Monday, June 22, 2015

lightbulbs and 10 year olds: innovation and communication.

I was shown this image on Friday. It was suggested as a summary of some group work that I was a part of.

lightbulb1

A lightbulb has gone off. An important and significant discovery has been made. But that is not enough. We need to think about how to communicate that lightbulb moment.

In this image, this means getting down the ladder and going across to the watching child. We need to ask ourselves “How would we tell a 10 year old?” This is an important communication exercise, in which seek to clarify our ideas by asking how we communicate this light bulb moment to a 10 year old.

There is that old joke. How many people does it take to change a light bulb? The answer is meant to be one.

But how realistic is that? It is hard for one person to do, most especially for the person closest to the lightbulb. It is their idea and its natural to be blinded by the brilliance.

So in this image, and in the work on Friday, a number of us were working together. Some were offering creativity, others listening ears, others structuring and framing. It adds an interesting perspective on the task of innovation. It is not enough to have a bright idea. There is another whole piece around communication and collaboration of that idea. Innovation must be shared. It might begin with one, but there are many gifts involved in this process.

Who is the leader in this description? Is it the one person who has had the “lightbulb” moment? Is it the child, who is providing an essential role in helping clarify? Is it the people around, encouraging, listening, reframing?

In reality each person is performing an essential role. Each person is offering leadership. Because it does take many people to change a lightbulb.

Posted by steve at 08:12 AM

1 Comment

  1. Thank you Steve for the lightbulb moment about the lightbulb moment.
    Regards, John.

    Comment by John Littleton — June 22, 2015 @ 10:12 am

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