Google founder Larry Page explains how he decides what to work on

When asked about his philosophy and only working on “10x ideas”, Page invokes the idea of additionality from economics:

“It means doing something that wouldn’t happen unless you’re actually doing it. I think the more you can do things like that, the bigger impact you can have. And that’s about doing things people might not think are possible.”

Page believes technology is a huge enabler of this impact:

“I’ve been amazed… The more you learn about technology, the more you learn what’s possible…. And so for me, I just tried to focus on: What is the future really going to be and how do we create it?”

Page’s path to additionality is following your curiosity, working on things nobody else is working on, and being willing to take risks that others aren’t.

Full video: TED “Where's Google going next? | Larry Page“ (Mar 2014)