I am guilty of this too. It’s what we do as storytellers. We look for that pivotal moment, that eureka moment, that stroke of insight. Lifechanging moments are the stuff of good stories. It creates tension to move towards this great climax where the aha moment strikes you with an idea, and your life is forever changed.
For me, ideas often come in a slow burn. There are many small moments in a grand orchestration of the events that slowly leads me towards the work of cultivating a good idea.
Where does innovation come from?
Steven Johnson tells us that we often self-report our moments of inspiration as if they came down suddenly into our heads fully formed. However, when you look at how these ideas come into being. The ideas often percolate on the edge of consciousness before we fully realize and articulate the innovation. Deep in thought, Newton sees an apple fall and suddenly the concept of gravity comes into his head. Perhaps he was suddenly able to articulate it in that moment, but the seeds of the idea must surely have been gathering and growing out of sight.
How can we create more spaces to stimulate big ideas?
We love the story of the eureka moment. Science celebrates the lone thinkers and inventors with an aha moment.
However, much of the innovation in this century has happened in community. At science labs, most of the breakthrough ideas come from the weekly lab meetings with the exchange of ideas between colleagues. There is a slow hunch and a long incubation period stimulated by interacting with others. When different perspectives come into the room, new ideas often arise.
Creating more places for connection
In the 19th century, coffee houses in Europe became the place for stimulating conversation and a hotbed of new ideas. Today, we often move into isolation to find creative space and protect our ideas. Sometimes I go into isolation to really work an idea, but what if the opposite can also be true. I’ve gotten some of my best ideas for creating new stories and improving working stories from workshops with others. In storytelling, I love the space of free exchange of ideas where we struggle in community so that each of us can bring our best to the world.
Innovation happens in collaboration. How can we create more collaborative spaces in our life? More hotbeds for creativity and innovation? What will be the next coffee house? What spaces can you create in your own life?
“Chance favors the connected mind… that is how innovation happens.”
~ Steven Johnson
Watch TED Talk by Steven Johnson: Where good ideas come from
Books by Steven Johnson
