The Possession – Awareness Quadrant – the Evolution

I recently shared the Possession-Awareness Quadrant framework with a hall full of PMs in the form of a 20-minutes-long talk followed by a quick Q&A session. A format like this forces you to crystalize your thoughts in a more concise (brevity of thought) and precise (sharp, to the point examples) way. The process of putting together the talk, the feedback and the discussion that followed is helping the framework become more rugged (I am already happier with it than I was a month ago).

I am going to try and document the evolution of the framework on the site:
Version 1 was published in January 2020 (and is still all valid) – a pre-read for this post
Version 2 follows below

Here’s a link to the presentation.

The Four Quadrants:

1. Superman’s Confidence
   • It is unfair to bring Superman to a gunfight. Awareness of the strengths a company/ individual possesses can be weaponized.
2. The Hanuman Problem
   • A fresh pair of eyes is required to help one become aware of what one has always possessed. Every Hanuman needs a Jambavant. Jambavants are the equivalents of consultants (for organizations) and coaches/ mentors (for individuals).
3. Incompetence of Movie Villains
   • Incompetent movie villains who are not aware of just how incompetent they are can lead to great comedic gold but is not fun if you want to be a criminal mastermind.
4. Hero’s Journey
   • A boy wakes up one day to find that everyone is his village has disappeared. Large rat monsters are roaming the streets. He needs to escape. But all he has is a wooden practice sword. So out he goes to fight the monsters. A crazy fight ensues. He loses half his health points but gains enough coins to upgrade his wooden sword to a metal one. 4-5 monsters later he is able to get himself a new armour.
   • This is classic character progression in any action-adventure/ role playing game/ fantasy story arc. Be like Naruto. Keep improving.
   • Awareness of gaps helps build out a great roadmap
   • Being aware of the competition’s gaps can be a huge strategic advantage