When it comes to innovation, trust your intuition
by Paul Sloane
MBA students are taught to treat business in a rational, scientific way. They analyze situations, develop financial models, critically examine management decisions and logically examine different scenarios. When they emerge from the hallowed halls of academia, they are often surprised to find that businesses run much less on logic and much more on emotion. It is not cold, intelligent analysis that drives most organizations forward. Emotional energy is often the real engine behind successful people and organisations.
Sure it helps to be analytical, intelligent and rational - but what makes people like Richard Branson, Bill Gates or Steve Jobs great business leaders is not their undoubted intelligence but their passion and commitment to their cause.
One of the richest men in Britain is Felix Dennis, who made his fortune in publishing. In 1971 he was jailed for publishing an obscene political cartoon but he was acquitted on appeal. His success started with Kung-Fu Monthly in 1974. In the 1980s he published a string of successful computer magazines. His publishing empire now spans IT, motoring, gambling and men's magazines. A recent innovation was The Week - a brief summary of all the best articles from the press each week. In his book, "How to Get Rich", he describes how he ignores conventional wisdom and sound advice from his directors, lawyers and accountants. He goes with his gut instincts instead. Time and again he trusted his intuition in making tough business decisions about innovative ventures.
Luc Mayrand, Concept Designer at Disney says, "If you find your logic is talking you out of a good idea, question the logic first, then question the idea. This is entertainment; logic is less important than the impact of the story and design."
There are many famous examples where eminent people used logic and analysis to trash an innovative idea which subsequently succeeded. Western Union turned down the telephone because they saw no need for people to chat to one another. IBM turned down Xerography when it was offered to them by its inventor Chester Carlson. Decca Records turned down the Beatles and so on.
Logic and analysis can always find fault with innovative ideas. Use these tools but use them warily. If your intuition tells you that you have a great idea then pursue it a little while longer.
Paul Sloane writes, speaks and leads workshops on creativity, innovation and leadership. He is the author of The Innovative Leader published by Kogan-Page.
MBA students are taught to treat business in a rational, scientific way. They analyze situations, develop financial models, critically examine management decisions and logically examine different scenarios. When they emerge from the hallowed halls of academia, they are often surprised to find that businesses run much less on logic and much more on emotion. It is not cold, intelligent analysis that drives most organizations forward. Emotional energy is often the real engine behind successful people and organisations.Sure it helps to be analytical, intelligent and rational - but what makes people like Richard Branson, Bill Gates or Steve Jobs great business leaders is not their undoubted intelligence but their passion and commitment to their cause.
One of the richest men in Britain is Felix Dennis, who made his fortune in publishing. In 1971 he was jailed for publishing an obscene political cartoon but he was acquitted on appeal. His success started with Kung-Fu Monthly in 1974. In the 1980s he published a string of successful computer magazines. His publishing empire now spans IT, motoring, gambling and men's magazines. A recent innovation was The Week - a brief summary of all the best articles from the press each week. In his book, "How to Get Rich", he describes how he ignores conventional wisdom and sound advice from his directors, lawyers and accountants. He goes with his gut instincts instead. Time and again he trusted his intuition in making tough business decisions about innovative ventures.
Luc Mayrand, Concept Designer at Disney says, "If you find your logic is talking you out of a good idea, question the logic first, then question the idea. This is entertainment; logic is less important than the impact of the story and design."There are many famous examples where eminent people used logic and analysis to trash an innovative idea which subsequently succeeded. Western Union turned down the telephone because they saw no need for people to chat to one another. IBM turned down Xerography when it was offered to them by its inventor Chester Carlson. Decca Records turned down the Beatles and so on.
Logic and analysis can always find fault with innovative ideas. Use these tools but use them warily. If your intuition tells you that you have a great idea then pursue it a little while longer.
Paul Sloane writes, speaks and leads workshops on creativity, innovation and leadership. He is the author of The Innovative Leader published by Kogan-Page.Labels: Innovation, Intuition, MBA, Paul Sloane, Psychology, Strategy
posted by Blogging Innovation at 4:00 AM
5 Comments:
Intuition is certainly important. That said, one can complete an analysis of the same situation to argue for or against, depending. Good business schools teach using real world examples and cover all types of intelligence used to make good decisions. Everyone will also naturally make decisions using both emotion and reason, regardless of education or personality type, etc. One other point is that you hear more about people who succeeded (using intuition maybe but really it's a lot of luck) and you rarely hear about the hoards more people who fail, often because they made the wrong decision based on intuition, whether it agreed with their analysis or not!
Actually, recent scientific research into the way the brain works suggest intuition may not be that irrational after all, but a result of the brain processing past experience. So while it may appear "illogical" on the surface, a "gut feeling" that something is right or wrong may be the result of analysis below the brain's levels of consciousness. Fast Magazine reported on a very serious study of how people under stress make decisions. Turned out gut feeling and instant life or death decisions made by firefighters and pilots were usually a result of the brain dictating decisions based on microsecond analysis of past experience (see http://www.fastcompany.com/magazine/38/klein.html?page=0%2C1). One more reason to trust your intuition...but I believe the key finding here may be that the more experienced you are at something, the more intuition will point you in the right direction. I guess this speaks in favour of seasoned managers. Case studies may be the way to jumpstart experience, but nothing will replace the real thing.
We are actually beating a dead horse here and it keeps on going...
Our whole school experience is based on left brain approaches, whith exceptions of those rare moments where we allow the "creative" students to produce some art work or drama. The real power of the creative brain still needs to be acknowledged and promoted. Intuitive creative thinking happens in the frontal right lobe. Together with the data analysis provided by the frontal right lobe a team of such preferences can create a power house of innovation AND supporting strategy.
My experience as an Organizational Director in the past and as a Consultant in our days, tells me that the passion and commitment are the fundamental environment to innovation.
On the other hand intuition is to me, in fact, the lever to innovation. It may be as Isabelle said "...the result of the brain past processing experience.", and I agree.
As a Psychologist I also like to remind Eric Berne, a little less recent, wich allows me to justify my attitude of "child", as the most creative and dreamer, leaving the role of "adult and father" to more appropriate times.
I think that by accepting that I teach as I learn, often loose the opportunity to turn those (as Uwe) said) "...rare moments to produce art work or drama.", into, perhaps, an "Organizational Culture".
Interesting, but not true that MBA´s are only analyzing. That is quite a stereotype and probably for people very focused on finance or consultancy. The truth is that nowadays the good schools insist that no matter how much you analyse whatever business there is always that intuition, etc.
And that is what differences a good manager from a excellent manager.
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