Great things begin at the end of your comfort zone, so they say, and business innovation is one perfect example. The greatest innovators the world has ever seen—Steve Jobs, Thomas Edison, Albert Einstein and more—took that leap of faith, broke the status quo and pursued an idea that they hoped would change the world—and most of them did. They went outside the usual system and paved their way to success.
As an entrepreneur, you would definitely hope to do the same. Innovation is, after all, one of the strongest determining factors for your success. But perhaps innovation doesn’t come as often as you would like it. You come up with something great today and tomorrow, it’s just another idea thrown away. The thing with innovating is, it’s not only about unlocking those ideas but also about building a culture where innovation becomes a part of your core. Here’s how to do exactly just that:
Spark up that inspiration and sustain it.
Do you remember that day you opened your business? Your employees were beyond excited, all smiles and full of energy as they started work and you have to admit, it all went well at the end of the day. Wouldn’t it be great to get that enthusiasm back? Maybe everything has become a boring routine for your team and you should break the monotony by getting them out of the usual space. Words can so easily strike inspiration so inviting a keynote speaker whose speeches have stirred the minds and hearts of entrepreneurs, leaders and professionals would definitely be a great idea. It would also help to talk to your team and ask them for ideas that will help them become more creative. Set aside a budget for some changes in your workplace and make sure to foster open communication within your organisation so you’ll know exactly what they need.
Embrace a system of cultivating ideas.
Let’s face it; an idea remains one unless you do something about it. But there may be times when you’re too busy taking care of other business tasks that your ideas simply vanish into oblivion before you could do something about them. The thing is, you have to be quick when innovating because delaying could easily kill your chance at getting something out of your ideas. This is why it’s essential that you embrace a system for cultivating ideas, one that will enable you to innovate quickly and efficiently. Aside from making sure that you’re on top of your business, you have to put together a team who can evaluate ideas, come up with strategic plans and execute them properly. Embrace this principle for the rest of your company’s branches—human resource, finance, etc.—and see the good change in your system.
There is, of course, the utmost importance of good time management. Think about an innovative business culture like true love. No matter how strong that feeling is, if you don’t make time for it, you can guarantee that it will die a natural death quickly. This is also the same when you’re trying to foster a good innovative culture in your company—you have to make time. Include creative pursuits on your schedule and spice up your routine every now and then.
