One of the enemies of creativity and innovation, especially in relation to our own development, is common sense.

An inspiring video on persevering no matter how many times you have failed in life. Video by www.bluefishtv.com

For years people have been wondering ‘how they do it’ . The creative team behind the worlds leading Innovation Firm IDEO seems to come up with one genius idea after another and is now responsible for some of the most adopted product ideas in the world, starting with your computer mouse. In this book IDEO general manager Tom Kelley (brother of founder David Kelley) finally unwraps some of the secrets behind the success of IDEO.

The book talks about the ingredients of successful brainstorming, product launches, prototyping and the general joy of invention and tells it in an inspiring, motivating way without too much technobabble and ‘process flowcharts’. A great look behind the curtain, packed with anecdotes, stories and examples of how Great Ideas come to be.

Loved it because:

• Stories, stories, stories. Everything is beautifully illustrated with a story to tell you exactly what it is that made the idea special, and made it work.
• Proven Cases. IDEO’s trackrecord is impressive, and this book comes streight from the source. The experiences in there are real and invaluable.
• 10 really insightful tips for creating better products

You might not like it because:

• The book is written from a managers perspective. This makes sense given Tom Kelley’s responcibilities within the company as a general manager, but it makes most of his writing observations of best practises (such as ‘hot teams, perfect brainstorms and creating flaw-free products’) more descriptive rather than understanding the true nature of ‘why’ these processes worked so well for IDEO. This could be disappointing for people wanting to learn about the real thinking behind the IDEO innavation eco-system, but does not damage the practical uses of the book.

We should be taught not to wait for inspiration to start a thing. Action always generates inspiration. Inspiration seldom generates action.

If you only do what you know you can do- you never do very much.

Creativity is the ability to see relationships where none exist.