Earlier today (really yesterday, if you’re counting), I had the opportunity to sit down and chat over VoIP with the one and only Gerd Leonhard. While the interview clocked in between 15 and 20 minutes, a lot was said; here are three key insights and/or memorable quotes that Gerd offered.
1. When asked what he deems as the most important piece of advice he’s ever received:
“Meg Whitman said: ‘It’s better to put something out there, see the reaction, and then fix it than to make it perfect.’ I think the bottom line is that perfect is the enemy of good enough.”
2. While talking about his new book, tentatively titled The End of Control, and the expansion of its subject matter from music to all media:
“I think in 2 or 3 years, there won’t be a music industry, so there’s no point in doing something that’s all about music because it doesn’t exist by itself”
3. He responded with this gem while talking about what’s preventing music companies from evolving:
“It’s all about control: they want to control the business, they want to control the user, they want to control the creator… They want to be in charge. And as long as they want to be in charge without any restrictions, then it’s not going to move”
If you want more, I put up a PDF transcript of the interview — that way, the content is available, but this post stays brief. There’s more in the PDF about where he is when he’s at his most creative/insightful, how he thinks users will react to a Music Like Water model, and even a couple of hints about the future of Sonific.
Once again, the link to the PDF. Enjoy!
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Gerd is “a Futurist in the Media, Technology and Communication Industries,” an author, an entrepreneur, a strategic advisor, a Keynote speaker and a presenter. You can follow his latest on his blog, his Gerdtube video channel, or his Daily Wisdoms Twitter feed.
June 5, 2008 at 8:34 am
It’s very interesting to read his thoughts on-the-fly. Thanks for this, Aidan.
June 5, 2008 at 4:51 pm
8 thumbs up!
June 5, 2008 at 8:45 pm
Glad you enjoyed!
June 9, 2008 at 9:23 pm
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June 10, 2008 at 11:12 pm
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