Toe the line. Evolution, not revolution. Quarterly goals. Backward looking metrics of success.
These are all business terms that reflect death by incrementalism. And we have seen the impact of this in government, corporations, media and more. I would argue that up until the pandemic, and even with tech driving so much change, there are areas where change has been negligible. We need bold moves.
In the last week, I’ve read or heard about a bunch of moves that deliver on the need to be bold:
On climate change: California Governor Gavin Newsom declared that starting in 2035 any new car sold in the state will have to be all-electric or otherwise emit zero-emissions. The action should have happened some time ago, but the order is signed.
On journalism: Here I am on Substack. More importantly, I am an avid supporter of journalists who go rogue (Casey Newton and Polina Marinova, for example), leaving their regular salary and big media brands behind to form their own business and write about what matters to them and their readers.
On booking a dinner table: Nick Kokonas, who founded and seeded Alinea (a Michelin 3-star restaurant) and TOCK (Opentable's latest competitor) decided that restaurant reservations needed a complete overhaul. TOCK lets diners book specific tables and restaurants to adapt pricing by the night and time of the reservation to even out demand. Listen to a great interview with Kokonas here.
On social media. People like Rashad Robinson, president of Color of Change, and Jonathan Greenblatt, CEO of the Anti-Defamation League, took on Facebook and organized StopHateForProfit. They recruited nearly 1,000 advertisers to boycott Facebook for a month. It’s only Round 1 on getting the social media giant to clean up its act, so while it barely dented the bottom line (though sales teams were irked) it did empower brands to direct some very serious questions to the platform and its CEO.
On education and GenZ: We’ve all heard about all the ways digital is a challenge for education. But some see it as an opportunity. My experience as a member of the Framers Board of Civics Unplugged showed me first-hand that the people best equipped to make education work during the pandemic and beyond are the students who live inside the tech and can train the teachers and administrators how to rethink learning. See more in this segment on CBS This Morning:
My new favorite quote, reflected in the above actions, makes the point succinctly:
It is remarkable how much long-term advantage people like us have gotten by trying to be consistently not stupid, instead of trying to be very intelligent.”
- Charlie Munger, Vice Chairman, Berkshire Hathaway
The Point.
Why talk about the need for bold action now? Because our country is full of people who say they want change, yet take no definitive action. Gavin Newsom, Nick Kokonas, and the Builders at Civics Unplugged aren’t satisfied with just asking for change, they’re taking action. When I was a Forrester analyst, I published many bold predictions, and many of them turned out to be right. But I didn’t make those predictions come true, I just wrote about them.
So, here’s my advice to those who aspire to be doers:
Have a vision, and state it clearly. When I work with entrepreneurs to help them figure out how to grow their businesses, some remain too focused on just the capabilities of their offerings. I try to get them to raise their sights, to craft a plan of “why” they’re doing what they do. The ones who have that greater vision always have an easier time mapping out the journey to achieve it. They are the ones that win customer deals, attract the best employees and create momentum.
Make decisive moves, make mistakes and make haste. If you see the fix to a problem and see it clearly, move towards it. Even if you don’t get it right the first time, you’ll be closer to right with each course correction. Iterate quickly, and be decisive on each change you make, and be clear to others about what you are doing and why it matters.
Don’t ask permission. If you only listen to old folks like me who tell you “why not” then you are not ready to ask for advice -- you are looking for excuses. The best innovators like to hear “why not” but don’t get hung up on it. They proceed to disrupt the status quo with their passion, vision and energy.
Explain yourself well. So many smart people can’t boil their thoughts down to an elevator pitch. This is true of entrepreneurs, politicians, sports heroes and other celebrities. My favorite person who gets it (this week anyway) is Ryan Reynolds, who just explained his newfound marketing success with gin, mobile phones and of course Deadpool. He knows what he’s doing and why, and he articulates it well.
What’s your bold move? Tell me about it here or here or here. Or send me your elevator pitch of what you are being bold about and maybe I’ll write about it.