In order to foster creativity and imaginative thinking, we must create a safe environment in which people can express their thoughts and feelings without judgement and fear of criticism. Often the expressed judgment of a boss, co-worker or instructor will kill an idea that has some potential.
Feedback is often not offered when things are going well, yet the minute team members do something wrong, criticism is quickly delivered.
You never know who might have that one idea or formula that will take your company to an unequivocal position. Criticism of an idea or suggestion cuts off the valuable flow of creativity and enthusiasm. It’s almost like saying a person’s idea is stupid and should be discounted. The next time this person has an idea, she will keep it to herself. But this new idea might have been the one you needed to hear.
What if the Kellogg brothers had listened to the criticism they received? They were condemned by marketing experts who predicted failure by saying the new product was horse food! The name for this cold cereal is still known today. We call it Corn Flakes!
Had Alexander Graham Bell listened to the voice of judgment from his banker, the telephone might never have been in our lives. His banker told him, “Get out of my bank with that ridiculous toy!” That ridiculous toy was one of the first telephones Bell ever made.
The Post-It-Note invention was almost killed by the voice of judgment. In 1974, Art Fry, an employee of 3M, invented those “sticky notes.” He got tired of the loss of tiny bits of paper marking music verses in his hymn book. One day, he made some papers with adhesive backing. These worked so well that 3M presented the idea to office-supply distributors who thought they were silly. Yet 3M persisted and did not allow the voices of judgment to deter them. The little pads were mailed to secretaries of large companies. The idea stuck. Introduced in 1980, these Post-it Notes bring in well over $400 million in annual revenue. The voice of judgment can kill an idea in a second: “It’ll never work. That’s about the dumbest idea I ever heard. It’ll cost too much.” Critical comments are all too common.
Further, when employees feel discounted and unimportant, they begin to treat other people (including customers), systems and equipment the same way. This ultimately sabotages your success and destroys huge potential.
When it comes to creating an environment that will stimulate the imagination of your people, you must find ways to rid your organization of the fear of criticism, which squelches ideas and kills optimism.
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