_edited.jpg)
Jeff Bezos, the visionary founder of Amazon, has a powerful philosophy for achieving success:
"Be stubborn on vision and flexible on details."
This mantra has guided Amazon from its early days as an online bookstore to becoming one of the world's most influential tech giants.
Photo: Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images
The Power of Vision
Bezos emphasizes that accomplishing anything significant requires a clear and unwavering vision. Important achievements take time, collaboration, and relentless dedication. Without a strong vision, it’s easy to lose direction amidst challenges and setbacks. Vision is the beacon that guides teams through difficult times and keeps them focused on the ultimate goal.
Consider Elon Musk, another entrepreneurial giant, whose vision for SpaceX was to reduce space transportation costs to enable the colonization of Mars. This grand vision has driven SpaceX to achieve remarkable milestones, like the development of the reusable Falcon rockets. Musk’s stubborn commitment to this vision, despite numerous failures and setbacks, showcases the power of maintaining a clear and ambitious goal.
Flexibility on Details
While being stubborn on vision is crucial, Bezos also highlights the importance of flexibility on details. Achieving great things involves experimentation, which means you’ll often be wrong. You might make decisions that don’t work out and need to backtrack and adjust your course. Flexibility allows you to adapt, learn from mistakes, and continue moving towards your vision.
A notable example of this approach is Thomas Edison, who famously tested thousands of materials before finding the right filament for the light bulb. Edison’s unwavering vision of creating a practical and long-lasting electric light kept him persistent, but his willingness to experiment and be flexible with the details of his approach was key to his success.
Balancing Vision and Flexibility
Balancing a steadfast vision with flexible details enables teams to innovate and overcome obstacles. Steve Jobs, the co-founder of Apple, demonstrated this balance perfectly. His vision for Apple was to create technology that integrates seamlessly into people’s lives, making complex tasks simple and intuitive. This vision led to revolutionary products like the iPhone and iPad. However, Jobs was also known for his flexibility in the details, often iterating designs and features to perfect the user experience.
Jobs once said,
"I’m convinced that about half of what separates successful entrepreneurs from the non-successful ones is pure perseverance."
This perseverance is rooted in a clear vision but requires the flexibility to adapt and refine the approach continually.
Case Study: Amazon’s Journey
Amazon’s journey from an online bookstore to a global tech leader is a testament to Bezos’s philosophy. The vision was always to create the world’s most customer-centric company. However, the path to this vision involved countless experiments, from expanding into new product categories to developing services like Amazon Web Services (AWS).
One significant detail Amazon had to be flexible with was the Kindle e-reader. The initial versions faced various technical challenges and mixed market reactions. However, the vision of transforming reading through digital books remained firm. By iterating on design and features, Amazon eventually created a highly successful product that revolutionized the reading experience.
Conclusion
Jeff Bezos’s advice to be stubborn on vision and flexible on details is a powerful strategy for achieving success. It underscores the importance of having a clear, ambitious goal while being adaptable in the journey towards it. This approach not only allows for innovation and resilience but also helps navigate the inevitable challenges and setbacks that come with pursuing significant achievements.
In the words of Henry Ford,
“Failure is simply the opportunity to begin again, this time more intelligently.”
Embracing a clear vision with flexible details turns failures into learning experiences, paving the way for eventual success.
Listen to Jeff Bezos: