Congratulations. You are living in a golden age of technological innovation. Every night when you go to sleep, there is a chance that you will wake up to the news of another amazing tech breakthrough. It might be a cutting-edge new app, an amazing new device, or some new scientific discovery. The global centers of innovation, including top tech hubs such as Tel Aviv, London, New York, and Silicon Valley, are producing innovative young startups every day. Never before has the world seen such an explosion of knowledge and technology, or such a growth in the number of companies creating entirely new business categories.<\/p>\n
So if you\u2019re an innovator, this is the best time to be alive, right? Not necessarily. While this explosion has enriched all of our lives in remarkable ways, it has made it that much harder for innovators to stand out from the crowd. How can you stand out in a crowd of young, hungry entrepreneurs working nonstop to create the next amazing startups?<\/p>\n
All too often, innovators fall into the trap of trying to create the next best x \u2026 and simply look for a market need to fill in the blank. Alternatively, they try to create a new version of an existing product, but modify it for a different category. The classic version of this pitch is usually \u201cIt\u2019s like x for y.\u201d But in the end, these entrepreneurs are just playing a more grown-up version of the classic kid\u2019s word game, Mad Libs.<\/p>\n
True innovation comes not from replicating or re-imaging something that already exists, but from creating something new. Of course, it\u2019s much easier said than done, but you can put yourself on the right track by following a basic principle. Always focus on your idea first – whether the idea is to solve a problem or provide a great experience, take your idea and run with it. Don\u2019t focus on the competition at first, and don\u2019t look at what others are doing. If you feel like your idea can stand on its own, then it doesn’t matter if it replaces something old, or if it provides a similar experience in a new market.<\/p>\n
Of course, innovation isn’t as easy as sitting down, thinking about your idea, and waiting for a light bulb moment. Creating something entirely new happens only rarely. One tool innovators can use is to borrow from the cross-disciplinary school of thinking and bring together different fields of technology and development.<\/p>\n
For instance, in the last few years, there has been a surge of innovation in the mobile and health\/fitness spaces. With the rise of smartphones, there has also been a tremendous growth in the wearable technology. Many of these first generation wearable devices take ideas and techniques from multiple fields to produce a new experience.<\/p>\n