The Swan Principle: Invest Before the Current Changes
May 5, 2026
AI Factory
Continuing my sixth post on my book, Deciding the Future: Building New Networks for the AI Era .
A customer once asked me, “Why should we change when everything is working perfectly for us?”
I drew a swan on the whiteboard. A swan glides calmly above the water. From the outside, it looks effortless. Smooth. Balanced. In control. But underneath, the real work is happening. The legs are moving. The direction is being managed. The motion nobody sees is what creates the glide everyone admires.
That is exactly how leadership works when a company wants to stay ahead.
When you are on top, you can absorb change on your own terms. When you wait too long, you are forced to catch up on someone else’s terms.
AI is creating that wave now.
For infrastructure leaders, the hidden work is clear: modernize the network, improve telemetry, automate operations, prepare teams, and build AI-ready infrastructure.
Michael Dell said it well: “Our job is to make AI more accessible.”Dell was already doing well, but it still moved early with Dell AI Factory with NVIDIA.That is the work underneath the surface.
The companies that will move smoothly into the AI era are not waiting for the water to become rough. They are preparing while the glide still looks smooth.
That is the Swan Principle.
The visible outcome is created by invisible preparation.
The question for the executives is simple: What hidden work are you investing in today, before the next wave makes it visible?
Frequently Asked Questions
1. What is the Swan Principle and why does it matter for business leaders?
A swan looks calm and effortless on the water. What you do not see is the legs working hard underneath. The Swan Principle says the same thing happens in business. The visible outcome everyone admires is created by invisible preparation. Companies that look like they are gliding smoothly through change are the ones doing hard work before anyone else notices the wave coming.
2. Why is it risky for infrastructure leaders to wait before preparing for the AI wave?
When you are on top, you can absorb change on your own terms. Wait too long and you are forced to catch up on someone else's terms. AI is creating that wave right now. The companies that move smoothly into the AI era are not waiting for the water to get rough. They are preparing while the glide still looks smooth.
3. What hidden work should infrastructure leaders be investing in right now for AI readiness?
Five things come up directly: modernize the network, improve telemetry, automate operations, prepare teams, and build AI-ready infrastructure. None of these show up on a press release. All of them determine whether the organisation glides into the AI era or gets caught scrambling when the shift becomes impossible to ignore.
4. How does Dell moving early with the Dell AI Factory with NVIDIA connect to the Swan Principle?
Dell was already doing well. There was no obvious pressure to change. They moved anyway. Michael Dell put it simply: their job is to make AI more accessible. Investing early while things were still going smoothly is exactly what the Swan Principle describes. The work happened underneath while the surface still looked calm.
5. What question should executives be asking themselves about AI readiness today?
The book puts it plainly: what hidden work are you investing in today before the next wave makes it visible? Not what looks good in a board deck. What is actually being built underneath while the surface still looks calm. That is the question that separates companies that glide through the AI era from the ones that get forced to catch up on someone else's terms.
If these thoughts resonate with you and you would like to talk more about this topic, let’s connect
