As anyone who invests in the stock market knows, greater risk equals greater potential.  That potential could be a huge return or a colossal failure.  To minimize the potential for loss, one would by necessity reduce the risk involved. Take this same concept and apply it to innovation. Truly innovative people and businesses understand that to achieve greater levels of creativity requires a high tolerance for risk.  As John Ortberg once wrote, to walk on water one must get out of the boat.  This involves risk.  You might sink!  The product you launch might fail.  Your illustration might bomb. Attached to risk is fear.  We are afraid of what we don't know or don't understand.  We are afraid of failing.  So what do some folks do?  To reduce fear, they reduce risk.  It's natural.  But it's not the best route to innovation. Safety and creativity don't necessarily go hand-in-hand.  It's…

"He who lives by the approval of others will die by the absence of the same." - Steven Furtick

Which kind of leader are you? The Wannabee.  This person wants to be a leader or an entrepreneur or a church planter or a ... fill in the blank.  Why?  Because it's the cool thing to do.  It's trendy.  The wannabee doesn't have a personal sense of mission that is driving his or her decisions.  Without a deeply-felt sense of purpose, the wannabee drifts from conference to conference looking for what is currently in style. The Knowitall.  Most of us have known a know-it-all.  This is the person who has an answer to everything and therefore doesn't seek out the answers of others.  The knowitall already has it figured out.  What may be projected as confidence is really insecurity -- and a fear that they will be found out.  At the root of the knowitall is pride and an emphasis on "I". The Sponge.  How can you discern a sponge from a…

Passing along an interesting video of Seth Godin speaking about "This is Broken." Seth Godin at Gel 2006 from Gel Conference on Vimeo.