To break through, imagine breaking the rules
Most of us try to come up with big ideas while staying inside the rules and norms we take for granted. But often, game-changing ideas don’t come by asking “What’s reasonable?” They come when asking “What if we did something ridiculous?”
Think of it this way: if your idea sounds slightly insane, you might be on to something. Netflix was mocked for mailing DVDs. Airbnb and Uber let strangers in your house and car. Crazy ideas, until they weren’t.
Here’s the strategy: take one part of your problem or business and push it to the extreme opposite. Then ask, ‘How could I make this actually work?’ Out of that seeming nonsense, breakthrough ideas can surface.
Why does it work? Because it jolts us out of the predictable patterns that keep our thinking small. And unless we deliberately do this, waiting for big ideas to just drop in is about as likely as snow falling in Bondi.
Here are five ways to try it:
1. 10x the price
What if your product or service cost ten times more? You’d need a premium brand, white-glove service, and a product so good it screams “the best.”
Apple did this with the iPhone: premium design, obsessive detail, packed with features and has a cult following. This exercise could help you uncover how to 2x or 3x your price by providing value you hadn’t thought of before.
2. Take away something normally provided
What if customers could never call you directly, how would your product or service change? You’d make the experience frictionless and error proof. Onboarding would be effortless, interfaces intuitive, and every feature self-explanatory.
Video conference provider Zoom exploded during the pandemic because it was so easy that anyone could use it without a training program or fancy manual.
3. Cut process time to near zero
What if a task in your business that normally takes days had to be done in minutes? You’d have to eliminate every bottleneck, automate repetitive steps, and redesign workflows so decisions happen instantly.
Atlassian turned what used to be clunky, slow project management into fast, collaborative software tools like Jira and Trello. Teams that once spent hours in status meetings or chasing updates now share progress in real time, anywhere in the world.
By imagining “near-zero” process time, you can spot opportunities to strip away delays, simplify workflows, and make productivity feel effortless.
4. Swap variable costs for a fixed fee
What variable cost (such as transaction costs) can you swap for a fixed fee to encourage loyalty and higher sales?
Amazon’s growth exploded after they introduced Prime. A fixed annual fee for unlimited home delivery on purchases. In 2024 Amazon Prime revenue was over US$44 billion from over 240 million subscribers.
5. Add support where its not offered
What if you offered support where none existed before? So people facing a tough challenge never have to feel alone.
Procter & Gamble did this when they reimagined their innovation program. Instead of telling middle managers, “Come up with bright ideas for growth,” they said, “Bring us your biggest problems, and we’ll work with you to find the best solutions.” This approach removed one of the biggest barriers to innovation, the fear of failure. Because working on a problem together harnessed the best of talent across the business.
It unlocked breakthroughs such as online product finder Olay for You making it easier for people to find the right product to buy before getting to the supermarket.
The point isn’t to implement the extreme. It’s to see what truths fall out of it. Because when you stretch current reality to the breaking point, you stop thinking small and that’s where the best ideas tend to emerge.
Next time you’re stuck trying to solve a big challenge, don’t ask, “What could we do?” Ask, “What would be ridiculous?” and see what falls out.