What got you here won't get you there

If you did everything right, would that guarantee success?

Sadly, according to legendary Harvard Business School professor Clayton Christensen, it guarantees failure.

In his book The Innovator’s Dilemma Christensen talks about the demise of companies like Sears, (which used account for 2% of all US retail sales), and companies like IBM and Xerox, which missed huge market opportunities.?

“In the cases of well managed firms such as those cited above, good management was the most powerful reason they failed to stay atop their industries.?

Precisely because these firms listened to their customers, invested aggressively in new technologies, that would provide their customers more and better products of the sort they wanted, and because they carefully studies market trends and systematically allocated investment capital to innovations that promised the best returns, they lost their positions of leadership.”

The Innovator’s Dilemma is written about why great companies fail in the face of change.

But the idea that the things that got you to the top are the same things that will take you down also applies to our individual careers.

The best book on this topic is What got you here won’t get you there by Marshall Goldsmith, an executive coach.

Goldsmith says that when a person is already near the top of their field, the very characteristic that got them there is what’s holding them back from the next level.

For example, if winning at all costs was your success mantra in your early career, it will become destructive when you have to negotiate with a board.

At first this feels disheartening, like no matter what you do, you can’t make your own destiny.

And yet, some people do.?

Stories like that of Jack Ma, who went from being a struggling school teacher to one of the world’s richest people are inspiring, but can feel too distant to be relatable.

But think of the people in your circle.?

There is somebody in it who is just more successful than others. They keep getting win after win, and even when something doesn’t go their way, they end up better off than when they started.

They don’t have magical powers. They just learn new skillsets for new situations.?

Both companies and people become successful by using a particular set of skills.?

It could be great marketing nous, technical talent or ability to charm.

But this is not enough to carry them through to sustained long term success.

Both companies and people reach plateaus, despite their hard work.

For example, Kodak’s leadership dismissed the rise of digital cameras because the market size for digital appeared small, and the margins weren’t attractive.?

This was a very reasonable assumption at the time.?

On the personal front, a partner in an international law firm may assume that they wouldn’t have reached their position if they didn’t understand their clients well.

This is probably correct.

You don’t become a millionaire unless you’re doing something right.?

But the market changes.

Today every company is becoming a tech company, and even if you represent Starbucks, over half their revenue today comes from the Starbucks app.?Knowing about coffee beans and real estate isn't enough anymore.

What got you here, won’t get you there.

To help you get the skills you need to get to the next level, watch

Why great companies fail: lessons from The Innovator’s Dilemma part 1 on YouTube.

To get individual advice or feedback on whatever you’re working on, come to my free Office Hours session on Tuesday 28 May.?

If you have questions about:?

1. Product innovation
2. Start-ups
3. Career growth
4. Digital Transformation

Register for Office Hours here.

Speak soon,

Sophia