The First Frontier of Innovation: The Human Mind
This is the first of a six-part series discussing the mental qualities required from a new generation of innovators
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I’m fascinated by ideas that can solve humanity’s greatest challenges; and I wanted to dedicate my first post to celebrate a part of innovation that is easy to overlook.
When discussing creativity, we normally think of art, technology or breakthrough ideas, however, we often fail to ask where it all came from.
This question leads us to arguably the most complex subject we can indulge in: The human mind.
It arises from 100 billion neurons, each capable of making 1000 connections, giving you 100 trillion data points. That is 100 terabytes of information capacity. Our understanding barely scratches the surface of this vast universe within us.
It is the womb of all ideas that will shape human destiny.
The future of mankind lies within our minds and it is of utmost importance to actively nurture this. Here are five mental steps to cultivate and optimize our creative process:
- Think beyond yourself. We can’t contemplate big enough ideas and do amazing things when focused on measly ends such as fame and fortune.
- Train yourself for focus and attention. With only a deliberate mind can we set clear targets and pursue them steadfastly.
- Turn knowledge to wisdom. Applying what we know to our work and life makes our learnings count.
- Choose happiness. Of all states of mind, happiness creates the richest mental environment for creativity. And it’s a choice we make, regardless of our circumstances.
- Stay detached from the outcomes of your efforts. Your feeling of wellbeing should not depend on how things turn out.
My next set of posts will go over each of these areas and provide details on what can be done to fully harness your capabilities.
As a society and civilization, we are now being asked some important questions of ourselves and each other. We have tremendous socio-economic inequalities and environmental upheaval. We are also just a creation away from solving fundamental human and planetary problems. The required tools are at our disposal. It is now simply about harnessing our inner drive and motivation to use them to serve a larger purpose than ourselves.
The creations that solve global problems will be the ones that survive the test of time. These will be the building blocks for a new tech-enabled human civilization and it will only come from the flourishing of human minds.
Minds that will set the stage for an upgraded human reality are those that are 1) Focused and attentive 2) Nourished by the constant transmutation of knowledge to wisdom 3) Proactively kept in a state of happiness 4) Detached from all outcomes and 5) Dedicated to the collective good.
This is the first of a series discussing the qualities of an innovative mindset.
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