What Motorcycling Taught Me About Innovation

I was once asked: "How does riding motorcycles on a racetrack compare to our product development process?"

What a question.

My response: Both have a process that seems straightforward, but it's the finesse you don't see that gets things done and delivers a fast lap. ...We'll dive into what lies behind finesse in a future post.

Let's break it down.

The similarities:

• Looking through the corner, not at it: When you fixate on obstacles, you hit them. Same goes for projects. Keeping the big picture in mind helps teams solve problems more effectively.

• Smooth inputs create predictable outputs: Jerky throttle control crashes bikes. Erratic leadership crashes projects.

• Speed comes from process: The difference? Most racetracks have rigid guardrails (and if riders are lucky, an air fence). Innovation moves faster with guardrails too, but they tend to be fuzzier until the problem and solution are well-defined.

In both worlds, those who balance calculated risk with disciplined execution win.