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Topics Page numbers
Introduction & definition 2
Difference between creativity and innovation 2
Where do one end and the other begin? 3
Can we have one without the other? 3
What would be the result if you did? 4
What is your experience? 4
Is it important that we have creative people in our business? 4
Are creative people born or developed – nature or nurture? 5
Should we try to find and hire creative geniuses? 6
What is your experience in this area? 6
Conclusion 7
References 8
Hand drawn mind map (included)
Created by Gopinath Kochunni
MEI-5262364

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Creativity and innovation – Important to business today?
Introduction and definition
“Although neither the Greeks nor the Romans had a word that directly corresponds to the
word “creativity,” their art, architecture, music, inventions and discoveries provide
numerous examples of what is today described as creative works? At the time the concept
of “genius” probably came closest to describing the creative talents that bought forth such
works.”
Creativity is typically used to refer to the act of producing new ideas, approaches or
actions while innovation is the process of both generating and applying such creative
ideas in some specific context.
In the context of an organization therefore the term innovation if often used to refer to the
entire process by which an organization generates creative new ideas and converts them
to novel, useful and viable commercial new products, services, and business practices,
while the term creativity is reserved to apply specifically to the generation of novel ideas
by individuals or groups, as a necessary step within the innovation process.

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Where do one end and the other begin?
If creativity is creating new ideas of thought then innovation is the putting into action,
this can be said as the second stage of the process.
“Innovation typically involves creativity. But is not identical to it: innovation involves
acting on the creative ideas to make specific and tangible difference in the domain in
which innovation occurs.”
“All innovation begins with creative ideas …. We define innovation as the successful
implementation of creative ideas within an organization. In this view creativity by
individuals and teams is a starting point for innovation; the first is necessary but not
sufficient condition for the second”.
Amabile et al (1996)
If we need to have a clear breakthrough we will need to have more than the generation of
ideas we will need to have clear vision and must be able to put into action. This will have
a positive outcome on the results or a significant change in the direction of the
organization.
I think in an organizational context there is going to continuous change and change only
will be constant. For an organization to survive in the fast paced world it will need to be
continuously creative on put these creative ideas into action by constant innovation. it
will be these subtle change in direction which will make or break an entity in the long
run, as a matter of fact it survival might depend on it.
Can you have one without the other?
You cannot have one without the other if creativity is the beginning then innovation is the
natural continuation of the process and it branches off to more creative thinking and
further into more innovation.
“The horse is here to stay, but the automobile is only a fad.” … President of the Michigan
savings bank advising Henry ford’s lawyer not to invest in the ford company.
The art of creativity, by D Goleman. P. Kaufman

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What would be the result if you did?
If you only have creativity and no innovation you will be having plenty of ideas and no
results to validate these ideas. As out of 100 ideas you might have one which will work.
Even if you constantly innovate without creative ideas to fine tune further product or
service improvement you will be overtaken by your competitors.
What is your experience?
One of my first experiences in creativity and innovation was when I had to open a
restaurant in New Zealand with not much money in my pocket. I had managed to get the
funds to start the place up then the biggest challenge was how to be different from all the
other Indian restaurants in town. To make a distinction I started the first Indian seafood
restaurant and managed to shoot up to the top 3 Indian restaurants in New Zealand in the
first year. But I had to continuously innovate and make subtle changes in the way I do
business to keep in front of the competition.
Currently where I manage a hotel we had this wending machine which dispenses Frozen
food in plastic container. what we found out when you make a selection, the machine
drops the container on to a tray and when the customer microwaves it there used to be
broken plastic in the food. What we did was to change to order of the food in the
machine, they had wraps in the lover shelves and the plastic tubs in the top shelve. We
rearranged to shelves so the wraps were on the top shelves and the plastic tubs on the
bottom shelve so they did have to travel too much to the bottom.
Is it important that we have creative people in our business?
If you mange to get creative people in the organization it would be very helpful it will
also increase the total IQ of the organization. Even though it will be difficult for small
companies to hire people from music or arts rather than a typical company which has
marketing or technical staff in their team.
When you start including talent from music or arts it is like creating ideas from both the
hemispheres of the brain.
“For sustainable success managers must also master another game, understanding how
and when to initiate revolutionary innovation and in turn revolutionary organizational
change.”
Winning through innovation, page 3, Michael L Tushman, Charles A O Reilly 111

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Are creative people born or developed – nature or nurture?
One of the best examples in history is of Thomas Edison who was a prolific inventor.
“In school the young Edison’s mind often wandered and his teacher the reverend Engle,
was overheard of calling him “addled.” This ended Edison’s three months of official
Schooling. He recalled later, “My mother was the making of me. She was so true, so sure
of me; and I felt I had something to live for, someone I must not disappoint.” His mother
home schooled him. Much of his education came from reading R.G Parkers School of
natural philosophy and The Cooper union.”
“He sold candy and newspaper on trains running from Port Huron to Detroit, as well as
vegetables he sold to supplement his income. This began Edison’s long streak of
Entrepreneurial ventures as he discovered his talent as a business person. These
eventually led him to found 14 companies, including General electric, which is still in
existence and one of the largest publicly trading companies in the world.”
www.wikipedia.org
Another creative genius was Einstein his father had showed him a pocket compass, which
made him realize there, must be something there in space, which was thought of as
empty. It is said this had made a deep and lasting impression on him. He had grown up
making mechanical devices and models for fun.
In the world of art we have Picasso who is said to have shown passion and skill at a very
young age the first words were “Piz, Piz” which is a shortened word for pencil in
Spanish. He had also received formal art training from his father.
When you look at all these there examples you can see of them only Picasso can be said
to be a born genius but as all there show there was somebody in their live who had
nurtured them and shown them the direction. Like in Edison’s child hood his mother
played and important role, Einstein and Picasso’s fathers also had played an important
role in their upbringing.
In Hinduism and Buddhism rebirth is accepted part of life and human beings are said to
carry their knowledge from their previous births on to the current. Life is considered a
journey and birth, death is a continuum, and death is not an end but a further beginning.
“The concept of spiritual rebirth is not unique to Buddhism. All Christians know the story
of Saul being reborn on the road to Damascus when self-realization turned Saul from a
bigoted persecutor to a saintly soul named Paul. In Buddhism, for example there are
many different perspectives on enlightenment. Some think it happens suddenly; others
believe it only comes about through a gradual process of deepening awareness.”
Das Surya, Awakening the Buddha within: eight steps to enlightenment, page 15

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Should we try to find and hire creative geniuses?
Yes, we should hire creative geniuses if we can find them and so everybody wants them
too. It will be more successful as an organization if we can train the current recourses in
the organization itself will of much use. To use innovation it is important to have people
who have skills to tackle the problem at hand, in the article “Idea summit” by Ralph
smith, he talks about “7 levels of thinking, and 7 corresponding levels of action, being
creative is when you think about your thinking, being innovative is when you act on your
ideas.”
“The seven levels, level one is effectiveness – doing right things, level Two is efficiency
– doing things right, Level three is improving - doing the right thing better, Level four is
cutting - doing away with things, Level five is copying – doing thing other people are
doing, level six is different – doing things no one else is doing, Level seven is
impossible- doing things that cant be done.”
Ralf smith, ‘ideas summit’
When you look at some of the greatest minds in the world even though they are born with
exceptional talent they were nurtured by people close them or situation and shown
direction. In the current age, it is better to mould people with proper creativity, and
innovation training during the growth of the organization on a recurring basis says every
16 to 18 months so they are able to keep ahead of competition.
What is your experience in this area?
My experience in this area is I have always used education all along in my life to stay
ahead and it also given me the opportunity to look back and see what lack of knowledge I
had during my entrepreneurial stint. If had knowledge of thinking skills like six hats and
use of mind maps I think I would have handled these situation differently.
“Not all motivation is created equal; an inner passion to solve the problem at hand leads
to solutions far more creative than do external rewards, such as money. This component
called intrinsic motivation – is the one that can be most immediately influenced by the
work environment.”
How to kill creativity by Teresa M. Amabile

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This is the kind of intrinsic motivation, which helped to build my first business. When
you have intrinsic motivation I was able to work eighteen hours a day seven days a week
and it was pure satisfaction to be on top of the business. However, during the long run it
wore me down. I think I was motivated primarily by interest, challenge and pure
satisfaction against all odds. I think all three pillars, creativity, innovation and motivation
are important to be successful.
In the article the art of creativity, D Goleman, P. Kaufman talks about the white moment.
“When creativity is in full fire, people can experience what athletes and performers call
the”white moment.” Everything clicks. Your skills are perfectly suited to the challenge
that you seem to blend with it. Everything feels harmonious, unified, and effortless…
That white moment is what psychologists call “flow.” In flow, people are at their peak.
Flow can happen in any domain of activity. The one requirement is that your skills so
perfectly match the demands of the moment that all self-consciousness disappears. If
your skills are not up to the challenge, you experience anxiety, if your skills are too great,
you experience boredom.”
Conclusion:
Creative people are born but they are far and few in-between, it is more important to
learn how to think constructively and continuously innovate. With practice this will
become better. I have already started using mind maps and six hats thinking, we had to
buy a car and I was able to make a good decision with my wife and it was very quick. I
have also used both the systems in my future venture, as I was not able to see clearly how
to go about setting up this business.
Another key area is acquiring new skills like music, dance, painting and drawing to look
at issues from a different perspective and come to solutions completely different. Another
important factor which I have started using is visualization and focus and the practice of
meditation. When you have your body, mind in harmony and you have focus things start
appearing by magic. Another key is continuous learning and upgrading of your skills to
reach the white moment I have discussed earlier and to reach Flow.

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Reference
1. Marc J Dollinger, Entrepreneurship strategies and resources.
2. Buskirk and Lavik, Entrepreneurial marketing, real stories and survival
strategies.
3. Andrew J. Durbin, Carol Dalglish, Leadership an Australasian focus
4. Michael l. Tushman, Charles A. O’Reilly 111.Winning through innovation, a
practical guide to leading organizational change and renewal
5. www.Wikipedia.org, viewed 28th September 2008
6. www.Mindfood.com, viewed 7th October 2008
7. Mark Victor Hansen, Robert G Allen The one minute manager
8. Rhonda Byrne The Secret
9. ‘Idea Summit’, Rolf Smith
10. ‘How to kill Creativity,’ Teresa M. Amabile
11. ‘The Art of creativity,’ D. Goleman. P. Kaufman
12. Edward de bono, 2000, Six thinking hats, Great Britain
13. Tony Buzan, Mind maps
14. Das surya, Awakening the Buddha within: eight step’s to enlightenment, 1997
New York

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