This morning, Seth Godin shared about breakpoints in sidewalks. He wrote:
A neighbor recently put in some new sidewalk. As usual, the workman interrupted the unbroken swath of perfect concrete with lines every three feet.
What are the lines for?
Well, the ground shifts. When it does, perfect concrete cracks in unpredictable ways, often ruining the entire job. When you put the breakpoints in on purpose, though, the concrete has a chance to absorb the shifts, to degrade effectively.
This is something we often miss in design and in the creation of customer experiences. We’re so optimistic we forget to put in the breakpoints.
There’s no doubt the ground will shift. The question is: when it does, will you be ready?
As entrepreneurs, it is up to us to anticipate and prepare for the unexpected.
What are your breakpoints? What are some expected “ground shifting” that you anticipate in your business?
Do you think of failures as ground shifts? Or “pivoting” as a shift? Or a lack of process in place for an employee calling out sick?
Have you dealt with a project or client where the entire swath was ruined because of a lack of breakpoints? Share in the comments or @ShaunNestor on Twitter.
