“The first thing you should do is throw away that store-bought map and begin to draw your own,” says Dell. “It’s through curiosity and looking at opportunities in new ways that we’ve always mapped our path at Dell.”
Dell didn’t invent the personal computer, he didn’t invent the Internet, and he didn’t invent the concept of selling directly to customers. But, in his words, “There’s always an opportunity to make a difference. There is always the chance to refine something, to eliminate unnecessary steps, or to look at something in a new light.”
It was in thinking outside the box, thinking for himself, and believing in his new ways of doing things that Dell was able to become a success. “When Dell got started, it didn’t come with a manual on how to become number 1 in the world,” he recalls. “We had to figure that out every step of the way. And with each new product and new market, the industry ‘experts’ said we’d fail.”
There were those who had come before Dell, but none who did things quite the way he did. “You can stand on the shoulders of the giants who came before and see a little further,” he says. “And sometimes there’s an opportunity to achieve a major breakthrough with a completely new idea that re-defines the subject.”
There were also those who said Dell should go back to school and leave the business world to the big men. “Just a few short years ago, we announced plans to build powerful computers at the center of the Internet (‘servers’ for those of you from the engineering school),” recalls Dell. “Through the chorus of naysayers, we emerged as a world leader in servers, and we continue to gain momentum. And as always, we did it our way, with customers – not the experts – in mind.”
The lesson through all of this, says Dell, is to believe in what you’re doing no matter what happens or whoever doubts you. “If you’ve got an idea that’s really powerful, you’ve just got to ignore the people who tell you it won’t work, and hire people who embrace your vision,” he says. “Just have faith in the skills and the knowledge you’ve been blessed with and go. Because regrets are born of paths never taken.”
Dell is all about winning. “That’s right, winning,” he says. But, Dell isn’t talking about making the most money or earning the most market share. For Dell, winning is about using your own potential to the maximum possible. “I’m talking about believing in yourself enough to become the best accountant, engineer, or teacher you can possibly be,” he says. “I’m talking about never measuring your success based on the success of others – because you just might set the bar too low.”
And, the only way to win is to follow your own instincts. “Whether it’s evolution or revolution, there’s always a better way to build a computer, or map a genome, or liberate a country, or take a basketball team to the Final Four,” says Dell. “Just work to understand the world around you. Read books. Read websites. Read other people. Circle the pitfalls and highlight the opportunities. Then build a vision of how it could all be better and work like hell to make it happen.”
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