Swimming in a blue ocean strategy
by Shang Lee
I recently lent my copy of the Blue Ocean Strategy to an entrepreneur, who created a blue ocean strategy himself without realising it! I’m envious of the action he took for the theory that I only found out through books, my main hideout. I don’t want to be a two-legged bookshelf. Fortunately, I’m also practising the Blue Ocean Strategy.
I first blogged about the blue ocean strategy and how it applied to a business like hairdressing. My dad actually pointed out a different view on using the blue ocean strategy, on personal life!
The Blue Ocean Strategy proposes companies to not fight head-to-head with competition, but to create a whole new market that leaves the question of competition irrelevant, until later of course, when the “competitors” see how good your business is doing. So how can this strategy be used in a personal life?
There are plenty of battles that are fought, some big, some small, some literal, some not so obvious. But we are constantly in battle – what meal should I have tonight, where should I go this weekend, should I be working in this area, am I spending enough time with my family, should I be watching my health, should I be blogging now, should I be reading this blog?
We unconciously set up rules to fight these battles. Rules like, “I only have so much money this month, so I can only spend on this, this and this” or “I need to get a bigger Christmas present for my brother since he’s helped me much this year”.
So how do we fight these battles using Blue Ocean Strategy?
I draw a recent experience deciding whether to go visit my parents who are 300km away. I haven’t seen them for close to 2 months and thought it’s time to go back. The hesitation came from the bad traffic at immigration, due to a recent tightening of security. Each car is expected to wait between 2 to 3 hours, before the 300km journey even begins! I believe the time could be better spent elsewhere. Then I decided that instead of going during rush hour, I would go just after lunch, before the traffic begins to pile up in the evening.
It was the smoothest ride I had traveling back to visit my parents. I chose not to fight the “competition” and used the pocket of time with least resistance. I didn’t create a blue ocean, merely identifying it and capitalising on it.
Have you swam in your own personal blue ocean strategy lately?
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Used this twice in school already. I must say it’s a pretty useful book which every company should read!
I’m in marketing for my company. We’re always trying to find new areas which we can move into first, profitably. It makes a huge amount of sense. Slugging it out in a saturated segment is really the last thing we really want to do.
@Hi Daryl, I think everyone should read the book. It’s great as a life tool, not just a company tool. Reminds me very much of Tai Ji philosophy.
@Rick, all the best in the new company!