THE THEORY OF BUSINESS GENES
We are used to thinking that business revolves around companies, and because we believe this, we pay good money for a share in companies. But the new theory of business genes casts unwelcome doubt on whether we are right. Thirty-seven years ago Richard Dawkins put the gene centre-stage. “The fundamental unit of selection, and therefore of self-interest,” he wrote, “is not the species, not...
Read MoreWHAT IF EINSTEIN HAD BEEN IN BUSINESS?
“It was formerly believed that if all material things disappeared out of the universe, time and space would be left. According to the relatively theory, however, time and space disappear together with the things,” said Einstein. Yikes! His greatest legacy is probably his elevation of space and time to dynamic things on which we can experiment. Time, he says, is itself part of the...
Read MoreTHE PROTOZOAN PRINCIPLE
Soviet scientist G F Gause put two protozoans of difference species in a glass jar with limited food. The little creatures shared the food and both survived. Then he put two organisms of the same species in a jar, with the same amount of food as before. This time, they fought and died. Charles Darwin anticipated the experiments when he wrote “We can dimly see why the competition should be...
Read MoreHOW TO ESCAPE THE GRAVITY OF COMPETITION
The standard view is that businesses should strive to maintain a lead over their rivals. But this is wrong. A lead is something that connects two parties. You shouldn’t be seeking a lead. An ever-growing distance from competitors is easier to achieve than an ever-growing lead over them, and is much more valuable. To gain a lead, you do things better. To put distance between you and...
Read MoreIRON LADY? TRY LUCKY LADY
Forget the Iron Lady. Mrs Thatcher should really be called the Lucky Lady. Consider the enormous run of luck she had from 1974 through to the late 1980s. Ted Heath, the Tory Prime Minister, lost two elections in 1974, despite being ahead in the polls in the first one. He was an unattractive leader both to the electorate and his own MPs. This opened up the possibility of a challenge. The...
Read MorePASS TO THE RIGHT
No, I’m not going to mention Nicolas Sarkozy or Mitt Romney or Nigel Farage. Pass to the Right is a great technique in the workplace to ensure that everyone gets their say. You know the scene. The chairman is a wily old bird. He hasn’t been able to pack the board, not completely anyway, so he always selects the person to speak first whom he knows has views he supports. And the next person....
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