We all know that the world is not fair. But rather than dwell on the inequity, let’s do something about it.

Here comes today’s unspoken rule!

Gorick

TODAY’S TAKEAWAY

Society rewards commercialization.

Great ideas don’t change the world on their own. Execution and distribution do.

THE STORY

He turned ideas into action

It was 1984 and Alexey Pajitnov, a young software engineer at the Soviet Academy of Sciences, had just created a simple falling-block game using the now-defunct Electronika 60 computer.

He named it “Tetris.”

Both novel and addictive given the lack of other entertainment options at the time, the game soon spread to the entire school and then all over the Soviet Union. 

Then, nothing happened. As was customary in the Soviet Union, the government owned the game, and it remained nothing more than an underground sensation.

Then, 2 years later in 1986, a series of chance events unfolded:

1. A copy of the game leaked to Hungary

2. Robert Stein, a British salesperson, saw the game in Hungary

3. Stein licensed the game from Moscow*

4. Stein sold the UK rights to Microsoft and the US rights to a company called Spectrum HoloByte

5. 2 years later, in 1988, Spectrum HoloByte brought the game to the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas

6. Henk Rogers, an American entrepreneur, saw the game and successfully negotiated with the Soviet Government to sell its console rights to Nintendo

7. Nintendo bundled the game into all of its Game Boy consoles

The result?

• The Game Boy family sold roughly 118 million units worldwide

• Tetris was widely credited as Nintendo Game Boy’s “killer app” and a major driver of its broad demographic appeal

• Tetris became one of the best-selling games of all time, eventually surpassing 520 million copies across platforms

*I’ve simplified the story for brevity. The real story has more twists and turns. If you’re interested, here’s the Wikipedia page.

THE UNSPOKEN RULE

Society rewards commercialization

Society rewards the people who bring ideas to market, not just the ones who think them up.

• Alexey Pajitnov invented Tetris, but it was Henk Rogers who commercialized and distributed it when the creator couldn’t and the Soviet state didn’t care to.

• Scientists discover breakthroughs, but it’s often the businesspeople who turn them into products that reap the financial reward.

• Ideas get tossed around in work meetings all the time, but it’s often the person who packages those ideas into a solution who gets promoted.

This is not to say that scientists are not doing a noble job or that the person who came up with that brilliant idea doesn’t deserve a promotion. (If I had it my way, I’d want to reward the unsung heroes.) But it does show how the current world economy prioritizes the bridge to market.

What does this mean for you?

The next time you have an idea, write it down—but don’t stop there.

1. Ask yourself, “Who would want this?”

2. Create a mock or prototype and have someone test it

3. Then ask the other person, “Who else should I talk to?”

Not all ideas will become the next Tetris, but I’m confident you’ve got an idea inside your head that’s at least as big as Tetris. The problem? It’s still merely an idea.

See you next Tuesday for our next story and unspoken rule!

Gorick

WHAT I’M READING

Here are 3 articles that I found interesting recently (no paywalls, although it may depend on your cookies):

1. Bill Gurley says that right now, the worst thing you can do for your career is play it safe (TechCrunch)

2. These college majors have the highest earning potential and lowest unemployment rates, study finds (CBS)

3. Neuroscientist warns Gen Z first generation less cognitively capable than their parents (Fortune)

MORE OF MY WORK

Every newsletter is free and a fraction of my work. Here are 4 of my paid offerings that may interest you:

1. Keynote speaking​​: If your organization is looking for speakers for your internship program, new hire orientation, new student orientation, manager training, all-hands meetings, recruiting season, year-end performance evaluation season, or something else, let's chat!

2. How to Say It: Flashcards that teach you to know what to say in every high-stakes professional setting via hundreds of fill-in-the-blank scripts (just like the examples above). Free shipping on all orders over $40.

3. The Unspoken Rules​: My Wall Street Journal Bestseller that Arianna Huffington calls “a blueprint for anyone starting their career, entering a new role, or wanting to get unstuck.” Used by top companies and MBA programs.

4. Soft skills crash course: Hard skills get you hired, but a lack of soft skills gets you fired. Equip your interns and early career talent with the essential behaviors of high performers in just 3.5 hours.

Gorick Ng
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Harvard career advisor | WSJ bestselling author | Fortune 500 keynote speaker | First-gen

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STORY SOURCES

1. young software engineer at the Soviet Academy of Sciences

2. simple falling-block game

3. all over the Soviet Union

4. As was customary in the Soviet Union

5. a series of chance events unfolded

6. Nintendo bundled the game into all of its Game Boy consoles

7. Game Boy family sold roughly 118 million units worldwide

8. became one of the best-selling games of all time

9. Cover image

10. The prototype version of Tetris

11. Tetris on Nintendo Game Boy

12. Henk Rogers and Alexey Pajitnov