“We have a strategic plan. It’s called doing things.” — Herb Kelleher, Southwest Airlines Founder and ex-CEO

The more complex* a problem is, the more we tend to think before acting.

On one side, when a problem seems to be too simple there is a chance that we miss the point because it’s not as simple as it looks at first sight. The risk here is to act too fast and fail, which does most of the time not prevent us of acting by the way.

On the other side, when a problem is very complex, we tend to do…

Her ability to take the best pictures for you or the pictures she has already taken ?

The answer is obvious.

And even if you have been attracted by the pictures she has already taken, it’s not what you want to get from her.

These pictures were a great way for her to show you her talent and skills; however she is fully aware that it’s not the product she is selling.

That’s what success stories are about.

And that’s what organizations and individuals who sell skills and knowledge instead of products do.

They do not sell what they have…

First, there is an unexpected discovery. Something happens and catches our attention. Something that we did not see coming. Something in which we cannot detect any obvious logic at very first sight.

Then, we look for patterns. We unconsciously compare the situation we are living with the ones we already lived. We dig deeper in our experience and knowledge to detect similar patterns. We try to understand what is happening and the logic (hidden) behind.

Finally we understand the pattern and we can start thinking about the best ways to solve the challenge.

The key step is the second one.

Once we identify the pattern, the solution imposes (nearly) by itself.

PS: the source of this reflexion has been the discovery of a new level while playing Super Mario Bros Deluxe with my daughter (illustration picture of this post)

Unlikely connections are the two words that best describe innovation for me.

I believe that few to no innovation comes from nowhere.

They are the result of combining and connecting existing ideas and concepts to make something new.

And if these ideas and concepts « have nothing to do with each other », then we have what I consider to be an unlikely connection.

I like unlikely connections because they provide a real feeling of creation at the very moment when you identify the possibility of a connection.

Not 5 or 10 years from now. This would be prospective.

But 5 or 10 seconds from now.

Can you predict what will happen in 5 or 10 seconds ?

It sounds strange as the answer should obviously be a clear “yes”.

As a driver, you have probably already been in a situation in which a car was moving in a way that was not making the traffic very fluid. You perhaps had to slow down or modify your trajectory at the last moment.

Or as a pedestrian on the sidewalk you have been stopped in your tracks by a…

Most of us just look away when something appears to be “unlikely”.

However “unlikely” is full of possibilities.

No mass and no crowd consider “unlikely” to be a thing.

“Unlikely” is a blue ocean.

“Unlikely” is an open door for innovation.

But unlikely has no meaning without a context.

Unlikely needs a referential. A worldview. Beliefs.

“Red” is objective.

“Unlikely” is subjective.

When it’s unlikely for nobody, then it’s likely and it’s common knowledge.

When it’s unlikely for everybody, it’s science-fiction.

And when it’s unlikely for a majority, we are on a ridge that is worth exploring.

A part of the innovation job is to explore the unlikely.

Our children are often in our way when we move in the street.
Most of the time, we explain to them that pedestrians walk on the right side of the sidewalk (at least in Switzerland), so as to make traffic more fluid and allow crossings.
It’s a way of doing things, we provide them with a rule.
Another way is to encourage them to take the measure of the system in which they operate. They move in a rapidly changing environment. They must observe their surroundings and adapt quickly to the evolution of the situation in order to avoid a collision and to facilitate the movements of the individuals in the crowd.
Both methods work in a stable environment.
On the other hand, only the second makes it possible to tackle an environment in constant evolution and in which uncertainty is the key word.

Last week I was talking about innovation with a friend of mine who is leading a company he co-founded 20 years ago. Innovation is their core business since the very beginning; in fact it’s their reason for being.

He described innovation as being “a break in the rhythm” (“une cassure de rythme” in french).

I really love this definition.

What is a rhythm ?

According to the dictionnary, it’s something like the one below.