Imagine someone else’s solution

THE PRINCIPLE

Imagining how a well-known innovator (or company) would attack the problem can lead to new ideas

When you have a challenge or want to come up with a new idea, try imagining how a well-known innovator like Walt Disney or an innovative company like Apple or Virgin would handle it. Decide what are the two or three distinguishing features of that person or company, and consider how to apply those to your problem.

To see how this works, let’s assume that your challenge is finding ways to motivate people to recycle more.

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The Walt Disney solution would be family-friendly and fun. Could you develop a game that makes recycling enjoyable and maybe competitive? The Disney company promote their movies with McDonald’s. Could you do the same and get a restaurant chain to offer coupons for the kids who are most successful coming up with recycling schemes for their family? Or get them to sponsor a recycling day once a year?

Apple would find an innovative and stylish solution. Could you collaborate with a company that would design attractive, streamlined recycling containers? Could the existing recycling bins be fitted with a unit that says ‘Thank you!’ each time someone deposits something? Or could charity shops be given tokens for iTunes downloads to hand out to people who bring in a certain amount of clothing or other goods?

Virgin would find a brash solution and launch it with a stunt featuring Richard Branson doing something daring. Can you think of a stunt to draw attention to the cause of recycling? Could you find a celebrity to front it? If not Sir Richard, maybe a television personality or an actor from one of the popular soaps?

Of course, you don’t have to limit yourself to my examples. Make your own list of people and companies you consider innovative. List the attributes of each, and then go down the list and brainstorm how those attributes could be applied to your challenge, invention or idea.

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