On reading, writing, and reinventing
The things that make a good writer, make for a good innovator. What are they?
It’s a long weekend in our part of the world. Some of you will be find the time to catch up on reading, others will make headway on writing. Both activities will make you better innovators.
Good writing requires clear thinking. Breakthrough innovations and the craft of creativity go hand in hand.
The things that make a good writer, make for a good innovator. What are they?
Good writing requires clear thinking.
A writer staring at a blank page should ask three questions, in this order: “who am I?”, “what am I saying?” and, “who am I writing for?”
Who am I?
Wait, what? Since when did existential introspection become essential to writing? Columbia University Writing Professor, William Zinsser, explains in his book “On Writing Well” explains the transaction between reader and writer: “the writer is not selling the topic being written about; they are selling who they are.”
Ever find yourself deep into a topic you never knew you were interested? I’ll bet it’s because the writer was passionate about the topic and invested a great deal of themselves in sharing it with you. Your breadth of perspective filters onto the page in subtle ways.
What am I saying?
Good writing is simple, clear and expresses the writers’ personality through style, word choice and usage. People write to help them understand what they think. Before you can say something fully and succinctly, understand what it is you’re trying to say. Then, after you’ve written, look at your draft and ask, “have I said it?”
Writers who aren’t confident in their idea paper over the inconvenient truth with jargon, pomposity and extraneous words. “Eschew obfuscation” as my English teacher used to say. Zinsser warns us “beware the long word that is no better than the short word: “assistance” (help), “numerous” (many), “remainder” (rest), “implement” (do), “sufficient” (enough), “attempt” (try).”
Stephen King advised new writers to “kill your darlings.” That witty turn of phrase you’re so proud of? Scratch it. Your writing, and your readers, will better for it.
Who am I writing for?
Ah, a paradox of writing. Forget the audience. You’re writing for yourself.
First focus on your craft: simple, clear, informative, economical writing. Then and only then, focus on the creative act at hand. “Relax and say what you want to say, find your voice and be true to yourself”, says Zinsser. It’ll be immediately clear to your reader that you’re comfortable in your own skin, which puts them at ease too.
The same principles apply to innovation
A designer staring at a blank whiteboard needs to ask the same three questions, reframed for the task at hand. “Who am I, as a designer?” “what problem am I solving?” and, “who am I designing for?”
Who am I as a designer?
Every day is bring yourself to work day. Bill Clinton’s former speechwriter once told us “an artist can only ever paint their own face.”
I’ve never met a good innovator who wasn’t also an interesting person, widely and deeply read, and comfortable with their own quirks.
Know who you are and understand that you will show up in everything you design. Acknowledge your own bias, experience and contribution. The final product will feel that much more human, and therefore more lovable, usable and functional.
What problem am I solving?
I’d love to be a fly on the wall in a design sprint for the tent-hammock I wrote about last week. I set it up, tested it out, and wondered, “but why?” It’s a well-executed solution without an obvious problem. As someone who owns both a tent and a hammock, I struggled to find a use case where this is better than either.
Designers know the problem finding, framing, solving process well. But somehow that gets lost in translation with so many interventions. 23-year olds can build vaccine trackers better than government agencies. Municipalities build bridges to nowhere. And who are all these mythical customer waking up saying “you know what could make my toaster even better? Wifi.”
Likewise, we invest time into cutesy elements that clutter up the MVP. Bringing a product mindset to life means not being precious with features. Kill if it doesn’t work.
Who am I designing for?
Designers should design for themselves. But wait, wouldn’t that perpetuate design bias and create fatal flaws in lifesaving products? Yes it would. The solution is to bring in new designers who represent the full spectrum of human experience into the process. Ask them to design for themselves, and those like them.
A product designed by a designer who is invested in the idea just feels better. You can see the care where no care was required. It fills an emotional and symbolic need as much as an economic and functional one.
It’s popular to say we should focus on making stuff people want, rather than making people want stuff. Why not start with making stuff you want. If you don’t want it, what makes you think anyone else will?
The master innovator knows who they are, what problem they are solving, and who they are solving it for.
They take the cleanest, clearest path to delivering it, while colouring the result with style, grace and humanity. They sit back at the end, and always find something they could have done better.
Bonus tip: master the archetypes.
In writing fiction, it’s been said there are only two stories: stranger comes to town, or person goes on a journey. Savvy readers know the Crystal Ball has only three forms: 2x2, what X can teach us about Y, or a list of five things.
In innovation, all products are services and all services are experiences; all experiences are emotions and all emotions are the difference between expectation and reality. All systems level challenges can be diagnosed with 12 archetypes.
From this limited set infinite forms can arise. There are only 26 letters, after all.
Practically speaking, treat your writing like innovating and your innovation like writing and see if that doesn’t get you to a better place.
This is writing, innovation and life. It’s hard, but with practice, become doable, and eventually, worth it.
Onward.
What we’re reading (and listening to)
[Podcast] Work/Place Ep. 2 – Quartz –Experiential Futures done well. “Listen in on a new employee’s first day using Quartz – an all-sensing company clock that time-tunes tasks according to employees’ wellbeing.”
Why Spotify is Making Recommendations More Meaningful - The limits of Jobs to Be Done thinking in building meaningful experiences
From Cassandra’s Curse to the Pythia’s Success – How to do strategic foresight without crying wolf
Humanity is stuck in short-term thinking. Here’s how we escape. - Our sense of the future has expanded and contracted over time. But survival means learning new lessons from the shocks society is facing right now.
The woman who will decide what emoji we get to use - As the new head of the Emoji Subcommittee for the Unicode Consortium, Jennifer Daniel has a vision for how to make these symbols work for everyone.
Last word
“Buy the ticket, take the ride.”
Hunter S. Thompson