Imagine if you’re driving on a busy highway.
The assumption is that every vehicle will stay in their lane. If someone is passing another vehicle they will do so with care and proper signaling. If a vehicle is going to go slower or move toward an exit it will do so with care and proper signaling.
This is the theory and the rules and laws around driving throughout the world accept these practices. This should give you great comfort if you have the opportunity to explore some of the top international highways.
Did I say they are busy and there’s traffic.
- Highway 41 in Ontario, Canada is called “King’s Highway”. It’s a multilane highway and one of the busiest in North America. In and through Toronto near the Pearson International Airport it reaches 18 lanes.
- Katy Freeway in Houston, Texas is a section of Interstate 10 which is considered the widest highway globally. There are parts with up to 26 lanes which includes the main lanes, feeder lanes and other lanes.
- Autobahns in Germany are the highway system where there are sections with no speed limits. It is known as well for it’s well engineered multilane sections.
- Golden Quadrilateral Highway Network in India connects India’s four major cities – Delhi, Kolkata, Mumbai and Chennai. It is an impressive multilane highway with mostly 4 to 6 lanes designed to improve connecting through these major economic centers and facilitate trade.
Imagine if you traveled to any one or all of these locations and no one stayed in their lane while operating their vehicles.
We all recognize that an organization and running a business is not just driving along a highway. However there are a few similarities.
Consider the initial entry point with a product or a service. A specific market is identified. This is selecting the highway.
The direction to head to on the highway is similar to the vision and the goals. There are various exits and rest stops on a highway as every business needs to make some adjustments and changes along the way.
General business practices and the local, country specific and International rules of law govern a variety of practices that all businesses must adhere to.
Staying in your lane does not mean wearing blinders and not paying attention to opportunities and what is happening in the market.
Three classic examples of companies who didn’t recognize the changes happening and failed to adapt to these changes or to capitalize on opportunities are reminders to stay current, be aware and stay open to new ideas.
These three examples are: Blockbuster, Kodak and Xerox.
Blockbuster
The core business was renting movies and video games through its physical store locations. When Netflix began offering online DVD’s by mail and streaming video – Blockbuster stayed with their brick and mortar model. They even declined an opportunity to purchase Netflix for $50 million in 2000.
Eventually Blockbuster went bankrupt.
What was the real lane for Blockbuster?
Provide an easy way for people to entertain themselves and their families in their homes through movies, shows and games.
Kodak was photography. Period.
They were the dominate market leader for decades in photographic film and cameras.
However, by allowing their leaders of the profitable film division to put the brakes on any advancement or innovation into the digital side, the door was wide open for the competition – Sony, Canon and Nikon to gain market share and recognition in the digital camera industry. Kodak began a steady decline which led in 2012 to their bankruptcy.
What was Kodak’s real lane?
Provide people with the best ways to capture a moment and have a sharable item of that moment.
Xerox and copies for people over 50 years old are basically the same word. “I need to make a xerox.”
However, they were so focused on copiers that companies like Apple and Microsoft took the innovations Xerox created at their Palo Alto Research Center and essentially grew their products and the entire personal computing industry out of these innovations. It was a copier business where the Xerox Executives could not see the commercial potential of their own innovations.
The stay in your lane concept means to stay focused and do what you are best at. Don’t wear blinders.
Stay Current – Be Aware – Remain Open To New Ideas
No one is suggesting Blockbuster should have gone into the demolition business. Or that Kodak should have become a maker of canoes and kayaks. Or that Xerox should have focused on housing construction. However, crazier ideas have gone into action when a company intentionally goes out of their lane.
Wenkroy International LLC is a Professional Advisory company with a main purpose of helping entrepreneurs and business people create the strategy, the plan and the steps necessary to achieve that person’s vision for their business and often their life, while navigating the obstacles which may be blocking them from reaching their goals. The process may involve one on one coaching, advising, laser focus days, personal growth workshops and more. The methods utilized are determined together. The results and value positively impact individuals, teams, divisions and across entire companies. People are now able to focus on what matters most to them, because, they have clarity on where they are heading.
As always share the information in this article with people you know.
