Archive for October, 2008
In the north of Africa, one of the most important things you could do in your life is obtain a bachelor degree. Mostly, obtain a degree is the line that separates the well-positioned people from the scum. If you had the opportunity to study for a degree and didn’t do you’re like a piece of nothing.
Obtain a degree, and catch a mortgage. Either, you could finish being like one of this guys, one without studies couldn’t do anything in his poor life.
Is my case. I left the high school when I was sixteen. Actually, I left with eighteen, but previously years were spent in other ways, mainly doing nothing* in the street. Aged 21, I was no-future person. No high school, no ways to live a life. Maybe I could serve cold spirits, maybe clean bars… maybe.
This is the way we live our life in the north of Africa. If you don’t have a degree, you’re nothing. Either, probably the only way you’ll have to start up a little business live with the dark layer under your soul the rest of your life.
Because this is the way we live our life in the North of Africa.
*In the north of Africa, spent time reading is waste your time (Note of the sociologist)
Everyday, everywhere. Those enterprises are making a innovative product, offering a different service, but don’t understand they’re leaders, the Ones in a blue ocean. They are leading the wave. Don’t understand that changes never were easy, aren’t concious when you are leading the wave, there is no path drawn and you’re also opening the way to your competitors to ride the wave too.
What should I understand for being a leader? In my opinion, you are a leader when you’re doing stuff others don’t, in your marketshare.
Being in a blue ocean is being the unique competitor in a virgin market. Your competitors are fighting for the last five coconuts when you’re discovered a new island fully of them.
Some people, some business simply cannot look at their new, flashing, recently discovered island, and they only want to fight for the last coconut. They will move to the new island when the others do.
A case:
“This product/service is well, but I don’t think the market will grow up. We’re makeing some great money selling it, but the next year we’ll not be thinking in raise more marketshare. Instead, we’ll work as the others works. We will take care when others do”.
Sounds family?
The big deal is they really want to do as others do. The big mistake. Maybe you have created the next Google and you’re still looking at what Yahoo! is doing, and some IT guy is formatting the HD with Google in.
So, why most companies -accurately- most managers, are not ready to lead the big change that will guide to the next paradigm of their business?
Because they’re so occupied trying to stay alive, in fact, trying to maintain alive the business, there is no time to look at the front. If the competitors are alive, why we wouldn’t doing the same?
There are a link between the most innovative companies of the world: Apple in hardware, Google managing information, Toyota innovating processes or Starbucks conquering the universe.
Actually, you do not have to be a very recognized company to be innovative. Don’t look as others do. Don’t look at the sides, or the rear. Look only at you do, to do it better, faster, and cheaper. Maybe you have a little business area doing unique things. Go on and give resources to grow marketshare and conquer new markets.
Leaders would.
Got attention? Well. I’ll explain with details. As my personal blog this is, I’ve taken the decision to not write in Spanish anymore. This decision has three grounds:
Improve my english skills. I’ve been studying the language of Shakespeare more than 15 years, and what I got? nothing.
Open my mind, and my world. As you know, there are only four or five millions of people across the world. This is the reason you met the same people always. I want to meet more people. So I’ve to expand my limits. Discover others cultures.
The third is a little bit different. Last Months, I’ve discovered there are much people following me, people in the real world, people that, actually, don’t help me growing up -in a philosophical sense-, so, I’m not really sure the things I do help them. I don’t know if I’m really giving some valuable stuff, so if they need to improve their english language skills to follow me, it will be a win-win relationship. Also, some people don’t read me because I write in spanish -and they don’t speak spanish 
-.
Obviously, there are more reasons, and will be great if this explanation isn’t it very cryptic for you.
So, actually, I’m burning my boats. Will be glad if you stay here anyway. Otherwise, thank you for your attention the last three months.
Stay tuned.
P.S.: You can comment in your native language, as usually was, and in my near objectives is continue to be a Spanish speaker guy.
