I was reading an article on Innovation in the Gallup Management Journal when I came across (or rediscovered) a quote by George Bernard Shaw: "If you have an apple and I have an apple and we exchange these apples, then you and I will still each have one apple. But if you have an idea and I have an idea and we exchange these ideas, then each of us will have two ideas."
I enjoy going to the apple orchard with my family in the fall. Our favorite orchard has hay rides, a corn maze, a pumpkin patch, and a big barn filled with apple processing equipment, apples for sale, and a cafe with some wonderful apple creations. They have samples of the standard varieties of apples, and every year they have the latest variety for everyone to try.
As we walk out of the apple orchard with a basket or bag full of apples each fall, I realize that it won't be long before all the apples are gone. It occurred to me that this experience lends itself well to extending Shaw's analogy. If you and I exchange apples, then we'll each still have only one apple. However, it won't be long before neither of us have an apple left. If we exchange ideas, however, we'll find them to be reusable, and neither of us will ever lack for an idea again.
This quote from Shaw is really what my blog is about. I love to find new ideas, especially innovative ideas, and to implement them and share them. Some days go by so fast that ideas come and go and I can never quite get my hands around them. However, I hope that by taking the time to share these ideas with you, we can capture more of them together and each claim them for our own.
Light it up...
Rob
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