Josh Buckley, investor and entrepreneur, formerly CEO of Product Hunt and founder of Mino Games, a top 25 grossing mobile gaming company. Josh articulated the elements of successful game design:
Frequent Feedback Loops.
Variable Outcomes.
Sense of Control.
Connection to a Meta-Game.
If you recall an experience from your childhood, when, forgetting about food and rest, you were engrossed in the game, all four elements were certainly present. You instantly knew when something was going wrong, victory and defeat were not predetermined, it was clear that much depended on you, and of course, the particular game was always part of something bigger, whether it was the adventures of longtime friends or the preparation for your sports club’s competitions.
Then something happened and our natural skill of playing began to fade. Forcing ourselves to do tests in school, we often wondered who needed that knowledge in the first place. Once we started working, we didn’t understand, and no one was in a hurry to tell us what should be considered a desirable result and what your role was in achieving it. If it was a large corporation, the sense of real control came only closer to the organizational top. As for what connection all this daily hustle and bustle had with something fundamentally and vitally important to us, many tried to avoid the question because they knew - no one had a real answer.
If you read this newsletter regularly, it means that you are ripe for finding an answer. And not just formal excuses and other people’s smartassery, but something that is of value to you. How can I be so sure? Because I, too, have been searching for those answers for a long time. Perhaps our Game is called: “Hunting for Personal Meaning”?
Going back to Josh’s observations, it’s easy to see that insight from mobile gaming is applicable to any area that’s important to you - business, sports, hobbies and life in general. What’s more, by superimposing these criteria on top, like a stencil, you can figure out exactly what’s wrong with your business right now, for example:
Key decisions in the company take a long time, in their implementation is bogged down as in jelly, yes or no?
You are not satisfied with the modest results that you have now, but how to raise sales, profits and company value many times remains a mystery, yes or no?
Top managers are conflicted and fighting among themselves for power, avoiding responsibility and complaining about lack of resources and authority, yes or no?
No one, including you, can give a clear answer to the question, “What is this all about?”, yes or no?
Depending on your answers, you can assess to what extent your business is an exciting and rewarding Game or a tedious slave galley.
Yours sincerely,
-Alexander
You can help Ukraine defend itself and the World from Russian aggression here.
”Who are you and what do you do?"
As a business therapist, I help tech founders quickly solve dilemmas at the intersection of business and personality, and boost company value as a result.
"I have an important business decision to make. Can you help me?
Reserve a time on my calendar that is convenient for you to meet with me. We'll clarify your request and discuss options for how you can help.