Who Should Be Involved in Innovation?

It's a strange question really. One that really shouldn't have to be asked. Innovation should be like those other "in" words - innate, intuitive, indefinite - it should be a "given" that everyone should be involved.

So ideally, we need to convince everyone that there is no such things as a bad IDEA and that one IDEA can grow and evolve into another IDEA. The practice of innovation needs champions, people to push the cause, people who are passionate. The practice of innovation needs the ideas people - the innovators. It needs supporters - those who can help get the ideas over the line. It needs people to action ideas and it needs people to promote the innovation.

Children innovate all the time! They change the rules of games and the games parameters to suit the new kid that wants to join in. My second son was Bionicle mad when he was younger but he never once built to the picture on the cylinder. His Bionicles always had seven heads, four bodies and eight arms - reminds me of me this morning trying to get everyone out of bed and out of the house on time!

We innovate all the time. I love the Dyson vacuum story. I may be biased because the character at the centre of the tale is a male obsessed with vacuuming! Picture this - James Dyson is vacuuming his house but he becomes frustrated because his top of the line vacuum cleaner gets clogged, loses suction and stops sucking up dirt. He has a solution - drop the bag - that would be a bagless vacuum cleaner. Literally 5,126 prototypes later the problem is solved. Some display of resilience. To top it off, he had to back his own company to manufacture it.

Educators need to encourage innovative and creative thinking.

Managers need to champion innovation in their organisations and businesses.

Governments need to support innovation.

If only we could turn things upside down and instead of the easy cost cutting options to improve profits, we would promote innovative practices instead?

Finally  a sensible innovative thought about the Greek crises - instead of austerity measures, outrightly rejected by the Greek people (well do you blame them - what if you were told your wages were going to be halved and taxes would be imposed) the new approach is to stimulate the economy...

There is a post on the createninnovate Facebook page Why are we so Afraid of Failure Worth a read! http://www.smh.com.au/technology/technology-news/brain-drain-why-young-entrepreneurs-leave-home-20120517-1ytoo.html