A Joosr Guide to… Originals by Adam Grant

careful management of risk and establishing safety nets is a tried-and-tested method for becoming a great innovator.

Of course, some original products are the result of innovators working only on a single idea until it is perfected, but these tend to be rare cases brought about by exceptional people. For most, the surest route to producing original ideas is to produce a lot of ideas. By not limiting your possibilities or committing all your time to refining one idea or product, you greatly increase the chance that you will come up with something original and pioneering.

Studies have demonstrated that when something is presented in an entirely positive light, people begin immediately to search for the problems and the things they have not been told about. However, when they are confronted with the problems straight away, they trust that the person admitting this is self-aware, knowledgeable, and capable, and start focusing on the stronger aspects of the idea

Although it sounds counterintuitive, telling potential supporters in which areas an idea is most deficient may make an innovator seem more competent, confident, and honest.

Taking an interest in artistic fields and developing a creative hobby can be extremely useful for anyone looking to improve the originality of their ideas and products

In fact, part of the reason their ideas are so original is because their minds are also open to more creative or artistic interests.

innovators can use creative, artistic hobbies to bring them the fresh perspectives that lead to original ideas and innovations

the surest route to producing original ideas is to produce a lot of ideas

the writer C. S. Lewis wrote 74 books in his life, but his reputation stems almost entirely from his famous book series The Chronicles of Narnia

Salvador Dalí is famous as a highly original surrealist painter, but, of over 100 paintings and countless other pieces of art, most people know him only for the melting clocks in The Persistence of Memory