Which of the following two propositions makes you want to put down the TV remote and go do something interesting with your life?:
"Let's grab some coffee after lunch and talk about innovation."
or
"I had a dream about how to make man fly - could you help me hack together a prototype for a couple of hours this afternoon?"
It's the second one, right? It has to be.
Yes, it's a good thing to get to know the many flavors of innovation from a theoretical point of view, but we're all here to make a dent in the universe, right? That means doing stuff, and as with surfing or playing the piano, no amount of reading or talking about it will make you better. It's all about cycles of doing it.
So where am I going with this? Well, the finale of Ron Finley's TED talk made realized the folly of my ways on this blog. Here's the key line:
... if you want to meet, don't call me if you want to sit around in cushy chairs and have meetings where you talk about doing some shit -- where you talk about doing some shit. If you want to meet with me, come to the garden with your shovel so we can plant some shit.
My folly on metacool? Sadly, implying that nouns are more important than verbs. Henceforth, I will no longer refer to my Innovation Principles as such. From here on out, they are Principles for Innovating.
Doing, not talking.
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