ideas
Does it count when old ideas become new ideas?
In the world of innovation, it can be hard to come up with new ideas. It seems like no matter what you think you’ve dreamed up, someone else has had that same dream. But who wants old ideas? Would you believe “a hungry public”? Kurt Wenner is not only a master of his art, he’s the creator of […]
Our tendency to over protect ideas hinders innovation
Many brilliant new ideas seemingly appear from outer-space. Some call them Aha! Moments, Epiphanies, and Flashes of Insight. Writer Steven Johnson disagrees and instead believes that the right conditions and collaborations are the spark for these new ideas. While collaborations produce the right cir
Are customers a source of ideas for innovation?
Of course, innovation should be customer focused. At a minimum, most companies will conduct a focus group, survey, or other market research periodically to gauge customers needs and wants. This data is provided to innovation teams, as one of many inputs, to help them frame the ideas that will lead t
4 Ways To Find Motivation in Times of Burnout
Some days, we wake up raring to get at our day, fueled with passion and creativity to do the work we know sets us apart from the crowd. No need to go on a search and find motivation. Its just there! Other days…not so much. There are times when even the most inspired and resilient […]
Core Attributes For An Innovation Culture
The key foundation for an innovation culture is what I call the “core attributes”. Core attributes are those attributes the organization holds which form the foundation on which its perform work and conduct itself. Done well, they are empowering to an organization. What to think about when definin
Disagree at your own risk
In my opinion, those organizations that encourage disagreement have a higher likelihood of success. Why? Because encouraging team member to voice their disagreement brings out alternative ideas, enhancements and perspectives that management didn’t consider or overlooked. Be careful because most or
The ultimate of constraint based innovation – burn the boats!
Seth Godin recently made a post on his blog about putting yourself into an impossible position and then setting back and watching incredibly things happen. I’m a big believer of constraint based innovation where leaders purposefully restrict some key resource(s) (people, money, time, etc) and then f
Why is it so hard to give a good speech?
The ability to communicate is a skill/ability that is in short supply. I know of a number of highly intelligent people who seem to struggle during their presentations to share their ideas. If you can’t effectively communicate, then the impact of your ideas is near zero. Communicating, especially
3 More Innovation Contests
The response to the original post of three interesting innovation contests was so positive, I’ve decided to start collecting contests and then posting them on the blog and on the twitter stream. I’m not sure why there is such a strong interest in contests. Maybe it has something to do with wanting t
3 Interesting Innovation Competitions
In a recent set of tweets, I commented on the growing number of innovation competitions. A number of you responded by sending me a list of competitions that you found interesting. If you have more competitions, post them as comments below or send them via email. Given the challenges that are faci