Business innovation: the value of role-playing

Creativity can be defined as the identification of problems and the generation of ideas, while innovation can be defined as the selection, development and commercialization of ideas.

There are other useful definitions in this field, for example, creativity can be defined as a series of ideas, several diverse ideas, and several novel ideas.

There are different processes that improve problem identification and idea generation, and similarly, different processes that improve idea selection, development, and commercialization. While there is no sure route to commercial success, these processes improve the likelihood that good ideas will be generated and selected, and that investment in developing and commercializing those ideas will not be wasted.

role play value

One of the useful concepts in managing creativity is the use of role-playing. The basis of this is the awareness of archetypes: stereotyped characters like Mentor, Goddess, Hippy and Guru etc. Jung argues that the archetypes are universal and appear most strongly in our dreams. Mask and Trance studies show that when we put on a mask, we take on the characteristics of what we perceive that mask (or associated individual) to represent.

In a study in the British Journal of Psychology, businessmen scored low on creativity when asked to be themselves, but scored much higher when asked to pretend to be happy-go-lucky hippies.

Skins remove the evaluation apprehension associated with blocking. Masking allows people to come up with unoriginal or unintelligent ideas because “they’re not” doing it.

Role playing, simulating how a mentor, sailor, guru, or other would answer a question, allows the individual to access a rich source of subconscious tacit knowledge.

These and other topics are covered in depth in the MBA dissertation on Managing Creativity and Innovation, which can be purchased (along with a Creativity and Innovation Audit, Good Idea Generator software, and a PowerPoint presentation) at http://www.managing-creativity.com/

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