Innovation Insights: Where Play Powers Breakthroughs
Articles
Why Innovation Training Doesn’t Stick (And What Actually Does)
SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT FOR EARLY SUPPORTERS Want to read Innovation at Work before it launches? I’m looking for a small group of innovation champions to join my book launch team. You’ll get: ✨ Early access to the complete book (November 24-25) 📖 Exclusive bonus materials not available anywhere else 🎯 First look at all 52 micro-experiments before the world […]
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The Project Manager’s Secret: How Analytical Minds Master Innovation (Better Than “Creative Types”)
Quick note: No video this week, as I’m head-down working on my second book, Innovation at Work. I’ve cleared my calendar to devote every spare minute to book production, which meant making some hard choices! Watch for videos to return in a few weeks. In the meantime, enjoy this week’s article! Hey there, innovation champions! I need to […]
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Why Innovation Workshops Feel Good But Change Nothing (And What Actually Sticks)
Quick note: No video this week, as I’m head-down working on my second book, Innovation at Work. I’ve cleared my calendar to devote every spare minute to book production, which meant making some hard choices! Watch for videos to return in a few weeks. In the meantime, enjoy this week’s article! Hey there, innovation champions! You’ve been there. […]
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Create the Impossible™: The Complete System for Systematic Innovation
Quick note: No video this week, as I’m head-down working on my second book, Innovation at Work. I’ve cleared my calendar to devote every spare minute to book production, which meant making some hard choices! Watch for videos to return in a few weeks. In the meantime, enjoy this week’s article! Hey there, innovation champions! Here’s the pattern […]
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Learn Fast: How to Turn Every Failure Into Competitive Intelligence
Quick note: I had an amazing time facilitating an interactive session in Oakland for PMI San Francisco Bay Area this weekend! And October 8 I’m leading a virtual session for AMA New Jersey on “Communicating for Influence: A Taste of the Toolkit.” It’s a busy week! No video this week, aside from client work, I’m head-down working […]
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Make Crap: Why Productive Failure Beats Perfectionist Success
Quick note: Just back from keynoting in Alaska at NHRMA 2025. No video this week, as I’m head-down working on my second book, Innovation at Work. I’ve cleared my work calendar to devote every spare minute to book production, which meant making some hard choices! Watch for videos to return in a few weeks. In the meantime, […]
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Play Hard: Why Your Team’s Survival Depends on Strategic Fun
💡 Quick favor! My new book Innovation at Work is coming soon, and I need your help choosing the cover. 🎉 Two designs are in the running, and I’d love your vote. 👉 Vote in this quick LinkedIn poll And if you’d like to share why you prefer one over the other, reply here or drop your thoughts in […]
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The Multi-Billion Dollar Innovation Theater Problem
Quick note: No video this week, as I’m head-down working on my second book, Innovation at Work. I’ve cleared my calendar to devote every spare minute to book production, which meant making some hard choices! Plus a death in the family has thrown an added curveball into the mix. I’ll be out of state for the funeral for […]
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Lost In Translation: Why Brilliant Innovations Fail to Launch
Click to watch (11:27) or scroll down to read more Hey there, innovation champions! Imagine you’re in a room full of brilliant minds—data scientists, researchers, managers—all buzzing with groundbreaking ideas. The energy is electric. Innovation seems inevitable. But then… nothing happens. Sound familiar? Today we’re diving into one of the biggest innovation killers I see […]
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Back-to-School Innovation: Creating a Learning Organization
Click to watch (10:27) or scroll down to read more Hey there, innovation champions! When I was a kid, much as I dreaded the end of summer freedom, I confess I loved the fresh start feeling of “back to school.” New binder, new backpack, new pencils and erasers. With the unknown territory of a new teacher […]
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The Ultimate Innovation Lab: No Code – Just Courage
Click to watch (14:44) or scroll down to read more Hey there, innovation champions! This past week, I had the incredible opportunity to step inside what might be the most effective innovation lab I’ve ever witnessed. No, I wasn’t at Google’s X Lab or Meta’s Reality Labs. I wasn’t surrounded by cutting-edge technology or million-dollar prototypes. […]
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Innovation in the Pressure Cooker: Maintaining Creativity Under Deadline
Click to watch (12:08) or scroll down to read more Hey there, innovation champions! Have you ever noticed how some of your best ideas come when you’re under pressure? Today I want to share a story that completely changed how I think about deadlines and creativity—and how you can harness the power of the pressure cooker to fuel […]
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You Are Not a Prompt. You Are the Creator.
Click to watch (13:42) or scroll down to read more Hey there, innovation champions! Did you know I’m a singer-songwriter? However, for years, I didn’t write a single new song. Not one. Now, I’ve never been the most prolific—or speedy— of songwriters, but still, this creative drought felt… well, let’s just say it wasn’t great for […]
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When Your Inner Gremlins Drive the Bus: Six Cultural Drivers That Make or Break Innovation
Click to watch (20:39) or scroll down to read more Hey there, innovation champions! “I missed seeing more of you onstage today.” Those words from my teammate hit harder than any bad review could have. We’d just finished our performance at the California Long-form Improv Festival in LA, and I knew exactly what she meant. […]
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Nature’s Innovation Blueprint: Learning from the Ultimate Designer
Click to watch (18:41) or scroll down to read more Hey there, innovation champions! Back when I was a professional artist, I used to meet once a month with a group of about a dozen fellow calligraphers. Some were professionals, like myself, others pursued calligraphy as an avocation. Sara, the one who invited me to the […]
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