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Innovation Tip: Rethink the Ordinary

Rethink the OrdinaryOne thing that "innovators" tend to have in common is their ability to look at ordinary objects, situations, or processes and see something extraordinary. They look at the world through a different set of lenses and see opportunities for innovation where others do not.

Here’s a fun exercise to help your team build this important skill. At your next innovation meeting, bring a grab-bag of ordinary items with you—a stapler, some rubber bands, paper clips, old CDs, some scissors—and set the items out on the table. Divide your team up into small groups and give each group a single item. Ask them to rethink the object: Rename it, describe what it does, who should use it, and why. The only rule is that teams cannot simply fall back on an existing use for their item—they have to rethink the item completely.

Give teams 20 minutes to brainstorm their ideas and write down their notes, and then go around the room and have each group present their new inventions. At the end of the exercise, discuss the activity. Was it difficult to rethink these ordinary items? Why?

By Jennifer Wang on February 8, 2011 at 12:50pm |

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