Sharpen Your Knife - Update Your Game!

Sharpen your knife… how many of us do that? I refer to both the metaphorical as well as the real knife, the one in the Kitchen. Chances are, quite a few of us do believe in this, at least insofaras the concept is concerned. Chances also are that among these few, a large percentage never do actually sharpen the knife, as they don’t get time, or it takes too much time, or is inconvenient. To those who do believe, whether or not you do anything – don’t you think this applies to your teams and your organization as well?

I wish adults spent more time in two activities – play Video Games / Android Games / Whatever, and read. The latter opens the vistas of your mind, trains you to observe as well as build conceptual skills that sharpen you in your job. Both of these are vital parameters that cannot be understated. And Games? Well, they teach you more than entertain you, trust me. Games can reveal the real personality you have; how you play reveals the real you. This may sound fancy, but is completely true.

What do the above two seemingly unconnected things have to do in an article on Management? Well, pretty much everything, as it turns out. Lets take the second – games-  first. Today, I was playing Prime Peaks, at the 3^rd level of the Wild West Chapter. I failed at it repeatedly. Eventually, I collected enough coins to upgrade. Failed again. And Again. And Again. Collected more coins, upgraded my vehicle again, and bingo! Level cleared. Sound familiar to any personal development, or organizational issues you have faced?  

Now suppose I had given up, and moved to a different game – would I have succeeded? Conversely, if I had continued, and the gameplay meant I had to try 2000 times to collect enough to upgrade – what does that tell you? Thus, both outcomes are feasible – failure / waste of time, and success. The paragraph above tells you the concept of skill enhancement and perseverance along a strategic direction. The chance that you may keep trying without success teaches you the art of judgement. And lastly, when you are actually upgrading your vehicle in the game, which parameter you upgrade – that teaches you strategy and tactics.

Now consider the knife. You can either sharpen it, continue to use it as is, or throw it away and get a new knife. If you use it as is – you run the risk of cutting yourself, delaying your cooking, causing time loss, quality loss as cuts will be rough and uneven and so on. If you get a new knife – you spend 8 times as much for the same job the old knife does, and the added task of getting used to its grip and cutting style. Oh yes – each knife has a distinct personality and feel all its own.

It goes deeper, much deeper. Examine different knives. The good ones have a solid thick base / foundation, which leads to a sharp edge. It is this foundation which gives the cut, not just the edge. Try knives with thin blades – they wont cut the tougher tasks. On the easy tasks, they will be easy to handle, and you will have fun. But on tougher tasks, they fail. This means that the tougher tasks need better & higher quality knives. Simple, isn’t it? Meaning - you require a stronger foundation and base for navigating tricky markets, not theatrics or short term tactics. That is why many industries are in dire straits...

This insight on knives came to me when I was getting my knife sharpened at a stall on Deccan Corner Pune. This was a Chef Knife, purchased in Mumbai 4.5 years ago. It had since gotten blunt, and lost its edge. I was trying to replace it, in vain. The past year-plus I hunted for a new knife with the same or even comparable comfort, cutting performance and feel – with no result. Sound familiar with employee issues you have faced? Thus, I was left with no alternative but to sharpen the old one. As luck would have it – I never threw it away; my gut wouldn’t allow me. Sound familiar with any business situation, when your gut told you something that helped you in the long run?

At this same sharpening stall, I spotted a local unbranded make knife; my mind went to the many Thhelaa-stalls {roadside eateries} which I love to frequent, in each of which I saw the same knife. This ranged from Ghatkopar in Mumbai to any location in Pune. I remembered the ease with which they sliced and diced; being pretty handy with a knife in the kitchen myself, I was pretty sure this consummate display of skill was a result of a combination of the tool of cutting, practice and ability all.

I purchased this knife – at a fraction of the cost of the Chef Knife of a branded variety. To me surprise, it was very efficient in cutting, had a great feel – though it wasn’t a great looker. The only issue was that somehow the margin for error was miniscule, meaning you had to be extremely deft to handle it well – which I was, thankfully. Its edge was also far sharper and gave a far greater degree of control over the cutting action. All for a fraction of the cost of a Branded Knife. Now examine this on the aspect of Product and employees both.

What is more important in the product you are designing – the look and feel, or the core product benefit? And what are those core benefits – do you have any idea? Do you have actual consumer knowledge of choices that are based on primary consumer feedback in a sample that is representative of your target market? I know for a fact that a large percentage of companies in India rely on secondary information, rather than the primary consumer opinion and choices.

A local product that is at a fraction of the price is doing a better task than the costly premium product. This isn’t an isolated experience; can quote a series of similar examples from Garments, Luggage, Food, and many other segments basis personal experimentation. Why aren’t the good local products getting a bigger market in India? Why aren’t the people in large organizations designing product features that are actually  delivering on the core benefit? You complain of lack of sales – the issue isn’t your sales teams, or your channel, or your advertising. The real issue is that your product is not meeting customer requirements.

We are in a fast-moving rapidly innovating world. In this light, now re-visit that Video Game example. I have some 20+ games installed on my Mobile; and constantly download new games. That tells me, as a professional, that innovation, upskilling, improvisation are vital to survival itself. If the games I play don’t get added levels, features, I move on. If I don’t use fresh approaches to difficult levels, I get stuck – that tells me to constantly learn new tactics, strategies; constantly learn new ways to meet market challenges.

Put it all together in one – The Knife and The Game. One case – the Knife, tells us to keep upskilling; not to be condescending for seemingly downmarket aspects / products; Look for core features in products – features that are relevant to your target market basis primary research. The handling difference in the two knives tells us the real difference in Branded vs Local products – the many quality aspects that lie unconsidered. The Game tells us most of the above – as well as the need to be consistently on the lookout for upgrading your tactics, strategic approaches, skills & abilities.

Now try and apply this learning to people. Look in the people you have ignored for quality – you will find it, and in abundance. It requires a practiced eye. Go beyond the external look n feel, and check for real quality. You will find a load of talent; all it requires is a bit of training and handholding. {Using the local knife, remember?}. Look whether you or your employees are upgrading their tactics in the job, their strategies – or are they still stuck on the same mtehods used last year? In the market, that is a recipe for certain disaster – I know of a minimum of 3 brands in two industries that found this out the hard way.

And most importantly, look to yourself : have you sharpened your knife recently? Have you upgraded and updated your gameplay and game? Have you reskilled, learnt consumer trends basis personal experience talking to consumers, or reading primary sources? Have you looked at and equipped self with the recent technological developments in your field? If you haven’t yet done so, for whatever reason – in this coming calendar year, Sharpen your knife, Update your game!