Ikea is to furniture what Harlequin is to romance.
Our own Bonnie said that in a chat, and beyond the images it gave me, it made me realize something about success.
Imagine your ideal personal business, ideal employer, ideal industry. You doubtlessly have ideals that you wish to learn from – the best company or person, etc. But at times we're a bit too close to such ideals to learn from them. I've seen this in several industries (most noteably gaming).
So I've wanted to suggest something that comparison made me think: maybe we professional geeks could learn by finding what "non-geeky" industries, companies, and individuals map well to your ideals. It might give you enough distance – and enough stimulation – to extract winning ideas.
– Steven Savage