Let’s Play the Infinite Game and Drive Long-Term Innovation
Are you currently a player in the finite or infinite game? Most companies today play what James P. Carse defines as the finite game. Reporting every quarter, competing with one another to be 'the best' and needing to outperform each other. Rather than looking at themselves, their sights are constantly turned outwards.
But there's another way of thinking and approach to business: playing the infinite game. We see this largely within old and large companies that have been around for generations, or extremely disruptive companies (like Zebras). These companies are either so well-settled in their market there is no room to outperform, or their product, service, or business model was so innovative that it broke all borders.
Finite vs infinite games
What is a finite game? Finite games are like a football match. The rules and players are known and remain constant without sudden change. There's also a defined end point with a clear winner and loser. People play the game with the goal of (ending and) winning it.
What about an infinite game? The infinite game has no defined end point and no winners or losers. There's also no way to know all of the players and rules as they can change or vary at any time. In the infinite game, people don't play to win. They play to ensure the endless continuation of the game.
The main difference between the two is that infinite games are unwinnable. In the infinite game, you are constantly playing against yourself (you are your biggest competitor). It's also agreed upon that others who are doing better or worse than you are not necessarily winning or losing since their parameters might simply be different. After all, in an infinite game, who decides for everyone what metrics (margin per FTE, total margin, margin per product sold, etc.) to use over a set time (quarter, year, decennium or century)? There are too many unknowns and variables.
Why should you be playing the infinite game?
Since there's no clear winner or loser at the end of the day, you'll find yourself ultimately striving towards perpetual improvement. Playing the infinite game drives innovation as you're no longer colouring within borders, but are instead the creator of those borders. You get to determine the strategies, tactics and rules that will enable you to build something strong and healthy enough to stay in the game for generations to come.
As a company in the infinite game, you're playing to ensure the continuation of the game. Your focus and way of thinking will naturally turn towards long-term concepts such as sustainability, the Doughnut Economy, or Zebra companies. These concepts provide long-term benefits but, ironically, also make companies stronger in the short-term too. It's about becoming stable and resilient so you can keep succeeding even after your time in the game is up.
How to adopt the infinite mindset
If you're interested in playing the infinite game but are unsure of how to play it right, then fear not. According to Simon Sinek, you can learn to obtain an infinite mindset in five steps, and the insecurity or jealousy you might be feeling might actually be one of them.
Step 1: Define a good cause. You need to find something that you can truly get behind and are willing to sacrifice your own interests for.
Step 2: Form a team you can trust and be vulnerable with. You need to be able to tell your colleagues and employees when you've made a wrong turn business-wise (or are afraid of doing so).
Step 3: Find a source of inspiration such as a company or person you aspire towards. Think of it as a healthy form of jealousy. Instead of sabotaging yourself by getting angry or frustrated with yourself when someone else does better than you, try to identify what they're doing right and how you can learn from them.
Step 4: Teach yourself to have a capacity for essential flexibility. Learn to be flexible on a daily basis and, more importantly, on a much broader scale. You need to be able to make a strategic change if it means getting closer to your cause (Step 1). Think back to Step 2, you need a solid team and mutual trust in order to make such drastic changes. And even then, some will call you crazy or naive (but that's also the final step).
Step 5: Don't be afraid of being called crazy or naive. Don't even be afraid of actually being a bit crazy or naive. To be a truly infinite player, you need to have the courage to swim against the current.
Ready to join as a player? Are you ready to create your own trajectory in the infinite game? Let's play the infinite game together! Call us, mail us, or create a disruptive technology and contact us that way.
