@ Ease

no one is infallible. even those that know it all don’t always get it right. yet when we undertake something new we tend to approach it in such a way that we have to be right about everything in order to achieve success.

i liken this to a kid at an arcade that claims he will beat the latest game. thing is this kid is only packing one quarter. he’s got only one chance to win. any bad moves and its literally game over. this is what most of us do when we try to launch something new. we do all the research, make all the decisions, build a complete solution upfront and then double down on it. we drop in our only quarter and see how far we can go.

problem is we do this all outside the context of the game. vision, strategy, solution are all defined before we even get into the game. we might win but it requires incredible skill and luck.

the stakes are high in such a world. most of us refuse to even play. this is the world of cushy jobs in mega corporations. where might and passion are replaced with rationality and soundness. i don’t mean to completely discredit this world — for some this world presents its own opportunities. i’m not writing to them. i’m writing to those that are still itching to play.

the fallacy here is that we have only one shot. that we have to get everything right the first time.

we need to put down the strategic plans, the complete specifications and vision maps. its simple really, just walk up to the machine and just drop a quarter in. what better way to learn how to play? what better way to get you closer to success?

the key is packing quarters — lots of them. success is being prepared to fail and continue on. when the “game over” sign is flashing and the continue timer is counting down, you not only have another chance to play but you also get to keep all your past wins and build from there. there’s a learning curve to everything and you have to give yourself a chance to climb it.

it may sound like it requires a lot of money to play like this — but it’s quite the opposite. when you recognize that there will be multiple rounds and multiple failures you will minimize the risk of any round. that means running as lean as possible. and in playing, the lessons learned tower over any insights you gain in research. these lessons can help you avoid costly mistakes you may have otherwise made.

the old metaphor of “launching” a start-up likens it to a rocket. you blast all the firepower you can at once and hope to get off the ground. a different way to look at it though is that the start-up is more like a plane and to take-off you need a long runway.

so enough with the 30-page business plans, the 5-year projections and the huge rounds of funding. they are a mountain of start-up costs and are typically way off anyway. all you need is a pocket full of quarters and the audacity to keep on trying until you get it right. drop in a quarter and hit go!