Do legacy retailers know too much ?

The first time I heard the futurist Edith Weiner use the term "incapacitated thinking" I was thunder struck by the brilliance of it. Basically the way Edie defines the term is that once we become experts on a particular field it's harder for us to think new and differently and therefore never able to think outside the proverbial box.

Hence, we become incapacitated to think differently.

Edith Weiner quote : "We begin learning from the time we are born. And the older we get, the more knowledge we acquire but this makes it harder to see the future objectively. We call this educated incapacity." 

Conversely, many start-ups don't know what they don't know and make many mistakes but they also approach problems with completely new perspectives. Often with a "Why didn't I think of that result?"

Enter the consultants. Clearly consultants have a role but at times only rely on the information they are given by their clients supporting the old adage that "consultants borrow your watch to tell you what time it is" knowing that if they propose too aggressive solutions that they will be tossed out of hand as being too radical, even though it actually may be the best solution for the problem.

The other problems consultants face is the high rate of recidivism by their clients. 

Even after significant research is done and a proposed hypothetical solution is adopted along with a well-executed  strategy it’s not too long before it goes by the wayside with the retailer going back to their old ways of operating citing that the results didn't come fast enough.

But the reality is subconsciously they "think" they know better. 

"Insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results." – Albert Einstein

So are legacy retailers suffering from a fatal case of incapacitated thinking?

Maybe they should get a second opinion.