Creativity and Novelty | Invention and Innovation

"One of the buzzwords you hear a lot in the business world these days, is “Innovation”. Yes, it’s a genuinely worthy thing to aspire to. Genuine innovation creates lots of genuine value, every young intern knows this. Which is why people like to throw it around like confetti. It’s one of those words that sound good in meetings, regardless of how serious one is about ACTUALLY innovating ANYTHING."

“Innovative” is an “external” word. It can be measured. It generally talks about things that have been tested properly and found to have worked in the real world."

“Creative”, however, is more of an “internal” word. It’s subjective, it’s murkier. It’s far harder to measure, it’s far harder to define. It’s an inward journey, not outward. Which is why a lot of people in business try to keep the word out of their official lexicon, preferring instead more neutral, more externally-focused language like “Value”, “Excellence”, “Quality” and yes, “Innovation”.

- Hugh MacLeod-

Creativity, novelty, invention and innovation.

These are the topic in lesson 2. Well, when I came across this in the class first word that caught my attention is 'invention'. Well, simply because it is easier to understand compared to others but actually the word itself portrays the relationship between creativity and invention. In my opinion the greatest inventor of all time is John Boyd Dunlop (1840-1921). He is the recognized inventor of the first practical pneumatic or inflatable tyre. Why do I choose him? Because I wish I would think about that earlier than he was. Actually, in any vehicle components tyres are vital parts however certain people do not appreciate the importance of tyres. Well, enough about invention before I start babbling about tyres. Let's move on to the definition of those four terms so that we may understand the topic in further details. In this case I would love to use

Theodore Levitt’s classic definition of creativity and innovation.

[Theodore Levitt’s classic definition of creativity and innovation]

Creativity is thinking up new things. Innovation is doing new things.

Creativity = Ideas

but

Innovation = Ideas + Action

The ideas are often judged more by their novelty than by their potential usefulness, either to consumers or to the company.

Creativity = Novelty

but

Innovation = Novelty + Value

It’s hard to argue with the logic. No reasonable person would claim ideas are more valuable than action – but then creative people are notoriously unreasonable.

Or are they?

Summary

Creativity is marked by the ability or power to create, to bring into existence, to invest with a new form, to produce through imaginative skill, to make or bring into existence something new.

Creativity is like a cat chasing its tail.

In the act of creating or in solving problems in creative ways we often go round and round in endless circles wanting to pounce on an idea. Sometimes the answer or solution is right before our eyes but we can't see it. In order to find the solution, find the missing piece, solve the problem, we need to just look at something familiar in a new and different way.

Novelty is considered as an essential factor of being creative. It is the quality of offering a new and unusual experience through conception. It is also related with originality which is the quality of being new and original (not derived from something else).

Invention is

"the discovery or creation of a new material (either a new manufactured product or a new composition or matter), a new process, a new use for an existing material, or any improvements of any of these."

Inventions are easy to define but can be difficult to recognize.

So when is something an invention? Obviously it must be new, but if I throw paint at the wall , then I’ve created something new while not something inventive. It must be new in the sense that it has novelty and utility. Unlike creativity, inventiveness seems to require the creation of a tool of some sort that others can use. Invention can somehow be disassociated from creativity in the sense that one can slog one’s way to an invention (or utility creation) without the flash of inspiration and imagination that is associated with creativity.

Innovation

however, requires the contexts of both the past and the future. Innovation must be creative (the past, see above), but must also cause a change in the creations of others (the future).

If the invention improves some product, process or service for the public, then that invention transforms into an innovation.

Innovation thus demands a social context of some sort that creativity does not.