Mysteries of an Innovative Mind Revealed

There is a lot of noise about innovation. It seems to hold such a high pedestal in our society. I see many individuals discrediting their potential to be innovative. A person who is Innovative is defined as; “Someone who makes changes in something established, especially by introducing new methods, ideas, or products.” If you think you aren’t or can’t be innovative... you are correct. However, if you want to learn how to disestablish these notions then pay attention.

You were born an innovator, yet as we grow up this begins to fade away for many of us. As a child, you probably remember asking “why?” a lot. In my personal experience, I remember getting the common response of, “because” or “That’s the way we have always done it”. These are lazy responses. They shut the brain off. It is easy to say either of these. It is not so easy to answer a child who is always asking “why?”. 

So now I have a question for you. Why did you stop asking “why?” so much? Take your time to think about it if you need to. Thinking about this may be the start of you returning to your innovative nature.

Now that you have thought about your answer to this question, I want to give you my answer. And just a side note, it is totally great if your answer is different than mine! I would love to hear it in the comments if it is! Back to my reason. The reason I stopped asking “why?” so much was to fit in. As I grew up I noticed that the adults weren't asking “why?” nearly as much as me. Also, my peers started to just accept concepts without questioning them. The “why?” turned into a negative question. If you ask too many questions you were now a “try hard”, or you are trying to be a “know it all”. No young child or teen wants these labels. We don’t want these labels because they make us feel different and isolated. If you become too different, then you start to get made fun of. As a sort of survival instinct I adapted to these social norms. 

The thing is that so many of us do this when we are young, and then we live our whole lives not ever truly innovating again! Right now I want you to think of one thing in your life that you could be doing differently that could give a boost to any of these: your productivity, happiness, or empathy, or drive, etc. This could be anything from a new morning productivity method, to a different way you are going to address a situation that has been bothering you lately. If you get stuck then start listing things you do every day, and ask yourself why you do them. Once you answer that, ask yourself if there is a better way you could do them.

The point is this, if you want to start creating a better more innovative lifestyle for yourself or your business, then you have to go back to that child you once were. You need to partner this curious kid with the current knowledgeable version of yourself. When these two people start to work together your innovative nature will follow. It may take a lot of hard thinking before your innovative thoughts start coming naturally, but that is okay! Nobody gets ripped after going to the gym just once. I hope this helps you innovate as it has helped me. Just remember, your mind is an amazing thing. Don't underestimate what it can achieve.