Four Future-Thinking Ways To Foster Innovation

@GETTY from Frobes

Entering a new year can become a time for reflection and introspection of what we have learned so far. 74.02% of Americans and 19% of Brits are determined to make a resolution to learn something new or make a lifestyle change in 2021. True innovators, those who are game-changers, know that to be successful, we must harness the energy of resolutions and transformations year-round to be successful and not only in the new year.

New Year’s resolutions are so common because change is inevitable. The future is inevitable. The past is concrete. Dr. Simon Sherry, a psychology and neuroscience professor at Dalhousie University, notes that “Humans enjoy temporal landmarks like New Year’s because it’s a chance to wipe the slate clean, to forget about the struggles, failures, transgressions” of the prior year. But innovative businesses go against the grain in this thinking. We remember our struggles and failures and use them as a launchpad for bigger, more empowering things, realizing that failure is not the opposite of success. In reality, failure is a fundamental part of success. 

It’s easy to remain “stuck in your ways,” and those who don’t desire to be a game-changer usually do. To usher your business into the future confidently and productively, you need to make resolutions to transform the way you think and act. Innovative businesses are ultimately the ones that survive and thrive. After all, as Confucius said, “The green reed which bends in the wind is stronger than the mighty oak which breaks in a storm.”

So how do you start to make these transformations to align yourself with the thinking and actions of innovators and game-changers?

Moonshot into the future and trackback to envision new ideas.

To create the future, start from the future! Innovators envision future possibilities, explorative disruptions and wild new ways of product/service developments. They think years into the future and then apply it to the here and now. Begin with envisioning new ideas farther into the future, beyond the boundaries of your own thoughts and limiting beliefs. Then ask yourself: How can I make this future a reality? When you broaden your thinking, you open up your mind to much bigger possibilities. 

For example, Arrow Electronics encourages its employees to live in a world that is “five years out.” This means that their work is fueled by dreams and desires of what the future could be. Given the popularity of voice-driven artificial intelligence tech, Arrow Electronics has already envisioned a world where power users will want a more do-it-yourself, hands-on approach to their digital assistants. Hence, they created the Google AIY Voice Kit — a customer-friendly kit that walks users through creating their very own voice-activated home assistant.

Connect social queues to unlock new opportunities.

Social (data) queues drive business innovation — and they are everywhere. The future belongs to innovative leaders who will connect the dots of what customers think, feel, want and need. Become a keen data analyst to gain valuable insight into where markets are headed and what new trends are emerging to unleash new opportunities.

For example, you might think that millennials desire cheap products to complement their income and high living cost. Put your ear to the ground and start connecting the dots, and you’ll learn that 73% of millennials prefer sustainability even if it comes with a higher price tag. That’s why we have a new wave of ethical consumerism companies like Patagonia (clothing) and Equal Exchange (coffee). Thinking even further than that, HowGood is an app developed to scan items and give a real-time sustainability analysis. Now that’s innovation.

Leverage your network to create new value.

Every company has an expected and reliable network of stakeholders, owners, employees, partners and consumers. This makes up the community you deal with on a day-to-day basis. Innovators who are game-changers always look to expand this circle. Often, this means fishing for network connections in unexpected places to create new value.

For example, innovative companies like Amazon, Shopify, Facebook, WeChat, eBay and Etsy have leveraged external networks far beyond their own developers, employees and users. Each has empowered self-employed individuals and small and medium-sized businesses to actively participate as producers of value on their online marketplace (digital platform), giving them reach they may not be able to achieve on their own. In exchange, each company enjoys additional profits and promotions through the value and efforts created by this network.

Continuously empower and explore your business.

Leading your business confidently into the future relies on two things: empowering your core business within its current marketplace and making room for creative and curious exploration of new growth engines. You want to remain rooted in what you do best and simultaneously explore cultivating next-step thinking to set the foundation of your future enterprise.

A great example of this is Google. Google remains a steadfast leader in search engine software and productivity apps, making revenue primarily through Ads and AdSense. However, the company headquarters allots 20% of its developers’ paid time to work on passion projects and new ideas. In fact, Google’s email service, Gmail, was created by developer Paul Buchheit during his 20% of free-thinking time. Amazing things can come from allowing yourself to explore, develop and expand upon what you already do.

Whether you are an innovator, a game-changer or looking to become one, the key ingredient that will propel you into the future is a future mindset, fueled by an imaginative, curious and open mind that will relentlessly focus on unlocking new opportunities to improve your customers’ lives. Connect the dots, expand and leverage your network and use your core competencies to power experimentation. The future is yours for the taking once you learn to elevate your thinking in this way.

This article was originally published on Forbes.