When it comes to innovation, you need to focus in order to find ways to effectively transform ideas into reality. With this, you are able to truly capture the essence of an idea and create a product or service that aligns with the customer’s expectations.
Sometimes the only barrier between you and innovation is your ability to think outside of the current problem and scope to see further into the customer’s experience. You’ll quickly learn that when it comes to innovation, oftentimes the fastest way to your outcome is the slow way.
Tips for Innovators
Ask the Right Questions
At its core, “design thinking is pausing to ask the right questions before finding a solution”.
If you’re asking the wrong questions, you’ll be given the wrong answers. Then you’ll design solutions that aren’t solving the problem at hand but a misinterpreted aspect of a problem. It’s therefore important to analyze the questions you’re asking to ensure you’re preparing questions that will be useful and bring you closer to developing an appropriate solution.
Pull-Apart What Works
In design thinking, it’s essential that we pull apart what works from what doesn’t work. By developing a better understanding of what doesn’t work, you begin to gather a well-rounded understanding of what does work. These insights guide us in formulating positive experiences and adapting to change more effectively.
Make Sure To Focus
When it comes to focusing, it’s simple. If you’re focusing on everything, you’re truly focusing on nothing at all. Divided attention is a challenge that lies in the way when it comes to finding a successful solution or approach.
Many things will grab our attention and cause us to lose focus on the problem or process at hand, but you must ensure you remain in control of the situation by focusing on one thing or aspect at a time.
Embrace Operational Excellence
Operational excellence is designed to help you increase your efficiency and maximize your profit. However, you must be careful and understand that operational excellence can help you improve, but it cannot make you innovate. You must find alternative ways to innovate while simultaneously developing solutions that support and embrace the excellence of your team as a whole.
Final Thoughts
Sometimes you have to take a step back to see the bigger picture. Oftentimes this means taking yourself out of the system and analyzing things from a different angle. This angle will allow you to see things more openly and come to different conclusions.
Keep in mind this will take practice. You’re not going to have the right answer or right question every time. And over time, as you gain more experience and learn more about yourself, you’ll be on your way to a streamlined, efficient process.
Now, go out there and practice these tips and see all that you can become!
