Comments on: Physics and Ideation: When Does A Breakthrough Idea Become An Acceptable Idea?

By: Bill Welter

Bill Welter — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 15:43:35 +0000

Fred,
Yes, this is one of those things leaders should anticipate. The edge of the water falls is too late and takes too much effort. All the more reason to think about the edge of the radar screen.
Bill

By: Fred H. Schlegel

Fred H. Schlegel — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 15:22:35 +0000

Kay, I like the waterfall metaphor. Long falls and sinking are things most managers can grasp the need to avoid It would be interesting to know if after such a discussion any decided to just embrace the low cost/commodity strategy rather than try and go against the current?

@Bill – More reason for your Radar?

By: Bill Welter

Bill Welter — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 14:57:26 +0000

Kay,
Good point — the status quo is a terrible place to hide! When we come out of this current crisis we will see the damage done to companies who hunkered down and did nothing.
Bill

By: Kay Plantes

Kay Plantes — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 13:59:41 +0000

As an economist and business strategy professional, I remind leaders that in today's economy, the status quo is not safe. Commoditization is the underlying current of our economy. If you do not evolve your offering and business model, you risk being pulled over the waterfall where only the lowest cost companies end up floating. When leaders understand this dynamic, they become of necessity more open to ideas. What holds leaders back from being open to ideas is the assumption that the status quo is safe. Nothing could be further from the truth. Kay Plantes’s last blog post..Strategic Leadership in Fearful Times

By: Physics and Ideation: Creativity and Mismatched Socks – Frog Blog

Physics and Ideation: Creativity and Mismatched Socks – Frog Blog — Fri, 24 Apr 2009 18:09:44 +0000

[...] Gilder shows that the scientific method and collegiate courtesy does not always work perfectly — Bohr was great at arguing others away from points he disliked — but the approach provides multiple places and times in private and in public to argue and [...]

By: Andrew

Andrew — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 22:49:58 +0000

Fred, No problem, my pleasure. And thank you for your thoughtful comments and discussiion on my blog. Much appreciated. Andrew’s last blog post..Somali pirates - armed guards not the answer

By: Fred H. Schlegel

Fred H. Schlegel — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 02:49:34 +0000

Hi Bill, At the very least a few ideas might not die on the vine. Seems worthwhile. Thanks for commenting!

By: Bill Welter

Bill Welter — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 21:43:24 +0000

Fred,
I love the concept of “stress testing” ideas. If more people did this we just might see a shift from mediocre-at-best ideas toward a bit of brilliance.
Bill

By: Fred H. Schlegel

Fred H. Schlegel — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 15:43:01 +0000

Interesting how an ‘open’ network, as found in some academic circles, can shake up a chain of command. If information is distributed, then challenges and new ideas can come from unexpected quarters and gain momentum without permission. Truth is, that’s basically what happens in a capitalist system when an upstart company or entrepreneur comes along and rips apart an established market. Most of the time the old guard sees the train coming but their reaction is to duck rather than get on board.

By: Fred H. Schlegel

Fred H. Schlegel — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 15:38:39 +0000

I love Walt Disney. Not only did he go against what ‘everybody’ thought over and over again, he often had to bet the entire company, his home and more to get things done. I don’t recall hearing the 19 executive’s story before, but it certainly sounds in character from what I have read and I’ll be heading off in search hoping it’s true. It’s so easy to look a successful idea and have the thought “duh, that’s obvious” and forget how against the grain the whole concept was when launched. Folks thought Disney was mad trying to make a feature length cartoon, and yet, it seemed to work out in the end.

A lot of folks play ‘what if’ games in business, we’re taught them in business school after all. What struck me about the idea of a thought experiment in physics is that they get written up, recorded, analyzed, and so are there to refer to in the future. I don’t think business, or many creative enterprises, are very good at capturing and referring back to this kind of intellectual property. It could be important if a critical assumption changes – the entire thought experiment that sent you down one path could all of a sudden have a different conclusion.

Thanks for your thoughtful comments Andrew.