Innovation Insights
by Stephen Shapiro
People often live by the saying: if you want to get something done right, you need to do it yourself. While I have heard people toss this phrase around like a badge of honor, there is no philosophy more toxic
I am happy to announce that my next book will be published by Portfolio Penguin on September 29, 2011. The title? Best Practices Are Stupid: 40 Ways to Out-Innovate the Competition. This book contains 40 bite-sized tips and tricks for
Researchers often throw around the Edison quote, “I have not failed 700 times. I have not failed once. I have succeeded in proving that those 700 ways will not work. When I have eliminated the ways that will not work,
My friend Susanne and I were recently playing a trivia game, a game in which she excels. However, at one point, she got a couple wrong answers in row. “Urgh,” she blurted out, “every time I have a gut answer
I travel the world extensively. And during these jaunts, I am always interested to hear of the differing points of view held by others about American culture. One commonly-held perception is that Americans are self-centered, believing that they are the
I know St. Patrick’s Day has passed, but it got me thinking about the concept of luck. Have you ever met people who are consistently lucky? It is as if they are always in the right place at the right
Last week I spoke at the launch of the Navarra Factori, an innovation center near Pamplona, Spain. This government backed initiative is designed to help stimulate creativity and innovation in the region. I was the keynote for the opening. They
Not too long ago, I was having a conversation with an event organizer about his revenue model. He told me that he hires speakers, paying them a flat fee for their time, and then launches an aggressive marketing campaign to
It is not often that I do events that are open to the public. So I am thrilled to be partnering with The Big Studio to bring you a special Personality Poker session. There is no cost to you. In
In Wisconsin, the Republicans wanted to eliminate the collective bargaining rights of most public employees as a way of cutting the budget. This was hotly contested by the Democrats to the point where all 14 Democratic senators left the state,
Last week I wrote an article for American Express about “marrying your work.” Unlike the “ball and chain” picture that tends to pop into our heads, I espoused the merits of loving your job, just like you would marry
I was talking to a Thai friend of mine recently, someone who knows that I work a lot. She also knows that I love what I do. She said I am, “Thang kub ngaan.” This literally means “marry with work/job.”
I recently had the privilege of speaking to a group 400-plus senior executives from a very large organization. During my allotted 90 minutes, I conducted an activity used to demonstrate the power of divergent thinking. At the conclusion of the
The second half of my interview with Vern Burkhardt from IdeaConnection was recently posted. Here are the first few paragraphs of this much longer interview. “We can conclude that creativity is about being present, just as pit crews changing the
Paul Sloane, an innovation colleague, approached me a while back to write a chapter in a book he was compiling on open innovation & crowdsourcing. The book is now officially out. In it you will find articles from a wide
I recently had the great pleasure of welcoming Chris Taylor into my condo. He came with his video camera, an in depth understanding of my work, and an amazing interview style. The result? One of my favorite video interviews…ever. Be
[This article originally appeared on the American Express Open Forum] A large portion of my business is public speaking. And I know many others who make their living the same way. But to be perfectly frank, companies are often wasting
[This article originally appeared on the American Express Open Forum] I was recently in the market for a new car. I had narrowed down my list of prospects and went out for some test drives. At the car dealerships, each
[This article originally appeared on the American Express Open Forum] Humans are the only species that can develop creative ideas. Our evolved brain is our best ally in the search for novel solutions. Unfortunately, the human brain is also the
Vern Burkhardt is one of the best interviewers in the innovation space. I am pleased to have spent time with him for a two-part interview. Here are the first two questions/answers for the first interview. At the end you can
[This article originally appeared on the American Express Open Forum] Contrary to “conventional wisdom,” opposites don’t do NOT attract. While individuals who are different than you might initially seem intriguing, in the long run these differences will invariably push you
No this is not a work stoppage driven by protest. It is a slowdown caused by an overload of work. I am working on my next book and the manuscript is due over the next couple of weeks. That is
It is that time of year when everyone sets their New Year’s Resolutions. Here is an article a wrote a while ago, but is indeed timeless: Resolutions That Work I was going to post the entire article again, but I
As many of you may know, my second book was called “Goal-Free Living.” Although it was originally going to be a book on how to be more creative, it morphed into a manifesto for a counter-cultural way of living. In
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