Share a spiky point of view
Pick a fight (in a good way)
The world is noisy. It’s hard to get noticed. No matter which field we’re in, there are thousands of others trying to be seen, heard and remembered. But most of us react to this competition by playing it safe. Blurring our edges. Echoing the prevailing wisdom. Settling for consensus. By doing so we fail to change anyone’s mind and get forgotten.
Conversely, if we want to have impact then as Jason Fried suggests, we should, “Pick a fight.” We must share and defend a contrarian viewpoint. Not by shouting. By articulating our ideas with clarity and gravitas. Wes Kao describes it as having a spiky point of view.
What is a spiky point of view?
A spiky point of view is a perspective others can disagree with. It’s a belief you feel strongly about and are willing to advocate for. - Wes Kao
A spiky point of view has five characteristics:
It’s debatable: If everyone agrees with your view, it’s too bland. A spiky perspective invites healthy friction and makes room for dialogue.
It’s not contrarian theatrics: Fake controversy is draining and hollow. Instead, spikiness grows from a well-reasoned, meaningful stance, not from playing provocateur.
It teaches your audience something new: A strong, spiky point reframes a common issue, prompting a reaction like: “I never saw it that way, but now I can’t unsee it.”
It’s defensible, but not universally provable. You don’t need consensus or perfect evidence to share a belief. What matters is that it’s rooted in our experience and reasoning.
It’s grounded in conviction: A spiky point isn’t neutral. It advocates. It nudges, challenges and invites action.
Spikiness matters
Do not fear to be eccentric in opinion, for every opinion now accepted was once eccentric. - Bertrand Russell
Sharpness makes us memorable. If we never take a position, how can anyone understand what we stand for? Our spiky views define our brand, our influence and our filter. We, inevitably, repel some, but attract the right people - those who will trust our voice precisely because it’s consistent, clear and grounded in conviction.
Examples of spiky points of view
What important truth do very few people agree with you on? - Peter Thiel
To illustrate, here are some spiky points of view from this A Bit Gamey blog:
Efficiency blinds us to opportunity: Organisations prioritise visible cost savings and overlook hidden losses relating to missed opportunities, reduced resilience and lost optionality. Short-term efficiency and tidy metrics may look prudent but often undermine long-term adaptability, innovation and high-upside gains.
Open plan offices reduce productivity and stress introverts: Open-plan offices favour extroverts while draining introverts. By confusing visibility with effectiveness, companies create noisy environments that sap concentration, motivation, and retention.
Most products fail as they do not meet a need: Instead of perfecting unwanted solutions, founders should “pretotype”: test if anyone cares before building. Real behaviour (clicks, signups, pre-orders) is the only honest signal, enabling us to fail cheaply, learn fast and double down when traction appears.
All knowledge is temporary: Progress does not come from credentials or certainty, but from curiosity, iteration and error-correction. Mistakes fuel growth and real wealth lies in transforming the world through knowledge.
An AI startup can be built in 3 hours: Instead of years of trial and error, founders can now identify demand, sketch, build, market and even automate a product in a few hours using AI. The power is in moving faster, skipping traditional bottlenecks and scaling like a team of ten with minimal resources.
Discover and share your spiky view
If you have an idea that you think is worth sharing, share it. The worst that can happen is nothing. The best that can happen is everything. - Chris Guillebeau
Posing questions helps uncover our spiky points of view:
Which best practices irritate us? (e.g. Short term efficiency is rewarded, even when it undermines long term opportunity.)
What frustrates us in our industry? (e.g. Extrovert managers fail to see the harm noisy open-plan offices do.)
What do we believe that others resist? (e.g. Corporate logic stifles creativity.)
What’s a truth from our experience that challenges norms? (e.g. Knowledge is temporary.)
Document then sharpen them. The refining process is where they gain edge. Once our perspective is shaped, share it, even if imperfectly. Of course, people may disagree. We might be wrong. But that's part of the test. Engagement, debate and even criticism refine our views. And when we make readers think (or rethink) we’ve made impact.
I share my spiky points of view via this blog post. I write on Substack and share via other social media, including Reddit, LinkedIn and Twitter/X.
Other resources
Being Contrarian talk by Peter Thiel
Are Society’s Default Rules Right for Us? post by Phil Martin
Seven Steps to Radical Thinking post by Phil Martin
Spikiness is our calling card and clarifying lens. Over time, it becomes a key part of our identity.
Have fun.
Phil…
