In business, when something “flops” it usually means a failure. A rollout didn’t pan out. A presentation was sterile. But a “flop” in 1968 changed the world. The Fosbury Flop that is.
Dick Fosbury transformed the high jump, doing it a way no one had ever done before. Purists said he was ruining the sport. There were calls for him to be banned. But within a relative few years, everyone at the top of the sport was flopping.
A flop is innovative, out of the box thinking. Flopping requires a step outside your personal comfort zone. It means risk. Dick Fosbury wasn’t trying to innovate anything, he was just personally trying to figure out how to get over the bar. He thought of a different way to do it that worked for him. Others followed.
“So when a good idea comes, you know, part of my job is to move it around, just see what different people think, get people talking about it, arguing with people about it, get ideas moving among that group of 100 people, get different people together to explore different aspects of it quietly, and, you know – just explore things.” – Steve Jobs
This is a great insight into flopping that transforms.
There’s another piece to the Fosbury story, though. Prior to the 1960’s the “landing pad” for high jumpers was the ground covered with low mats, then straw and sawdust. Not soft. High jumpers were supposed to land on their feet. But in the 1960’s the plush cushioned mat was introduced. A new environment created new possibilities.
How can you “flop” and be an innovator?
Be ok with being a beginning. In other words, it’s ok to not get something right the first time. If you have trouble being ok with failure, do some personal work answering: “What’s that about in me?” I guarantee you, your hesitancy or fear is ALL about YOU!
To Subscribe, click here.
Jeffery A. Raker
Level Up Leadership Coaching