The Myths of Innovation

An interesting quote in this book review: Digital Web Magazine - Book Review The Myths of Innovation

 

We have deep flaws in our collective memory of innovation and invention. Ask anyone to give an example of innovation and you’ll typically hear the same examples—the Gutenberg press, the lightbulb, the automobile, the television, the computer. Berkun’s point is that both memory and history rarely acknowledge the gradual breakthroughs and back-story that support those innovations. Acknowledging the rich, intricate paths behind innovations is a good start to correcting the myths.

 

In the latter chapters, Berkun builds concrete steps to encourage real innovation. Strategies that foster innovation have echoes in the modern workplace—brainstorming, for instance—but they need to be brought back to their clear, conceptual roots. The unglamorous truth about innovation is that it is hard work. Elbow grease has been, and will always be, the real back-story of innovation.

 

The internet adds its own twist to the popular image of inventors laboring away in a garage. Berkun identifies the real story as innovation by curious path or teasing innovation out of gradual, iterative experimentation. Those of us in web professions might associate this with recent shifts toward iterative development and the buzz generated by releasing user-responsive beta projects (Flickr is a strong example), but Berkun champions innovation by curious path as an effective way to revive a culture of innovation.