A month ago I was in Utrecht in Holland.
While my hotel room was a bit weird [it had a bath on a mezzanine floor that was above my bed … but the actual bathroom was on a separate floor below the bedroom] there was one thing I liked.
This.
To give you more information on what it was about about, read this.
I really like this.
Simple, easy, persuasive.
A way to make a difference without it requiring you to make much of a difference.
It’s similar to the hotel I stayed in San Fran … where they identifed little ways to innovate services that make a positive impression for the guest, the planet and for others in need.
From this idea of brilliance …
To this shower ‘egg timer’ to reduce water usage.
What I particularly like about their approach is that they’re seemingly adopting the attitude of trying stuff rather than waiting to ‘perfect’ stuff.
That doesn’t mean that there’s no thought going into what they do, more the realisation its better to start with something and evolve it over time than wait till you can perfect something.
[Which, let’s be honest, often goes nowhere as it ends up being caught up in the endless churn of organisational politics … which is why the Asian model of cumulative innovation is far more productive than the Western approach of delusional perfectionism]
Not that long ago, there was talk about Airbnb destroying the hotel business, but hotels have upped their game to fight back … helped by Airbnb charging so many ‘fees’ that in many cases, a hotel ends up being more cost effective and/or less hassle.
Which is a reminder that to be a true ‘transformational businesses’ there’s a couple of things you have to be able to do.
One. Be able to make a profit rather than just a big valuation.
Two. Resist the urge to become the beast you were meant to slay.