Part 2: Taking a Creative Idea to Action
Now assess your skills at taking a good idea to implementation and producing results. Plan
actions as appropriate.
Innovation assessment Your personal
question assessment Action plan to improveSECTION 6 TOOLS FORCRITICALTHINKING ANDINNOVATION 191
How creative is your own thinking
style?
How threatened are you by someone
else generating a new idea?
How prepared are you to deal with the
ambiguity and risk new ideas bring?
How often do you use negative
phrases like, “We’ve tried that,” “It
won’t work here,” “They won’t go for
it,” or “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it”?
How skilled are you at encouraging
new ideas?
How skilled are you at encouraging
participation?
How many creativity techniques are
used by yourself and your workgroup?
How well do you deal with failure?
(No new idea is foolproof.)
How conscious and skilled are you at
understanding problem frames and
reframing?
How skilled are you at border guard-
ing—providing creativity and
innovation space for individuals and
groups?
How often do you explicitly discuss
creativity and innovation with your
workgroup?
How balanced are you in your
lifestyle: learning, reading, and
contributing outside your profession
and worklife so you have “lateral-
thinking” life experiences?[☛14.7 Personal Preferences][☛15.6 Defenses][☛10.7 Getting Participation][☛7.1 Problem Framing][☛10.8 Ground Rules][☛15.1 Balance]How skilled are you at massaging an
idea to make it more workable and
results-oriented?
How conscious are you of establishing
an innovation culture?
How skilled are you at selling a new
idea?Innovation assessment Your personal
question assessment Action plan to improve[☛4.5 Culture][☛9.7 Selling Wheel]