Survival of the innovative!

Here is another bold claim – as we move forward in next 5, 10 or 25 years, it seems that “Survival of the fittest” will get replaced by “Survival of the innovative”! Why? Commoditization is the norm, automation simply follows. So, cool innovative things of past become obvious commodities of today, and automated things when in the future. If we don’t move with time, always riding the cool innovative wave, we are very likely to be hit by commoditization and/or automation.

Managing your career or life

One of the problems I face is recreating the chain of thoughts I had few weeks ago, and this is one of them, when I was speaking to Prashant and later Amisha. So this is likely to be little vague. Another problem I found since I started to blog is that I cannot explain it well, partially consciously, partially sub-consciously – I feel that we cannot communicate thoughts with perfection in any natural language, we tend to be at different levels of abstraction, another reason of multiple contradicting truths. Any attempts to provide clarification, for example, with an example tend to put you on a different level of abstraction and focus changes to this different level, which is not what was intended.

Let’s put people in boxes, the typical wrong thing to do. People tend to manage their lives or career as – micro-managers, managers and macro-managers. Micro-managers (bhautik) plan every little thing, for example, money, fame, etc. Success usually equates to money. A very practical view of the world, indeed. Managers are concerned, but not obsessed like the former. Nice. Macro-managers (adyathm) surprise me, I think you can feel it, just like other emotions like happiness, which you can feel but not see or hear. Two words summaries them – natural and flow. Everything just happens naturally, and most of things are good or very good, by simply being truly good at heart. Success flows without a real desire for it. (A perfect example for Karmanye Vaadhika-raste, Maa Phaleshu Kadachana).

Which is good? Obviously, all. This follows again from multiple contradicting truths.

Are we born as micro-managers, managers or macro-managers? Hmm. I don’t know what I was born to be (likely manager), but since I have been in touch with one or two macro-managers, it has completely changed the way I think. I’m more and more inclined towards macro-management, a completely different feeling. But there are moments, when I get back being what I was naturally born to be. However, sooner or later, I expect these moments to become fewer, and eventually maybe even disappear.

So, what have we learned in last 1,000 years?

This was a hot lunch debate last week with Pete, Graham, Robin, Matthew, Neil, et al.

Something I was talking to my friends the other day – a pessimistic view. 1,000 years ago, we didn’t have lots of good things we take for granted today – education for the masses, science, technology, medicine, you-name-it. In 1006 A.D. we were fighting for religion in Jerusalem; fast-forward and come to 2006, we are still fighting in Jerusalem, for religion. What happened to the education? What happened to oneness of god – something that every religion preaches? It gets thrown out of the window and we are back being savages. It appears to me that rate of progress made by us as individuals in the last 1,000 years is far more than the rate of progress made by us as collections/groups/communities. We as groups are as dumb as groups in 1006 A.D.

Why we must see the regular 200-300-400 years phase change?

I discussed this with Brian, Pete, Robin et al a few weeks ago.

Every 200-300-400 years there is a phase change. We don’t tend to live that long, so we don’t get a chance to ‘see’ the change – but it’s there. If we see past 1,000 or 2,000 or more years of history, the hidden phases will appear from no-where in front of us. For example, Europe renaissance, United States of America, …, China/India etc. It goes, it comes, it goes, it comes.

Here is a bold prediction – I think over next 25 years or so, national boundaries will become immaterial – it will be people who believe in the phase change and people who don’t or don’t want to. The ‘right’ appears is to be at the right place at the right time and do the right thing – so being able to see a phase change and make sure you are riding the up-curve. Sheer opportunism? Well, maybe.

Reading books is good?

Reading books is good, if you want to learn about something. Is it always good? Could it inhibit your thinking by providing you a generally accepted pre-conceived view of the world? Imagine Galileo reading books in the 15th century, learning that the Earth in the centre of our solar system and that Sun and other planets revolve around it?

(I don't like to read Philosophy (many of my friends suggested reading x or y), for the same reason; though I’m delighted to discuss Philosophy. Maybe I'm being an ignorant daft.)

Invention vs. Innovation

The (new) IBM thinking:

Invention: Converting money into ideas
Innovation: Converting ideas into money

Note: All content in the blog is based on my personal views and does not reflect the views of my professional or academic affiliations.

Pleasantness

Pleasantness = Intellect or Beauty or x / Arrogance

Inspired by:

Satisfaction = Perceived reality - Expectations

Levels - where do you want to be tomorrow?

Based on 20/12/2005 19:30 GMT thoughts. I discussed this a while back with Pulkit and later, Piyush.

This entry should be read bottom-up.

Level 5
(Any ideas/suggestions?)

Level 4
a) Level-3-on-rent-on-demand

Level 3 (Theme: Risk)
d) Science innovation – for example, new disciplines
(Services Sciences)
c) Business innovation – for example, new business models
(google-advertising, software-as-a-service)
b) Technical innovation – for example, disruptive price/performance thru technology
(Google, Power 4)
a) Entrepreneurship

Level 2 (Theme: Responsibility)
d) Profit/Loss accounting
c) Technical leadership
b) People management
a) Team leadership

Level 1 (Normal day job)
d) Better industry
c) Better company
b) Better role
a) Basic stuff – money, influence, safety, comfort zone

Choice of level: Life objectives, priorities etc.
One may be at more than one level at any given time
Level n-1 isn’t worse than level n

Where's the grey?

Everytime you see a question or thought which is of form black or white? Just think about the shades of grey. Seems to solve the problem.

Do you believe in multiple and contradicting truths?

I do. It’s difficult – for starters, it contradicts itself, and I must agree with you if you say you believe in oneness of truth. Let’s leave this aside for a moment, as I don't have a reasonable explanation for it.

I find amazing peace and calmness in the notion of multiple and potentially contradicting truths. It helps me understand the way life unfolds itself in new ways. This thought also happens to be a view/(some-better-word-needed) of the bigger picture I have in mind. Will post that in few days.

What do you think?

I have many thoughts in my mind, all the time. The one I'm thinking right now (and for a while), is whether we need utopia - will we, mere mortals accept such a life? If I by some magic could work towards such an utopia, would it be a sin in the bigger abstract picture?