Borrowing Brilliance: And Other Oxymorons
October 15, 2009
"... As I go out into the world and teach people about creative thought, I'm often asked by managers 'how to' apply this in an organization. They want me to talk about 'corporate creativity' and 'innovation management' and at first blush, to me, 'corporate creativity' seems like a [George] Carlinesque oxymoron. It seems like two words that contradict each other, like 'jumbo shrimp,' 'military intelligence' and 'borrowing brilliance.' Corporations are typically highly structured and highly political, and typically NOT very creative. But they don't have to be this way. In fact, once you understand the basic mechanics of creative thinking, the basic block and tackling skills of the thinker, you can turn your organization into a creative factory that churns out innovative concepts through intelligent collaboration and the development of a corporate culture that fosters 'corporate creativity.' Let me explain."