Friday Reflections

Blue Ocean Organizations and People

Grow or Constrain? Only you can put limits on yourself.

Story Line: Blue Ocean Organizations and People

About three years ago, Friday Reflections covered the highlights of a book called "Blue Ocean Strategy", by W. Chan Kim and Renée Mauborgne of INSEAD. The concepts and stories covered in that book are very relevant in today’s economic environment: for both organizations and individuals.

Let us ground on what the authors call Red Oceans and Blue Oceans:

“In the Red Oceans, industry boundaries (opportunities) are defined and accepted, and the competitive rules of the game are known. Here, companies (people) try to outperform their rivals to grab a greater share of existing demand (jobs, product sales). As the market space gets more and more crowded, the prospects for profits and growth are reduced. Products (skills) become commodities, and cutthroat competition turns the red ocean bloody.

Blue Oceans, in contrast, are defined by untapped market space (new opportunities), demand creation, and the opportunity for highly profitable growth. While blue oceans are occasionally created well beyond existing industry boundaries, most are created by expanding existing industry boundaries. In blue oceans, competition is irrelevant as the rules of the game are waiting to be set.

There are a few things that set apart "blue ocean" people and organizations from others. They succeed not by battling competitors, but by creating “blue oceans” of uncontested market space ripe for growth. Such strategic moves - termed “value innovation” - create powerful leaps in value for both, the firm (person) and its buyers (employers and customers), rendering rivals obsolete and unleashing new demand.”

There are a few common things that I have encountered in "Blue Ocean" organizations and people.

1. They constantly look for opportunities for offering their skills and products to areas beyond their current scope and boundaries and find new customers in new industries/organizations.

2. They are confident about their strengths and purpose and do not waste energy in comparison with existing competition (LEAN)

3. Their mindset is “How can I grow with what I have, or grow what I do not have?" vs. "How do I survive by eliminating what I have?”

Reflection: As we end the fifth year of Friday Reflections on the WWW, I remember my father's advice when I left home at the age of 17: “The world is too big with abundance of opportunities. If you believe in yourself, there is always room for your talents somewhere in this world.” (The world full of Blue Ocean with infinite horizons)” Looking back, it was a very good and true advice.

Out of the frying pan, into the fire

The idiom "Out of the frying pan, into the fire" refers to a situation where, by trying to get out of one problem, you put yourself into a worse situation.  Can you think of some examples?

Bruce Lee and Game of Life

"If you always put limit on everything you do, physical or anything else. It will spread into your work and into your life. There are no limits. There are only plateaus, and you must not stay there, you must go beyond them." - Bruce Lee
 
"Notice that the stiffest tree is most easily cracked, while the bamboo or willow survives by bending with the wind." - Bruce Lee

Story Line: Bruce Lee and Game of Life (Sources Wikipedia, and Bruce Lee: A Warrior’s Journey)

Bruce Jun Fan Lee was an American-born Chinese Hong Kong martial artist, philosopher, instructor, martial arts actor, film director, screenwriter, and the founder of the Jeet Kune Do concept. He is considered by many to be the most influential martial artist of the 20th century.

Through his movies, he not only entertained audiences with his martial arts techniques but also conveyed very deep meaning philosophy about work and life as a whole. His last movie, Game of Death, released five years after his premature death in 1973, is a classic that teaches numerous lessons about flexibility, agility and out of the box thinking.

Having watched that movie numerous times, I believe it should have been called Game of Life. In the process of freeing himself from the gangsters, Bruce Lee has to fight his way through a five-level pagoda, encountering a different challenge on each floor. At the base of the pagoda he fights many black belts in martial arts, while inside the pagoda, he encounters a different opponent on each floor, each more challenging than the last.

He defeats first martial arts master Dan Inosanto, then the second master Ji Han Jae, and finally Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, who fights with a free and fluid style mirroring Lee's style. Because Kareem's character has great size and strength in addition to a fighting style as potent as Lee's, he can only be defeated once Lee recognizes that an unusually high sensitivity to light is his greatest weakness.

As each martial artist is defeated, the flaws in their fighting style are revealed. Some, like Dan Inosanto's character, rely too much on fixed patterns of offensive and defensive techniques, while others lack economy of motion. Lee defeats his opponents by having a fighting style that involves fluid movement, unpredictability, and an eclectic blend of techniques.

Reflection:

Here are a few great teachings from Bruce Lee that are relevant for any Game in Life, not just the martial arts:

1. The danger of training with the heavy bag is that it doesn't react to one’s attack and sometimes there is a tendency to thoughtlessness. One will punch the bag carelessly, and would be vulnerable in a real situation if this became a habit.

2. All fixed set patterns are incapable of adaptability or pliability. The truth is outside of all fixed patterns. Be like water making its way through cracks. Do not be assertive, but adjust to the object, and you shall find a way round or through it. If nothing within you stays rigid, outward things will disclose themselves.

3. In combat, spontaneity rules; rote performance of technique perishes.  When in actual combat, you're not fighting a corpse. Your opponent is a living, moving object who is not in a fixed position, but fluid and alive. Deal with him realistically, not as though you're fighting a robot. Traditionally, classical form and efficiency are both equally important. I'm not saying form is not important - economy of form that is - but to me, efficiency is anything that scores. Don't indulge in any unnecessary, sophisticated moves. You'll get clobbered if you do, and in a street fight you'll have your shirt zipped off you.

Even a blind squirrel finds an acorn now and then

Reflection: You shouldn't pick your strategy simply trying to replicate someone else's success.  Who knows, it might just have been blind luck!

It's a small world after all

Diversity is one thing we all have in common. Let us celebrate it every day.

Story Line:

"There is so much that we share, that its time we are aware, it's a small world after all." Last Saturday, my wife and I attended the wedding of our friends Arvind and Nana's daughter. Arvind was born in Pakistan in a Hindu family, and Nana was born in Philippines to a Christian family of Filipino and Italian Heritage. We met them during our college days at Stanford in late '70s.

Their daughter, Reshma was born in Silicon Valley, California and went to MIT for undergraduate and graduate studies. After graduation, Reshma went to work for a large multinational software company in Seattle.  There she met Cody, a young man of Swedish and German heritage, who grew up in a family that has been farming in Nebraska for 120 years. 

Amongst many OBT (out of the box) things we noticed, the most striking was that the ceremony was done in two parts: a Christian style wedding ceremony officiated by Father Sean O'Laoire, and a Hindu style Shaadi Ceremony officiated by Priest Jagdish Vij. Father Sean, who was born in Ireland and spent significant part of his life in Kenya before coming to United States, narrated some wonderful stories and poems about the union between man and woman from Judaism, Islam, Hinduism and of course Christianity. In the second part, Priest Jagdish explained each step of the Hindu wedding to the multicultural audience. Both priests were present for the entire event. It was clear that the rules of love, friendship and commitment were same in every one of the stories and poems that they shared.

The reception was equally enlightening. Listening to the conversation between the CEO of a software company in Silicon Valley and the owner (CEO) of large cornfields in Nebraska about automation and yield improvement was equally fascinating. One person told me that this was his first exposure to such a "huge" multicultural and multiracial audience (represented by every continent) and he felt that he was in the United Nations. Our dining table was no exception: One Caucasian couple, one Hong Kong Chinese-Ghana couple, One Japanese-Bangladeshi one and of course Indian Filipino Chinese couple and their daughter.

The band was just fantastic. Little did most of the people in audience know that the leader of the band was the founder of one very successful high tech company who plays music in clubs and parties for his joy in life. I recollect an incidence several years ago when his band performed at a party and the host gave them some extra tip money. Even today, he is so happy and childlike to describe the incidence about how much his work was appreciated.

"Though the mountains divide, and the oceans are wide, it's a small small world."

 

Reflection: "As you take this oath, you are being asked to renounce your allegiance to the country you came from. However retain the rich cultural heritage you bring with you. It is diversity that makes this country so rich." - Presiding Judge at my US Naturalization ceremony in 1990. Coincidence or what, but that judge who administered my oath of allegiance is the neighbor of Arvind and Nana.

Out of the box thinking

It's that time again - watch the video above as we rotate a simple image, and let your creativity run free!  Let us know what you can see in the comments section.  The best idea (leaving an email address) will receive a free copy of Friday Reflections.

Congratulations to our previous winner, Mary Abel! We will be contacting you shortly to arrange delivery of your Friday Reflections.

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Destiny is a name often given in retrospect to choices that had dramatic consequences.

Increasingly, Bill Gates says, he values "people who have the long-term commitment, who can deal with the ups and downs, with the unfair things that happen to them."

Story Line:  

As a child, she enjoyed writing fantasy stories.

In 1990, her mother died, after her ten-year battle with multiple sclerosis. The loss affected her deeply.

In 1992, she moved to Portugal to teach English as a foreign language.

In 1993, she separated from her husband.

A single mother, she moved back to her home country with a one year old daughter.

In 1995, while unemployed and on welfare, she wrote a novel using an old manual typewriter.

The manuscript was submitted to twelve publishing houses; all of them rejected it.

A year later, editor of a small publishing house decided to publish a few copies because his eight year old daughter read the story and loved it.

Although he agreed to publish the book, he advised her to get a day job, since she had little chance of making money in books for children.

A few years later, Forbes named Joanne "Jo" Murray (aka JK Rowling) as the first person to become a U.S.-dollar billionaire by writing books, the second-richest female entertainer and the 1,062nd richest person in the world. She gives away millions in donations every year.

Reflection:  "There is suffering in life, and there are defeats. No one can avoid them. But it’s better to lose some of the battles in the struggles for your dreams than to be defeated without ever knowing what you are fighting for"  -Paulo Coelho

Jumping on the bandwagon

The idiom "jumping on the bandwagon" relates to the observation that people often do and believe things because many other people do and believe the same things. The effect is often called herd instinct.

The phrase "jump on the bandwagon" first appeared in American politics in the 1800s when horse drawn wagons carrying a musical band would lead parades for political rallies.  It soon became obligatory for every candidate to ride the bandwagons, just for the sake of attracting a big crowd ... a crowd which would incidentally show up mostly out of curiosity about an event that draws a large crowd.

To live in the hearts one leaves behind is not to die. (The King)

“In a world filled with hate, we must still dare to hope. In a world filled with anger, we must still dare to comfort. In a world filled with despair, we must still dare to dream. And in a world filled with distrust, we must still dare to believe.” - Michael Jackson


Story Line:

It was August 16th, 1977. Jerry, the production supervisor in the company I was employed by, seemed sad. I asked him if everything was ok. Jerry, tears in his eyes, told me, “The King has died.” 

I asked Jerry, “Pardon my ignorance, but the king of which country? I did not realize you had a King in America?”

I still remember the scene: Jerry dragged me onto the production floor and proclaimed to everyone that I did not know who "The King of Rock" was.

With apologies to Elvis fans, that was then.  Now, I know a lot about Elvis, and admire the man. I made a pledge never to be that ignorant about local culture again, and learned to appreciate many things beyond science and work.

Some time later, my friend invited me to watch a concert by five brothers, the Jackson 5. That was my first encounter with Michael Jackson. I loved Michael's unique singing style and started following his music, not anticipating that he would become the next King - the King of Pop - in the years ahead. His music and performances inspired millions, and he was a household name around the world.

Reflection:

No amount of words will suffice for tribute to one of the most "out of the box" (OBT) performers of our lifetime. But I will still take liberty to share something our 8th grade teacher told us in his farewell message on the last day of school. The words from that Hindi Poem are so appropriate for Michael Jackson’s life:

“When you came to this world, the world (people around you) was smiling and you were the one crying. Live such a life that when you leave, the world is crying and you are the one smiling.”  He is gone but his music will live on forever.

Success is going from one failure to another without loss of enthusiasm

Reflection: Success is going from one failure to another without loss of enthusiasm