Why is failure so easy in business?
For any big idea, the business model itself is your foundation. It is the bedrock on which you build your product or service, how you interact with your customers, and which vendors you choose. Across the board, a good leader is constantly asking: is there potential to create value that exceeds the cost? In other words, does the math make sense? Through this particular lens, it’s easy to see how a product that costs $10 to produce can easily disrupt a product costing $300 if you’re only asking $50. However, that’s not enough to avoid failure.
My mentor, Clayton Christensen, predicted that businesses that were once unassailable would find themselves slipping down the ranks or failing altogether. He attributed this to what universities like Harvard Business School produced — the “ideal manager” focused on extracting value from business models but unequipped to handle inevitable change.
It’s true. Harvard produces disciplined thinkers, people exceptional at creating and extracting value — but when change inevitably comes, they struggle. They are simply not prepared for what’s next. And that’s the problem. Not that they don’t know, but that when it comes to making your big idea a reality, we often hire people from Harvard, or those who emulate that same system with the wrong mindset.
Only 6% of businesses today are functionally and psychologically fit for success. These are the A+ companies who grow steadily, weather storms, and outperform their competitors. They often have less capital but spend far less on marketing and sales, all while earning glowing reviews and leaving challengers baffled by their success. It’s not necessarily because their product or service is any better, or that the market is kinder to their offer. No — it’s because they chose the right employees with the correct mindset.
Unfortunately, when most of us pursue our big idea, hiring isn’t our priority. We focus on our offer, our customers, and our marketing. Yet random (or even desperate) hiring brings dysfunction into your team. And in cases where there is too much rigidity or discipline in HR, it can even obstruct innovation and prevent your business model from evolving in the right direction. As a result, company leaders are then forced to waste their time adjusting the business model rather than generating results. At the same time, media and marketing spend goes up, hoping that an increase in sales can hide cracks in the foundation.
All of this could be avoided by bringing in the correct mindsets from the very beginning. In fact, hiring results-driven systems thinkers early on increases the likelihood of success by six times compared to hiring randomly. In other words, when you hire better, you almost guarantee a better outcome. And that absolutely creates value that exceeds the cost.
The technology created by Stealth Dog Labs can pre-screen the market remotely, find the exceptional people, and help you avoid the mistakes of the past. It can help you find qualified candidates judged not by where they went to school or even what they’ve done before — but by how they think. And it is their mindset and ability to adjust to uncertainty and change that can ultimately help you build a better, more resilient business. And by prioritizing the hiring process in this way, you can avoid the dysfunction, regrettable turnover, and economic failure that all too often kill good businesses.
So why is failure so easy in business? It’s because we haven’t realized that the people we surround ourselves with matter. At Stealth Dog Labs, we connect you with the people who are capable of driving growth and profitability, not at the expense of your business model but in support of what you strive to achieve. We open you up to a world of possibility, rather than hiring whoever happens to be in your circle. Because the “ideal manager” should generate results, not lead you back to square one.
About Stealth Dog Labs
Founded by Christopher Skinner, Stealth Dog Labs provides technology that enables businesses to refine their strategies, predict outcomes, and tailor their operations to meet the unique needs of their ecosystem. This starts by analyzing the subconscious traits and decision-making drivers of a business using advanced search engine capabilities, AI, and our unique mindset tools able to remotely capture and interpret consumer behavior and mindset. Through our proprietary technology, we enable business to unlock growth and find true harmony at scale. Interested in how Stealth Dog Labs might transform your business? Reach out at c@christopherskinner.com.
About Christopher Skinner
As an abstract mathematician who transforms language into actionable data, Christopher Skinner helps businesses achieve deliberate growth. Over the years, he has built search engines (parts of Google), companies, and business models that have led to substantial success. In the process, he’s learned that the most successful business models are harmonious in terms of leadership, employees, customers, and product. Today, he can help you achieve this through his proprietary software that studies psychology at scale, enabling your business to focus on the best people for the best outcome. Learn more at www.christopherskinner.com.