Advance Trends Rather Than Fight Them: Focus and Work That Compounds—Jiang Nanchun Excerpts with Robin’s Comments

A business should advance trends, not fight them. To find effective tactics, you must get to the front line, where business battles actually take place. Where is that front line? In the minds of your customers and potential customers. To ensure that your strategy and tactics can adapt to the future, you must understand how your category is developing and position your business in line with long-term market trends. Robin: “No one can fight a trend, not even Steve Jobs.” ---- Sustained investment and the accumulation of resources in a clear direction allow a business to benefit from strategic compounding. An important principle of competition is not to scatter your resources lightly. Do not waste time and resources on failing products and weak avenues for growth. Decisively concentrate most of your resources on consolidating and strengthening the direction in which you can build a lasting advantage. Robin: “Keep focusing on what matters most.” ---- Entrepreneurs should spend most of their time on work that compounds. Drucker once said, “What distinguishes effective executives most from others is how they manage their time.” Some managers work too hard at tactics, doing too many things whose value does not accumulate. Constantly contending with platforms, algorithms, and uncertain markets only makes them busier and more anxious, because their efforts are not directed toward work that compounds. Robin: “Entrepreneurship means doing things whose value can accumulate.” #JiangNanchunLiShi