August 25 2016
Big Ideas
Author: Michael McCaffrey
A formula for successful innovation
The number of meaningfully unique ideas you can generate is
directly influenced by:

The number of stimulus you have to the exponent diversity
divided by fear.
If you believe in this formula, it becomes clear why
executives "brainstorming" in a boardroom is one of the worst
possible ways to innovate. A blank whiteboard has no stimulus - nothing to get
the mind going, and worst of all, execs are not a diverse group.
Next time you go to the whiteboard, take a few extra minutes
and give this approach a try. The results (and the sheer number of ideas you get)
will speak for themselves.
Increase your diversity.
Bring in a front-line employee from manufacturing, a sales
guy, someone from accounting, and low-level supervisor, and now your group's
diversity just magnified 5-fold. Diversify your team!
Add in some stimulus.
Write on the board different customer groups/segments, new
technologies, types of animals... mix it up! The point is that stimulus trigger
your mind to think about things in different ways. Compound this with the 5-6
different ways your diverse team will interpret the stimulus and how they
relate to your business challenge, and all of a sudden, you have a recipe for
success. Get a LOT of stimulus!
Drive out fear.
The second someone's idea gets criticized, the entire group
puts on a filter and guards what they say. Remember that more ideas and thoughts
= more stimulus. When you're "creating" (generating ideas), just
talk. Don't worry about what is an idea and what is a stimulus until later. If
that dog you wrote down on the board made you think of poop scooping, turn off
your filter and say it. It is often the wackiest stimulus that result in the
best, most unique ideas. Drive out fear!
If you do nothing else, remember this formula and try to
move your process a little closer to it.