The number one most-listened episode out of 100 was not about the latest AI tool. It was about the discipline of choosing what NOT to pursue.
Number one most listened out of 100 episodes. And it was not about the latest AI tool or technology.
When I joined the AEC AI and Tech Strategy Podcast, we talked about Blue Ocean Strategy, the framework by W. Chan Kim and Renée Mauborgne for finding uncontested market space. But the conversation that resonated was not about the framework itself. It was about the discipline underneath it: choosing what NOT to pursue. Motivating and inspiring teams to follow a purpose, by aspiring to be different. To be remarkable.
In an industry obsessed with the shiny object trap in this AI era, maybe this resonated because I said the quiet part out loud, on my first podcast, with more conviction than polish. Differentiation is the actual strategy. Not the tool. Not the trend.
Most firms spend inordinate energy optimizing what everyone else is already doing: fighting over the same clients, the same services, the same margins. The firms that break out are the ones willing to stop competing and start creating.
Growth in 2026 is not about what you add, but what survives the long-haul filter. I have been running my growth ideas through the (AI + MI) × HI framework. AI: Can software replicate 80% of this by 2027? MI: Do we have expertise that others cannot Google or automate? HI: Does this require human judgment that multiplies value?
(AI + MI) × HI™ is an original framework developed by Jigar B. Desai.
Two initiatives I considered for 2026 failed all three tests. Both would increase sales and be profitable in the short term. But both are becoming commodities faster than we can achieve scale. Instead, I am allocating resources where our Material Intelligence compounds and human judgment creates exponential value.
M&A consolidation in the AEC industry continues at historic levels. The firms commanding premium valuations are not doing the most things. They are doing the right things for the long haul.
AI is commoditizing technical work faster than firms can scale it. Services you plan to grow might not command premium fees by the time you reach meaningful scale. The insight: instead of "what should we grow?" ask "what should we stop growing?"
Growth in 2026 means building for the long haul, not the quarterly target. Run your 2026 growth initiatives through this filter. How many survive?
The theory of differentiation is elegant. The practice is painful. Saying no to revenue that does not fit your strategy requires a conviction that most organizations, including mine, are still building.
The ½: I know the filter. I believe the filter. But I have not yet had the discipline to apply it to every decision. Some of the growth I am pursuing right now would fail my own test. Admitting that is the first step toward fixing it.
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