Bright Ideas

What Jeff Bezos And Bill Gates Learned About Failure That Made Them Successful

August 24, 2020

A common trait of many great leaders, innovators, and entrepreneurs is a risk mindset. They have learned that you have to embrace failure to uncover success.

Why You Should Do What Others Say Can’t Be Done

August 17, 2020

“Impossible” is a static perception of the current situation when, in reality, we live in a dynamic world - one continually being redefined by innovation. Use these strategies to overcome the many perceived limitations that you are likely to encounter.

When It Comes To Innovation, Don’t Ask The Customer

The most innovative companies understand that while you need to focus on the customer, you shouldn’t expect them to tell them what to do.  

Why ‘Thinking Outside The Box’ Is The Wrong Way To Approach Innovation

Thinking Outside the Box is considered a logical starting point for teams looking for new ideas. But here’s the problem: it’s doesn't work. Why? Because it creates an unintended, self-limiting mind trap that prevents people from seeing what might really be possible.

What This 3-Minute Scene From ‘The West Wing’ About Maps Can Teach You About Leadership

Great leaders not only have a vision but an honest and accurate understanding of their starting point. It’s critical for leaders to constantly challenge conventional thinking by asking themselves these three “What if?” questions early and often.

Don’t Complain About Problems. Have Fun Solving Them.

Three ways you can embrace the advice of Shake Shack founder Danny Meyer to "stop complaining about problems" and instead focus on what you can do about them.

In Business, As In Life, The Greatest Risk Is Doing Nothing

It turns out that “nothing ventured, nothing gained” is more than a centuries-old adage. It’s the key to your business and career success. Here are five reasons why you want to get good at taking risks.

Leading Innovation Is Messy, So Get Over It

To seriously innovate, forget order and predictability — leaders need to get their hands dirty and fully embrace the fact that innovation is messy.

Thank You Mr. Edison, We’ll Take It From Here

In 2006, LEDs emerged as a potentially disruptive technology for lighting. As the traditional lighting companies struggled to adapt, the technology kept improving - eventually forcing all three major lighting companies out of the business.

Why ‘The Last Dance’ Is Must-See TV For Business Leaders

Play to win. Successful companies need employees that aren’t afraid of being pushed and challenged, and that don’t back down when the going gets tough. But while everyone may say they want to win, not everyone is willing to go all in—to do whatever it takes to get there. And that means leaders must be able to discern who is—and isn’t—willing to play to win.

Why Inexperience Makes Young Professionals Better Innovators

A Wired article once dubbed innovation “the most important and overused word in America.” And, still today, it seems that the more we say the word, the less we actually do it. But it doesn’t have to be that way.

Innovation is the "great equalizer". It not only gives underdogs a chance but oftentimes, it gives them an advantage. And while the experience is critical to success in many business pursuits, when it comes to innovation, there’s a benefit to knowing less. In other words, it’s a plus to be inexperienced.

How to build a team of innovators

As increasing competition, new technologies and evolving customer expectations continue to disrupt nearly every industry, business leaders are turning to innovation as a way to keep their companies relevant. The standard solution is to create teams that focus explicitly on innovation. The problem? Most of these teams struggle to innovate, often delivering incremental improvements at best.

Embracing the Challenges that Spur Innovation

Think about a challenging problem that you just couldn’t figure out. If you knew that the fate of your career (or your company) depended on finding a solution, what might you try?

We spend much of our lives avoiding difficult situations and, in the process, we miss incredible opportunities for innovation. A 16th-century proverb says, “Necessity is the mother of invention.” It also happens to be the mother of innovation. When your back is against the wall, the will to survive brings about an incredible sense of focus — which is especially powerful in a multitasking world littered with distractions.

Why the old brainstorming rules are out - and the creative power of healthy debate is in.

At some point, we’ve all been there—holed up in a meeting in hopeless pursuit of bold ideas for a new product, service or marketing campaign. Then, as if by cue, a leader pipes up and proposes having a “brainstorming” session. And while there’s a time and a place for such an approach, it first requires understanding the specific conditions necessary to find the best ideas.

Smart leaders purposely put themselves at the bottom of the org chart.

“Management is about persuading people to do things they do not want to do, while leadership is about inspiring people to do things they never thought they could.”

That’s how Steve Jobs, who famously built Apple into an innovation juggernaut, once framed the distinction between leading versus managing.

Features versus benefits: Why the iPhone succeeded - and Google Glass failed

The iPhone is a great example of a successful innovation, and the now-ubiquitous product lives on with new iterations every year. 

Google Glass, on the other hand, is a great example of an invention that failed—meeting its maker less than two years after its launch. (Although not before bringing the world so-called “glassholes.”) 

Innovation isn’t the answer to all your problems.

A recent article in Harvard Business Review argues: “Innovation is the buzzword. In fact, it has been the buzzword for so long, you could say we’ve developed a cult around it.” 

I may be biased—having spent my career pursuing real innovation—but I wholeheartedly agree.

The Innovator’s Spirit is a must-have mindset. Here’s how to uncover yours.

In its most basic form, innovation implies something new, that solves a customer problem, and creates real value. But peel back the layers and delve deeper, and you’ll find it’s much more than that. 

Career plans aren’t successful. People are.

What is career success, really? 

For many people, it’s what someone achieves, and in the business world, that’s often measured by title, recognition, fame, or wealth. So when it comes to developing their own plan for career success, they logically start with those goals in mind and then take a step-by-step approach to getting there.

3 Habits that will expand your spirit of innovation

Innovation is something many organizations want but struggle to achieve. They use a range of tools to guide teams through the creative process, yet the result is often not innovative.

How the management trap hurts innovation

Every year, the Drucker Institute, in partnership with The Wall Street Journal, ranks America’s largest publicly traded companies according to Peter Drucker’s principles of effectiveness—“doing the right things well.” In 2019, Amazon, Microsoft, and Apple took the top spots. Surprised? Probably not. Yet what is surprising is that the list also singles out something else: the companies that are not innovative.

COVID-19 Is Making Alexa And Siri A Hands-Free Necessity

Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, Americans are practicing social distancing and numerous other measures to “slow the spread and save lives.” The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that, among other things, we avoid touching high-touch surfaces in public places (i.e., elevator buttons and handrails) and, at home, routinely clean and disinfect frequently touched surfaces (i.e., doorknobs, light switches, and cell phones).

How to stay virtually connected on your own terms

You’re probably reading this article on a computer. Next to you is your phone, buzzing with multiple notifications. Your smartwatch is strapped to your wrist, letting you know it’s time to stand, and you’re squeezing this reading in before a video chat with an international client.

In an Economy Ravished by the Coronavirus, Companies Can Find a Silver Lining through Innovation

The coronavirus pandemic has created a serious global crisis. Worldwide, containment efforts to halt the spread of COVID-19 have had far-reaching impacts on both the global and local economies.

A Fast – and Brutally Effective – Way to Make Your Organization More Innovative 

Startups are good at innovation for many reasons, but the two most important ones are people and culture.

They attract people who are looking for a challenge and opt into taking risk in the pursuit of a potential, yet uncertain, upside. The successful ones create a culture that embraces problems as an opportunity to break the rules and find a better way. There are clear incentives to succeed and significant repercussions if you don’t – like losing your job. These organizations are often resource-limited, which creates an incredible focus on only doing what really matters.

For Industry Leaders, Social Distancing Is An Opportunity To Seize—Not A Problem To Solve

Life certainly has changed in the last six weeks. 

Just think, in mid-February, things were humming along. The stock market was up. Sports leagues were playing. Schools and workplaces were abuzz. Bars and restaurants were serving. Travelers were on the move. And the novel coronavirus, while grim, was largely a China problem.

People, Not Technology, Failed In The 2020 Iowa Caucuses

Last month, the 2020 Iowa Democratic caucuses were the center of national attention for all the wrong reasons. The Iowa Democratic Party attempted to use a new and untested app-based reporting system, named IowaRecorder, that due to usage and interface failures, forced precinct chairs to submit their results by phone or regular mail—causing major delays over the course of several chaotic, contentious days. The calamity—declared an “unmitigated disaster” by one media outlet—was a critical reminder as to why technology companies rigorously test new products before releasing them to the market. 

George Washington Is One Of The Greatest Innovators Of All Time

Ryan Allis at Hive, a global community of entrepreneurs, innovators, and investors, published a list a few years ago titled “The 12 Greatest Innovators of All Time.” On it are the usual suspects, such as Thomas Edison, Benjamin Franklin, Alexander Graham Bell, Marie Curie, and in the modern era, Steve Jobs and Bill Gates. And, to be sure, all deserve the accolade. But the list has a glaring omission: George Washington.

The Coronavirus Crisis Is Creating Problems, But It’s Also Creating Tremendous Opportunities

The coronavirus pandemic is a serious global concern. A worldwide containment effort to halt the spread of COVID-19 has had far-reaching impacts on both the world economy and local communities.

An Innovative Culture Requires Brutal Candor

Innovation is hard enough when you have all the facts. But it’s virtually impossible when you deal in speculation, bad ideas, and corporate double-talk. The problem? Too many organizations lack the cultural values that support the necessary behaviors to innovate. They prioritize collegiality over constructiveness and harmony over harsh reality. 

Are You A Manager Or A Leader?

“Management is doing things right; leadership is doing the right things.”

That’s how Peter Drucker, the iconic father of modern management, characterized the difference between management and leadership. And as someone who has long studied the connection between innovation and leadership, I couldn’t agree more. Why? Because the behaviors that make someone an effective manager are often in conflict with those required for innovation.

Hiring A Chief Innovation Officer Is A Bad Idea

You’ll have almost no chance to really innovate—and here’s why.

Recently, Harvard Business Review published an article titled What Kind of Chief Innovation Officer Does Your Company Need? In it, the authors describe the growing demand for such an executive-level role and discuss ideas on how to consider it relative to your organization’s own needs. 

Whiskey Can Teach Us A Thing Or Two About Innovation

Imagine that you run a business where, above all else, your customers value how long it takes to make your product. The longer it takes, the better the outcome—or so believes the customer. You’ve become an expert at using time to make the best product possible. And that, hands down, is your competitive advantage. 

To Hire Talent Wired For Innovation, Focus On Mindset—Not Skill Set

Looking for true innovators? Turn traditional hiring on its head. According to the consulting firm McKinsey, 84 percent of executives agree that innovation is critical for their business. But here’s the rub: only 6 percent are satisfied with their performance. To succeed going forward, they’ll need to do many things. Among them is to hire talent wired for innovation.

Clay Christensen’s Lasting Impact On How We Think About Innovation

The Innovator’s Dilemma was published in 1997 by Harvard Business School professor Clayton M. Christensen. The Economist named it one of the six most important books about business ever written. George Gilder, author, and supply-side economics pioneer, called it “a masterpiece...the most profound and useful business book ever written about innovation.”

George Washington is One of the Greatest Innovators of All Time

Ryan Allis at Hive, a global community of entrepreneurs, innovators, and investors, published a list a few years ago titled “The 12 Greatest Innovators of All Time.” On it are the usual suspects, such as Thomas Edison, Benjamin Franklin, Alexander Graham Bell, Marie Curie, and in the modern era, Steve Jobs and Bill Gates. And, to be sure, all deserve the accolade. But the list has a glaring omission: George Washington.

Apple Hasn’t Been Innovative For A Decade. What Are They Missing?

It seems as though everyone is using the word innovation these days. It has become one of those buzzwords that is being applied to anything and everything. With so many companies looking for something new to help their business, it's not surprising there is a strong motivation to claim innovation whether or not it is real.

12 Ideas to Start Leading

Are you a leader or a manager? Despite what some people think, they are not the same thing. Management is getting someone to do what you want to deliver a predictable outcome. Leadership is getting people to work together to do something that might not be possible.

A Different Kind of Podcast

Have you ever had your boss walk into a meeting and proclaim “We need to innovate!” Innovation has become the buzzword of the decade. To create new products and services. To find new customers and markets. To work smarter, not harder. Innovation isn’t optional; it’s an imperative. If you don’t innovate, you’re dead in the water. Many people talk about innovation, but few have done it. So how do you separate the signal from the noise?

When your body calls a time out

It was early February 2017. It had been a stressful morning at work. I was coming back from lunch and walking up the stairs to my third-floor office when I started to feel light-headed. I was out of breath, and my heart was racing. I asked my assistant to come in to my office. She took my pulse and said we needed to call an ambulance.

Thoughts from Normandy

This year marks the 75th anniversary of D-Day. My visit to Normandy was a reminder of the lessons from what has been called the “greatest generation” and what it means to be a person for others.

Life After Being a CEO

In May of 2017, I announced that I was stepping down as Cree’s Chairman and CEO. I’ve since discovered that there is more to life than I would have thought.

From Bagging Groceries to Running a Tech Company: Lessons Learned from My #FirstSevenJobs

Little did I know, my first job (and the six positions that followed) would help shape my core values and how I ran Cree as CEO. The lessons I learned from those jobs have had a lasting impact.

How do big companies keep innovating? They act small.

In the early days at Cree, we had very big goals but with very limited resources. The founders cultivated an environment of small teams, each focused on one part of the problem enabling them to take the risks required to invent new technology. 

Bringing the Jetsons Simplicity to Lighting IoT

Remember The Jetsons? This show served as a great reminder that most people don’t care about how technology works; they just want it to work, and work simply.