The working of our Automatic Innovation Mechanism can be compared to how a guided missile works.

 

The main feature of a guided missile is - given ANY starting point and ANY target, a guided missile can find its target very very accurately. The more sophisticated ones might have some complicated route-guidance features, but the earlier ones didn't have any. The way they work is simple - when a guided missile is fired, it makes an estimation for the trajectory it should take to reach its target. On its way, at periodic intervals, it does a feedback check to figure out how much way-off is it moving as compared to its target. Based on this information, it makes another estimate to perform a course-correction. However, it most certainly ends up doing either an under-correction or an over-correction; and the process keeps repeating. Make an estimate, move forward, take a feedback check and perform a course correction - till the target is hit !!!

 

The interesting fact is that although the missile is flying off-course 99% of the time, it ends up hitting its target with a great success rate.

 

What are some of the factors that helps a guided missile to be so accurate and effective ?

 

1. The guided missile doesnt wait to compute the complete trajectory before starting off. It just makes an initial guess of the trajectory and starts off. This willingness to act on incomplete data allows to be on the move all the time.

 

2. It frequently does a feedback check of its trajectory - is it on course ? Should it change course ? It is never so obsessed or attached to one line of flight (thinking).

 

3. It does a course-correction with  complete willingness. It never says - I have come all the way 100 miles North, now dont tell me to go back to North-West !!!

 

4. It is never flustered by the fact that it is running off-course 99% of the time. It knows that by being on the move, taking due feedback and be willing to perform a course-correction there is no way it can miss its target.

 

Stop to think : Am I a good guided missile ? What are some of my un-missile characteristics ? How can I "missilify" myself to hit all my targets every single time ?