Finding Power

People think strategy is about profit, but really, it’s about power. Profit is just the prize.

And if you want to understand the nature of power in business — where it comes from, how to create it, how to sustain it — probably the best place to start is Clay Christensen’s “Law of Conservation of Modularity,” a massively underrated idea from his second book, The Innovator’s Solution.

It’s pretty obscure compared to Christensen’s other hit theories, like “disruptive innovation” and “jobs to be done.” I think this is because the theory can be somewhat abstract and technical, making it hard to understand. (Don’t worry — in this article I do my best to make it engaging and intuitive! 😅)