The idea factory

A two-part series on ideas and what to do with them

In our sector (any really), it’s all about the idea. Lucky for us, our brains are powerful idea factories that produce all kinds of creative thoughts. Now the trouble with this is that not all ideas are created equal: some are clever or strange; a very small percentage are game-changers, and (unfortunately) a good portion are “bad” or unfeasible. However, what kind they are doesn’t matter much because in the end, ideas by themselves are just ideas. So much of what we do at Thinx depends on ideas, so we’d like to share our experience in cultivating creative thought and turning it into meaningful (in)action.

What is creativity and where do ideas come from?

Creativity and ideas go hand in hand. We see creativity as the ability to understand and create novel and useful orderly relationships, i.e. connecting things. So an idea is really just a new combination of or use for known elements. For us, the key to creativity is engaging in flexible or “divergent thinking.” We like to explore where our curiosity takes us, answer those “what if” questions or take known concepts/structures and apply them to other domains, just to name a few.

Getting those creative juices flowing

Getting (and staying) in a creative mindset is often easier said than done. There are so many factors that affect your ability to think divergently.

At Thinx, we believe that working with others and group dynamics have a strong impact on the quantity and quality of ideas. And we feel that heterogeneous groups with people from different backgrounds have great potential to create innovative ideas because this brings extremely different concepts, knowledge, and skills together under one roof. In fact, we believe so strongly in the power of diversity that we created an internship around this concept. This is how Summer of Thinx was born.

However, for this constellation to work there has to be chemistry between the group members — and we don’t mean compatible personalities or character traits, but communication, understanding and respect for one another. Having chemistry doesn’t mean you will think the same; there will be differences in opinion and disagreements. This is okay. In fact it’s encouraged, because it makes us think critically and examine an idea from all sides.

How can we create environments that facilitate/foster creativity?

When trying to come up with ideas, the “space” in which they are conceived is very important. So what environments lead to unusual levels of innovation and creativity?

Places where people are likely to come together and have new, interesting and unpredictable collisions are the kind of “chaotic” environment where ideas are born. Disorder is essential to the brains ability to transmit information and solve problems. There’s just something special about these kinds of circumstances that are conducive to ideas. In his TED Talk, Steven Johnson calls it the “Liquid network” — where different ideas, backgrounds and interests come together and jostle with each other. This is a place where ideas come to connect. Matt Ridley describes it as “a conjugal bed for ideas — a space where ideas can have sex” and make little baby ideas. Maybe you’ve got an idea that’s not quite complete, but someone else has the other half. If you are in the right environment, these ideas can come together to form a whole. An idea is bigger than the sum of its parts.

Therein lies the power. This unplanned and unpredictable power of chaotic situations. There’s great potential in minds colliding with each other. They may take you in new directions you never dreamed of or thought possible. This is how innovation happens: through serendipity. Random connections and disorderly genius is what drives divergent thinking and produces ideas. But there is so much more going on here than the mere exchange of ideas. Knowledge and experience are shared, and even if these encounters don’t result in an idea — you won’t have left empty handed because you learned something.

Cultivating creativity

Creativity is not something you can force, but there are ways to influence and enhance it. Here at Thinx, we’d even go so far as to say that creativity can be “cultivated” — here are some ways we nurture our creative spirit:

• We follow our curiosity and learn new things whenever we can. This means learning new skills, reading, doing research, going to lectures or conferences — whatever is fun and expands our minds. You never know when this knowledge will come in handy.
• We look for inspiration everywhere. We do research on what others are doing and think about how we could improve, find new uses for or personalize these things. If you know what’s already out there, you’ll also know what’s missing — and can fill in the gaps accordingly. By looking at someone else’s creation, you might just be inspired to create something, too. Creativity is contagious!
• We love doing creativity or critical thinking exercises, e.g. brick test, IDEO “Mash Up” or classical brainstorming. You can do structured brainstorming sessions, or just let your ideas flow. Keep in mind that by framing your project or goals, you can give this influx of ideas direction and purpose. These exercises are designed to generate a lot of ideas, but in the end you decide which to keep or pursue.
• We try to step out of our comfort zone. Being set in your ways isn’t conducive to creative thought and doing the same monotonous things dulls the mind. So, we like to try new things, explore and experiment. You never know where it’ll take you.
• It may sound obvious, but being in a good mood is crucial. When you are in a good mood, your brain is relaxed enabling the creative thoughts to flow more freely. In case you ever wondered why there is a strict criticism ban in brainstorming sessions — here you go.

You’ve got ideas, now what?

Before you can to work, you’ve got to decide if an idea is worth pursuing. Here’s the million dollar question: what makes an idea “good”? This is a tricky question to answer because there are so many influencing factors and much of an idea’s success depends on your goals. Here are a few criteria we use to rate our ideas:

• Good ideas solve real problems, provide real benefits and bring users joy or satisfaction. We create to make people’s lives better in some way — by making tasks easier or objects more enjoyable. That’s the whole point, right?
• Good ideas have a potential user group and offer real benefits and added value. Just because you personally like or are attached to an idea doesn’t mean it can or should be realized. Here it’s important to focus on usability and providing a pleasant user experience. Don’t just do something because you can, do it because your potential users would appreciate and enjoy it.
• Good ideas serve a higher purpose beyond their technical implementation. This means that the value of an idea should be strong enough so that it’s obvious to people outside the field. For example, Ernesto improves self-awareness in relation to and our relationships with everyday objects; SKARV improves interpersonal relationships and communication, etc. Function first, technical realization and implementation second.
• Good ideas are achievable based on their intended purpose. Not every idea has to be a finished or marketable product. It could be a process, method, test, product and so much more. Intended purpose determines how far you take an idea. For example, sometimes we decide to only create a 3D model or functional prototype for a case video, maybe because of available resources or technological restrictions, but perhaps that it was our intention from the start.
• Good ideas don’t necessarily have to be something new. You don’t have to reinvent the wheel, but maybe how it’s used? Good ideas may fundamentally change the way we do things, use technology in powerful new ways, take a familiar everyday object and change or improve it so as to create new uses or markets for them.
• Good ideas prove themselves to be good ideas, meaning that you’ve tested and validated them — with (initial) prototypes, internal review sessions and expert opinions.
• Good ideas bring positive vibes. Are you enjoying what you’re currently working on? Does it make you smile? Often, people deeply engaged in a field or topic have a better sense of what could spark interest in the future users. It’s important to always go with your gut feeling. Sometimes when experimenting or creating new things, the question of ethics rears its ugly head. A good rule of thumb, if you have serious concerns about it, you probably shouldn’t be doing it.

So what happens if your idea doesn’t fit these criteria? Don’t fret! This doesn’t mean it’s garbage. When it comes to ideas, there’s no black and white dichotomy of what’s good and bad. There’s a pretty big grey area here (the only good 50 shades of grey), and a lot depends on your attitude and point of view. Remember that just because you can’t use an idea, doesn’t mean it can’t be useful.

In part 2 of our series on ideas called “My little shredder: where good ideas go to die” we’ll talk about those “bad” or failed ideas and show you the right way to be wrong.