How To Not Walk The Pattern And Make A Difference By Paving Your Own Path?

The famous economist Joseph Schumpeter said, “Necessity may be the mother of invention (A new idea), but it does not automatically produce innovation (Successful execution of the idea).”

It signals at the third element, that’s missing which can link invention and innovation. Schumpeter also suggested ENTREPRENEUR as the third element that can turn the invention into innovation considering challenges as opportunities, making competitors a research subject, finding perfection the enemy of progress, bearing mistakes healthy, and preferring outside perspective at the top.

The key perspectives let the entrepreneurs innovate because the unique breed of the people best understand that no miracle can turn the revolutionary idea into an epic success without pouring in the years of efforts and dollars. The difference is the entrepreneurs are not born, while they are made through innovation which comes through the different perspective, a lot of practice and experience.

There are many instances of the entrepreneurs like- Steve Jobs that have become successful by sidelining the herd mentality and creating their own path. With a unique approach, he always strived to craft and market the products greased with the wheels of technology and entrepreneurial creativity, which has made the Apple faster, bigger and better year after another.

Apart from large companies, there are small jewels that have innovated their niche which has done wonders for them. It concludes innovation runs in the veins of the entrepreneurs who think differently, work differently and implement the things differently to achieve greatness, despite gaining significant rewards.

There is a disheartening statistic, only 70 percent of new businesses will still be operating in two years, and only 50 percent will be operating in five years.

The scaring statistic hinting at the reduced lifespan of new businesses that are walking by patterns, which is not applicable in the dynamic world where everything is modernizing at the lightning speed. The entrepreneurs that don’t want to be a statistic of failure, they have to beat the odds which come with linking invention and innovation.

Let’s break the conventions and prioritize the innovation with:

• Embracing dynamic culture

Creating a blueprint of the best practices for an organization, employees and the clients hinders the business growth because the change is constant. The entrepreneurs have to let go the idea of being rigid with everything as adapting to the needs and circumstances is all-important to stay in sync with the team and maintain a healthy client relationship.

For instance, in Prismetrics, the processes and practices are defined for the project development, but during hiccups or in the difficult times, the process implemented are reviewed and if required, the processes are redefined to bring the project back on the right track. Moreover, the processes are evolved and new technology is warmly embraced so that developers can craft the impeccable solution that meets the modern user’s needs. The dynamism weaved in the company’s culture brings resolution to business challenge and client’s problem easily.

• Product innovation

The inexperienced entrepreneurs while chasing the original vision inevitably find the product is perfect and perhaps, in the case, the product has turned the business into successful and profitable, they stopped making the efforts. This mindset is the biggest threat to the business as they are ignoring the opportunities to enrich the product according to the changing industry and target audience demands.

On the other hand, the matured entrepreneurs have the long-term vision for the product and they keep striving to make their product best. The perfection or progress never prevent them from innovating the product. Furthermore, the mistakes which sometimes hurt the bottom line won’t make them afraid to innovate the product. Instead, they consider the mistakes as normal and figure out how to make up the things and move on.

For instance, the infallible leaders like- Steve Jobs has not stopped innovating the Mac, once it has garnered the immense response and huge profits across the world, while they are continuously transforming the Mac design. Even, when mistakes such as imperfect UI or unnecessary elements have dropped the company’s market share, the tech giant- Apple has learned from the mistakes and make them right. This strategy has stood the Apple at the top of the innovation ladder and enjoy the incremental gains.

• Making market dollars work

Trapping in the mode of your own thinking run the risk of failure because without analyzing the market trends and watching what’s happening in the industry it’s impossible to react to the shifts. Listening to outside perspective is significant to respond quickly, get ahead of the opportunities, seize a competitive edge in the market, and ensure the dollars spent on the product marketing paid off. Ultimately, the innovative startup’s strategy boosts the market position.

The successful entrepreneurs launch a dynamic marketing campaign with a big picture in mind where they assess the results of competitors’ strategy, their own innovative strategy and then create the plan, which brings the great results with a combined effect of technology and marketing creativity.

For instance, Nike has moved entrepreneurial success engine forward with the pair of gears- marketing and innovation in the form of a Nike+ technology. Making a fundamental shift to digital marketing, the company has made up to recover the losses created when it lost its lucrative aerobics market to Reebok. To ensure it never happens again, the digital journey is started in 2006 with Nike+iPod release that’s continued to expand on the mobile app, wearable app, and even training apps. Consequently, the innovative marketing strategy through Nike+ technology has fuelled up Nike profits by a large share and enabled them to respond to the competitors’ innovation.

• Smart workforce management

The employees are the biggest asset of the organization, and to whom the successful entrepreneurs always listen. They are not just the people who work nine to five, complete their job and go back to the home to get paid at the end of the month.

The entrepreneurs can make the workplace innovative by empowering the employees to think like the owner to make them accountable for the decisions they make, provide their valuable insights into ways to innovate and accomplish the work with a sense of responsibility. The sense of ownership cultivate the pride in the product, reduce the workplace turnover and enhance productivity. The innovative culture keeps the entrepreneurial spirit alive organization-wide which keeps the employees self-managed and self-motivated.

The innovation DNA can be integrated into the organization by minimizing the rules, providing flexibility, giving an opportunity to share the idea, rewarding the employees and constantly communicating with them. Google, Apple, and many tech-giants have employed the similar culture in the companies where the leaders have hand over the reins to the employees that have enabled them to perform to the peak efficiency and maximize the throughput.

The Final words- Understand the difference

The success is a burning desire of every entrepreneur and they acknowledge that innovation is vital to it. But, half of the leaders don’t work with an entrepreneurial mindset due to the fear of getting failed, lack of vision and short of resources. The organizations with such entrepreneurs are short-lived because the logical foundation of the company is static in nature. This is embarrassing!

The entrepreneurship is a combination of ever-evolving art and science which drives innovation. The knack of innovation either comes as instinctive in the entrepreneurs or get refined with practice. That’s the reason there are so few successful entrepreneurs that have chosen to explore and solve the vast mysteries of the universe and differentiated the business in the market with a unique approach.

The foremost entrepreneurs have made the entrepreneurship as their lifestyle where they are always prepared to enrich the idea, pour in a ton of hard work, overcome the roadblocks with innovation to survive their lifestyle. If you have an app idea, experiment and innovate the idea by constantly challenging your assumptions to make the business profitable and leapfrog the competition for the long run. Do it in an entrepreneur way!