The psychology of innovation

"People are often strange, irrational creatures. Many think they are smarter and more creative than they actually are, have fears that they rarely admit, think in the short term and are bad at changing their minds or persuading others to rethink," says Felix Hofmann, innovation expert, multiple founder and author of the book Reframe. The Psychology of Innovation.

Oh well, these are not the best prerequisites for successful innovations. But certainly a realistic assessment, if we're honest.

"Focus on the core business" is an understandable reflex in the current economic situation. But Julian Kawohl, Professor of Strategic Management at the Berlin University of Applied Sciences (HTW Berlin), rightly emphasises: "But anyone who only cuts costs now is overlooking the fact that the world is developing rapidly. New technologies such as artificial intelligence and data-driven business models are changing entire industries. If you don't invest now, you will lose touch and risk your future competitiveness."

In his book, Felix Hofmann therefore recommends putting our assumptions and reservations about innovation into a new context. Framing is our selection and highlighting of millions of pieces of data that we are constantly confronted with. It defines the reference point and what we perceive as a gain or a loss. Reframing means changing this often unconsciously created perspective and thus actively influencing our reference points and the meaning of gain and loss. Hofmann emphasises that it is up to us whether we merely accept existing frames or actively shape them instead.

Reframing can be decisive for a company's innovative strength because it enables us to adopt new perspectives and find creative solutions. Hofmann suggests that companies reframe their approach by:

• Prioritise: Focus is important. When reframing is narrowed, the most important challenges shine through. Instead of starting many projects at the same time and getting bogged down, companies should therefore focus on a few, but really important projects. This reduces stress and enables a more intensive examination of the challenges.
• Take a long-term perspective: Long-term thinking is a powerful tool for innovation. Companies can enlarge the frame by asking themselves where they want to be in ten years' time and what steps are necessary to achieve this goal. This helps to overcome short-term thinking and promote sustainable innovation. The basis for joint thinking can be the consideration: What will not change? What successes can I achieve by reconnecting these constants with innovations?
• Using fear as a compass: Hofmann emphasises that fear is often the enemy of innovation. Instead of pushing fear away, it can be used as a compass through reframing in order to identify risks and consciously and specifically analyse and evaluate them.

If companies seriously go through this reframing process, the first step is to change the way in which information is presented and interpreted within the company. This already has a significant impact on decision-making processes and the ability to innovate. Reframing is therefore a key not only to changing our own thought patterns, but also to persuading others to rethink.

New solutions require new questions. Reframing techniques can help us to think big and creatively. If you are looking for inspiration, you can deepen your creative thinking at the Cross Innovation Hub in collaboration with professional creatives from design, film, architecture, art and many other sectors of the creative industry.

Working with reframing in a creative, diverse environment - to summarise - strengthens self-efficacy and provides a sense of ownership for the development of innovations. As a result, companies become more active and courageous in innovation processes and achieve exciting results.