A paradigm shift is best defined when you see a better way of doing the same thing.

One of the greatest examples of a paradigm shift in business was when Henry Ford developed the assembly line to produce automobiles. Many people think Henry Ford invented the automobile but that is not correct. When he started Ford in 1903 there were already 76 other car companies in operation.

At the time, car companies would build one car at a time. It would take 2-3 men working on one car about 12-13 hours to assemble a finished automobile. That is what all the companies were doing and hence the reason the cost of a car was so high. Henry Ford began experimenting with the assembly line concept early on but didn’t get the final idea in operation until 1913. He launched the assembly line concept in 1913 and within five years, one out of every two cars on the road was a Ford and by 1924 they rolled the 10- millionth Model T off the assembly line.

It is called a paradigm shift because someone saw a better way of doing the same thing much faster and with far less expense. By the early 20’s Ford was rolling a car off the line every 3 minutes. Compare that with completing one car every 12 -13 hours. That is the way all the manufactures were doing it and everyone just accepted that as the only way. Henry saw a better path forward and it changed the automobile world.

Over the years there have been too many paradigm shifts in business to list but the common thread they all have was when one person looked at what they were doing and saw a better way to do the same thing.

Whatever your business is, be alert to new ideas and new methods because that seems to be the central component in developing a company that will stand the test of time. KT