Should “innovation” only be used to refer to big, world-changing ideas? No. This is actually a dangerous approach to innovating. The biggest hurdle is actually getting started – it’s more important to put effort into that.
DK interviewed me for a podcast last week – this bit on how to use experimenting build your innovation culture is my favourite part from it.
Here is a simple process that will help you innovate more effectively.
How do we innovate in a risk-averse culture? By realising that a culture is something that we create ourselves, through our interactions with people daily. When we change the way we act, we start to change out culture.
We learn through trial and error. That’s how everyone figures out how to ride a bike. We need to use trial and error more in business – it is a core tool for building an innovation culture.
Many organisations try to increase innovation by copying the successful techniques of other firms. This rarely works. Instead, you need to develop your purpose first. It’s this underlying philosophy that drives success, not tools.
My goal here is to help people that are trying to build a better world. I want to help make work more interesting. I hope that we can work together to do that. This is why we need to think of innovation as a discipline.
We know how to make organisations more innovative, but we don’t act on this knowledge. Why? Sometimes it’s because it’s hard, which isn’t a very good excuse.
There’s a difference between having a great idea, and creating value with that idea. Creativity, entrepreneurship and innovation are all words that are used to describe the value creation part of the equation. So do they mean the same thing?
Most organisations have more than enough ideas, but many struggle to choose the best ideas to pursue. Here are ten methods you can use to improve your idea selection.