Knowledge is becoming a commodity, useful insight an increasing difficulty
This is the blueprint of our human brain development, not just until adulthood, but until our very last Odyssey. Deep insight doesn't just come from data and analysis, it hit's us when we open up to it.
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The genius of Kuhn lies in the fact that he uses this inspiration to explain scientific progress: he distinguishes two different games: 'Normal Science' and 'Revolutionary Science', both with their specificities.
"Normal Science is a lengthy stable era where the entire science community works within the paradigms of that time and confirms them. The rest is considered nuts or not smart enough or often both. Originality as a nuisance,...
All of a sudden 'Revolutionary Science' takes place: somebody (a genius now!) takes a different viewpoint, makes 'strange' combinations and violates the paradigms in a way that would have been a ticket to the nuthouse before. A new theory is formulated and the entire science community peacefully starts to work again within the new paradigm, avoiding risky originality. Nobody understands how the old paradigms could have lasted this long.
These insights apply very well to entrepreneurship in these times. Disruptive innovation implies balancing and managing two processes instead of one.
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If you get stuck in 'Normal Science', let's call this your business as usual (BAU), you don't innovate and you get disrupted.
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If you get stuck in 'Revolutionary Science', you innovate all the time, but you confuse your company, your clients, your team and,...., you get disrupted.
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Whereas in the time of Kuhn paradigm shifts were rare, now these days you seem to get one for free with a box of cereals: the 4th industrial revolution in action. Your Odyssey is crafted in a way, not just to keep entrepreneurs afloat in this turmoil, but to make them thrive and enjoy the ride.
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Concentrate your strategic 'Revolutionary Science' to a time and setting that maximizes creativity and brainpower: disconnected on a sailing boat.
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Concentrate on disciplined execution of your 'new' BAU, with more balance and peace of mind.
That's Your Odyssey!
In this succulent work (sorry, can't help it, addicted,....) he trashed the paradigm on scientific progress of that time:
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"Only meticulous scientific work is the source of scientific progress"
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Kuhn looked at this rock solid paradigm of his time (1962) with a different and original lens. He was inspired by discontinuities in development of the human brain:
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The first successful strategy for us as a baby consists of just 2 steps: 'Suck or Cry'. It works perfectly within the paradigms of a helpless mammal with a caring mother nearby. As the brain develops the baby experiments randomly with 'new tools'. Then, all of a sudden, a new strategy gets installed: 'Grab everything you see, Suck on it and then Cry'. Just 'Suck or Cry' becomes a losing strategy and gets forgotten. Keeping two strategies up is a waste of energy.
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The digital era is great! You wonder, you Google, your order and get delivered at your doorstep. This goes for anything, specialty services, MBA lectures, tools as a service, even refrigerators ;-) Every possible tool is readily available, but,...,a fool with a great tool still remains a fool. How can we adapt the way our brain operates to this new reality.
Formal education still fosters the belief that knowledge is power: apply the scientific method in the right way and you get the answers you need.
The scientist says: "Get big data, analyse them!" The entrepreneur asks: "And then what??? "
This last question is what Your Odyssey is all about. Tools, data, knowledge have become abundant, but our 'decision centre' is largely the same as ages ago. Let's take a little detour in philosophy to explain how we tweak the brain. We need some Thomas Kuhn here.
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