In times of change, it’s the innovators that will inherit the earth, not the learners as Eric Hoffer stated. For in my view, learning is part of innovation. To innovate, you have to learn by doing, in the grand experiment called life. Whether individual or company, the same laws apply.

I created a DanelDoodle to illustrate my main points.

There will be many other factors to illustrate my point but the ones in the doodle are the main ones.

Dynamism.

Imperfection.

These two factors are probably the two most important aspects of innovation for me, perhaps even of living.

You have to be constantly moving. Even in stillness and in the moment, you are moving, because there is never one moment that is the same as the one before.

Always there is change, it’s the only constant as we know.

And striving for perfection, which is anyway impossible, because how else will you learn if not through mistakes, will only hold you back.

So true innovators know that the only way to progress is to keep trying new things, keep failing and learning from that failure and in your new attempts, do better based on what you learned.

But know that you will never be perfect and accept that as a price of innovation. For someone else will always come along and show up and improve on your imperfect self, solution, idea or product.

The only alternative, if you want consistency and perfection, the opposite factors at play, is when you are dead.

While you are here, choose to live, choose innovation.