Culture Jolt #28 - Lean into myths, not just methods

Welcome to our Conscious Innovator® process!

Are you ready for a new, insight-provoking “Jolt” … something that challenges conventional thinking about the "right" mindset for being innovative? It's not that the conventional understanding is wrong - just limited.

Jolts wake us up. They emphasize a shift of focus that taps into a deeper, more expansive consciousness. The result can be profound insights into yourself and others that bring out your full, innovative potential, whether in small, daily tasks or major projects. 

Jolt #28: Lean into myths, not just methods

What do you think of when you hear the word “myth”? For most, a myth is a fictitious story or untrue belief. But what if a myth actually points us towards a deeper truth and wisdom about us as human beings and our cultural ideals?

The Encyclopedia Britannica supports this “truth-bearing” notion:

People’s myths reflect, express, and explore the people’s self-image. The study of myth is thus of central importance in the study both of individual societies and of human culture as a whole.

Myths are stories, whether historical or fictional, that can be essential to how an organizational culture strives to enable innovation with every person, in every job. Most organizations focus primarily on methods and techniques used in the innovation process without embracing the larger context that enables more motivated, meaningful initiatives.

Being innovative is not always easy. It can take a heroic effort to identify a new goal, birth innovative solutions, and put those solutions to work. Myths that embody the hero’s journey – including the Odyssey, the Baghavad Gita, and even the Wizard of Oz – can teach us a lot about the cultural DNA of innovation and the process for being innovative. 

Such heroic myths tend to follow a basic plotline: 

• You begin a quest towards an important goal, and come to a seemingly impassable obstacle guarded by an adversary
• You step back, take on an inner empowerment, and call forth the adversary
• You do battle with and defeat/tame your adversary
• You cross the seemingly impassable obstacle, fulfill your goal, and celebrate the boons you’ve gained 

A comparable model of the innovation process mirrors this plotline: 

• You establish a meaningful goal, and assess the risks between possible success and failure
• You tap into your highest character and values, and analyze priority issues with empathy
• You brainstorm a wide variety of creative options and decide on the best innovative solution
• You implement the solution and celebrate what you achieved and learned along the way 

You’ll notice that values such as commitment to higher goals, noble intentions, empathy, caring, serving others, creativity, integrity, and learning are enabling factors embedded in the process. Thus, every time you engage in this type of myth-based innovation process, you are re-enacting a micro-version of the archetypical pattern of the hero’s journey – with its inspirational powers and its core human values. It’s a cultural context that ignites a self-empowering innovation process anyone can jump into and find “familiar.” 

So, what is a deep-dive, myth-type story that captures the essence of your organization’s culture and values, much like the hero’s journey? Does your approach to the innovation process bolster and reflect the story-line of your culture?

-=-=-=- Now it's your turn -=-=-=-

Being a Conscious Innovator® has a 3 phase cyclical process: become aware, capable, and versatile. Try on this Jolt in your life and work, then take self-reflective time to engage in the process:

-=-=-=- An invitation to join our process and share your insights -=-=-=-

If you haven’t already, we’d love for you to join our process and share your own experiences, while learning from the experiences of others! We appreciate what one person said about the Jolt process itself:

Innovation is a world by itself. It can change lives and help people become more positive. Doing a Jolt is already something! A new habit that promotes innovation and reflection.

It’s totally FREE to participate. To sign up and join us, go to this link and follow the easy directions: https://innovate.vci.global/p/the-conscious-innovator. 

Even if you haven’t participated up to this point, it’s never too late to start the process! It’s like a concise gym workout that provides an insightful “pause that refreshes” and evokes your unique, innovative potential in life and work.