Becoming an Idea Leader

Humanity flourishes when we innovate together. That's likely why so many organizations compete for top creative talent and invest in developing innovative skills in their people.

In my time working with many diverse creative teams, I've found one of the best ways to foster group creativity is through idea leadership, which I define as the ability to motivate others to take creative risks, resolve conflicts productively, and broker the communication of ideas.

Intrinsic motivation (the desire to do things out of the emotional payoff) has been long associated with creativity. Accordingly to psychology, to feel an emotional connection to creative work, people must be confident in their abilities.

As it turns out, members of creative teams become more motivated when they believe they have what it takes to succeed together. To nurture this shared sense of assurance, teams need to be protected against creative inhibitors.

One of the greatest impediments to a team's motivation to be creative is interpersonal conflict. This kind of conflict usually occurs when team members fail to resolve arguments over tasks and processes related to their roles. If not managed, team members withdraw and stop sharing and building ideas together.

Another source of conflict can arise when teams lack effective communication. When communication breaks down, team members can form cliques, become complacent or adversarial, and stop sharing their knowledge. This is particularly common when there are cultural divides within diverse groups.

That's not to say some conflict isn't good for team creativity. In fact, conflict when debating ideas can lead to greater innovation. But if ideas aren't being shared in the first place, how can teams be expected to create interesting, novel products, services, and outcomes?

To inspire teams, idea leaders should act as communication facilitators so that team members interact well with one another. They should also work to keep everyone focused on the tasks at hand to mitigate any unproductive conflict.

When the going gets tough, idea leaders should lighten moods to reduce any rivalries. Perhaps most important, idea leaders should develop work environments where followers feel psychologically safe in openly sharing ideas and perspectives.

During these times of great technological and social transformation, human innovation will be more important than ever.

Ideas matter, and as leaders, we have an opportunity to foster ideas and access untapped talent by adding some creativity into our leadership practices.

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