BUSINESS BASICS NUMBER 23

Spark creativity and innovation. This is a business basic that any business with a future must practice. By definition, we never know with certainty from where a brilliant streak of creativity or innovation will arise. Therefore, this task is easier said than done. Nevertheless, a plethora of research and anecdotal observations suggest some common factors.

Try being open minded. Sometimes we kill our own creativity or someone else’s by saying no too quickly. Try to think about a situation in a way that perhaps we would not normally think about it just to see where it takes you.

Study disciplines outside your own specialty. Paradigm shifts often occur when someone from one culture or discipline invades a very different culture or discipline. The confluence of the diverse platforms can generate perspectives and ideas that never would have arisen otherwise.

Challenge yourself to push to and past your limits. Challenge your people to do the same. Look at modern problems and ask yourself if an age-old solution might have a new application. Dare to be different. Be brave enough to take a totally different approach. That might not work all the time, but the effort will be well worth the times where it does work.

Study creativity and innovation. We can never know too much about them. Learn as much as you can about how they have operated in the past and the present. Extrapolate what you learn into your future.