Radical Thinking

Gateway to Holland

Interested in trying new markets? The Netherlands has a potential of 16,3 million customers, and with a 1,6% economic growth it makes for an interesting market. I can help you to promote and/or sell your products and services in the Netherlands. I'll find the relevant distribution channels, contact them for you and I can also do the negotiations for you. As a native, I know the language and the culture, which often is an advantage. On top of that, I know the business environment and I know the main media and how they work. Included in my service is a mini market analysis, the (media) publicity for your product/services and negotiating deals with potential distributors/retailers and/or agents.

The economic model is quite straightforward. There's a startup fee of 6.700 Euro. which covers a compact market survey, the publicity campaign, the translation of relevant sales material e.g. website, brochures and contacting the main relevant distribution channels with an offer. On top of this, I'll take a small commission for products and services sold (the percentage depends on type of product, the price and the potential). This way you can be sure I'll do my utter best to get you up and flying in Holland.

Contact me at 31154477 if you're interested in learning more.

Three Legged Chicken

Radical innovation explained

A man was driving along a freeway when he noticed a chicken running along side his car. He was amazed to see the chicken keeping up with him because he was doing 80 km. He accelerated to 90 and the chicken stayed right next to him. He speeded up to 110 and the chicken passed him up. The man noticed the chicken had three legs.

So, he followed the chicken down a road and ended up at a farm. He got out of his car and saw that all the chickens had three legs. He asked the farmer "What's up with these chickens?" The farmer said "Well, everybody likes chicken legs. I bred a three legged bird. I'm going to be a millionaire." The man asked him how they tasted. The farmer said "Don't know, haven't caught one yet."

Bet you McDonalds would be interested in that invention!

The cost of NOT knowing

What does ignorance cost? If you think about it for a second and a half, you probably can come up with at least four to five situations where you can remember that if you had only knewn - you would have saved a lot of money. What is fascinating in this equation is not so much that we al easily can agree that not knowing can cost deerly - sometimes even human lifes. Not convinced? Think Titanic! Think all the deseases we were not able to cure only five years ago because we were ignorant about a certain drug. How often did you pay an overprice on your levis - seeing the same pair of trousers on sale in the shop next to it?

You can of course argue that this information assymetry - cause that is often what it is, nothing less, nothing more - is relative since it is difficult to know everything. And you're right. Point taken. But what if you approach what you know differently? What if you split it up in four categories:

What you know, you know
What you know, you don't know
What you don't know, you know
What you don't know, you don't know

The first three categories - you're home free. After all, only 50% of the equation is unknown and therefore you're able to work the area with training and education. If you can imagine it, you can think it. If you can think it, you can reason it. If you can reason it, you can build it. It's the 'what you don't know, you don't know' that is fascinating. Cause where's your imagination here?

There's some flawed thinking here since just because you can't imagine it, doesn't mean somebody else can't. After all, we're launching a car that can fly in China later this year and unless you're employed by Moller, I can safely assume neither you nor me can take credit for this. In other words, just because you and I have not heard about it, doesn't mean it is not out there. That piece of not knowing I can't put a price tag on. At least not one that will leave you with a credible mathematical definition that enables you to assess whether it is a good investment to probe in the area where you don't know what you don't know.

But I can say so much as that what is in the first three categories, is most likely in some way on your competitive radar. The fourth category - is most likely to produce a competitor that will blow you out of the market alltogether. Or it will bring us the answers to cure cancer, solve starvation, connect knowledge and religion and what have you. But it takes that we start taking knowledge more seriously - not only what we know, but also the dark side of knowledge: everything we're happily ignorant about.

Cheers,

Pat May

So many ideas, so little time

I can make a decent meal, I can ride a bike and I have a vivid imagination. The latter, I have experienced in my professional career, has both been a blessing and a curse. Being employed or trying to make a company work around one of my ideas, requires focus and dedication - which unfortunately is not one of my trades. The next/new idea always seem more attractive and my mind heads with 360 MPH in the other direction. Therefore I decided to use my in potential weak side in a context where it actually is a strong asset - all the way through.

I am good at getting ideas, small and big, both in and out of a conceptual and product environmental context. Combined with my ability to think and design processes - I firmly believe that I can add value to your business.

Are you looking for the next innovative solution but don't see it coming from your team?

Consider me to be the deviant who asks the obvious but often forgotten questions, the challenger who forces you to look at your problem in novel ways to find solutions - the rainmaker that can help you shortcutting processes and finding new products and services for your existing and potential customers.

I'm looking for people who are interested in adopting my ideas or who are looking for support within their product and/or process innovation.

At current I am developing a toolbox which will make the processes I use to support your business more transparent and I am interested in meeting people that want to qualify both my ideas and my toolbox. In the spirit of the entrepreneurial oath, I will make sure it will be worthwhile your time as well.

Cheers,

Pat May
Catch me at +45 3115 4477

Want to create a Super Brain?

I am a firm believer in Collective brain power. Pretty much like the three wellknown super computers combining the power of many computing devices (IBM's Blue Gene, NASA's Columbia and NEC's Earthsimulator) I believe that by combining brains in a systematic way we can create master brain - and by doing so solve problems that we have not been able to solve before. One fine example of initiatives to create a super brain is EDGE. There should be a lot more of these initiatives - beyond our traditional ideas of think tanks that often are flawed because of a (semi) political agenda.

I'm looking for people that in principle believe in the fundamental idea behind radical thinking: to enable a creative process allowing out of the box solutions, nothing is holy, everything can be challenged. As Einstein put it so beatiful: WE CAN'T SOLVE PROBLEMS BY USING THE SAME KIND OF THINKING WE USED WHEN WE CREATED THEM! A network the like, we can't have up and running fast enough. Your profile and or what you have achieved in the past to me in order to participate in this collective brain, is of little importance. However, this will take an open mind, a positive attitude and what's more: your dedication/attention.

Feel like exploring whether we can do this? Drop me a mail, tell me who you are and what questions keep you up at night. Know anyone who would fit in and love to particpate - spread the word!

Cheers,

Pat

Why think radical?

Darwin demonstrated that the ability of a species to survive is not based on strength but on ability to change. This, I claim, also applies for business. I find it thought provoking to know that most of the top 500 companies (Fortune) will no longer exist in 30 years. Change therefore, is the factor we ignore at our peril.

Surprisingly enough, many organizations just cannot change. Typically, management starts defining the direction and strategy to which the organization must adapt. In generating these strategies, organizations apply rear-view mirror logic e.g. draw lessons from the past and extrapolate these into the future.

But without the assistence of upcoming trends and awareness of corporate uncertainties, your business runs the risk of having to change too often because you are constantly being overtaken by realities that should have been foreseen. And that can lead to chaos and the destruction of valuable resources, including your employees' motivation.

Your corporate past may make for good ballast but you should have a clear idea of your future options and opportunities so you have a clear course in mind. The strategy you plan today has to prove its worth int he future you have chosen, also from human, social and financial points of view.

Remember: with the right people aboard, changing directions is easy. With the wrong people on board, wherever you are heading is irrelevant.

Jezus the Radical Thinker

Radical Thinking, as much as I hate to admit it, is hardly a concept which I've invented. In fact, you have to go back many years in history to find the true father of Radical Thinking. Approximately 2000 years back, that is, if historical facts will not be revised shortly again. Yes, I am referring to Jezus - many things to many people: to me the first true Radical Thinker. How's that?

Well, the jew-born person Jezus identified some serious challenges in the religeous society the jews managed to create in and around Jerusalem. With his strong sense of justice, he found it unacceptable that the happy few were doing well whereas people that were less well off, had deviant ideas and thoughts and/or were unfortunate to suffer from a desease or handicap were excluded.

Instead of accepting the status quo, he truly challenged the existing rituals, culture and line of thinking and founded - with the help of other strong deviant brains - one of the first think tanks that was able to change and touch the lives of thousands of people back then, and billions that were yet to come. The earth is no longer flat, it has become just. I will return to this entry soon and update my thoughts here with some historical facts. In the meantime, let me know who you think we ought to pay tribute to for Radical Thinking?