It’s not about changing the world. . .

When people think about the word “innovation” they often think of large-scale, disruptive technologies that change the way people function in dramatic ways.? Often, these new innovations take the shape of products or services that we don’t know we want or need before we see them for the first time.? The announcement of the first iPhone back in January of 2007 comes to mind.?

Here's the thing though:? that innovation stood on the shoulders of many, much smaller innovations.? The creation of every component part from processors to batteries, to cellular radios, to LCD technology had to come before a product like the iPhone could be brought to market and change the landscape of handheld mobile devices forever.

We think of innovation as requiring us to do something big – changing the world, big.? But that’s not how innovation works.? It’s the small, constant, forward momentum of incremental change that is the true innovation.?

When I think about innovation as someone who has spent time working on solving problems throughout most of my career, I often reflect upon the character Bigweld in the 2005 animated film Robots.? The basis of Bigweld’s philosophy as an inventor – as an innovator – was the maxim, “See a need, fill a need.”? This entire concept is based upon looking around your environment and finding ways to make improvements, no matter how small they might be.? Bigweld knew that innovation and inventorship required a problem to solve in order to be successful.? If you can’t see the problem, you can’t provide a solution to it.

Ultimately, genuine innovation stems from honing the ability to observe and identify potential opportunities.? We should be able to look around and recognize that there are small changes that need to take place to solve smaller problems.? When you add up the sum of all those small changes and innovations – an organization, a team, a single teammate – is capable monumental changes over time.

In short, don’t become discouraged as a fledgling innovator because you think your idea might not be big enough to make a difference.? We all start small.? Spend some time and find a way to “fill a need.”? While you’re at it, do your best to make sure you do it in a way that fixes that small problem forever.? And if you can’t do that, at least put a reminder in your calendar to come back and revisit it later.? You might find out that in the meantime you’ve gained the knowledge, skills, and relationships necessary to solve that problem for good.