Most organizations claim to be "Data-Driven," but they are actually "Data-Validated." They cherry-pick metrics that support the HiPPO (Highest Paid Person’s Opinion) and bury the rest.
You attack the core cultural dysfunction very well: We protect our "Sacred Cows"—those legacy strategies based on gut feel—because killing them feels like an admission of incompetence.
Subtraction is often the last thing we resort to for innovation, but a powerful lever to pull. I used to add many things to my "health stack", but now more interested in fewer things that can cover more areas.
I really love this: "Innovation is Subtraction". I don't think this is common knowledge at all. And so many people have a hard time admitting they've been doing something in a less than ideal way.
Sacred cows trigger each voice differently:
Nurturers might worry about relational fallout.
Guardians might fear loss of stability and coherence.
Creatives might sense new possibilities trying to break through.
Connectors might feel the social cost of naming the obvious.
Pioneers might push to move on, sometimes before trust has caught up.
Seeing these reactions helps leaders retire beliefs without tearing teams apart.
Most organizations claim to be "Data-Driven," but they are actually "Data-Validated." They cherry-pick metrics that support the HiPPO (Highest Paid Person’s Opinion) and bury the rest.
You attack the core cultural dysfunction very well: We protect our "Sacred Cows"—those legacy strategies based on gut feel—because killing them feels like an admission of incompetence.
Subtraction is often the last thing we resort to for innovation, but a powerful lever to pull. I used to add many things to my "health stack", but now more interested in fewer things that can cover more areas.
I really love this: "Innovation is Subtraction". I don't think this is common knowledge at all. And so many people have a hard time admitting they've been doing something in a less than ideal way.
Removing harm often matters more than adding tools.
Tradition only serves us when it’s tested against evidence otherwise, it’s just inertia.