Go ahead 'Think Inside the Box'. Prevailing innovation wisdom compels us to believe that innovation thrives in environments with constraints. Starting a new innovation project and want it to succeed? 1. Give it massive political support 2. But only give it a small team and a small amount of financial resources Give projects lots of money and they'll spend it de-risking the project instead of pushing the boundaries. Give projects lots of people and they'll spend most of their time in meetings or possibly even working against each other. So despite all the space in popular press given to 'Thinking Outside the Box', there are just as many supporting points for 'Thinking Inside the Box'. Braden Kelley http://blogginginnovation.com http://twitter.com/innovate http://innovationcommunity.ning.com (David Sable and others share their thoughts)

Great concept -- guess its true of a lot of things -- I always have belived that its easier to be creative on a blank canvas than on one that is partially started -- read that to mean -- in our business -- an environment where you are constrained by someone else's idea requires a greater degree of creativity.

All this talk about inside the box, outside the box.... The focus should be on the right solution for the task at hand, whether it's an old tried-and-true solution, or a bespoke solution derived from a moment of inspiration. Imagine if, every time you went to the doctor, he or she decided he was going to try a new medicine, course of therapy, or technique? you know, he wants to think outside the box. Would you send your child to a school that kept experimenting with new teaching methods, one right after the other? There are probably a whole lot of other equally interesting scenarios. An on-point "inside the box" solution executed flawlessly usually beats a poorly-executed "outside the box" solution done for the sake of being innovative. Of course, an on-strategy outside the box solution done well can revolutionize a way of doing something. Perhaps you can view inside the box thinking vs. outside the box thinking as playing small ball vs. swinging for the fences each time you go to the plate. You can win the game either way, it's just a question of which strategy to apply situationally. Sometimes you need to hit it out of the park to win, and sometimes you need to just get 'em on base one at a time. I'd imagine that both of them require different, complementary skillsets....

I, like David don't see anything wrong with the box. It happens to be full of the fundamentals that keep our feet planted firmly on the ground. The only problem, as I see it, is that we need to open the lid and look around a bit.

I like the lid analogy. Can I steal it? :-)

20 years ago I had a colleague who did strategic planning. He said he had a great life because all he did was set objectives, and then other people had to do the work of getting there. Strat planners nowadays seem to be a bit more accountable and attentive. The challenge is to move forward, and to commit to remaining true (and flexible) to the real objectives. That's the challenge for Obama and the US. It's easy enough to hold a steady tiller when the seas are calm, when the wind is steady, and when all destinations look pretty good. It's not like that now!

Stop discussing - vote for Obama ;-) Hopeful greetings from good old Europe Christian

"He who rejects change is the architect of decay. The only human institution which rejects progress is the cemetery." Interesting that Harold Wilson, a former British Prime Minister, uttered those very words. And one of the only things he ever said that I can agree with.

watch the US election results and see what you think about change

I wanted to wait to comment till after the election. The country clearly wants change we made that evident last night but to your point the scary part is we can't just rest and go back to the sidelines we know have to dive in head first, keeping the forward momentum is now on all of us. The opening bell rang this morning and reality seeped back in so the question is do we have the stomach for change. I'm hopeful we do as an individual, an industry and a country.

here is a thought -- real change requires real choice -- in fact someone wrote that democrarcy is not about voting -- think of all the countries that vote... -- democracy is about the choice we have in voting. And this election and its results are about real change and real democracy.