We Are Family - Managing Innovators
How do you manage a team of innovators? No that’s not the start of a joke. It’s a serious question. Do you take a command-and-control...
Small Changes, Big Results
In the latest issue of Fast Company, there is an extensive interview with Ed Catmull, President of Pixar, with some good excerpts from...
Will People Do What You Expect Them to Do with Your Innovation?
A day care center had a problem. Working parents were occasionally late in picking up their children, creating scheduling issues for...
Using Mental Chains to Free Your Innovating Capability
Try a quick exercise in innovation: Challenge 1) In sixty seconds, think of as many new solutions to existing problems as you can. Go....
Your Culture Will Munch on your Strategic Wheaties
As I sit and eat my bowl of cereal, hearing and feeling that delightful crunch before the milk saturates the toasted flakes of grain, I...
Throwing Your Hand on the Saw Blade
Risk is a necessary input to Innovation. Steve Gass is the inventor of SawStop. He is a risk-taker. If you are unfamiliar with SawStop,...
The Value of Humility to Innovation
In 1997, Gary Kasparov, the reigning, undisputed world champion of chess, a man considered by many to be the greatest chess player of all...
Doing What They Did Won't Get You What They Got
An infographic called “Habits of the Wealthiest People” is making its rounds through the social media space these days. The chart shows...
Beware of Insightful Advice
You are sitting in a seminar called “How to Win the Race.” You recently took up running, and set yourself a goal of running a 5K. You...
To Innovate, See More Than You Want to See
One of my favorite nerdy jokes illustrates a point that has my riled up today. Note to all members of PETA and donors to local animal...
