We need to talk about the word F (“friction” in the institution, i.e.)

Today, everything without friction. Whether you are Park your carand Sell ​​your homeand Driving Or dry your hair, there is a company that promises time and eliminates any troubles you may face. Friction is the last form of American comfort – the culmination of a continuous effort to meet the desire of consumers to be faster, easier and more complete.

In the digital age, lack of friction is also a growth program for growth: the more an easier use of a product or service becomes, the fastest companies can develop the user base and extract value. Design of friction -free products, global approval tools, digital portfolios, and unified recordings that work with giants such as Facebook and Google Let Companies expand and sell without making users complete the forms, or go through the privacy of boileplate or even enter the payment details.

It is easy to see why investors love friction. (Try to find a court surface in the Gulf region no He promised to eliminate friction.) But our preparation from friction comes at a price.

Slope

Make things easy The founding promise of the digital era was. In the mid -nineties of the last century, it helped build web products that allowed stock prices with the click of the Mouse button. (It is outperforming the operation of INKY FILERS fingers under the shares of securities institutions at the back of the business pages.) Make other Dot-Com pioneers to listen to music, store, news reading, late and more relationships.

Since then, mobile devices, unified recordings, site services and more “automatic” solutions have resulted in countless problems. Personal summaries provide content without raising our finger. Smart devices – speakers, cars, sunglasses, and refrigerators – weave digital comfort through each aspect of our lives. Now, artificial intelligence cancels more friction: no need to write emails, read messages, or think very much about anything at all.

However, eliminating friction is not a guarantee of success. Wework Stunning To build a frictional real estate empire. Amazon spent wide sums on Retail without friction of bricks and mortars. Before Trump Zouk Inverted face on friction Facebook also sought to share Oza while confronting online communications.

Moreover, eliminating friction has dangerous social consequences. Friction helps us to stop, think and make better options. When Robinhood made an effort, countless Americans The addict is over To rush. Easy online bets Pay bankruptcy rates by 30 %. More friction may have kept the crowds The world’s computers bricks; Help Restore On social media or The proliferation slows down From opioid materials.

Even for individuals, the voltage is not always a net victory. Eliminating friction can mean the agency surrender. The algorithms provide flexible content chosen to We, no by we; Online retailers choose what we “discover” to control what we buy. Friction knocks us; We left a floating, like Humans heading in the chair to WallTake negatively everything we serve.

Strategic inconvenience

Although it may be easier to get a rich bulldozer in the mouths of the future consumer, in the long run, companies that treat customers such as smart, empowered and armored people themselves will do better than those who simply depend on their ability.

Understanding Steve Jobs Viturable Vaccines – and then promised that Apple products will “Apple products” will be “Apple”Only work“But at the same time, they are the power of friction. When asked about the correct way to collect customer data, it is The famous said: “Ask them! Ask them every time. Make them tell you to stop asking them if they were tired of asking them.” Jobs called for Goldilocks: Just an appropriate amount of friction to create products that are happy and properly done by users.

By achieving the right balance, companies can use friction in their favor. Friction, after all, is another word for comments – so products that become frictions completely stop responding to the needs of users. You can call you not to contact Skyward, but over time you will struggle to correct the training course. In the end, the gravity will pull you to the ground.

This is not hypothetical: Research has shown that friction makes many systems – including companies – more intelligent and more flexible. Little strategic inconvenience can improve the performance of the market, with investors Make more intelligent decisions When they are forced to slow down and think about professions. IEX Stock Exchange is traded through the “Magic Shoe Box”, which contains miles of optical fiber cables wrapped, Create a delay of 350 Meskond To reduce the effect of high frequency trading, which makes the markets more just for everyone.

Sometimes cyber security teams It requires human approval Before automatic installation of programs via Interint-slowing down people, making bad actors more difficult to kidnap the network. Data privacy rules such as gross domestic product, at the same time, add friction in the form of approval and privacy notifications-and although many reverse results, the balanced approach leaves consumers better enlightened and with more control of their data.

Start talking about friction

What does this mean for my founders today? Obviously, we will not abandon friction techniques anytime soon – and we should not. What we should do, though, is the question how we can Right -size friction In our products – or even converting friction into a job opportunity.

As for technicians, this means the question: What are the problems that you solve by eliminating friction – and what are the problems that you may create, now or in the future, by doing this? Each choice of design brings the barters, but the risk balance and bonuses of the design for the correct level of friction allows rapid growth and long -term sustainability.

Such an approach can make it easy to take emerging talks about the need for artificial intelligence and other emerging technologies. The regulations always add Friction – but once we accept that some friction can be valuable, we can work cooperatively with policy makers to find the appropriate level of friction to support innovation while protecting and respecting consumers.

The bottom line? Friction as the sacred cup of digital products and services has led to reverse results. It is time for a more accurate approach-and it begins to accept it for technology founders and investors, “friction” should not be a word of four letters. Only by re -friction to the conversation, we can build new technologies responsibly with growth capabilities, but also the real survival force.

Jenny Bird is president Ethical technology project.