I’ve posted a few Harvard Business Review posts of late and here’s another. It’s not intentional – it’s not usually the type of thing that I find to be game changing – but they are certainly on their game of late.
The latest is on Pixar’s “Secret Story Guidelines” which detail their secret to making animated movies new and exciting again. That’s not how it’s put exactly but that’s how I read it. Basically they said: “If Disney did it, we’re going to avoid it.” They went away from cliches, “market expectations”, and how it’s always been done. They went and focused on the story along. No cookie cutter scenarios, no plug and play storyboards, no Elton John songs. What do you know, it worked and reinvented how we think of animated films. Their formula has been out there for everyone to see for awhile but no one has come along and done it even as well as them – let alone better.
What are you doing to separate yourself from the competition? Do you have your list of 5 industry cliches that you are making yourself to avoid? If you are a real estate broker, why are you focusing on the space available on the market – why haven’t you begun building the tools to tell clients what they REALLY need? If everyone has data and can figure out the market, your fancy spreadsheets aren’t really setting you apart anymore. If everyone networks and sells themselves the same way, why aren’t you going in and talking about why they shouldn’t locate in your market? Pushing them to the best solution for them instead of the best solution for you may be dangerous but certainly positions yourself differently than everyone else.