Page 97 - Free the Idea Monkey

Envy: in the context of innovation, it means launching a “me-
too” product instead of finding a space you could own. An example
of envy is when your sales team comes to you and demands that

you launch a product to compete with the “hot” new
offering they just saw from the competitor. Don’t
take the bait. Chances are that product is going
to fail. Instead, use your sales team to find out
what other needs your customer or consumer
has and attack them with your own novel prod-
uct, service or business model.

Pride: you won’t give up on your favorite
idea—even when the numbers prove you are
wrong. Hey boss, this one is for you. Nobody
wants to tell you that you are wrong, which means that, especially
when it comes to your ideas, you must look at the data. Unless it is
overwhelmingly in favor of your idea, drop it and work on the one
that the team secretly knows is better. You’ll make more money and
keep the respect of your team.

Religion tells us the seven deadly sins are fatal to spiritual prog-
ress. We will let you debate that thought with the theologian of your
choice. We do know, however, that they are definitely fatal if you
want to innovate successfully.

Take extreme care to guard against them.

Honesty Check: I’m going to work on ...

Lust Working on ideas that don’t play to our strengths
Gluttony Doing too much at once
Greed Focusing only on short-term profits
Sloth Taking too many shortcuts
Wealth Letting competition fog my perspective
My Wardrobe Let’s face it . . . it’s time

82 L A U G H A L I T T L E , I N N O V A T E A L O T