INNOVATION
1
: the introduction of something new
2
: a new idea, method, or device
The concept embedded within the work of innovation is the belief that many things in life-whether they be methods, processes, products, approaches, or thinking -can be done in new ways, or ways different than they've been done before.
Never is that reality more clear than when you watch a young child. Rarely do they approach things with the assumptions or certainty that our age and wisdom allow us to bring forward. Rather, children, by their very state in life, have this "beginner's mind", this idea of approaching everything as new, of not leaving possibilities unturned.
In some cases, it's because everything IS new for them and they are experiencing things for the first time. Sometimes, they have a beginners mind because they have not yet decided that one way is the only way or a better way. Other times, they have a beginners mind because their curiosity leads them to wonder if there is more to discover.
I was surprised the last time I visited my sister when I happened to catch my nephew discovering there was more than one way to use a piano bench. As he was playing, he leaned back on the piano bench, flipped it over, knelt down on top of it and kept playing. Hmmmm. Innovation and a beginner's mind at work.
Sometimes, it's when things are turned upside down (or feel like they are turned upside down), that we see things not just for what they are, but for what they can be, not just as something turned upside down, but as something wholly new-- a new way to use or engage with the product or process in front of us.
During one of the next company meetings, I've asked Sara, Jim and Brian to lead us in an activity that was first done on the innovation retreat in May. It is an activity about looking at a simple everyday object in new ways.
To view the "innovation of the piano bench" on YouTube, click below:
