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05 February 2008
Expert Discusses the Process of Innovation
Ask America webchat transcript, February 5
Scott Berkun, author of the bestseller The Myths of Innovation, answered questions in a February 5 webchat on innovation and how to think “outside the box.”
Following is the transcript:
(begin transcript)
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE
Bureau of International Information Programs
Ask America Webchat Transcript
How to Innovate, Right Now
Guest: Scott Berkun
Date: February 5, 2008
Time: 12:00 p.m. EST (1700 GMT)
Moderator: Welcome to our webchat! Today is February 5. The live webchat will begin at 12:00 EST / 17:00 GMT.
You may begin sending in your questions now.
Scott Berkun: Well it's just about 12:00 EST so it's time to get started. There are already a bunch of questions in the queue and I'll get started right away. And of course don't be shy - If you're brave enough to ask it, I'll be brave enough to answer! :)
Moderator: To those of you just joining us, welcome! You may begin submitting your questions now.
MEDO2: well done sir.
Khawar: Keeping in view the recent human advancement, especially in science and technology, it appears that all of the innovations are coming from the developed countries. What is the relationship between economic development and creativity in your view?
Thank you very much for your comments in advance.
With kind regards,
Syed Khawar Hussain
Scott Berkun: It all depends how you define innovation - in some ways developing countries have to be more inventive and creative since they are working with fewer resources. I remember seeing the Dhobi Ghat in Mumbai, India, where hundreds of workers managed thousands of items of clothing without a single computer. I was told they had many techniques, from folding clothes, to making small marks with chalk, that enabled them to never lose a piece of clothing. I was much more impressed by the innovations in that system than any database or web technology.
But to answer your question, economic development just changes what kinds of innovations are possible.
Moderator: Today’s webchat is part of America.gov’s Innovation series. To learn more please visit our innovation homepage at:
http://amlife.america.gov/amlife/innovation/index.html
selinawang: hello. I am a Chinese student, I am 15, so I want to know, as a student want can I do to become a successful innovator? Thank you. I also want to know more about your book, thank you
Scott Berkun: The best thing you can do is experiment. Make things. Take things apart, watches, toaster ovens, your friend's car (that way if you break it you can still get to work). See how these things work and then see if you can put them back together again. Try to find ways to improve their design or to see what happens if you change one part in one small way. The more time you spend using your mind making things, the better you will get at all of the skills needed to do it well on more complex things.
But if you find you don't like tinkering with things, or making things, or doing experiments, than as much as you might want to be an innovator, it might not be for you. The work of inventing things is in many ways what I described above.
Mr. Kazmi: Is innovation possible when one doesn't has decision making power [in an organization]?
Scott Berkun: Yes. There are many stories of great innovations being made by people with little power. The invention of masking tape was led by an engineer who went off on his own, despite being told by his boss not to, and researched different ways to solve a problem he was interested in. When, after months, he had a working prototype, he used it to convince his boss of the merit of the idea.
The most important thing isn't decision making power: it's three things. 1) your willingness to take a risk 2) Your ability to find a truly good solution to an important problem 3) Your ability to convince decision makers that you've done #2.
Moderator: Welcome to those of you just joining us. We do see your questions coming in. They will appear on this screen as soon as today's speaker has answered them.
selinawang: I am a Chinese Junior High school student, so I don't quite understand what's "outside the box", could you explain it to me? Thanks. I also want to know as a student, what can I do to be a successful innovation. Thanks.
Scott Berkun: Thinking outside the box refers to a famous creative thinking puzzle called the 9 dot puzzle. In the puzzle you are supposed to find a way to connect the dots using only straight lines, and it turns out the only way to do it is by drawing lines outside of the box around the dots.
You can read more about the puzzle here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Outside_the_box
Kuba: Sir, Where are most innovators today? In a nation state OR in the cybernation that cross the boundries of physical borders?
Scott Berkun: It's hard to say, since it's not either or. Many people in the world are both in nation states, but also participate in the international web.
I don't have data or research to support the claim, but I don’t think virtual teams, where people are connected only through technology, are nearly as common or successful as some would hope they are. Most creative enterprises, from music bands to software companies, involve a small group of people who spend most of their time working a few feet away from each other. There are exceptions (great open source projects like WordPress being some of them), but it's a small minority. Creativity hinges on relationships, and good relationships are easier to create and maintain when in person.
Moderator: Scott Berkun is one of several contributing authors to the most recent edition of America.gov’s eJournalUSA, “The Next New Thing.”
His article, “How to Innovate, Right Now” can be found at:
http://usinfo.state.gov/journals/itsv/0108/ijse/berkun.htm
MEDO2: "word is the primary tool of a journalist" -Discuss.
Am a student of journalism, this is an assignment. How do I answer it please?
Scott Berkun: It's funny - no matter how much technology advances, students still want to find other people to do their homework for them :)
sheitinghui: 怎样才能进行更好的创造？谢谢[How can we improve the creative process? Thanks]
Scott Berkun: The easiest trick to improving your own creative process is to keep a journal. Get a small notebook and a pen and keep it with you 24 hours a day, with the following rule: Any time you have an idea, no matter what it is, no matter how strange or boring it seems, you must write it down. Note the time & place next to it.
In a week you'll have tons of information about when and where you are most creative, and an inventory of pet ideas that you can refer back to whenever you don't feel as creative as you like. The journal well help you be mindful of your creative process and give you a place to put ideas to help them grow. Otherwise they slide out of mind, and we forget them forever! How sad!
Moderator: Dear Medo2, Perhaps the following America.gov publication will help you as you complete your assignment. Please visit our online booklet: The Handbook of Independent Journalism at:
http://usinfo.state.gov/products/pubs/journalism/index.htm
Moderator: Our speaker is reviewing your questions now. Please be patient!
rene.zamora: hi, I want to know I can innovate in a third world country, a country which doesn´t have enough resources?
Scott Berkun: The best way to think about innovation is relative - if an idea or invention is new to a group of people, even if other groups have used it for decades, it's still an innovation to that one group.
If you want to be an innovator in a third world country, look for ideas in use elsewhere in the world, or in history, that can be reapplied to your environment. How did the Greeks handle food shortages? What did the Aztecs use to power the production of tools and weapons without any electricity? How have revolutionaries throughout history used lack of resources to their advantage? There are tactics and ideas waiting to be reapplied by you if you are willing to look for them. And it starts with defining a clear problem - what is it you want to create? What problem in your country do you want to solve? Spend time picking a good, important problem. Refine it. Talk to people who suffer from it. And then you'll be well on your way to making innovation happen.
Moderator: To those of you just joining us, welcome! Mr. Berkun continues to review your questions.
Liza2: Which are the most common activities that helps our students to think about the same problems or situations from a different side?
Scott Berkun: The easiest way to get people, students or otherwise, to be more creative is to reward them. Humans are simple creatures - give them money or candy when they do X, and they'll do X more. So if you want students to think about the same problems in a different way, give them that as a challenge. "Who can come up with the most ways to draw a house?" or "The most number of ways to answer 2 2=" (e.g. 2 2=4, or 2 2=2x2, or 2 2=10000-9996). Make it a habit of rewarding people for seeing different sides of a problem and they'll do it naturally.
Moderator: What makes a great inventor? Find out in our next Innovation webchat with inventor Ronald Riley on February 7. Details at:
http://www.america.gov/multimedia/askamerica.html#riley_07_feb_2008
Alanis: Greetings and Good Morning/ Afternoon to all!
I've been in English Language Teaching since 10 years ago. I've customized my own courses based on the human resources I have. I find it convenient, more in theses days than before, to replace some tools text, for technological tools. However, people come from traditional method whose teaching has been through printed materials and I've had some complications while allowing this transition 'cause they agree but when it comes to putting into practice the things they're supposed to use they keep on using the traditional ones. How do you fill this gap in technology when not everyone has access or acceptance to that?
Thanks!
Scott Berkun: Acceptance of change is the real reason why some innovations gain adoption and others don’t. Most people, most of the time, want less change not more, and will resist good ideas simply because they will cause change. So what you describe is more than common - it's natural.
But there are things a smart innovator can do to accelerate acceptance of change - make the changes incremental. Instead of having to use your technology for an entire course, require that teachers use it for just 1 lesson. Then give them a chance to give feedback on the tool, and invest time in making it easier for them to use it for the 2nd lesson. And then the 3rd. This way their fears of change will be smaller, since you're not asking them to start over, and your rate of change will improve, since you'll get feedback on things you can change in the tool to make it easier for them to both transition to and use.
Scott Berkun: Ok folks, A few more minutes left. SO if you've got a question on your mind, now is the time.
Scott Berkun: Ok folks - things have quieted down, so I'll make my virtual exit. Thanks for all the questions! Cheers.
Moderator: We wish to thank Scott Berkun for joining us today. The webchat is now closed.
A full transcript of today's webchat will be available on our Ask America homepage usually within one business day.
(Guests are chosen for their expertise. The views expressed by guests are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of the U.S. Department of State.)
(end transcript)
(Distributed by the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)
