Think outside the box
Of course it’s as cliché but thinking outside the box really is necessary to innovation. If the old ways of solving problems – “inside the box” – worked, there would be no need for innovation. At one time, those approaches or solutions might have been exactly what the company needed. But the willingness to call those assumptions and those tried and true methods into question is the hallmark of a real problem-solver.
Don't innovate for innovation's sake
Not everything new is better. Sometimes, the existing solution, however limited, really still is the best solution. Explore a thousand new ways to do something, but always allow for the possibility that it’s already being done correctly. If so, then the challenge probably lies elsewhere, rather than in the area you’re trying to innovate.
If your bicycle is already the best and fastes (a beauty anyway) then you don't need to reinvent the wheel but train your muscles - and build bicycle lanes.
Of course it’s as cliché but thinking outside the box really is necessary to innovation. If the old ways of solving problems – “inside the box” – worked, there would be no need for innovation. At one time, those approaches or solutions might have been exactly what the company needed. But the willingness to call those assumptions and those tried and true methods into question is the hallmark of a real problem-solver.
Don't innovate for innovation's sake
Not everything new is better. Sometimes, the existing solution, however limited, really still is the best solution. Explore a thousand new ways to do something, but always allow for the possibility that it’s already being done correctly. If so, then the challenge probably lies elsewhere, rather than in the area you’re trying to innovate.
If your bicycle is already the best and fastes (a beauty anyway) then you don't need to reinvent the wheel but train your muscles - and build bicycle lanes.