Netflix wasn’t always a household name. They had to destroy Blockbuster first.  But then to keep from being destroyed itself Netflix had to transition from delivering DVDs to streaming movies. When streaming technology became generic, causing Disney, NBC and others to unleash their content Netflix became the #1 content producer.  Now, as entertainment keeps changing, Netflix is going to pivot again – building on trends to increase sales.

Zoom was one of the biggest winners in the Pandemic.  Sales growing 300%/quarter.  But as Zoom’s market capitalization has climbed Zoom has chosen to invest heavily (20% of its market cap) in Five9 – a provider of cloud based software for contact centers.

The lesson from both companies is that nobody can stand still. We must constantly keep analyzing trends and finding new growth opportunities.  And we have to push our business into Blank Space to experiment.  Those who don’t need a mindset shift, so they can start making bets on their future instead of always trying to protect the past.

Thought points:
- Are you actively looking for business opportunities in major trends?
- Are you investing in parts of your business with low returns, while greater returns can be had elsewhere?
- Are you stuck in your assets, or business model, when bigger, better opportunities exist if you would just break free of old ways of thinking?
- What’s your “next big thing”?