INNOVATION 'In an inn, on a vocation, invocating for, in ovation of innovation'
Topic: Innovation
by Idwa, 2020 Cohort
When Apple launches a new model of iPhone almost every two years, it still manages to sell millions of them. Based on that, what is it in human needs that is not satisfied with an existing design and thinking style, features and colours? Is it the need for something new, something not coalesced in their imaginations before? Something that speaks for them as the authority of staying relevant and staying alive in an ever-changing global dynamic?
That might be true, but who among us can truly innovate? Who can take the centre stage of resistance and defiance, to re-invent social norms and re-present mental barriers? Innovation is best applied by someone who knows the rules best, to the extent that they can trespass them only to come up with a new solution for the latest requirements.
Innovation can simply be defined as thinking out of the box. Some people call it “jugaad”, which is the epitome of non-conventional innovation. It requires us to expand our knowledge about a complex problem and then converge again to select the best ideas for practical purposes (Fig. 1). As a human race, we constrict ourselves in a box by our own free-will, in the form of social requirements, rigid trust in certainty in life and following rules for the sake of comfort. Innovation teaches us a tacit skill of unlearning; that is helpful when trying to learn new norms. This ability to learn and let go, is what truly helps to stay updated and stay relevant, such as reinvention of toilets in Africa by Bill Gates, WaterGen by Israel. These are real life examples where thinkers’ determination to find a solution for a complex problem led them to innovate.
Furthermore, the validation of innovation lies in its rate of adoption or diffusion. It depends on how well it has been understood and applied and by how many more people. This can be calculated by understanding the relative advantage it provides, in terms of economic profitability and social prestige. However, the catalyst to innovation remains how true the innovator is to themselves, and how much further are they willing to take their idea on. Funding or lack of funding becomes a secondary clause to consider. The approach of make-it-happen takes birth. Applied tacit knowledge, intuition and self-deep-learning about the specific details are some of the personal tools for an innovator.
Innovation can take birth literally anywhere on earth. We have numerous examples in nature around us, where living creatures defy constructed rules. They function on resilience such as the great barrier reef; they function on camouflage when under attack such as a chameleon; and they function on adaptability, such as the greying of butterflies in Great Britain during the industrial revolution. They seem to break away from expectations and assumptions, however, they still remain quite compatible and are not entirely uprooted from their former selves. Applied by agri-food businesses, industrial sector, aviation among all others is the omnipresent quality of innovation.
So, to celebrate this idea itself, we have Innovation itself claiming, “in ovation…”. So, when you read this, stand up in ovation while on this breakthrough journey of discovering unparalleled ways of redesigning unique solutions for complex problems.
Disclaimer#
This content has been contributed by a student as part of a learning activity.
If there are inaccuracies, or opportunities for significant improvement on this topic, feedback is welcome on how to improve the resource.
You can improve articles on this topic as a student in "Unravelling Complexity", or by including the amendments in an email to: Chris.Browne@anu.edu.au