2B – THE WALL OF RATIONALITY

Most of us live within a "wall of rationality", which is a marvelous invention of civilization, made from the traditional wisdom concerning:

• what the world is like;
  
• how we ought to approach it;
  
• how situations are defined; and
  
• how one should go about addressing them.
  

In my particular case, the wall told me that: (a) the world is a dirty place; (b) I have a moral obligation to clean what I can; (c) scrubbing is the best way to clean; and (d) I should stretch my brain and discover the very best scrubbing technique.  I unleashed myself within that wall, and I generated a flurry of activity.  But I didn't have the foggiest notion of what existed on the other side of the wall, and that's why I didn't come up with the soaking technique myself.

What's the Difference?   In addition to making her over-educated husband look like a schmuck, Susie did something very important.  She illustrated the difference between innovation and creativity, which is the core of all this talk about the wall of rationality.

Innovation sits inside the wall. Creativity inhabits the great beyond.

 

I had been innovative.  I had adopted a traditional definition of the problem --- ie --- dirt requires a scrubbing methodology.  Then I built a very rational little wall around myself made from the bricks of what exactly scrubbing means.  In my defense, I did pretty well.  After all, I did discover a new use for the common toothbrush.  I was very innovative and I pushed to the outer limits of the wall.  But my accomplishments paled in comparison to Susie's.

Susie had been creative, rather than merely innovative.  Instead of getting trapped inside the traditional wall of rationality, she vaulted it and ran into the great beyond.  And there she built a new wall --- based on a completely different definition.  She didn't see the problem as a scrubbing problem ... she redefined it as a soaking problem.  After that it was easy.

		Creativity			If you want to see the difference between innovation and creativity in its starkest form, consider this.  Good solid innovation led me to a solution that would have taken 4 hours.  Creativity led Susie to a 10 minute solution.
		Innovation
Creativity		Paradigm		Creativity
		Innovation
		Creativity

When you think about your own business, your own life, your own relationships --- do you want to settle for innovation -- or would you like to have a little creativity?

   

© 2009 Joe Anderson