Rejection kills innovation when new ideas are ignored. The problem is that we tend to group ideas that won’t work, at a particular moment, as never having value.
As a result, they’re ignored or laughed out of the room. An idea should not be treated like a virus and quarantined.
The dismissal of an idea is often premature. Think of many of the innovations during the past 10 years. Most did not start perfectly formed. Yet someone had the courage to say, “Keep working on that.”
Whether it’s our phones or our cars, we like innovation in the marketplace. But when it comes to encouraging innovation, we tend to expect someone else to do the heavy lifting.
Innovation and breakthroughs take time. You can’t expect to use a butter knife as a sword. Given time, the metal from the wimpy knife can be folded and strengthened into something amazing.
Does this make sense? Then why do we consider ideas as either being good or bad? Should there not be a third category for those that need some nurturing? Let’s change the way your team’s mental light bulbs are evaluated:
- As a leader, the next time you hear an idea that isn’t quite right, will you take a moment to consider it before you send it to the scrap pile?
- Will you discuss idea’s shortcomings and encourage solutions to the challenges?
Create a culture where your team understands that, “Not now,” does not mean, “Never.” E-books have grown massively in popularity with the creation of affordable and portable e-readers. Before that innovation could happen, technology needed to catch up with imagination. - Set boundaries for how much time someone can work on a new idea. It should be a part of the workday or week but not to the point where it makes general tasks suffer. Think of new ideas like a dessert and not your meat and potatoes.
- Let your team know that there’s no shame in throwing in the towel on an idea that just can’t be made to work.
- Reward innovation. Any employee can just perform their job. Those who go beyond it should be recognized.
Create a culture that encourages creative thinking. When someone feels empowered to pursue their ideas, they become a much more valuable employee.
Maybe it’s time to bring Ken Okel to your next meeting…
Read any good books lately?
