40 Tactics for Innovating

“You’re only given a little spark of madness. If you lose that, you’re nothing.”

Sure, I’m not a kid anymore, but when I read the story of Ali Baba and the 40 Thieves to my children, I enjoyed it even more than they did. And I’m not talking about the Chinese business empire Ali Baba, but about the fictional character. I particularly enjoyed a couple of scenes in the story. The first was when Ali Baba figured out the magical phrase to open the 40 thieves’ cave of treasures: “Open Sesame!”. The second was when the greedy Qasem forced his younger brother, Ali Baba, to tell him the magical phrase. Qasem then went to the cave, forgot the right phrase, tried several similar phrases in vain, and ended up getting captured by the 40 thieves. Let’s just say they didn’t treat him kindly.

The reason I enjoyed the story so much is that I see the cave of treasures as a metaphor for the mysterious realm of innovative ideas, and the 40 thieves who know the magical phrase as 40 innovators seeking priceless rewards. The only difference is that each of those 40 innovators has their unique “Open Sesame!” Don’t worry; together, we will try to reveal them one by one in this article.

I. Ten Innovators Employ Their Left Brain

If you believe in the left-brain/right-brain theory, which claims that a person is left-brained if they are addicted to analytical thinking, then the following magical phrases are the secret weapons of the left-brained:

1. “Redefine the problem.” Using this tactic, the innovator can discover simple solutions just by defining the targeted problem, asking as many “what, who, when, where, why, and how” questions related to it as possible, and finally defining the true problem. This is because, as Steve Jobs, the cofounder of Apple, stated, “If you define the problem correctly, you almost have the solution.”

2. “Highlight the contradiction within the problem.” Here, the innovator abstracts the problematic situation by stating the product’s desirable effects as well as undesirable ones, thereby identifying functional contradictions. For example, rather than stating a vague problem, such as “customers don’t like our shaving tool,” the innovator focuses on the functional contradiction by stating, “Although the razor-blade cuts customers’ beards, it also cuts their skin.”

3. “Dive into objective data.” Based on this phrase, the innovator immerses themselves in national records, market numbers, unbiased surveys, and statistical analysis results to let the data reveal any interesting correlations concerning the targeted problem. Within these findings, the innovator may discover unobvious solutions that subjective recommendations cannot reach, such as minimizing global warming by no longer breeding cows.

4. “Meet in the middle”: For this tactic, the innovator analyzes the positives and negatives of a certain product or method to design a new, acceptable version that balances the pros and cons through a trade-off process. For instance, an innovator identifies the optimal duration for servicing a patient by a doctor, aiming to maximize productivity without significantly compromising quality. ?

5. “Guess the right combinations.” Here, the innovator chooses to innovate the hard way by employing morphological analysis. This involves creating long lists of physical and conceptual elements related to the problem and its potential solutions. The innovator then generates a list of all possible combinations of elements from these lists and selects promising combinations to construct and test promising untested products or methods one by one. Thomas Edison may have employed a similar thought process when he experimented with around 1,000 materials before discovering that carbonized bamboo was the ideal filament material for his world-changing light bulb.

6. “Seek solutions within.” Rather than searching for external solutions for a problematic product or method, the innovator analyzes the elements inherent in the product or method and aims to minimize the introduction of additional elements as far as possible. For example, during cold seasons, the innovator warms car seats by connecting them to a vehicle’s super-hot engine.

?7. “Seek solutions around.” Using this tactic, the innovator analyzes the elements in the environment of the problematic product or method and incorporates one or more of these elements into the solution. For instance, an innovator harnesses solar energy to provide electricity for parked cars.

8. “Target an antecedent.” Rather than attempting to solve a huge problem directly, the innovator analyzes the root causes of the problem hierarchy until they identify a cause that is manageable and impactful. For example, an innovator contributes to solving the massive problem of ocean pollution by replacing plastic bags in supermarkets with paper ones. ?

9. “Target a consequence.” Based on this phrase, the innovator refrains from attempting to solve a nearly impossible problem directly and instead analyzes the cascade of consequences stemming from the problem, identifying a consequence that is manageable and impactful. For example, an innovator creates smart internal designs for houses in earthquake-prone areas rather than trying to prevent earthquakes.

10. “Start with a noncreative solution.” Here, the innovator initiates problem-solving with the simplest, albeit impractical, solution to the issue. This solution ignores financial, resource, and time constraints but provides a certain resolution to the problem. The innovator then reiteratively refines this solution through a series of modifications until a feasible innovative version is achieved. For instance, an innovator addresses the world’s thirst for useable water by initially proposing an enormous fleet of cargo airplanes to transport water from flood-prone areas to drought-affected regions 24/7 throughout the year. This concept is then refined over time to create practical solutions.

II. Sixteen Innovators Employ Their Right Brain

Unlike left-brained innovators, right-brained innovators enjoy more imaginative thinking. Thus, the following magical phrases are definitely in their arsenals:

11. “Play with this assumption.” By employing this tactic, the innovator challenges fixed assumptions that are typically taken for granted in a problematic situation, which sparks creative ideas for solutions. For instance, by challenging the assumption that only rich people can afford Rolex watches, the innovator may develop a business model that allows nonaffluent customers to rent these watches at an affordable daily rate.

12. “Ideate with the end in mind.” Here, in endeavoring to improve a certain device, the innovator envisages the device’s desired state, considering the versions that will move the idea, one step at a time, toward this eventual state. This prediction is informed by the ideal final result (IFR) theory, which states that any device with a desirable unique function will evolve to a point where the device disappears, the function is performed perfectly without any unwanted side effects, it becomes a secondary function of another system, and the cost and human manual involvement in performing this function become zero. To illustrate this, consider the first telephone for voice communication, which was costly and required more than one human operator to connect a call manually. Today, voice communication is a free feature of numerous computer and smart device apps.

13. “Use imaginary matter.” Using this idea, the innovator creates numerous ideas for solving the specific problem by imagining that they have access to a special matter capable of assuming any attributes and performing any desired task. Subsequently, the innovator seeks actual materials that exhibit the imagined characteristics and functions, substituting the imaginary matter in their proposed solutions with real materials. For example, if an innovator conceives imaginary solutions using a fictional liquid that can be manipulated into desired shapes without physical contact, they may discover through scientific inquiry that ferrofluids are the closest real-world alternative.

14. “Combine things.” With this tactic, the innovator envisions merging two or more products, components within a product, methods, steps within a method, or concepts, either partially or completely, to create a new solution. Examples include combining a bookstore with a cafe, merging a song album with a movie, or integrating a digital camera with a mobile phone. In a similar vein, the famous British science writer Matt Ridley stated, “Human beings innovate by combining and recombining ideas, and the larger and denser the network, the more innovation occurs”.

15. “Separate things.” In contrast, in this scenario, the innovator considers separating or adding isolators of some kind between two or more products, components within a product, methods, steps within a method, or concepts to reach a new solution. This separation can be physical, such as isolating components within a product, or temporal, such as creating a time gap between steps within a method. A famous example of this approach is the split air conditioner, which resulted when an innovator replaced a noisy window air conditioner with an outdoor unit containing the noisy components and an indoor unit with the quiet parts.

16. “Substitute something.” Here, the innovator imagines substituting one or more components within a product or steps within a method to develop an improved design for the problematic product or method. A notable example that most of us remember is the transition from mobile phone keypads with physical buttons to touch screens.

17. “Maximize things.” Based on this phrase, the innovator increases the values related to the problematic product or method, such as dimensions, weight, number of components, repetitive steps, or time durations. This generates new variations worth testing. An innovator, for example, might use this tactic to maximize the size of the grocery store to innovate the hypermarket business model.

18. “Minimize things.” On the contrary, this innovator decreases the values related to the problematic product or method, such as dimensions, weight, number of components, repetitive steps, or time durations to generate another set of variations for experimenting. Unlike the previous one, this innovator might minimize the size of the grocery store to create the grocery vending machine business model.

19. “Add something.” In this context, the innovator places the problematic product or method on an imaginary workbench and adds one or more new components, desirable features, quality enhancements, safety measures, etc. The result is significantly improved versions for experimentation. An example of this is the enhancement of the pain relief effect of the paracetamol pharmaceutical drug by adding caffeine, leading to the creation of the popular Panadol Extra.

20. “Eliminate something.” Here, the innovator puts the problematic product or method on their imaginary workbench and cuts components, ingredients, human resources, steps, and so on to increase productivity, flexibility, safety, or ease of use or to decrease costs, weight, complexity, or negative side effects. Perhaps the innovator who thought of Amazon’s cashierless GO grocery store used this tactic when designing it.

21. “Reverse something.” With this tactic, the innovator generates out-of-the-box ideas by examining existing products, methods, and business models through a crazy imaginary lens that reverses and inverts concepts. It’s difficult to imagine any other way that innovators could have come up with ideas like a historical site traveling from abroad to a tourist in their home country via virtual reality glasses, a restaurant charging customers to cook their own meals, or a safari zoo where visitors are put in moving cages while animals roam freely.?

22. “Rearrange things.” Based on this phrase, the innovator utilizes a relatively easy strategy for generating ideas to improve a product or method without making major modifications. They focus on the concept of rearranging the product’s components, such as reorganizing goods in a supermarket to increase sales or rearranging the steps in a method (e.g., providing travelers with their boarding passes before arriving at the airport to reduce waiting times in queues). The power of rearranging can also be seen in the case of sports cars. While traditional sports cars typically feature their engines at the front, innovative automakers have found that moving the engine to the rear or middle of the vehicle yields surprising benefits.

23. “Diversify things.” Here, the innovator inserts the current product or method into an imaginary machine that generates numerous models and variations by altering components, steps, sizes, materials, specifications, flavors, and so on to cater to different customers or conditions. A brief survey of the market reveals numerous instances of innovators who have created a wide array of variations of essentially similar products and services.

?24. “Make the most of it.” Using this idea, the innovator scrutinizes the existing product or method in an imaginary interrogation room, aiming to uncover all the obvious and hidden beneficial uses of the product’s or method’s components, steps, and outputs. While the field of recycling is full of examples of this type, there are also out-of-the-box examples outside this domain that are worth exploring, such as harnessing the energy generated by overweight people using gym equipment in affluent cities to supply electricity to underserved villages.

?25. “Alter stakeholders.” In this context, the innovator diverts their focus from modifying the current product or method to altering the people who exert influence on or are influenced by the product or method. This involves imagining the current product or business being operated by different categories of workers or catering to other types of customers. For instance, the GPS service used to be exclusively operated by military personnel and Freeze Dried Food was once only consumed by astronauts, but innovative companies later found alternative operators and customers for these products.

26. “Change the revenue model.” With this tactic, the innovator contemplates adopting fresh and distinctive strategies for generating revenue from the existing product or service, leveraging their deep understanding of customer behavior and where customers perceive value. For example, if an entrepreneur discovers that most of their cafe’s customers are students studying for their exams in extended sessions, they could innovate a more profitable revenue model whereby customers receive unlimited coffee but are charged per hour, as opposed to the conventional practice of charging per cup of coffee.

?III. Thirteen Innovators Learn from Others

Inspired by Picasso‘s saying, “Good artists copy; great artists steal,” the following magical phrases direct this group of innovators toward the sources from which they can steal elements for their forthcoming innovations:

27. “Mimic this creature.” Using this tactic, the innovator observes animals, plants, fungi, bacteria, and viruses, along with their intricate systems, and steals suitable ideas for human products and methods. Throughout history, innovators learned from whales how to build submarines, from the burrs of burdock how to create Velcro, and from bats how to navigate in the dark.

28. “Use this solution differently.” Based on this phrase, the innovator selects interesting products or methods from the market and innovates new uses beyond their intended purposes. Innovators in this category use balloons not for entertainment but for measuring atmospheric temperatures, employ stuffed dolls not as gifts but as camouflage for security cameras, and utilize bicycle riding not for commuting but for weight loss.

29. “Utilize this technology.” In this case, the innovator does not need to generate new ideas to enhance their businesses; instead, they simply buy appropriate tools from the various options available in the market for multiuse emerging technologies, such as AI, IoT, VR, AR, 3D printing, mobile apps, and automation. They then proceed to implement, integrate, and shake hands with the future with minimal effort.

30. “Search Google Patents”: Using this idea, the innovator opts not to reinvent the wheel, so to speak, and instead searches for the latest solutions to the targeted problem in patent databases, such as the free Google Patents website. When an innovator follows the correct steps to search for solutions to a certain problem, the results will contain well-thought-out designs by some of the world’s most innovative minds. The innovator can then choose to purchase, build upon, or even adopt them for free if the patent has expired or if its protection does not cover their country.

31. “Go interdisciplinary.” Here, the innovator recognizes the importance of assembling a team with diverse scientific and practical backgrounds to address complex problems with sophisticated solutions in the 21st century. For instance, to innovate a competitive smartphone, car, or video game, a team should encompass various disciplines within its conceptual toolbox, including engineering, business, programming, arts, psychology, and potentially more.

32. “Ensure compatibility with this.” Using this tactic, the innovator ensures that their product or business remains aligned with current technology trends. They acquire the necessary tools and user guides to enable their product or business to connect and cater to emerging devices and systems. In today’s context, a regular light bulb is deemed innovative if it can be connected to Amazon Alexa, Google Home, or Apple Home. Similarly, a traditional café is regarded as innovative if it offers electric car charging stations or accepts digital currencies. ?

33. “Implement these recommendations.” The good news is that this innovator recognizes that published research should include recommended solutions when investigating specific problems. The bad news is that much of the knowledge within scientific literature stays in scientific literature. That said, this innovator searches research databases, such as the free Google Scholar, for unused research-based recommendations, which may include unconventional but promising ideas.

34. “Make this sci-fi real.” Employing this tactic allows the innovator to draw insights from the best out-of-the-box thinkers in the world—science fiction authors. The value of their imaginative ideas becomes evident when considering that world-changing innovations, such as tablet computers, credit cards, and autonomous cars, initially appeared in science fiction stories decades before they became a reality in the market.

35. “Learn from this game.” In this scenario, the innovator looks back to the era when electronic games were only for children and compares this with today, when such games enjoy widespread appeal to people of all ages. Why is this so? Because the games are fun, engaging, and addictive. The innovator wants to creatively incorporate all three of these attributes into their product or business. Therefore, following the examples set by companies such as Tesla Motors, Starbucks, Duolingo, and others, the innovator steals from any chosen popular electronic game aspects of its mechanics, interfaces, journeys, or experiences in a process known as gamification.

?36. “Learn from the inexperienced.” By using this tactic, the innovator seeks to improve a product or method by consulting the last group that a reasonable innovator should ask for advice: people who know nothing! To guarantee to get out-of-the-box ideas, the innovator mustn’t limit idea sources to the involved team or to experts who have been trapped in the field relevant to the targeted product or method for years. It is also beneficial to approach people who have no prior experience in that field or prior knowledge of the targeted market. This approach can lead to unconventional ideas that may expand the innovator’s thinking toward unexplored dimensions.

?37. “Learn from this customer.” Based on this phrase, the innovator doesn’t just create a product or service for customers but actively collaborates with them through surveys or closely observing their unexpected ways of using the targeted product or business. As “the customer knows best,” it’s less risky for the innovator to follow the customers’ innovative recommendations rather than trying to persuade them with their ideas.

38. “Crowdsource it.” Here, the innovator believes that the best innovative solution to the targeted problem is out there somewhere hidden in the minds of individuals and that the key to obtaining this valuable idea involves identifying the right thinker, providing them with the necessary supporting information, and offering appropriate incentives, such as a job offer, business contract, or financial prize. Specifically, the innovator starts the open innovation process by preparing a Call for Ideas (CFI) document, then distributes it among suppliers, customers, universities, research centers, professional communities, or society as a whole using confidential communications, online competitions, or energetic hackathons. Finally, they select promising ideas.

39. “Localize this concept.” In this context, the innovator seeks successful innovative concepts that have emerged in other countries but have not yet been implemented in their local market. The goal is to create a new success story for this imported innovative concept. However, to avoid sending another idea to the graveyard, as seen with concepts that succeeded in one country but failed miserably in another, the innovator works intelligently to localize and modify the imported innovative concept’s elements as necessary.

IV. One Innovator Employs the Digital Brain

AI cannot come up with innovations. No, I’m just kidding. Yes, it can! See below to see what I mean, dear reader:

40. “Innovate for me… computer.” Employing this tactic, the innovator grabs a cup of coffee and lets the computer handle the innovation stuff for them. In one scenario, the innovator harnesses the immense computational power of supercomputers or even personal computers to perform millions of trial-and-error operations on thousands of generated combinations of genes, molecules, or large engineering datasets. This automatic process generates countless possible ideas for vaccines, pharmaceutical drugs, and industrial designs. The efficacy of each idea is predicted, and the most promising ones are listed for further investigation. In another scenario, the innovator utilizes innovation algorithms, such as the Russian algorithm ARIZ, through AI software packages that were built on them, such as GoldFire, to generate potential solutions by analyzing hundreds of thousands of patents. Another possible scenario involves the innovator utilizing generative AI tools. The innovator prompts one of these tools, such as ChatGPT, to play the role of an ideator, generating numerous novel solutions for a certain problem. Then, the tools evaluate these solutions using several criteria and select the best one. Subsequently, the innovator transfers the selected idea to another AI tool that generates visual designs, such as Stable Diffusion, and prompts it to generate several realistic designs based on the selected innovative idea.

Although computers have successfully generated patentable ideas and even filed some in national patent offices, as of the time of writing this article, computers have not been able to produce game-changing, sophisticated inventions without human guidance and judgment. Therefore, a collaborative team consisting of an innovative individual and an innovative computer is undoubtedly the ultimate innovation partnership.

V. Final Thoughts

To be honest, my dear reader, I doubt that any psychologist or creative thinking trainer knows for certain how the brains of iconic innovators work, nor do these innovators themselves. Nevertheless, in the problem-solving process, I’ve observed how an innovator can benefit from employing one of these 40 tactics, designing a personal combination of several of them, trying all of them, or coming up with and using a tactic that falls outside these categories. In any case, the most crucial point for an innovator is to memorize by heart the quote with which I began this article (which happens to be by Robin Williams, one of the principal voice actors in Disney’s adaptation of Ali Baba’s story). Innovators must keep nurturing the flame of madness and illuminating the world.