As we approach the holiday season, I couldn’t help but think of the guy in red – Santa Claus.   But let’s take a closer look at Santa’s business model. While it may not be the most morally admirable approach, it’s hard to deny its effectiveness.

All product companies I have worked with during my nearly 40 years in product development have had some variant of the following discussion. So if you have not yet experienced it firsthand, you probably will eventually.

Getting it right the first time is an unbeatable strategy in theory. However, in practice, it’s more like a myth perpetuated by productivity gurus (and me). Human nature is to find the easiest way forward, tempted to take the shortcut, hoping that this time is different. Take chances or wing it all in the hopes of getting it right in record time.