--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: This is one of the innovator’s dilemmas…" description: "\"This is one of the innovator’s dilemmas: Blindly following the maxim that good managers should keep close to their customers can sometimes be a fatal m..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/34d/anonymous-1_dilemma_this-is-one-of-the-innovator-s-dilemmas_1321394.jpg" --- # This is one of the innovator’s dilemmas: Blindly following… ![“This is one of the innovator’s dilemmas: Blindly following the maxim that good managers should keep close to their customers can sometimes be a fatal mistake.” quote by Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/34d/anonymous-1_dilemma_this-is-one-of-the-innovator-s-dilemmas_1321394.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/34d/anonymous-1_dilemma_this-is-one-of-the-innovator-s-dilemmas_1321394.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/34d/anonymous-1_dilemma_this-is-one-of-the-innovator-s-dilemmas_1321394.jpg) > “This is one of the innovator’s dilemmas: Blindly following the maxim that good managers should keep close to their customers can sometimes be a fatal mistake.” [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Over‑reliance on customer proximity can blind managers to broader strategic needs, risking failure. **In simple terms:** Too much focus on customers can be dangerous. Key Takeaway Balance customer insight with broader vision. Themes leadership strategy customer focus Mood analytical cautious Type strategic advisory When to use this quote - product development - market analysis - executive decision making Key Concepts organizational theory innovation Questions to Reflect On - When should managers step back from direct customer contact? - How can companies maintain customer empathy without over‑dependence? A Different Perspective Neglecting internal capabilities may cause blind spots. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Dilemma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dilemma/) [Dilemmas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dilemmas/) [Failure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/failure/) [Fatal mistakes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fatal-mistakes/) [Good man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/good-man/) [Good manager](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/good-manager/) [Good Managers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/good-managers/) [Innovators](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/innovators/) [Management](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/management/) [Maxims](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/maxims/) [Mistake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mistake/) ## Related quotes > [I actually think it's better I started by being close to customers. 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On the other hand, it can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-skolnick/it-is-obviously-good-and-proper-to-respect-the-u-s-flag-perpetuated/) Sherman Skolnick > [What is concisely referred to as global warming, is a fatal mistake of the present time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vaclav-klaus/what-is-concisely-referred-to-as-global-warming-is-a-fatal-mistake-of/) [Vaclav Klaus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vaclav-klaus/) > [Dad was also a deeply, unabashedly religious man... , But he never made the fatal mistake of so many politicians - wearing his faith…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-reagan/dad-was-also-a-deeply-unabashedly-religious-man-but-he-never-made-the/) [Ron Reagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-reagan/) > [We made a great mistake in the beginning of our struggle, and I fear, in spite of all we can do, it will prove…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-e-lee/we-made-a-great-mistake-in-the-beginning-of-our-struggle-and-i-fear/) [Robert E. Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-e-lee/) > [Here lay Cain's fatal mistake: "He was rejected, not because he was a sinner, but because, being a sinner, he had dared to approach…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-henry-mackintosh/here-lay-cain-s-fatal-mistake-he-was-rejected-not-because-he-was-a/) [Charles Henry Mackintosh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-henry-mackintosh/) > [“sometimes i had thoughts like 'i don't deserve to live, i'm a big loss, i made fatal mistakes. i should've gone, i don't deserve…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sitta-karina/sometimes-i-had-thoughts-like-i-don-t-deserve-to-live-i-m-a-big-loss/) [Sitta Karina](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sitta-karina/) > [It is a fatal mistake to assume that God’s goal for your life is material prosperity or popular success, as the world defines it.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-warren/it-is-a-fatal-mistake-to-assume-that-god-s-goal-for-your-life-is/) [Rick Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-warren/) > [The heart was a weak, changeable thing, bent on nothing but love, and there could be no more fatal mistake than to make it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornelia-funke/the-heart-was-a-weak-changeable-thing-bent-on-nothing-but-love-and/) [Cornelia Funke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornelia-funke/) > [Thinking you know when in fact you don't is a fatal mistake, to which we are all prone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bertrand-russell/thinking-you-know-when-in-fact-you-don-t-is-a-fatal-mistake-to-which/) [Bertrand Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertrand-russell/) > [The fatal mistake is waiting for life's circumstances to be right before we begin. Simply begin with your heart, look deeply into it and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-prather/the-fatal-mistake-is-waiting-for-life-s-circumstances-to-be-right/) [Hugh Prather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-prather/) > [The most fatal mistake of this Israeli military junta is that they have the complex of the arrogance of power. This is their suicidal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yasser-arafat/the-most-fatal-mistake-of-this-israeli-military-junta-is-that-they/) [Yasser Arafat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yasser-arafat/) > [ \[In mathematics\] There are two kinds of mistakes. There are fatal mistakes that destroy a theory, but there are also contingent ones, which are… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gian-carlo-rota/in-mathematics-there-are-two-kinds-of-mistakes-there-are-fatal/) [Gian-Carlo Rota](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gian-carlo-rota/) > [For he was aware of the great secret of life: Women don't look for handsome men. Women look for men who have had beautiful…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milan-kundera/for-he-was-aware-of-the-great-secret-of-life-women-don-t-look-for/) [Milan Kundera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milan-kundera/) ## More by Anonymous > [And a tear rolled down her cheek, as she said goodbye; because she's walking away, and she's never looking back](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/and-a-tear-rolled-down-her-cheek-as-she-said-goodbye-because-she-s/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Life is full of change. That's how we learn and grow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-is-full-of-change-that-s-how-we-learn-and-grow/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [You'll seldom experience regret for anything that you've done. It is what you haven't done that will torment you. The message, therefore, is clear.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-ll-seldom-experience-regret-for-anything-that-you-ve-done-it-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Scrabble - The game is available in Braille. That’s a nice fact. This makes me feel better about humanity for some reason. I can’t…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/scrabble-the-game-is-available-in-braille-that-s-a-nice-fact-this/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Everyone needs someone to love, and I choose you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/everyone-needs-someone-to-love-and-i-choose-you/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“THIS tale of my sore-troubled life I write,    To thank the God of nature, who conveyed    My soul to me, and with such care…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/this-tale-of-my-sore-troubled-life-i-write-to-thank-the-god-of-nature/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Put on my J's and dance the whole night away Im naughty by nature like Im hip-hop hooray With my hands in the sky,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/put-on-my-j-s-and-dance-the-whole-night-away-im-naughty-by-nature/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Me.. I have been through a lot, but I still manage to have a smile on my face. Im not worried about the past…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/me-i-have-been-through-a-lot-but-i-still-manage-to-have-a-smile-on-my/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Distance is a test of love. many will fail for those who can't withstand it, but for those who can, theres only one answer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/distance-is-a-test-of-love-many-will-fail-for-those-who-can-t/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Im sorry I ever tried...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/im-sorry-i-ever-tried/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Being betrayed by the one you love is the worst feeling in the world...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/being-betrayed-by-the-one-you-love-is-the-worst-feeling-in-the-world/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Let children support their parents or be imprisoned.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/let-children-support-their-parents-or-be-imprisoned/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The only person I've ever purposely caused pain here is myself...By simply sharing, caring too much.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-only-person-i-ve-ever-purposely-caused-pain-here-is-myself-by/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Start a business, not a startup”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/start-a-business-not-a-startup/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The truth is, of course, that the curtness of the Ten Commandments is an evidence, not of the gloom and narrowness of a religion,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-truth-is-of-course-that-the-curtness-of-the-ten-commandments-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Explore all 162,899 Anonymous quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More Dilemma quotes > [“When in dilemma, pause.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sravani-saha-nakhro/when-in-dilemma-pause/) [Sravani Saha Nakhro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sravani-saha-nakhro/) > [Anyone who will look at my life from the outside won't see the struggles inside. 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Perhaps no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-ury/how-can-we-get-what-we-really-want-and-at-the-same-time-deal-with-the/) [William Ury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-ury/) > [Pure, hard-core liberals believe in a superior race. They think they're it. They believe they're more intelligent than the general run of mankind, better…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/pure-hard-core-liberals-believe-in-a-superior-race-they-think-they-re/) [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) > [On earth where love lives, Also the place where dilemma exists.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/buddhachild/on-earth-where-love-lives-also-the-place-where-dilemma-exists/) [BuddhaChild](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/buddhachild/) > [“Such elusive puzzles recall the historian's basic dilemma: the absence of evidence does not always signify evidence of absence. In the end, we will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-markel/such-elusive-puzzles-recall-the-historian-s-basic-dilemma-the-absence/) Howard Markel > [This is our problem, our dilemma, yes? We cannot celebrate and declare ourselves to belong to the victorious nations because our brothers and our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/manfred-rommel/this-is-our-problem-our-dilemma-yes-we-cannot-celebrate-and-declare/) [Manfred Rommel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/manfred-rommel/) > [“It was the dilemma all three of us had. Every choice we made cut us off permanently from someone we loved.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hyeonseo-lee/it-was-the-dilemma-all-three-of-us-had-every-choice-we-made-cut-us/) [Hyeonseo Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hyeonseo-lee/) > [As the Hindu gods are 'immortal' only in a very particular sense - for they had born and they die - they experience most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/as-the-hindu-gods-are-immortal-only-in-a-very-particular-sense-for-2/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Science is important, but so is ethics, so is balancing life. To destroy life to save life - it's one of the real ethical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-bush/science-is-important-but-so-is-ethics-so-is-balancing-life-to-destroy/) [George W. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-bush/) > [The great thing about the dilemma we're in is that we get to re-imagine every single thing we do...There isn't a single thing that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-hawken/the-great-thing-about-the-dilemma-we-re-in-is-that-we-get-to-re/) [Paul Hawken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-hawken/) > [Our only goal is to strengthen the opposition and to avoid the dilemma whereby we only have the choice between Bashar Assad and al-Qaeda.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francois-hollande/our-only-goal-is-to-strengthen-the-opposition-and-to-avoid-the/) [Francois Hollande](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francois-hollande/) > [Developed and benefited from the unsustainable patterns of production and consumption which have produced our present dilemma. It is clear that current lifestyles and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurice-strong/developed-and-benefited-from-the-unsustainable-patterns-of-production/) [Maurice Strong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maurice-strong/) [Browse all 417 Dilemma quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dilemma/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "This is one of the innovator’s dilemmas: Blindly following the maxim that good managers should keep close to their customers can sometimes be a fatal mistake.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Anonymous" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/this-is-one-of-the-innovator-s-dilemmas-blindly-following-the-maxim/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Dilemma" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/this-is-one-of-the-innovator-s-dilemmas-blindly-following-the-maxim/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/34d/anonymous-1_dilemma_this-is-one-of-the-innovator-s-dilemmas_1321394.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/34d/anonymous-1_dilemma_this-is-one-of-the-innovator-s-dilemmas_1321394.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/34d/anonymous-1_dilemma_this-is-one-of-the-innovator-s-dilemmas_1321394.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“This is one of the innovator’s dilemmas: Blindly following the maxim that good managers should keep close to…” — Anonymous", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Anonymous", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "This is one of the innovator’s...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/this-is-one-of-the-innovator-s-dilemmas-blindly-following-the-maxim/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/this-is-one-of-the-innovator-s-dilemmas-blindly-following-the-maxim/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```