Enemies of Innovation

If good is the enemy of great, and perfection is the enemy of completion, then what is the enemy of innovation?

Any organization, team or individual should be constantly improving. Some of our improvement can come through gradual change and nuanced improvement. There are times when a leap of innovation is called for and it’s critical to know what can stand in your way.

The Enemies (Know them. Rid them.):

Business as usual. “We’ve always done it that way” can kill any creative meeting. It’s a cul-de-sac sentence that deserves to be challenged each time you hear it.

Success. Seems ironic, but the more successful you are, the less likely you are to change the way you think and work. People change most when life or work circumstances require it. Be wary of being too comfortable.

Bureaucracies. Red tape, over-processes, layers of management are all road-blocks for creative thinking and leaps of innovation and change.

Complacency. Satisfaction is a yawning chasm of good enough. Sure, achieving a goal should create satisfaction, but staying in the land of enoughness is bound to keep you there.

Fear. The final, and biggest killer of innovation is fear, in all its forms. Fear of failure, fear of change, fear of criticism, fear of success (yep, that’s a real thing) are all horrible collaborators and often very poor counselors. Fear can be a companion, but pushing against it usually doesn’t work. Befriend fear and you diminish its power over you.

So, what’s the best friend to innovation? Curiosity.

Magic questions are:

- “What if…?”

- “How can we…?”

- And, stealing a page from improvisation is the power of “yes, and…”.

Be bold. Go forth. Stay curious.