Introduction to the iLands of Innovation
What is Innovation?
While we may think of innovation as the emergence or creation of something completely unique, the dictionary definition suggests something more modest—and maybe more valuable to the practitioner. To innovate means simply to renew. It means to bring some idea into the world that is new or that can be presented as new. Innovation allows for the uncovering of the next new thing, or for the repackaging or repositioning of something that was new years ago. An innovation is either a new creation or the shedding of new light on an old creation. An innovator can either uncover the next best thing since sliced bread, or simply find a new way to package or brand sliced bread.
It’s possibly intriguing for the innovation practitioner to consider that any activity of renewal qualifies as an innovation. Instead of cheapening or demystifying the process, it can make innovation more accessible by removing it from the realm of unattainable talent. Some innovations have greater consequences and reach than others—a very few will change everything about the way we live. But the process for coming up with the large innovations is the same as that for coming up with the small ones. Intellect plays a role, but high IQ is not a prerequisite for innovation. We are not all Einsteins.
One Process for Finding Innovations?
The tantalizing question concerning innovation is whether the consistent emergence of new ideas can be reduced to a process. I tend to think not. I’m aware that others will disagree with this position. I believe there are factors that may increase the likelihood of finding innovative ideas. But I’m skeptical about finding any one process that can be learned and practiced over and over to “train up” the innovation muscles and produce consistent, predictable results. However, just because there may not be a single, catch-all process doesn’t mean that there might not be many processes that help tap into the innovator’s inner sanctum of insight. The lack of any single process does not mean that innovative thinking, insight and activity is not something that all of us can experience many times over and become comfortable with.
And, of course, it’s also possible that someone may discover THE sole, foolproof process tomorrow. That kind of discovery would tremendously level the playing field and create all sorts of new problems in the innovation quest to be solved. We use innovation to create value or advantage. If the innovation process could be commoditized, its intrinsic value would be lost.
Intuition and Insight
What keeps the innovation process from being reduced to a series of steps is the “intuition principle” or the “insight effect.” At some point in many innovation processes there comes a time where the introduction of something totally unexpected causes a shift in thought or perception. Unfortunately the totally unexpected cannot be programmed. The two tend to be mutually exclusive. We all get our inspiration from somewhere—but that somewhere feels more like nowhere than some corner convenience store we can frequent over and over.
We are all innovative by nature. Some of us are merely clever, others are geniuses, but we each have a talent for seeing things differently. A different viewpoint is always a window on some fruitful field just full of ripening possibilities for renewal. We all create many innovations throughout our lives—we just don’t label them as such, and in failing to do so, miss the opportunity to explore the workings of our own ingenuity. This kind of exploration may be more valuable in the long run than a pursuit of a single holy grail innovation process.
Innovation is a practice
Set aside time to look for new ideas or remake old ones. Better yet, reframe the way you approach your normal day's work and see at least some of it as an exercise in innovation. Every so often, just allow your innate curiosity to arise and ask the questions why and how and most important, what if? Keep in mind the definition. Innovation happens when something is brought forth that is new or treated as if it were new. Don’t become discouraged. I recommend that you keep between five and ten innovation projects running at once. Some will race ahead, others lag behind. Some will provide unexpected input into others, even if they're only remotely related. At least one will be successful at any given time, and that is encouraging. Keep track of all the new things that you discover and the new ways you look at something you thought you knew everything about. Take a few minutes to write down a list of new things that you want to discover, or things you’d like to see in a new way. These can be anything from a relationship to a hobby to inventing a new prescription drug or a new joke or a new way to approach dating or the next big thing in telecommunications. Anything’s game.
Remember, even if you discover something new that others find to be old hat, it’s still an innovation so far as you’re concerned, and in that sense it’s a success. The wonderful thing about innovations is that they lead to more innovations. So even a tiny breakthrough can be exploited and happily pursued down the path to a bigger, different, or more meaningful breakthrough.
What if you’re a solo innovator? What if you work alone, or you’re the boss or you’re a single parent? Ultimately innovation can only truly be practiced through collaboration with others—even if it is limited to bouncing ideas off of someone else. You can be innovative all on your own, but know that it can be easier in some respects and more fun to be innovative with others. Besides, you will eventually have to try your innovation on someone else to see if it’s truly new or if it can be perceived as new. Having others to bounce ideas off of is important. Because if innovation is about different perspectives or viewpoints, then it helps to have some of those viewpoints around. Besides, none of us really works alone. There are other people who directly or indirectly influence our work and our thinking. Best to take that into account and make the most of it from the start.
What is a Valuable Innovation?
Now it’s true, strictly speaking that any renewal is an innovation. But it may be useful to consider what a valuable innovation is. A valuable innovation is bringing forth something that’s new or is perceived as new, and that matters to someone. It may matter to you, or one other person, or many people, or to the whole world, but it has to matter. How can you tell if it matters? People will buy, borrow or mimic the idea. They’ll appropriate it in some way and use it because it appeals to them--they find value in it.
An innovation that doesn’t matter to anyone isn’t necessarily a dead end. It could be a step towards bringing forth something down the line that really matters. OK, so it could be a dead end. So what? Try something else.
22 iLands of Innovation
There’s a quality of innocence or playfulness that seems to lurk about the paths of innovation and that’s where I’d like to start. Imagine a chain of islands extending from the frigid poles to the sun-drenched tropics. Each island is inhabited by people who have mastered one of the keys to successful innovation. There’s no one right way to visit all or some of the islands. Each explorer is free to create a unique pathway based on curiosity. I selected twenty-two iLands to use as seeds for writing about innovation. Each iLand is a word beginning with the letter “i”. The description of each iLand will include some ideas to try in your own innovation practice. Sometimes you’ll get results. Sometimes you won’t. That’s how it goes. If one approach seems blocked, try something else. You can even try out words in pairs or threes or fours. Think about them together to see if you get any insights. The twenty-two iLands will appear over the next few months. I hope you enjoy visiting them with me.