The Museletter

Instant information is the new world order. The press of a key unleashes terabytes of data. So the question that has plagued humanity since its inception—“can we do this”—now seems irrelevant. Solving that question used to turn normal folks into billionaires—can we travel faster? can we index the internet? can we deliver medicine online?

By eliminating the question of “can”, we have raised the profile of two other questions—“should we do this” and “how do we do this”. Put another way, what matters now is not your ability to execute, but your judgment in determining what to execute, as well as your ability to execute with excellence, efficiency, and longevity.

The Silicon Valley motto used to be “move fast and break things”; go to any market, gain market share, and then create the best product possible. That won’t work anymore. Too much competition, too few markets. The motto should therefore be reframed: “think long and execute perfectly”.

In a world where anything is possible, judgment and process will determine the kings (and paupers) of the coming decade.