28/01/2019
The Art of Disruption
The most innovative leaders spend time on discovery. Their discovery skills include connecting disparate ideas and concepts, interact with diverse people from all walks of life, ask questions of the world at large, keenly observe behaviors, and test their ideas.
Dek’ati is about daring, associating, questioning, observing, experimenting, and networking, with one sub-trait underpinning all these discovery skills: Disrupting.
The most innovative leaders – those who strive transforming the way our world works – continually assess, evaluate, and analyze existing perspectives. Subtly and not-so-subtly, these leaders challenge the existing state of affairs. They dare!
Dek’ati International NV facilitates rethinking of traditional ideas through associating: Connecting seemingly unrelated issues and concepts, resulting in fundamental shifts in perspective. We disrupt the assumptions that underpin existing systems through questioning – asking “why”, “why not”, and “what if.” In order to get the most complete views, we even take positions that are opposite of our own initial perspective. We ask challenging questions that push us and others to break through to new ideas.
We know that visionary leaders disrupt even small things by observing common everyday behaviors, and then consider alternatives to the standard ways things are done. This sub-trait, disrupting, is also expressed through the skill of experimenting – by trying new things, testing new concepts, and doing old things in new ways. We explore and encourage the exploration of alternatives. This takes ‘dek’ati – courage! By networking with a wide array of people from all walks of life we disrupt the culture of the status quo. Instead of limiting our network, as transformative visionaries, we seek the cross-pollination of perspectives across fields, cultures, generations, and even countries.
The greatest innovations are inherently disruptive and the sub-trait of disrupting underlies all discoveries. In a Forbes piece, “Disruption vs. Innovation: What’s the difference?” author Caroline Howard wrote, “Innovation and disruption are similar in that they are both makers and builders. Disruption takes a left turn by literally uprooting and changing how we think, behave, do business, learn and go about our day-to-day.”
Disruption does not just refer to any dramatic breakthrough innovation. Disruption is a competitive response. WARNING: If you're non-disruptive, don't underestimate the competition. Marketing to the customers of big players is expensive and getting people to switch ‘product’ is notoriously hard to do. The rule of thumb is that you need to be 10X better than what exists today.
If disrupting distinguishes everyday people from truly transformative leaders, and if you want to be a better innovator, then the single most important thing you can do is to embrace disruption in yourself and in those you lead.
