Evolution needs to be understood to understand how business value is created and sustained. Good business ideas (that create value) are rarely thought up out of nothing - they build on what came before - they are the product of evolution. Evolution brings constant change and adaptation to the changing environment - and this can generate new value.
Habit needs to be understood to realise why value gets eroded. Habits are repetitive, with no change and adaptation to the changing environment - and habits can erode existing value by failing to adapt to changing circumstances.
We typically think of evolution from a Darwinist perspective - that is - we relate evolutionary theory to how species have changed over time. Even people who don't agree that this is how we came to be (e.g. have a creationist bias), they still understand what evolutionary theory proposes.
Evolution can be summarised in three words: "differentiate, select, amplify" - are these three words our code not only for surviving, but for progressing, succeeding and winning?
To recap, Darwin suggested that "Favourable variations would tend to be preserved and unfavourable ones to be destroyed". Note the word "variations". This is the essence of evolutionary theory. Take something, create a few variants, see which variant works best in that environment.
I suggest that anything created is built upon what was created before. We see ideas, we merge them, we use tools and techniques to re-purpose those ideas into something new. However, the "new idea" that takes the market by storm is only new and relevant at that moment in time for that market in those conditions. Just like pop stars, if they are to survive they must continually anticipate and adapt to the market.
How to adapt? A simple method: evolution. Differentiate, select, amplify.
Differentiate. Do something different. A new product, a new service, a new model, a new flavour. Test the variants. Lots of variants. Constant iteration.
Select. Figure out which one of the variants hits the sweet spot and gets good results.
Amplify. Do more of this. Push resources into building / marketing / selling the new variant.
The point is though is that the new variant will never be the best it can possibly be. It can always be even better by evolving some more. Keep changing. Because with evolution, we never design the "best" up front - we continuously discover "better" by trial and error.
The environment in which we operate changes on a daily basis. What was the best effort 3 months ago is probably less likely to be as good as it could be now. As someone once said to me "doing more of what you did to get you here isn't enough to get you over there". So we need to constantly change and adapt.
In this changing world habit is our worst enemy. Habit holds back evolution because we stop creating new variants. Of course, there's a reason for habit. It helps efficiency and for repeatable tasks, processes get tighter and more effective. That is - if the environment in which they operate remain constant.
The world is innovating faster and faster. As the world accelerates with new technology, innovation and social trends, we will need to be even more nimble if we are to adapt and succeed. Failing to adapt means our ideas, our business models or solutions will become dinosaurs - extinct.
I believe this thinking can be applied on so many levels. To corporate life, to product management, to government, to family life, to careers, to sport.
To live in the present, to evolve and adapt - it requires having some process (habit), but only just enough.
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