The Shirky Principle And A World Of Half-Assed Solutions
I picked up the Shirky Principle idea in this newsletter from Sahil Bloom:
Here’s the summary:
The Shirky Principle, named after writer Clay Shirky, states, “institutions will try to preserve the problem to which they are the solution.”
In simple terms, companies (or people) have a tendency to avoid fully eliminating the problem that they sell a solution for, lest they become obsolete.
So, it’s why Discount Tire doesn’t really fix your tire issues all the way. It’s why consultants leave some things still dangling. It’s why your iPhone 7 will brick next week.
If the problem gets truly solved, the person or entity that claims to solve it becomes obsolete — because the problem is solved and ceases to exist. So how can the person…
