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Most people in business are followers. They are the people will neither create anything nor be the first to jump opportunistically on a new market or innovative theme. There’s nothing inherently wrong with that, but without innovation or creation, nothing new or transformative will emerge. It takes someone with a creative spark for innovation to occur.
But it takes more than that spark; creation is not without its costs. The way forward often involves you in a zero-sum game, as the time and attention invested in current activities can preclude a similar investment in what is new and unproven. Few among us have the resources to be fully committed to both the existing, as well as the new. You therefore must find a workable mixture that combines both approaches, or commit to one or the other. The process of creation and adoption of new things is outlined in Geoffrey Moore’s seminal book: Crossing the Chasm.
What is the threshold of market adoption?
The threshold for market adoption of something new is when the majority embrace the innovation. Sometimes, as with Uber or Netflix, it can happen quickly. In other circumstances, it is more gradual, as with Amazon.com. The tempo of adoption often is a matter of how strong and entrenched are the incumbents and what barriers to adoption lay ahead of the innovation. But the process is usually the same; either new things are adopted or they fall by the wayside when the creator runs out of the patience needed to support growth – or the money needed to fuel that growth runs out.
The art of creation is both difficult and risky. If it weren’t, we’d be awash in innovation. But we are not; challenges abound. Given those challenges, most choose a ‘wait and see’ approach. While that’s often a fair, defensible position (given that profit and loss are at stake), it also limits your ability to capitalize on the advantages of being a creator).
Could you be a Value Creator?
Let me pose a question: What would you create (what innovation would you champion) were profit and loss, as well as time and resources, not at stake? Do you even know what you would try to do?
I believe that there’s a connection between being proactive and being creative. Being proactive in terms of an event requires anticipating the future. Tactically, it’s identifying issues and addressing them before they become threats. Strategically, it’s figuring out the need for something new, perhaps before your prospective customer knows they want or need it (e.g. Apple’s development of the iPhone.) Creators often don’t have the constraints of budgets, thus are free to imagine different approaches – or entirely new and different products – because they are not burdened with the obligations of profitability, at least in the short term.
Are you a Follower or a Leader?
I’ve frequently said that growth requires proactivity and creativity. Simply following others can be a long-term recipe for failure, though it may be the easier choice in the near term.
Is your organization capable of creating?
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