A Dirty Secret of Innovation

It's a dirty job, but somebody's gotta do it.

Let me make a confession. I've probably misled you. I won't say "lied," because nothing I've said in these blogs has been untrue. But perhaps I've hidden something from you.

Let me unveil a truth about innovation: It's a dirty job. Hard work. Painful work at times.

In his Forbes article "Innovation is Management," Tendayi Viki explains it well. "Every entrepreneur wants to be Steve Jobs. But the Steve Jobs they want to be is the Steve Jobs on stage presenting the new iPhone at an Apple event. Not many entrepreneurs want to learn how to be Steve Jobs the day-to-day innovation grind...I have found a tendency to value ideas and creativity over systematic management processes...It’s not all fun and games. In fact, transformational innovation is a brutal 'two steps forward three steps back' process that is an everyday gut check." Well said!