What’s Your Legacy of Innovation?
This week in the US we are celebrating Thanksgiving. While this holiday seems to have evolved into overeating and watching football, as the name suggests it has roots in giving thanks. You see the first Europeans arrived in America off the coast of what eventually became Massachusetts in December — brrr. Most of them stayed on-board their ship, the Mayflower, until the weather warmed in spring; by that point, they were starving and sick. When they finally ventured ashore they met the original inhabitants of America (today we refer to our country’s ancestors as Native Americans in the US and First Nations in Canada). These Americans helped the Europeans learn how to live in the new land — how to grow food, harvest natural resources and avoid dangers. These first immigrants flourished and in November, hosted a celebratory feast to give thanks to their benefactors.
Leaving a Legacy
For me, Thanksgiving is a fantastic reminder to give thanks to those that similarly help me every day. One of the best ways I can do that is by leaving a legacy. This may seem like a strange way to give thanks but hear me out. Webster defines legacy as, “a gift by will”. My legacy provides a gift of thanks to my clients who help me every day by bringing their ideas for innovation and challenging me to design desirable, feasible and viable solutions. I intentionally cultivate this legacy by delivering frameworks for innovation and design thinking that can live long after we work together.
Since Thanksgiving in the US typically falls 1½ months after Canadian Thanksgiving (which falls on the 2nd Monday in October) this is our launch into the holiday season and the end of the year. In typical US consumer-centric fashion, Thanksgiving is followed by “Black Friday”, when retailers launch their pursuit of our Holiday dollars. My family instead follows the REI tradition, forgoing shopping and choosing to #OptOutside. This provides another opportunity to give thanks, this time for the beautiful planet we live on. And it gives me a broader perspective, launching my own pursuit for what is next for me in the new year.
Innovate in 2020
I would encourage you to use this time of reflection to start thinking about your goals for 2020. What big ideas would you like to see realized? What organizational barriers to innovation need to be broken so your projects can be successful? How can you lead an engaged team to innovate? Join me on Tuesday, December 17th at 12 pm PST to explore ways to Make 2020 Your Year to Innovate. Even if you can’t make this time, be sure to sign up so you will receive the recording of the webinar.
Thank you for all you do to make the world a better place. We need people like you to continue to innovate and solve some of our biggest challenges in 2020. Please let me know what I can do to help you succeed!
