When Creativity Seems Like so Much Fluff and Nonsense
I'm going to explode what may be a common business paradigm - creativity
isn't only for the marketing team. Creativity is for any department
that wants better solutions to whatever they are working on. And obtaining
better solutions to your problems is as practical as it gets.
The problem is that so many people are worried about being impractical,
of coming up with silly ideas, being ridiculed by co-workers or having
an idea that won't work that they won't look at any idea that seems
the least bit different.
I have to tell you this - if you want better solutions to your problems,
then you need to loosen up. Rememer the Swiss watchmakers who thought
that their own invention, the digital watch, was just too impractical.
They said, "Who would EVER want one of these?" Then the Japanese took
the technology and captured a large segment of the watch market. My
question is, "Who looked foolish then? The people who ran with the
silly idea or the ones who thought digital technology too silly to
use?"
According to business guru, Tom Peters, if you want to be truly innovative,
you've got to be silly. I agree with him. When you are scared of being
silly - or of other people thinking you are silly - then you shut
down. You only come up with careful ideas.
And usually, careful ideas aren't the best ones.
You need to "let go," get silly and not worry about yourself and whether
an idea is any good or not. It doesn't mean that your ideas can't
have practical applications. But if you don't entertain what seem
like silly or impractical ideas, then you are going to shut out those
ideas that could revolutionize your business. Or change the way people
look at the world.
Many years ago, it seemed silly to think of putting a man on the moon.
How practical was that? But then a group of people started saying,
"If we did it, what would we have to do first?" And one step at a
time, they walked towards achieving their vision. To me, this is a
perfect combination of vision, innovation, and perseverance.
If being silly is just too much for you then there is another side
of creativity - one that you might feel more comfortable with. And
that involves taking someone else's "leap" and then changing it to
fit your needs. Think of it as small steps of creativity. This is
what Alexander Graham Bell did with the telephone. What the Japanese
did with the Swiss watchmaker's digital timepiece. And what Bill Gates
did with DOS and Windows.
If this is something that "fits" you, then you have to prepare your
mind. Reading is one key to doing this. Subscribe to magazines outside
your field of expertise. Don't try to become an expert in these fields,
just try to discover what interesting things are happening elsewhere.
And as you read ask yourself, "Could this idea be relevant to my business?"
Another way to do this is to open the windows and let in some fresh
ideas. Invite secretaries and janitors to marketing brainstorming
sessions. Ask the marketing team to a finance meeting. Listen with
"open" ears to what these outsiders have to say. After all, if Albert
Einstein discussed one of his famous theories with his wife (he said
it was as much his wife's contribution as his), then surely we can
do this in our own organizations.
Finally, after coming up with creative ideas, make sure you implement
them. Don't be like a certain organization (that will remain nameless).
It rewarded people for coming up with the ideas but not for carrying
them out. They had lots of ideas. But none of these great ideas made
any money for the company because they just sat on the shelf.
Put your great ideas into practise. Design an implementation plan.
Work out the bugs. Implement innovation. And that's about as practical
as it comes!
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