“I’m not creative!” Oh yes, you are!
People love to say “I’m not creative”, but reality is that being creative is not an endowment that only some people have. We can all access it if we nurture our capacity to create.
To me there are three essential capabilities needed to truly innovate, that is, to create a new idea that is useful and meaningful to others.
- First, one must empathize with the people being served. People are wired to be empathic (we all have mirror neurons), but we can be so distracted that we disrupt that skill and fail to truly find empathy. Empathy is an essential skill. Empathy allows one to fully understand another’s perspective. If we can connect to others, we can see opportunities. And, with this skill we can also empathize with those with whom we need to collaborate to bring an idea to fruition. Yes, having empathy for co-workers is also an essential ingredient to successful innovation.
- Skill two is co-creation—tapping into others as you build your ideas. Co-creation invites others to join in, to be productive and generative. Their brilliance building on your idea can lead to the true winner. Co-creation can happen with the target customer, co-workers, influencers, experts, etc. In each of these conversations, the innovation is more deeply understood and developed.
- Finally, we must attend to the environment in which the idea will be planted. We must lay pipe, or build receptivity for the idea before it fully arrives. Empathy and Co-creation naturally start to lay pipe as you are connecting and opening up to others. In addition, we lay pipe when we intentionally socialize the emerging ideas, inviting others to invest their wisdom and build an idea’s chance for success.
By our very nature, we have a unique perspective in this world. We see things in our own light. Leaning into seeing another’s perspective, working together to create, and then building receptivity for that idea is an incredible creative process that you can tap. Pause before being self-deprecating about your creative genius. Lean into it. You are creative.
Cindy
Take Action
Working on a new idea? Assess how well you have been connecting in and around your idea. Plan at least 3 new co-creation conversations to strengthen your thinking with the intended target, an expert, an influencer, etc. Execute these co-creation session with openness and curiosity and build the resulting wisdom into your final manifestation.
