They are a product of “liquid networks”. New ideas are truly born out of chaos, actually, chaotic environments, like those of London’s original coffee houses.
They also have notoriously long incubation periods, like Darwin’s theory, for example, which Steven Johnson calls his “slow hunch”.
Learn here how innovation happens. You will find out, “Chance favours the connected mind.”
Ever have a problem or challenge that you just can’t seem to solve? Perhaps you’ve stewed over it a while, tried to force a solution, and gotten frustrated in the process? You toiled away for hours or days on end to no avail. Then, all of a sudden out of nowhere an idea comes to you when you least expect it – in the shower, taking a walk, shopping for groceries.
We’ve all had this experience. I know myself in my many years doing computer programming I might hit a snag and then go absolutely insane trying to find a problem. I would toil, curse, scream, and rip my hair out and not be able to solve it. Then, if I walked away from it or simply asked someone with a fresh set of eyes to look at it – boom – there is a simple answer and the problem gets solved in a matter of minutes the path forward gets clear in an instant.
What if you could tap into this ease and power from the get go? Continue reading
What is an “idea?” A simple search for a definition of the term reveals a bushel basket of diverse definitions. An Italian car. A television show host by Donny Deutsch that deals with “big ideas.” A league of European Universities whose ambition is to “re-establish Europe as a technological and scientific leader.” The central thought of a paragraph or a passage. Therefore, a definition of an idea that works for you is the essential first step. For this article, I define an “idea” as something I want to happen in the future, a destination to reach.
With this definition, the metaphor switches to that of a travel plan for a journey I intend to take. Now, I need to describe the final destination for the journey. How will I recognize the destination upon arrival? How will I know that I reached the intended destination. In travel terms, the task is easy. Decide where you want to go? Call the travel agent. Book the trip. And, GO!
Too often in our lives, we do not know where we want to go. Therefore, begin developing a list of destinations you want to reach — what you want to achieve, what you want to accomplish, whatever you dream of doing. No matter how small or seemingly insignificant the destination, record it on a list. Priorities come later. For now, “I want …” is the driving force.
After you have your list, identify a way to categorize the items so related ones can be grouped. You can group according to time frames — short-term of less than a year or long-term of more than five years. You can also group according to costs in dollars, teams that need to be built, geography involved, in-process outcomes anticipated, common exploratory stops or obstacles along the journey’s path, sources of expertise, difficulties expected in reaching the destination.
This grouping work helps you see commonalities — the strength of multi-tasking or leveraging ideas for increased achievement. With the big picture emerging, shift now to actually describing — painting — the destination. Find the metaphor that works for you. When you first try this painting, you may feel ensnared in Medusa’s hair of snakes, all of which want to entangle you in frustration and defeat. Or you may feel that you are fighting Heracles’ nine-headed Hydra serpent. Cut one head off and two new ones appear.
The reason for trying for pictures is that words are generalized terms. Many people think in pictures or images, not words. For example, your desired destination is “an educated workforce.” If no picture emerges, begin de-constructing the destination to identify its component parts or sub-destinations. Basic skills, right skills-sets, sectors with high-value jobs, career ladders. None of these sub-destinations suggests a picture.
Go deeper, now, into each sub-destination. Take basic skills. What do you see the workforce doing? Reading comes to mind. But, what are the workers reading? Novels or poems — I think not. Wiring diagrams, architectural drawings, cost analyses, inventory spreadsheets, strategic plans, unsafe situations, documentation mistakes, production processes — quite possibly. Not all reading, therefore, occurs while looking at paper. Some comes from simple, but acute, observation — read river currents, read storm clouds, read the possible paths of a fire, read football’s defensive schemes, read a potential client’s intentions, read an investor’s reluctance, read an employee’s frustration.
Once you know WHAT your workforce is reading, you are able to describe the behavior you see that lets you know they are educated. Ask the question, “What does the person need to do with what has been read?” If they can DO, are they educated?
Describing behavior clarifies the destination, a destination which can be easily communicated to others who, in turn, see and understand the destination. You have your pictures. You have your clarity. Your “idea” approaches reality. You can reach your destination.
Photo: Dariana Nedeltcheva