7 Things Innovators Do That You Don’t
What prevents you from being a great innovator? Not much. Innovators by and large aren’t creative geniuses gifted with da Vinci-like talent. It’s not what they ARE - it’s what they DO. They do these seven things you most likely do not.
1. Innovators make innovation a part of their daily lives. At work, in the home, on vacation - they use their skills daily and as a result it becomes second nature to them. Kirton says that life is problem solving, and problem solving requires innovation.
2. Innovators create their own fertile environment. Yeah, Google makes it easy for employee creativity to thrive, but not all companies are as innovator-friendly as Google. Innovators must play the hand they’re dealt, and that often means finding a way to prosper in rocky soil. They do it through small steps - creating alliances, exploiting occasional opportunities, surpassing frequent obstacles, and being a catalyst for organizational change. Short term frustration reaps long term benefits.
3. Innovators ask: “Why?” Innovators are confronted with many assumptions that warrant questioning, and they aren’t timid about doing so.
“Why is this a problem? (ask it five times to get to the root of it)”
“Why do we HAVE to do things this way?”
“How do we know we know everything we NEED to know?”
“Why can’t a solution from a totally different world help us solve a problem in ours?”
“Do reversing our long-held assumptions stimulate ideas for solving our problem?”
4. Innovators understand their creative strengths and weaknesses. It’s not hard to determine your creative style and personality type - KAI and Myers-Briggs take care of that nicely. But once you know this, what good is the information? It shows you what kind of innovator you really are. One who is adept at improving things. One who can connect with people easily and focus on customer experience. One who can proliferate big, revolutionary ideas. One who can enhance others’ ideas. One who can cross-pollinate ideas from other parallel worlds. One who sees the way to overcome obstacles. One who can bring people together. Which reminds me…
5. Innovators collaborate with others. Thomas Edison led a team of 14, and all contributed to his body of work. Michelangelo had a lot of help painting the Sistine Chapel. The ‘lone genius’ is a myth - innovation takes shifts in thinking and perspective, so innovators need the input of others. And innovators collaborate with everyone. People in their field of expertise, people outside their field of expertise, people with no expertise at all. Innovators connect with people and forge relationships that will help them become better innovators.
6. Innovators aren’t afraid to communicate their crazy ideas. Freed from self-imposed restraints, innovators’ minds run wild. And as we’ve seen, the essence of a crazy idea often sheds light on more practical yet equally effective solutions. “Let’s make an invisible airplane!” becomes “Let’s use composite materials and sharp angles to create a plane invisible to radar!” Same benefit, less crazy.
7. Innovators understand that ideas are worthless unless backed by action. Merely generating ideas almost NEVER results in change - every idea needs a detailed action plan, and buy-in from the people charged with making it work. And innovators find people to champion their ideas - champions who influence decision-making. Yet another benefit of cultivating relationships and collaborating with others.
Start doing these things and you’ll be a better innovator for it.
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5 Responses to “7 Things Innovators Do That You Don’t”
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Great food for thought and a good challenge for any professional. These are things that we should all check ourselves on if we really want to be successful.
[...] 7 Things Innovators Do That You Don’t | open-source-innovation.com Innovators by and large aren’t creative geniuses gifted with da Vinci-like talent. It’s not what they ARE - it’s what they DO. They do these seven things you most likely do not. (tags: management startup) [...]
We must understand that the most creative people stand out not because they have more knowledge but because they are able, when necessary, to drop their preconceived notions and focus intensely in the present moment. That is how creativity is sparked and opportunities are seized.
[...] 7 Things Innovators Do That You Don’t: My favorite one is that innovators aren’t afraid to communicate their crazy ideas. [...]
There are too few innovators out there! Most people remain stagnant instead of taking action, but taking action also means taking risk.
Innovators see the big picture, a larger goal, and put whatever they need to in place in order to achieve it. Being an innovator is not for the faint of heart as your 7 Things point out!