Creativity Rule #5: All Aboard!

Anyone can be creative. Even if you work in an area you think might traditionally be boring and unlikely to change, like accounting or lawyers, you can still be innovative and come up with new ideas and connections.

The human brain is wired in such a way that it looks for patterns, but once it finds one that works it sticks with it. But if you can use the creativity techniques to break the habit, your brain can be used very efficiently to find new patterns and connections that are creative.

So forget about 'I can't' because anyone can be creative.

Creativity Rule #4: Massive Idea Generation

Creativity needs lots of ideas. If you want to come up with something new and innovative you need to set aside a certain amount of time and just generate idea after idea. Go back to rule number three and make sure you don't pre-judge anything you are doing. Once you've let go of your usual way of thinking, come up with as many ideas as you can.



Here is a good rule of thumb. You should be looking to come up with at least 25 different ideas which are not like the others. When you're doing this, the first couple ideas are easy, the next few are a little more difficult, and the last 5 or 10 are the hardest. But these last ones are the most important because they are the ones where the really fertile ideas develop.

Creativity Rule #3: Keep Yourself in Suspense

Creativity is all about generating new ideas. But your brain wants to find patterns in your usual activities, so if it finds something that works, it sticks with it. To get away from this normal way of thinking you need to suspend judgment when you are coming up with creative ideas. No idea is stupid or crazy for the time you are being creative. Later on you can go through all the ideas you've come up with and weed out the ones that don't work. But while your in the process of coming up with something new you need to come up with as many ideas as possible.

The reason this works is that each idea you think is dumb or doesn't work may be the link you need to a new idea that will. Sometimes there needs to be a bridge between your old, boring ideas and the ones that are off the wall. If you suspend judgment and just come up with as many ideas as possible, you'll be successful.

Creativity Rule #2: Get Random

If you are making the same connections you've always done, it is unlikely you'll be creative. In order to be creative you need to put things together that don't seem to go together at first, but with a bit of bending, warping and extra thinking actually make sense.



One good way to use random connections to get creative ideas is to pick a word from the dictionary and ask how your subject is like this. Open to any page, and use the first word that hits your eye. If it's too like what you want to be creative about, go to the next word. But never use another word because it is so different.



Maybe I want to be creative about blogs. And I might get the random word 'alligator'. How is a blog like an alligator? Can you think of any answers? If so, please let me know (I've got a few but that would be spoiling the fun!).

Creativity Rule #1: Make Connections

Creativity is connection. The most important part about creativity it to make connections to things which you wouldn't normally connect together. Many of the usual creativity techniques are based on helping you connect things in ways that you normally wouldn't do.

Why don't people just apply this every day when they have a problem? Because the human brain is made in such a way that it looks for patterns that are forming and tries to apply these to all the normal situations. This is great for your everyday life. You don't need to look for new patterns to putting on your shoes or locking the door. You do what you've always done and it works well. But when things don't work like normal, your brain struggles and need some help.

It is your brain's thinking pattern that needs breaking when you want creative thinking. So when you want a new business idea, try to connect your chosen area to something you would never think of. Next post I'll give some suggestions how to do this.

The End is Nigh - Bring on Creativity

Your business is coming to an end.  It may not look like it now, but in the next few years someone is going to come up with a new idea or approach that is going to radically change the way you do business.  Your survival will depend on being adaptable and able to roll with the changes. 

If this seems like doom mongering, think about all the things that have happened in the past few months.  The credit crunch has hit the world economy, banks have been nationalised, and the car firms are heading to the wall.  Even without these events, the internet continues to make communication easier and less expensive bringing together parts of the world which would normally not be able to compete in your country.  If things start to slow for them will they be looking for growth outside their own country?  It’s all change, change, change at the moment.

The only way to protect against many of these threats is to become irreplaceable.  Part of the way to do this is by being creative and coming up with new products or services that can’t be copied.  And by the time they are copied you are already on your next product.  Innovation means you have the mindset to change with the times, while being able to set the agenda as to the market you can create and tap into.  Innovation is a key strength in changing times.

Why is Creativity Like a Winning Horse?

Have you ever noticed that if you bet on a horse, you don’t get more money if the horse wins by a greater length?  If he wins by a nose you get the same amount as if he wins by 2 or 3 furlongs.   It’s even worse for the horse owner because when it comes to the race winnings he doesn’t get win, place or show.

Creativity is very much like this.  If you’ve got the most innovative and interesting product, you’ll win the market.  It’s true there may be some also-rans for awhile, but eventually they’ll be forgotten and you’ll win the race.  The good news is you only have to be a little more creative than the next person.  You only have to win by a nose!  But if you ever stop running, you might be overtaken and lose the race.

What this means for creativity is you need to be constantly innovating.  But you don’t need to be making a breakthrough every time, as long as you keep getting out ahead of everyone else.  Little moves forward can accumulate, and when you hit a real winner there will be no catching you.  That’s why you need to be focussed on creativity and innovation in business every day.

Finally, the good news is that most people aren’t even in the race, they’re just looking to catch up!  So make sure you innovate every day and think about new approaches to keep you in front.

Creativity A La Mode

A great way to explore how creative you’re being in an area is to break things down in modes.  What parts are there to the area you are looking at?  For example, photography could be broken down to:

·       Exposure

·       Lighting

·       Shutter speed

·       Subject

·       Composition

Try to pick the main areas that make up what you want to be creative about.

Are you trying new things in each area?  What is something different that you would normally try?  How can the areas be combined in interesting ways?

In our example above, what is a photography subject you don’t normally photograph?  Go out and try taking pictures in this style.  You could also think about how to apply different styles to different subjects which don’t normally go together.

The implications for business are the same.  Pick a market, product or business model.  Decide what its main components are and decide how these could be applied differently.  How could you modify, adapt, remove or change things in each of the main areas?  See if you can come up with at least 25 variations or uses for what you’re looking at.  Let me know if you’ve had any real breakthroughs.

Innovation Week in Review - Hello Kitty Meets Take That

A couple of innovative things came across my radar in the last week: 

Hello Kitty Maternity Ward

The first one is the Hello Kitty maternity ward that uses the cartoon character’s image on the blankets, cribs etc.  They say it helps keep the atmosphere light and everyone is happier with the cute cartoon everywhere.  This is a perfect example of applying a successful formula somewhere beyond the normal market where you would normally find it.  I think this is an inspired move because it also helps develop the brand beyond the media cartoon to be a motherhood / childhood brand.

Take That Concert

I thought it was interesting that Take That’s television show on channel 3 was set in a circus ring with jugglers, tight rope walkers etc.  This was beyond the normal stage act with a microphone and a few bright lights (which they’ve been guilty of in the past).  Instead, they had the full circus going on in the background, with the performers taking part in the choreography at points.  Very innovative as they’ve combined two different types of show into one.

Please let me know if you’ve found any other interesting ones to add to the list.  You should forward examples like those above where an unexpected combination is put together, or where a tried and tested product is applied to an unexpected situation or market.

Christmas Party - Let's Get Creative

It’s my Christmas party today, so I thought it might be appropriate to go through a technique which could liven up your normal season festivities.

This is good for when you have something that has several different facets to it which you can break down into areas for consideration.  Parties are one because you have different things like the type of dress, theme, and venue amongst others.  So for anything where you need creativity, choose the factors you want to consider and have someone come up with as many different types as possible.  It’s better not to tell them why so they don’t try and second guess you.

In our example, you would ask someone to list all the different types of venues you could have a party in.  You might come up with a bar, a park, abandoned warehouse (think rave), a submarine (!) etc.  Keep going and get as many as possible.  Then ask them to pick their favourite of the bunch.

Keep going on each of the different areas until you have the favourites picked from each.  Then combine them all to get the type of Christmas party you’ll have.

But watch out, you might be having a zombie themed Christmas party in a submarine with Mexican food!  As always, the idea is to take the creative process and then adapt it to your situation.  But at least you can guarantee that whatever you choose, it will be more creative than the usual room packed with people in suits.

Concept Levels - Using the Ladder for Profitability

A recent book by Jim Champy called Outsmart reminded me about one of the ways to be innovative beyond just having a new product.  It is more about changing your business model and approach to clients.  The book has several vignettes about various successful businesses and what their experience means for innovation.  He mentioned how Shutterfly transformed from being a photography site to becoming a networking site based on photos.  After the change in view, revenues began increasing rapidly.

This made me think about the creativity technique of the ‘Up and Down Ladder’ of concepts.  What happens in this type of creativity is that you look at something that is already a good idea, or where you need some inspiration.  You then define what is the concept that you are getting at.  You are always looking for what is the idea behind the solution you need.  If you need to get to the top floor of a building where the lifts aren’t working (to choose a somewhat strange example) the concept is not ‘lifts’ but moving upward – i.e. it is the broad concept.  You then think about all the specific things that fit within this concept.  Examples might be things like:

·       Flying

·       Climbing

·       Jumping

·       Teletransportation!

You keep going and get as many as possible on the list.  You then go back down a level and try to apply these specifically to your current situation, adapting as necessary.  In our example, climbing might suggest using the stairs.  Teletransportation, though a strange idea, might suggest using the telephone to be ‘in two places at once’.  While the examples here are slightly less innovative, this technique can often come up with multiple ideas which you might not have considered previously.

Take some time and think about your current way of looking at your business and market.  What is the concept you’re trading under?  What need are you fulfilling?  Once you’ve got your answer, what other general ways are there to fulfil this need or fit with this concept?  How can you specifically apply these other ways of looking at the issues to your business?  If you’ve come up with any inspirations, please let me know!

The Dimensions of Creativity - Business Model and Product

The final of the intersections of the 3 dimensions of creativity is the one between the business model and the product.  You are looking at a business that has an innovative product which catches people’s attention, and has a business model that enhances and serves the innovation in some way.

One good example of this intersection is Southwest Airlines.  Their product was no frills flights to less popular destinations to serve business travellers.  Their business model was a combination of keeping costs to a very minimum, while maintaining a very customer focussed airline (I’m tempted to say cheap and cheerful).  All this has meant that while other airlines usually struggle, Southwest is able to show growth and profitability.

I chose the above because there are probably many more obvious examples where a great product is rolled out with an effective business plan, but Southwest had an innovative approach to travel and service which coupled with its cost savings meant it could be a market leader while other scoffed at what they were doing.

The interesting questions this raises for your business to think about are:

·       Where do we have a really effective business model that we could apply to one of our products?  Do we already do something different for one line of products that we don’t do for others?  Is there anyone with a truly unique product that is struggling due to bad business practice, and could we partner with them?

·       What new products do we have that seem innovative, but are struggling?  How could we improve the business model and take it outside what we’re currently doing?  Could we produce the product more cheaply or in a different way?  How are we funding the production, marketing and other business functions to support the product?  Are we bringing innovations for the product through our business process quickly enough?

Consider the above and see if you can think of ways to boost the performance of either your business model or product to enhance the offering you already have.

Dimensions of Creativity - Market and Business Model

The second of the intersections between the 3 dimensions of creativity is market and business model.  This will be especially important where you don’t have a product which is differentiated from those of your competitors, or where you did at one time but everyone has now caught up with you and your innovation has become a commodity.

The best example of this type of innovation, and a very strong one, is the case of Walmart in the US.  Here we have a store chain which did not have any one great product that was so innovative it drove sales.  In fact, they sold most of the same items you could get in any discount store. 

But their business model was one of delivering these goods as cheaply as possible.  They invested heavily in time and money saving techniques to get the products to the stores more cheaply.  They were certainly market leaders in this area.

Their market was also one being ignored by many of the big players.  They invested in stores in rural areas which didn’t have easy access to larger grocery or goods stores.  By doing this, they became the only shop in town.  And because they were outside of big cities, they could have loads of free parking and get cheaper shopping space (strengthening their cost cutting drive).

So, you can see how the intersection between the two was really one which made Walmart what it is.  Can you see how this approach was ignored for quite some time?  Many of the big stores couldn’t see how to make profit from the smaller populations, so ignored them.  By combining cost savings innovations along with market penetration, Walmart made themselves one of the biggest retailers in history.

Consider this – where is there a market that looks unpromising?  How could you adopt your business model to serve this market?

Or turn it around – why is your business model so strong?  Could you apply this strength to a market that you never thought you could?

Blog Innovation - Market and Product Dimensions

I wrote in the last post about a thinking session on how a blogger could use the intersection between the product and market innovation dimensions.  Now, using an earlier technique I call the ‘Many Answers’ technique I thought I would do a thought experiment.  The approach is to come up with as many ways to achieve the following goal, no matter how outrageous or impossible they may seem.  It’s just a bit of fun but it may inspire you to think in different ways about your blog.

The scenario is:  I’ve created a blog about a new way to take photographs.  How would I bring in market innovation to expand out from this?  What add-ons could I provide, and what other services might my blog readers want?

Answers:

1.  Create an in-store advertising system using the photography and blogging skills for a camera shop using touch screens.

2.  Make a file sharing site describing the technique and how to do it yourself.

3.  Offer to edit other photography blogs (and drop hints about the new technique).

4.  Write for photography newsletters.

5.  Attend news worthy events and take pictures in the new style.  Start a news blog using the photography.

6.  Make an exclusive newsletter on the technique only open to people who sign up to your blog.

7.  Get your blog translated into different languages.

8.  Contact Adobe and license your new technique.  Announce the deal on your blog.

9.  Make an e-book for use on the new Sony reader.

10.  Write a real book and include a link to your blog.

11.  Start an online photography shop.  The other person points and clicks, you process the photos.

12.  Go for the Turner prize for art.

13.  Hold seminars on how to improve your blog.  Sell your pictures as enhancements.

14.  Issue a press release.

15.  Write copy for other advertisers, including your new photos as an extra.

16.  Hang up a bunch of huge posters based on your pictures with only the blog address on them.

17.  Advertise in the newspapers.

18.  Start your own gallery and invite everyone you can think of.  Use blog posts to explain the pictures.

19.  Take pictures of other people’s seminars using webcam and your technique for publicity purposes.

20.  Project your image on the moon.

Well, I’ve managed about 20, can you think of any better ones?

Dimensions of Creativity - Product and Market

In the previous post, I mentioned the three dimensions of innovation, and that the most lucrative ideas are often an intersection between at least two of these.  One of the intersections to consider is the product and market innovation intersections.   This post will give examples and tomorrow I’ll think about how this can be applied to blogging (for a bit of fun).

Thinking about this topic, the immediate example which springs to mind is the i-Pod.  This is the device by Apple for playing music which can be downloaded from the internet or can be copied from discs.  Why is this an intersection between the two dimensions of innovation?  The answer is i-Tunes.  The i-Pod by itself could have been another MP3 player on the market, with a few good features.  It is an excellent example of an innovative product.  On its own it would probably still have been popular, but with the addition of i-Tunes, it became a legend.  And the combination of the two meant the product innovation succeeded beyond what any original idea could do.  This is the power of combining the two ideas.

Or consider the current trend with certain books.  You buy a book on marketing (say, one by Seth Godin) and you get bonus material and links to websites with free e-books.  One book I bought recently on presenting gave a link with free credits for pictures from a stock photo agency to get you started.  These are all areas where the product (i.e. the book) was added to by the further market opportunities (i.e. the websites and free giveaways).

The way to harness this power is to think innovatively about all the products you have.  Are there any ways in which you can offer more than your competitors?  In many situations, this is a great way to get an advantage because the competition will be focussed on selling the product, but will not give proper attention to the after sales add-ons.  Especially if you’re a service company (e.g. accountant, lawyer etc.) where your service is very similar to others, you need to differentiate yourself in one of the other two dimensions.

So, while the product is important, it is not always the end of the story.

Innovation - The 3 Dimensions

A recent book I’ve been reading, Fast Innovation, put forward an interesting idea.  It said there are 3 main ways to be innovative:

·       Product innovation – this is the normal thing we think of.  Better products, or something completely new that everyone wants to buy.

·       Market innovation – these are the value added services that support your products.  This is things like 24/7 repair service or specialised coloured cases for i-Pods.

·       Business Platform innovation – this is the way you do business and control costs.  Dell’s online rapid design and delivery service was an innovative business platform when first conceived.

The book makes a futher point that the most interesting new ideas come when you find an intersection between at least two of the above.  Quite interesting!  If you think of the way people currently approach innovation they really look at the first bullet, and maybe the second bullet when their market matures.  But do they really try to combine all three?  There is some real power in this approach.

Over the next few days I’ll be taking the above idea further and giving examples of how it has worked in the real world of business.