Disrupt You! Master Personal Transformation, Seize Opportunity, and Thrive in the Era of Endless Innovation by Jay Samit is a thrilling encapsulation of the skills and insights it takes to truly disrupt not only yourself, but entire industries. If you are stuck on a project or looking for fresh, new ideas this book will fill your head with creative visions. By starting with the fundamentals, which is disrupting oneself, it teaches the brain to look for new perspectives and solutions to solving things. It is important to know oneself. Some simple ways to get started are to take a personality test, read a book, change your environment, find mentors or disrupt your thinking internally.
As Albert Einstein likes to say, “Insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results.”
My favorite section of the book is near the beginning where Jay mentions seeing oneself as a brand and strategizing your personal output: “A brand of one. The links in your personal value chain constitute your unique brand. The research and development links are defined by your education, your previous work experience, and the sources you pursue to find a job in the first place. The work you do – its quality and content – makes up the design and production links. The way you present yourself professionally constitutes the marketing and sales links in your personal value chain. And where you work, with whom you work, and where you devote your professional energies determine your distribution link. Think about your professional value as the combination of these links in the chain. If you are struggling to get a job, or if you are ready to make a career transition, all you need to do is target the link ripest for disruption.”
For those looking to build personal brands, following this system would be a brilliant place to start.
Jay then walks you through the disruptors map between various other companies and their stories. Jay then shares his transformative journey of how he disrupted the music industry in a multitude of areas from branding and celebrity endorsement to the transformation of physical discs towards digital distribution. The truth of it all, is that most disruption comes from careful, methodical observation. Oftentimes a simple idea with straightforward execution is all that it takes for an idea to become a hit.
Guerilla marketing is at the core of how the music industry markets itself and Jay doesn’t skimp when it comes to sharing the strategies he has used and witnessed to success. From MTV to Sony to Apple there are valuable insights one can learn across all industries. In fact, you wouldn’t believe how starved the major publications, i.e Forbes and The Huffington Post are for fresh content every single day.
With the power of crowdsourcing, crowdfunding, open research centers and open source communities it is now literally possible to not only share your greatest ideas with like minded individuals but also work with them and collaborate on projects with complex needs. The Internet helped to disrupt information, communication, access and media. Technologies like 3D printing will disrupt basically every physical industry, while Virtual Reality will be a blend of these two. By recognizing the root of what is causing us problems and discovering the links that can connect the dots between the solutions, a disruptive entrepreneur can literally identify trends before they happen. Remember that the greatest competitive advantage of humans at the core of it all is our ability to gain knowledge and use tools and that the most valuable resource is time.
Disrupt You!: Master Personal Transformation, Seize Opportunity, and Thrive in the Era of Endless Innovation
In today's volatile business landscape, adaptability and creativity are more crucial than ever. It is no longer possible-or even desirable-to learn one set of job skills and to work your way up the ladder. At the same time, entrepreneurs with great ideas for new products or technologies that could c...
In today’s volatile business landscape, adaptability and creativity are more crucial than ever. It is no longer possible-or even desirable-to learn one set of job skills and to work your way up the ladder. At the same time, entrepreneurs with great ideas for new products or technologies that could change the world often struggle to capture the attention of venture capital firms and incubators; finding the funding necessary to launch a start-up can feel impossible. The business leaders of our future must anticipate change to create their own opportunities for personal satisfaction and professional success. In Disrupt You!, Jay Samit, a digital media expert who has launched, grown, and sold start-ups and Fortune 500 companies alike, describes the unique method he has used to invent new markets and expand established businesses.
Samit has been at the helm of businesses in the ecommerce, digital video, social media, mobile communications, and software industries, helping to navigate them through turbulent economic times and guide them through necessary transformation so that they stay ahead of the curve. In Disrupt You!, he reveals how specific strategies that help companies flourish can be applied at an individual level to help anyone can achieve success and lasting prosperity-without needing to raise funds from outside investors.
Incorporating stories from his own experience and anecdotes from other innovators and disruptive businesses-including Richard Branson, Steve Jobs, Elon Musk, YouTube, Circ du Soleil, Odor Eaters, Iams, Silly Putty, and many more-Samit shows how personal transformation can reap entrepreneurial and professional rewards. Disrupt You! offers clear and empowering advice for anyone looking to break through; for anyone with a big idea but with no idea how to apply it; and for anyone worried about being made irrelevant in an era of technological transformation. This engaging, perspective-shifting book demystifies the mechanics of disruption for individuals and businesses alike.
(Disclaimer: Affiliate Link)
