The bounding physics of it all

As life has progressed into my 40th year, it has grown increasingly clear that nearly every scenario has some of what I think of as bounding physics. As I discussed a few days back with email, the bounding physics was the requirement for ubiquity. As various folks tried to own the transport protocol they were in practice trying to violate the bounding physics of the matter.

Another example of the idea is one that uses physics itself, gravity specifically, to explain the bounding physics of a given problem. If we look at basketball without the presence of gravity, shooting a basket should work like shooting pool. One would simply aim at the hoop and shoot as straight as possible in order to get it in. This we know would work nowhere but outer space, for one of the bounding physics of basketball is gravity (most sports share this one). So while there is the clear opponent in basketball on the other team, there is also the third player on the court and she is gravity.

As one goes to shoot a basket, gravity is trying to knock the ball down. She is merciless. Every time, as soon as it's in the air she's knocking it down, and she won't go away-ever. So what we learn to do in learning the sport is to work with her, learn to accept her input and wishes on the way to the hoop. We add velocity and arc knowing that she'll burn off both. If we've calculated her correctly we'll find that we've played it perfectly...swish.

There appear to me to be natural forces, and laws in certainly every physical scenario, but also in every market scenario. Like gravity in basketball, these forces are not adversaries, but partners if they are understood. An adversary, at least a good one, will vary their tactics in order to create uncertainty, and force you onto your weak foot. The bounding physics are simply the laws in place in a given situation. Imagine playing basketball with an opponent that didn't understand that there was gravity...it would be a great day to bet on the game:)

So in a sales situation we can safely say that the maximum number of sales is capped by the number of potential buyers that know we exist, and what those that know we exist think about our offering. So we can look at awareness and perception as the bounding physics of sales, the gravity and friction of it.

As in the basketball, if we seek to understand the bounding physics of the situations that we find ourselves in, we can uncover the partner that gives us the unfair advantage.