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Sub Specie Aeternitas

Any day's a good day when Geoffrey Moore rolls through the office. The author of Crossing the Chasm and Inside the Tornado, Moore visited FC headquarters today to discuss Dealing With Darwin, his latest book (due out in January). The topic this time? How great companies innovate. Because we love you, here are some Moorisms for your enjoyment:

"To get inspired, put yourself in the path of a very hard problem and ask yourself 'Why is it that...?' Every one of my books has come from this process."

"And don't pick stupid problems. Get an interesting one. It's not like the world is running out."

"[Innovation and change] can be ugly. It's like molting."

"Innovation might create value, but it's no guarantee. It's like saying you want to be an artist. It doesn't mean you're going to be any good at it."

"Never be best in class. Either be good enough or out of class."

"The inspiration is just that - the spark. Just because you inspired a product doesn't mean you can take credit for it. There's logistics, marketing, sales, distribution... Claiming something because you inspired it is like the yeast taking credit for bread."

"Life is a sine wave."