A common behavioral pattern of managers is to hold on to and defend the status quo, driven by the desire to avoid making mistakes at all costs. This risk aversion leads to copy-paste syndrome. What apparently works is copied, they go with the flow, and they are never a first mover.

Copy-paste behavior leads to uniformity and the loss of advantages.
Copy-paste means the loss of UNIQUENESS.

Can not making mistakes be an entrepreneurial goal? Aren't mistakes necessary to learn from them and to develop further? Aren't innovations needed to be successful? It requires pioneers who venture into uncertain territory, who dare to take risks, and who learn from mistakes.

The most promising guarantee for a company's long-term success is to create UNIQUENESS. This uniqueness can be expressed in brands, products, services, but also in a corporate culture.

Creating uniqueness means pursuing visions. Autonomy, self-confidence, willingness to take risks, courage, conviction, readiness for change, and persistence are just some of the ingredients for the recipe that creates competitive advantages. Competitive advantages lead to high customer and employee loyalty and build resilience against disruptive market changes.

However, those who only operate within their territory, who only think and act inside their box, remain me-too and will certainly not become unique.

On my desk is a small box from which a little colorful clown has "escaped" and is smiling at me (Jack-In-The-Box). It reminds me daily to see things with humor on one hand, and on the other hand to break out of existing thinking structures, out of my own "box," and to strive for uniqueness.

Hence my appeal: "Be the Jack-In-The-Box!"

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