7

Habits Of
Highly

Innovative

Invention is 1%
inspiration, 99%
perspiration,
Thomas A.
Edison

You are already a creative being.

I have since learned
that creativity is more
about psychology
than intellect, and
there are no secrets
to being creative.
Actually,
there is no such thing
as being more
creative, you are
already a creative
being.

Start doing, and stop thinking.

Your mind is creating
all sorts of
assumptions, selfimposed constraints
and self-limiting
inhibitions. I have
found that we can
remove these
assumptions just by
being in the moment;
start doing, and stop
thinking.

Innovation involves more than just great

We need faith, hard work and a laser sharp focus for the end result to keep
ideas.
persisting for our vision in the face of roadblocks. We tend to see the end
result of a creative idea in awe, but what we dont see are the actions, hard
work and persistence behind the scene to make the vision a reality.

Think outside the box.

We need to free ourselves
from these mind-created
constraints by removing
assumptions and restrictions.
This is what we refer to when
we say think outside the
box. Encourage ourselves to
be open to new ideas and
solutions without setting
limiting beliefs. Remember,
innovation is more about
psychology than intellect.

Think of mistakes as experiments.

Experiment is the
expected failure to
deliberately learn
something. (Scott
Berkun).
Instead of punishing
yourself for the failures,
accept them, then take
your newfound knowledge
and put it towards finding
the best solution. Live up
to your goal of producing
the best result, but
understand you might hit
roadblocks along the way.

Our environment can and does effect how

we feel.
This is why ideas
sometimes come to us in
the shower or while were
alone. Each of us have
different triggers to
access our creative
energy. Many great
thinkers go on long walks
to help them solve
problems.

Jot down ideas and thoughts.

Some keep a sketch
book, scrap book, postit notes, loose paper.
They all have a method
to capture their
thoughts, to think on
paper, to drop their
inhibitions and start the
creative process.

Ideas come from other ideas.

Did you know that Edison
wasnt the first one who
came up with the
invention of the light
bulb? He was the first to
build a workable carbon
filament inside a glass
bulb, that made light
bulbs last longer. You can
increase your exposure to
new ideas, look for
patterns and see how you
can combine ideas to
improve upon existing
solutions.

See things differently.

Many innovators are just
curious people who are
inquisitive, and like to solve
problems. For example,When
seeing the solution to a
problem, ask yourself, What
are some alternative ways to
doing this?.Ask a lot of
questions and challenge the
norms or existing methods.

How many times have you read abusiness or self-help book, said, Wow,
that was cool, and then, well, nothing changed? Thats the whole problem
with that genre; its always someones idea of what works for him or what
he thinks will work for others. It really doesnt account for the billions of
variations on the theme of human intelligence.

Still,Stephen R. Coveysgot millions of fans who swear by his

seminal book,The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. So, with all
due respect to Covey, heres an adaptation of his seven habits that I
think fits innovators and entrepreneurs:

Habit One : Be Passionate.

Finding your passion is the key to business success. AsSteve Jobs once said,
Your time is limited, so dont waste it living someone elses life. The only
way to do great work is to love what you do. If you havent found it yet, keep
looking. Dont settle.

Habit Two : Do Something.

You dont always know where its going to lead, but its always better to do
something than to suffer analysis paralysis. Legendaryoil-man and
entrepreneurT. Boone Pickens has a way of quickly sizing up a situation,
coming up with a plan, and acting. Theres no sitting around or endless analysis
and debate. It seems to have worked for him.

Habit Three : Put First Things First,

Covey says prioritize, but Ill take it one step further. Whoever said, dont sweat
Second,
and
Third.
the small stuff, was
right,
and Ill add, dont do or even think about the small
stuff. Every successful innovative person I know jumps on hot opportunities and
critical issues like theyre the only things that matter on gods green Earth.

Habit Four : Think Win.

FormerNew York Yankees ownerGeorge Steinbrennermay have been a worldclass a-hole, but he was a remarkably rich and successful world-class a-hole who
let nothing stand in the way of the only thing that ever really mattered to him,
winning.Show me a successful entrepreneur and Ill show you someone who puts
winning first.

Habit Five : Seek First to Understand,

The
key toto
innovation
is to first understand a big hairy problem that, to date,
then
Innovate.
nobodys been able to solve. Once youve got that, then, and only then, does
it even begin to make sense to do something about it. Otherwise youll just
end up with a great product nobody needs.

Habit Six : Energize.

With rare exception, successful innovators are high-energy people with a
unique ability to stimulate and motivate others. Without it, you can have the
most effective habits or the best ideas in the world, but nobody will ever
know it, because nobody will care and nothing will actually get done.

Habit Seven : Question the Status Quo.

Andy Grovebuilt
semiconductor
powerhouseIntelon several
principles, two of which
were only the paranoid
survive and constructive
confrontation. That means
never rest on your laurels,
continually challenge your
own assumptions, and
always question the status
quo. Thats how Intel
became a high-tech
dynasty.

With that aside, this is an interesting list, not only for innovative but for
productive, and even happy people. Being passionate is hard if you don't
know what you are passionate about, and knowing this can lead to hard,
rough and wonderful changes in your life. Follow these good 7 habits and you
will be one of the most productive people in your generation.

I have not failed. Ive just

found 10,000 ways that wont
work.
Thomas A. Edison

Thank You Very Muc

Sompong Yusoonto