What is your definition of innovation?
For me innovation is core driver of overcoming limiting beliefs based on the assumption that past experiences somehow dictate how the future will develop. That means innovation is at the source of breakthrough results disconnected from past experiences. The more we challenge our belief system and enhance the way we utilise our intuitive mind the greater the power of innovation. To be truly innovative we have to ongoingly question what we know, how we sourced it and why we assume it to be true otherwise we will not make enough progress to be truly innovative. This process can be quite testing for people to say the least because, and this may sound absurd, the part that stops us from going the step further is always the logical mind.
Moving past a perceived boundary is the fundamental ingredient of innovation whether in the fields of science, arts, technology and even sports. Role models from the science background such as Nikola Tesla or Albert Einstein have been leaders of creating innovative and useful concepts. While they put their logical mind to good use, it was their intuitive mind combined with imagination that made their unique legacy possible. The intuitive mind is seen as a connector to knowledge that is not accessible via our life experiences through our senses and logical analysis. Intuition allows access to a greater information base and imagination in its nature goes past the logic.
And of course, having such a seemingly outrageous approach to science will immediately challenge the rational mind. While the logical mind would limit us, because it will constantly find new reasons why innovative ideas may not work, our imagination doesn’t, it can virtually make anything work. That is where we are often subject to an ongoing internal battle unless we learn how to harness the two sources better. If Albert Einstein would have listened only to his logical mind, he wouldn’t have been able to come up with these mind-blowing ideas; which today are almost mainstream knowledge, but at the time appeared to be quite ridiculous to many.
How does innovation or being innovative influence your day?
In my coaching business I am using innovative ways of thinking all the time. The workshops that I have developed, are typically taught to smaller groups of people in the spiritual or healing arena. I was determined to make them available and suitable to the business domain, since I know the value that this knowledge can bring to the workplace. It is the next level of training for the contemporary world and allows people to tap into more powerful ways of being.
People in general are ready for it and are looking how to gain deeper understanding of how we operate but bringing this level of coaching into the business world hasn’t been done so far. There is still a segregation to what is taught for business and what is actually available for people. I had to come up with innovative ideas to craft these concepts into a business format and at the same time ensure that the essence of these concepts remains. By doing this I can present my clients with unique ways of learning to dramatically improve their results in life. In essence I have tapped into my intuition and sourced innovative ideas and concepts to create successful and stimulating training programs that are designed to address the challenges of today’s business world in a completely new way.
What's the secret to being innovative in any industry?
As mentioned before innovative ideas start where the brain stops. That sounds paradoxical and not logical, but this is exactly how it works. The brain is a really good tool and it will be very helpful in the execution of innovative ideas, but it is not the originator of creative ideas, although it may seem that way. When exploring creative ideas, the logical mind will instantly try to make sense of it and in doing so it stop the creative flow if ideas that derive from imagination or the intuitive mind. Imagination and the intuitive mind are the driver of innovation and in this context outrun the brain. You could compare imagination and intuition with the engine of a production process, while the brain is the builder. While our logical mind is highly useful we unfortunately over-estimate it’s capability in the context of true innovation.
Once a person or organisation understands the impact of the intuitive mind and imagination as the essential ingredient to innovation, they already have tapped into the secret. If they allow some time during working hours for their staff to tap into the imaginative and intuitive mind, without the immediate pressure of producing a desired result they are giving themselves a head start. It is not an easy thing to do because companies need to be productive to stay competitive. And just thought of giving creativity some leeway makes them feel uncomfortable, which is understandable. There are different methods to introduce the approach of allowing for more innovation in the workplace, it can range from a very aggressive focus to a soft and more gradual implementation. It takes a level of faith and good management to give innovation some room to play without the immediate guarantee of results.
What would you want people to think of when they hear the word innovation?
It would be awesome if people view innovation as the source of living a creative and fulfilled life. Innovation should be a way of living, meaning that the imagination and intuition as the basis are the driving forces and the logical mind is the building force. It we use our resources this way, we virtually can make our dreams come true and we can experience that anything is possible. And as fictional it may sound, for me it is a sure thing that with a much more integrated focus of innovation, we can find solutions to the seemingly impossible. People are doing it all the time.
Can a company teach its people to be innovative?
Absolutely! Most successful people have made use of their intuition to develop their craft and creative influence whether it is in the arts, science or business and have achieved innovative and unexpected results. Intuition is a skill everyone has, but not everyone knows how to access and utilise. I am teaching companies and individuals how to tap into their intuitive mind and become more creative and productive at the same time. This approach has allowed me to write a book in just over 6 months and developing completely new workshops while building my business at the same time. Every step on the way was a positive experience in the right direction. While doing so my challenge was to keep up with the flow of output and this is a good challenge to have.
As you work more on your intuition and train this ‘muscle’ as part of your set of capabilities you notice that you can achieve unexpected results and that you are able to create more within in a much shorter time frame. You also realise that your intuition will always guide you to the most beneficial next step. It is always working in your favour. And as another benefit you will also become more confident in yourself, your abilities and reduce the level of stress that you may have experienced before. Learning to make better use of the intuitive mind will bring a sense of freedom, inner peace and thriving sensation. It is not difficult, but it is a matter of practice.
Benefits to having a focus on innovation?
We get most enjoyment out of creating new and positive experiences and while doing so assisting others in achieving the same. To constantly thrive for expansion and growth whether it is as an individual or in a collective sense is the basis of our existence. If we focus on innovation in all areas of our life, we can make our existence so much more enjoyable.
We tend to think that we can never have it ‘all’ and therefore make sacrifices in the way we accept half ‘cooked’ solutions that are not offering the complete value we wish to have. If we start becoming more innovative it also means we are becoming more empowered and in control of how we want things to play out. Often, we stop half way, because we have created some limiting beliefs around what is possible. Ultimately, focusing on innovation will help us to overcome our archetypal fear of lack and guide us to trust our capabilities to create the world we want.
What innovative solutions do you wish existed?
We have become quite good in developing small scale innovative solutions, but the challenges we are facing in today’s world call for complex solutions, often requiring a collaborative effort across various businesses and systems. For example, if we want to tackle the problem of the world’s aging population we need to address several impacted systems: health care systems, living arrangements, economic issues with the slowing down of birth rates and aging population etc.
None of these issues are new to us, we have been thinking about them for decades and some improvements have been developed in isolation. But this approach is not sufficient anymore. While each of these topics requires innovative solutions and existing systems need to be dramatically challenged in themselves, we also need to try to bolt all of this together into one system. We cannot create incentives for innovation for systems in isolation anymore, we need to collaborate with a big vision in mind.
What does the future of innovation look like?
We are at a tipping point in human evolution where the scale and complexity of problems has unforeseen implications. As overwhelming as it is, I believe it will be in the hands of innovators to turn it around. And I see three core ingredients that will help us to move forward: collaboration, wisdom and innovation. If we get this right it would evoke a shift in our human consciousness and innovation would be at the source of it. I see an avalanche of innovative solutions coming our way.