“We used to do that”

When electricity came along, there was a swath of industries that were trapped in an old way of thinking. The only ones that thrived were able to walk away from what they used to do and eagerly embrace something new.

When the internet was young, the major book publishers had everything they needed to create a dominant search engine. After all, they were in the business of organizing the world’s information. With just one exception, they didn’t even consider it. That’s because they believed that their job was to sell books to bookstores.

This is even more urgent for individuals. What you were trained to do, what you did yesterday… that’s a gift from your past, not an obligation. Beginning the analysis with, “what I used to do was…” is a great way to open the door to what you’re going to do tomorrow.

November 8, 2023