My previous post explained why there's no guaranteed recipe for success (sorry). But here's the next best thing.
First, Think Principles, Not Recipes
To understand the difference, consider Chinese cooking. Chicken with cashew nuts, for example, works well because it follows the principle of contrast of textures. The softness of the chicken contrasts beautifully with the crunchiness of the cashew nuts and the celery. You could expand on this principle to invent other recipes, but you need to exercise some discretion. Banana with cashew nuts obeys the principle, but would you eat it? No, neither would I.
With that in mind, here are some principles to consider.
Remove Complexity
"A design is perfect," said Antoine de Saint-Exupery, "not when nothing can be added but when nothing can be taken away." He was talking about aircraft design, but the principle applies far more widely. Your idea, your business, is much more likely to fly if you have removed the superfluous. I'd give
Experiment
Don't do "pilot projects." Do "experiments." The language matters. "Pilot" implies that we have decided to go ahead but will start in a small way to iron out the inevitable wrinkles. "Experiment" means we are doing something to decide whether to go ahead.
Language matters in another way as well. What do you call the money you spend on an experiment which you will not recover if you decide not to pursue the idea? (Notice how carefully that was worded). It is a cost not a loss. It is the cost of testing an idea, not the loss of a failure. The numbers are the same, but the effect on thinking and behavior is quite different.
Keep Moving
It is so easy, particularly in a well established organization, to view history as periods of stability punctuated by change, more or less dramatic. This creates a huge vulnerability - every time we achieve a success we think, probably without verbalising it "great, now we can relax." This is the moment of great danger. Instead of periods of stasis broken up by revolutions, try to create a process of continuing evolution.
Don't Be Better, Be Different
Be honest; so much of what we now buy is so good that there's little value in anything the same but better. Difference, on the other hand, stands out. For an individual, that means bringing something personal to your work. What is there about you that gives you a unique way of doing things? For a company, it means not following the herd. Think about Toyota and be inspired. Yes, they are masters of continuous (i.e. incremental) improvement, but they also launched the Prius.
Be Prepared To Go Back In Order To Go Forward
There has been a lot of talk recently about the idea of the disruptive innovation, much of it not very friendly. Whatever its merits overall, the theory of the disruptive innovation has one very important message. Sometimes innovations come along which are not as profitable as what went before. If you cannot, absolutely cannot, accept a short-term drop in profitability to invest in a new thing, you put the entire business at risk. Often easier said than done, I know, but sometimes there is no alternative.
