I enjoy watching superhero movies. They're fun. They can provide some new perspectives. And they are often very clever - laying the seeds for plot twists that may not bear fruit for years (when that fifth movie comes out).
This might help explain why I also enjoy innovation - and innovators - so much.
Innovators tend to be fun. They conceive and communicate new perspectives. And beyond being very clever, they also tend to play a much longer game with major bangs that are years in the making.
And I've learned a lot from them.
I'd like to share some of my Innovation Heroes so you can learn from them too.
Hugely Influential Researchers & Authors:
Innovation Practitioners that Make Shit Happen:
William Singleton
Charlie Landis
Rob Wilkinson
Innovation Thought Leaders:
Luke Hohmann @ Conteneo
Mike Maddock @ Maddock Douglas
Tom Rideout @ Blue Rocket
Jon Fredrickson @ InnoCentive
Stefan Lindegaard @ Transform XO
Steve Faktor @ IdeaFaktory
Making this list was harder than I expected. For one thing, I wanted to keep each category to three people - clearly I was overwhelmed with Thought Leaders. For another, many of these gurus could be put into at least two categories (for example: Maddock and Hohmann both have great books). At least I avoided listing famous innovators I've never read or met in person!
If you're interested in Innovation, look these folks up.
And since I love to keep learning... who makes YOUR list?