Ideas that Change the World
Where does you start when you trying to come up with an idea that will change the world? Well there are two camps on this issue. In one camp people feel you need to start with a blank page. In the other camp people feel you need to go out and find some inspiration. Let’s look at each camp a little closer.
Many people drift toward the first camp because they feel true innovation is a totally unique idea. To them an idea that was inspired is an idea that was copied. On the other hand others drift toward the second camp because they feel that they are not creative. But, both innovation camps are looking to come up with an idea as the first stage of the innovation process.
There are three types of innovation:
- Something New out of Nothing – this is a totally unique and new idea.
- Something New out of Something – this is where an existing idea is enhanced and altered into something new.
- Something New out of Other Things – this is where multiple ideas are combined and/or enhanced into a new idea.
With these three types of innovation in mind, I can make an immediate observation. Both innovation camps are represented within the three types of innovation.
The truth is that both of these innovation camps miss the point and are design traps. They start by trying to pull an idea out of thin air or by trying to find an idea inspired by other ideas. Neither of these are effective methods.
Effective innovation starts with context. You cannot effectively come up with an idea unless you first know the context that will surround the idea. Take architecture for example. An architect could never design a building without knowing about the land they were designing the building for. I know, this sounds like common sense, but actually when it comes to innovation many people skip this step. How many meetings have begun with, “we need a great idea to move this business forward” and then proceeded into brainstorming ideas? Granted the people in the business know their business, but that isn’t enough.
In my next post I will begin to explain the first step of the innovation process, gathering context.
