Emptying the Organisational Cup
“The mind is not a vessel to be filled, but a fire to be kindled” — Plutarch
A young acolyte, eager to gain wisdom, visits a sage. He bombards the sage with questions, his mind teeming with ideas, theories, and beliefs. Recognising the acolyte’s thirst for knowledge yet his inability to absorb any more, the sage invites him for tea. As the sage pours tea into the acolyte’s cup, it begins to overflow. The young man watches in dismay as the tea spills over the brim, unable to contain any more.
“Why do you keep pouring when the cup is already full?” the acolyte asks, puzzled.
“Just like this cup,” the sage responds, “you are full of your own opinions and speculations. How can I show you wisdom unless you first empty your cup?”
This story beautifully encapsulates a critical challenge faced by many organisations. Filled to the brim with existing mindsets, beliefs, and models, they struggle to make space for new, transformative ideas. It’s often not until a crisis occurs, shaking the very foundations of these beliefs, that space is created for new growth. This process is essential for shedding outdated practices and embracing innovation. You cannot change business models without also changing mental models.
Just as the acolyte had to learn to empty his cup to receive new wisdom, organisations must also learn to let go of the old to make way for the new. In doing so, they kindle the fire of the mind, allowing for a rebirth of ideas and strategies that propel them forward into new territories of success and innovation.
FujiFilms Emptying of the Cup
“Empty your cup so that it may be filled; become devoid to gain totality.” — Bruce Lee
Fujifilm’s transformation is a quintessential example of an organization that “emptied its cup” to make room for new growth and innovation. In the early 2000s, photographic products delivered 60% of Fujifilm’s sales and 70% of its profit. Within a decade, digital cameras destroyed that business. In 2012, Fujifilm’s old sparring partner, Kodak filed for bankruptcy. Yet Fujifilm continues to go from strength to strength. How did Fujifilm succeed where so many others failed?
In the late 1990s and early 2000s, the advent of digital photography posed a significant threat to traditional film companies. It was the crisis that the industry needed to empty its cup. However, Fujifilm did not wait for this crisis, they had recognised the threat of “clinging to an overfilling cup” decades earlier.
During the 1970’s the photography business was rocked to its core when the price of silver jumped tenfold from five dollars to fifty dollars per ounce. Silver was an essential ingredient to photo processing and manufacturers like Kodak and Fujifilm feared their businesses were in jeopardy. When the price plummeted again in 1980, Kodak and the other photographic businesses settled back to business as usual. Captive to their success, Kodak leadership soon overlooked the crisis as a blip. This was not how Fujifilm’s new CEO, Ohnishi viewed the event.
Ohnishi prepared the organisation for a radical shift in the photography business. Once Sony introduced its digital camera in 1984, he was utterly convinced Fujifilm had no choice but to reinvent. With utter conviction, Fujifilm set to work building diverse digital capabilities. To show the extent of their commitment to the future, consider that by 2003, Fujifilm had nearly 5,000 mini-digital processing labs in chain stores throughout the U.S. while Kodak had fewer than 100.
When Ohnishi handed the CEO’s baton to his successor, Shigetaka Komori it was the most vulnerable point in the company’s history. After multiple rounds of cost-cutting, plant closures and redundancies, Komori knew he could not cost-cut the company into the future. Rather than clinging to the declining film market, Fujifilm demonstrated an extraordinary willingness to “empty its cup” — to let go of its longstanding identity as a film manufacturer and embrace change.
Fujifilm undertook a drastic strategic overhaul, leveraging its expertise in chemical engineering and imaging technology to diversify into new markets. Recognising that the capabilities and technologies it had developed for film could be applied elsewhere, Fujifilm ventured into fields as varied as medical imaging, cosmetics, and functional materials. For instance, the company found that the antioxidants used in preventing photographs from fading could also be used in skincare products, leading to the launch of their successful cosmetics line, Astalift.
One of the key factors in Fujifilm’s successful transformation was its foresight and willingness to change. The company had begun diversifying its business and investing in digital technologies well before the decline of the film market became critical. This proactive approach allowed Fujifilm not just to survive the digital revolution but to thrive in entirely new industries.
Fujifilm’s journey from a film manufacturer to a diversified technology company exemplifies the importance of being open to changing mental models and a readiness to be proactive about emerging trends. By emptying its cup of the old business model centred around film, Fujifilm was able to refill it with new knowledge and opportunities, demonstrating bravery, foresight, resilience and reinvention. This was a companywide effort as technicians who once worked in imaging labs, worked diligently in beauty labs.
I often use this story in my workshops as a powerful exemplar of change, highlighting the necessity of adaptability and the willingness to embrace new paths for growth and success. Most importantly, it speaks to the psychological pitfall of overidentification with a product suite, a business model or even more problematic still, a mental model.
THANKS FOR READING
To follow in the footsteps of Fujifilm, check out the latest episode of The Corporate Explorer series with Kaihan Krippendorff. Kaihan has developed a framework called I.D.E.A.S. to help organisations create many ideas.
