140char Innovation Insight Contest

In honor of the impact that Twitter has in democratizing information, I’d like to give everyone a chance to win a copy of the only business book I know of with a green cover – “Rethink” by Ric Merrifield.

The rules for entering the contest are simple. Send us your favorite innovation insight in 140 characters or less* via one of the two following channels:

1. Twitter – Send your favorite innovation insight as a tweet on Twitter with @innovate AND #i140 in the body of the tweet
• This will allow everyone to see all of the innovation insights submitted on Twitter by doing a search for #i140
2. Blog Comment – Post your innovation insight below as a comment in 124 characters or less
• This is to level the playing field for people who post a comment vs. a Twitter tweet

@reply and comment voting from 00:00 GMT to 23:59 GMT on June 30th will decide the finalists.

I will announce five (5) finalists on July 1st on this blog, complete with links to their Twitter accounts.

I will announce the ONE (1) winner on July 2nd via my profile on Twitter and on this blog with a quick profile of the winner, their winning entry, and a link to their web site.

Here are the entries so far (in no particular order):

1. The sovereignty of your #innovation is often more valuable than its content. – @jsbelfiore
2. “90% of what we learn comes AFTER we launch a new product.” – Eric Feng, CTO of Hulu – @veget
3. The key to successful #innovation is learning to channel your inner wise-ass. – @jsbelfiore
4. Do Better Today – What You Did Yesterday. – @pehodk
5. #Innovation is a mirror, which reflects your thought processes. If you see nothing, you’re a vampire. – @jsbelfiore
6. Genius in innovation is the clever reapplication of the “obvious” in a non-obvious manner or area – @jmccolgin
7. Solutions come & go based on current technology; but underlying needs of audience transcend time and lead to meaningful solutions – @adamdole
8. Innovation doesn’t just fall into your lap – Gijs van Beeck Calkoen
9. Ideas have to be consciously designed – Gijs van Beeck Calkoen
10. The application of a technology follows the generation of an idea, not visa versa – Gijs van Beeck Calkoen
11. Innovation is the intersection of what’s possible, viable and desirable. – @ddetlefsen
12. Innovation requires commitment. What is commitment? A chicken is “interested” in breakfast. The pig is “committed” to it. – @ddetlefsen
13. Innovation is change that adds value. In math: I=Magnitude of Change*(addition of good features + removal of bad features) – @ddetlefsen
14. Innovation does not just happen for free or by magic – it’s a game you can choose to win – @simontevans
15. Make innovation happen by instilling fear – why? Because chasing an oppt is an option; running away from danger is a must – @bpluskowski
16. Innovation is the process of uncovering problems for which people need solutions, and then developing a valuable and accessible solution. – i360 Insight
17. “Nothing can withstand sustained thinking” ~ Voltaire – @tomludwicki
18. Innovation is like loosing weight. Everyone wants & talks about it, knows its benefits, but most won’t work for it. – @ddetlefsen
19. Aligning Business models with market expectations and Challenge the Market with Rapid Demonstrator development – @stefaanvermael
20. Research is the transformation of money into knowledge – Innovation is the transformation of knowledge into money! – @Lerou
21. Insight in a Marketing-driven company is hindsight, while Insight in Innovation-driven company is foresight. – @Lerou
22. Implementing best practice is replicating yesterday; innovation is designing tomorrow. – @paulsloane
23. I do not know who discovered water but I am sure it was not a fish. We cannot perceive that in which we are immersed. – @paulsloane
24. Organizations that have a high % of people initiating innovative solutions 2 social problems are far more likely to thrive. – @DennisHoenig
25. Will not innovate with a scam, will not innovate sending spam. will not innovate if workers cram, will not innovate Sam I am – @chris_townsend_
26. Innovation and creativity seem to peak where the ripples spreading outward from knowledge networks intersect. – @geniusnet
27. Creativity = the contxn b/w 2 seemingly random objects. Innovation = creating market value from two seemingly random objects. – @adamdole
28. Question all rules. 1900 Olympics only 15 women took part. It was feared if she ran too fast her uterus would fall out. – @Journeywoman
29. Humankind’s evolution: Stone Age-> Feudal Age-> Industrial Age-> Information Age-> Knowledge Age-> Awareness Age – @CrazyColombian
30. Everything big started small. – @ryantracey

And some of my own to help stimulate thinking (@innovate):

• “Innovation is a gift. What are you doing to ensure employees want to give it?”
• “An innovation leader’s job isn’t to provide the answers but to provoke the thinking that gets you there.”
• Knowledge Management is more about “How do I?” while Innovation is more about “Why don’t we?”
• “We must create clarity in innovation strategy, goals, and participation for a continuous innovation culture to be created.”

I look forward to seeing your favorite innovation insights!

Braden Kelley (@innovate on Twitter)