This is from the POV40IQ magical email series, with the goal of changing perspectives each week day because a change in how you view a problem is better than forty-more-IQ on the problem.
Here’s an exchange from Marc Maron’s podcast with Jerry Seinfeld which articulates the difference between demand side innovation and supply side innovation.
“I like the laughs but I noticed with you, that there are moments in a bit where they might not be the biggest laugh moments, but they are your favorite moments.” (Maron)
“Yes, that’s fine but I’m very anti-indulgence. My job is to serve the audience. To make them really laugh because that I think is the only relevant currency in the end.” (Seinfeld)
“Just a laugh?”
“Yeah.”
“I always look for meaning in jokes. That’s the reason I got into comedy, because comedians make things understandable and manageable.”
“Yeah, but I never put anything above the laugh. Self-revelation, opinion, insight. I would never weigh those the same as the laugh.”
Comedy is a beautiful art form because it’s fast. Idea, joke, feedback. It’s the mayfly of the art world. Organization innovation cycles take longer, but it’s crucial to think about how they can serve the customers in the way the customer wants. In comedy, “nothing is above the laugh.”
The Waiter's Pad 
[…] Seinfeld writes on yellow legal pads until a joke is pleasing to the ear. Then, it’s time to see how it works. And to remember, nothing is above the laugh. […]
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[…] can think of an idea in the morning, expand it in the afternoon, and perform it that night. Nothing is above the laugh and the feedback is fast and firm. Jokes work or they […]
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