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The Myths of Innovation

Innovation is significant positive change; so if something is done regularly, it can not represent significant change
any seemingly grand idea can be divided into an infinite series of smaller, previously known ideas
any major innovation or insight can be seen as the final piece of a complex puzzle falling into place
no grand innovation in history has escaped the long hours required to take an insight and work it into something useful to the world
what matters is the ability to see a problem clearly, combined with the talent to solve it
epiphany is largely irrelevant because it can’t be controlled
there’s no greater myth worth dispelling in the history of innovation than the idea that progress happens in a straight line
nearly every major innovation of the 20th century took place without claims of epiphany
six-pack of human shortcomings: greed, irrationality, short-sightedness, egotism, lack of imagination

the myth of methodology is the belief that a playbook exists for innovation and it removes the risk from the process of finding new ideas
“It doesn’t matter where you start, as long as you start.” – John Cage
innovation is best compared to exploration, you can’t find something new if you limit your travels to places others have already found
Categories of patterns for how innovations begin:
- hard work in a specific direction
- hard work with direction change
- curiosity
- wealth and money
- necessity
- combination
Challenges of innovation:
- finding an idea
- developing a plan
- sponsorship and funding
- reproduction - low expenses mean the number of competitors can be large, making it hard for customers to find you
- reaching potential customers
- beating competitors
- timing
- keeping the lights on
“Anyone who has never made a mistake has never tried anything new.” – Einstein

every new idea in history has the big, red stamp of rejection on its face
the love of new ideas is a myth: we prefer ideas only after others have tested them
no matter how amazing an ideas is, its imagined benefits will pale in comparison to the real, and unimagined, fear of change
the difference between how an innovator sees her work from how it’s seen by others is the most frustrating challenge innovators face
innovative ideas are rarely rejected on their merits; they’re rejected because of how they make people feel
Innovator’s Dilemma - as companies grow they have more to lose, so they become more risk averse and less innovative
Factors that determine how quickly innovations spread:
- Relative advantage - what value does this thing have compared to the old?
- Compatibility - how much effort is required to transition from the current thing to the innovation?
- Complexity - how much learning is required to apply the innovation?
- Trialability - how easy is it to try the innovation?
- Observability - how visible are the results of the innovation?

all innovations today are bound to innovations of the past
despite the myths, innovations rarely involve someone working alone
“The best way to have a good idea is to have lots of ideas.” – Linus Pauling
anything can be used for things other than its intended purpose

the history of management is rooted in factories, banks, and railroads, not in invention, creative thinking, or revolution
professional management was born from the desire to optimize and control, not to lead waves of change
the goal was to minimize change, optimize performance, and take control away from individuals
management as a discipline is steeped in an old-school command and control attitude that is alive and well in the Internet age
Execution - to shepherd an idea down the long, arduous path from conception to realization

Factors of innovation:
- Culture - innovations must first gain cultural acceptance by aligning with existing values
- Dominant design - to gain acceptance, it must improve on the existing idea by a sufficient margin to justify the cost of switching
- Inheritance and tradition - people confuse their comfort for a belief with it actually being good
- Politics: who benefits? - you can predict how people in power will respond to any new idea if you first calculate its impact on them
- Economics -will the costs of changing to the new thing be worth it?
- Short-term vs long-term thinking - superior ideas can be rejected in favor of cheaper, shorter-term gains

successful innovation often involves paying more attention to problems than solutions
“If I had 20 days to solve a problem, I would take 19 days to define it.” – Einstein
“A well-stated problem is half-solved.” – John Dewey
“There is nothing either good or bad, but thinking makes it so.” – Shakespeare’s Hamlet
morality is invisible to the forces of innovation
what you do for good reasons may be used for bad, and what is done with bad motives can lead to good
as ridiculous as it is to accept all new ideas simply because they’re new, it’s equally silly to accept all traditions simply because they’re traditions
ideas new and old have their place in the future, and it’s our job to put them there

history is the best available tool for sorting out how things in this world tend to happen
perhaps the greatest myth of all is that you need to be an expert in innovation in order to change the world
the gap from knowing to doing is enormous, and few people are willing to do the work to close that gap
the biggest difference between the greats and us was their dedication to their craft
Pitch - the act of bringing an ideas to someone who has resources you need
most people do not like change - they fear it
pitchable idea must include a detailed proposal for converting the abstract idea into tangible and realistic plans
Questions to answer before pitching an idea:
- what problem does this solve?
- whose problem is this? why is it important to them?
- how will you solve the toughest challenges?
- do you have a working prototype?
- why are you the right person to solve this?
- why should they give you money/support/time to work on this?