thinking
Technology non-believers need to understand that innovation is rarely disruptive; the media and pundits have taken that word and made it meaningless. What is certain is businesses who were not born with a digital first perspective are currently being forced to make the transition to a digital business. This means business model innovation. Changing ones business model is not easy, there’s no clear path to success, but it’s necessary for reinvention.
Making this transition requires a new type of leadership; an exponential mindset. A new mental model. The shift to a new mental model requires unlearning. To make that shift, understand how incremental thinking puts a limit on what you think is possible. Exponential leaders understand that before changing what you do, you need to change how you think; that means accepting that whatever got you here will not get you there.
Someone shared a recent Singularity University Webinar with me where Mark Bonchek, an expert in transformative change, takes you on a guided journey of “unlearning” to shift your mindset from thinking incrementally to exponentially. Watch below:
The challenge for every leader is to create an exponential business. To do so, you have to change how you think before changing what you do.
Bottom line: Most people and organizations fear innovation because it eliminates what is, with no certainty for what could be. But you have to remember that innovation doesn’t respect tradition. Either you drive progress or you’re outpaced by those who do; and those who do are exponential leaders.