The Basics are Good

If you don’t know of Umair Haque, the director of the Havas Media Lab – “a… strategic advisor that helps investors, entrepreneurs, and firms experiment with, craft, and drive radical management, business model, and strategic innovation” – you should; the man is an absolute genius.

His post, “Why Ideals are the New Business Models,” is unquestionably one of the most impactful reads I have come across in a while. Not so much because it’s profound (though I assure you it is), but more so because after years of having the “merits” of business models shoved down my throat (seriously, I was almost gagging!), it is refreshing to see someone take a stand.

He argues, in essence that:

Business models aren’t today’s fundamental economic challenge.

If there is a silver lining to the current economic crisis it is that the complex, cumbersome business models of yesterday are slowly being supplanted by the basic ones of tomorrow; and as President Palmer (for all of you 24 fans) declares in a recent AllState commercial: the basics are good.

Twitter for example has become a world-wide phenomenon for two reasons. For starters, it enables people to answer a basic human question: what are you doing (thinking) right now? Secondly (and perhaps more importantly), everything Twitter’s engineering team does reinforces that notion. From emphasizing the concept of followers, to building robust back end functionality (e.g. integration with mobile phones and other social media platforms), they are dedicated to making the act of tweeting (i.e. sending and receiving simple status updates) as easy for their users as possible.

In contrast, Facebook’s latest redesign marks a troubling departure from and obfuscation of its original objective. By making a conscious effort to mimic Twitter and focus on “conversations” rather than life-streaming many (including myself) believe that Zuckerburg and company have created two distinct challenges for themselves: first, to impose a seismic shift in philosophy will not be easy considering Facebook has over 120M users (the majority of whom are used to interacting with the interface in a particular manner); and secondly, in trying, they will effectively dilute much of the value they had previously created.

In other words, instead of doing one thing well (i.e. enabling users to engage in each other’s lives), Facebook is on the precipice of doing two things “poorly” – though of course it remains to be seen if that has any effect on their long-term strategy (or viability).

My guess is no.

Creating something valuable in the first place is.

In his book, “Four Steps to the Epiphany” serial entrepreneur Steve Blank writes:

“If you want to get my blood pressure up when you invite me in to see your newly formed startup introduce me to someone with a Business Development title. This is the most ill used and ill-abused title in a startup. By itself this function and title more than likely decreases the probability of success when used early in a startup more than any other single factor. When I hear it used in an early-stage company I question the competence of all involved.”

The point is, if you can’t convince consumers of your product/service’s value before or during production, chances are slim to none that you will be able to sell it to them (i.e. via Business Development) once it’s completed – irrespective of its merits or your efforts.

“Monetizing” + “business models” = zombieconomy

Though I fundamentally believe that you must become ramen profitable in order to have any chance of creating value for your customers in the first place (unless of of course you’re Twitter), I do agree with Haque in one key respect: innovation and consistent long-term growth derive from a customer-centric approach.

It’s not about beating the snot out of your competition in order to achieve higher margins anymore. It’s about building lasting reciprocal relationships with your end user.

Forget business models. Focus on ideals

If creating value is today’s “fundamental economic challenge” (and like Haque I believe it is),  then nothing will empower us to rise to the occasion more than pursuing concepts founded in our ideals.

Freedom. Peace. Fairness. Justice. Principles like these not only create “authentic, deep, meaningful value” for the customer, but also (as I can tell you from experience) equip founders with: the focus to navigate a difficult competitive environment; the stamina to stay in the office until the wee hours of the morning; the determination to cold-call hundreds of prospects in an effort to pre-sell; and the humility to listen to and learn from users and mentors alike.

Thoughts?

Take Your Time

Long ago,  in a speech inspired by and dedicated to my graduating high school class,  I suggested that:

Everywhere we look, every person we meet, and every second of our life is glorious; however truth be told, only children truly realize that, feel it. For, on the train of actuality only the young look intently outside the window, only the young stare wide-eyed at the trees zipping by them in a blur of green, only the young giggle as birds fly freely alongside, and only the young smile from within as they drift into innocent sleep by their mother’s side… Childhood: it is the essence of our existence and the key to our survival.

Little did I know those words would take on renewed meaning years later, when just a few days ago, jelly-legged from a jog down to the beach, I collapsed on a park bench overlooking the Puget Sound. Panting, hunched over, and head sunk, my eyes glossed over a small bronze plaque resting calmly between my feet, that read simply, “Take your time…”

Too tired to object (and too lazy to argue), I leaned back against the weathered planks, slid down into a groove, stretched my arms out on either side of me, and just sat there taking it all in.

The waves. The breeze. The sun-drenched sky.

For the first time in months, the inescapable burden and suffocating urgency of post-college life (e.g. unemployment, family  obligations, life goals, etc) gave way to a larger, more profound truth: to rush forward is to fall short of one’s potential.

To succeed then, I realized we must invariably:

1) Take Interest – Taking interest, particularly when you yourself are trying desperately to get noticed, seems like a waste of time (and a surefire way to be left feeling vulnerable). However I assure you, it was only when I started focusing on select companies, reaching out to specific individuals, and offering my services for free that I began to forge the kind of lasting reciprocal relationships that are synonymous with long-term success.

2) Engage in Dialogue – Real (wo)men are not afraid to ask for directions! If only someone had told me that 5 months ago, I wouldn’t have spent countless hours applying to jobs that had little intrinsic value, and more time talking to and learning from individuals that I admired. But hey, better late than never right?

3) Act Consistently – A senior executive at Hewlett Packard, and a fellow Wharton alum, told me something I will not soon forget. He said, “[Akash] remember that you should manage yourself like you manage a brand. First identify your unique selling proposition (e.g. hard worker, attention to detail etc). Then ensure that everything you do reinforces that brand. Even if it gets frustrating  you [must] keep that energy up.”

Like it or not you see, there is only one certainty on the train of actuality: you cannot choose where we get off,  but you can always choose how you spend your time on board.