Innovation Is Under Attack – Your Shot of Fearless Culture #378
Where change agents find their weekly dose of culture insights and exercises, one topic at a time.
Last month at a Chicago scale-up, I watched months of work vanish in seconds.
The product team was presenting a new spending visualization tool they'd spent a quarter developing.
Just as excitement peaked, a legal counsel passing by glanced at the screen and sighed.
"This reminds me of that 2022 tool. Compliance nightmare."
Fifteen seconds – that's all it took to deflate the entire room.
I've witnessed this story play out so many times that I could fill volumes.
Organizations don't lack ideas – they lack a culture that nurtures and helps creativity thrive.
Great innovations rarely die from flawed concepts or insufficient budgets. Instead, they’re killed by silent saboteurs.
This is precisely why I created the "Enemies of Innovation" years ago – a framework I facilitate with innovation teams to help them overcome resistance.
Discover the eight archetypes that silently sabotage creativity and progress – from The Thief who steals credit to The Intellectual who traps you in endless validation loops.
The good news? Once you can understand these enemies, you can transform them into allies.
Explore this week’s newsletter:
My latest article → The Enemies of Innovation
Practical tools and exercises
Inspiring reads to protect your ideas
Stay fearless, my friend.
Gustavo
In Case You Missed It
→ The truth about creating an innovative culture
Ask Your Team This
How might we be acting as our own enemies of innovation without realizing it?
⚠️ Give It a Try
Identify the most prevalent "Enemy of Innovation" that’s blocking your team initiatives.
Ask your team to list specific behaviors – not people – that are getting in the way.
Then brainstorm three specific tactics to neutralize their attacks.
Visit the article for more details on each of the eight archetypes.
🍦 Feed Your Curiosity
How to sell your ideas up the chain of command
Why great ideas die on managers’ desks – and how to save them
When failure is an option: Fostering innovation and learning
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Gustavo Razzetti
CEO, Fearless Culture