Beware of the Devil's Advocate
"The devil's advocate may be the biggest innovation killer in America today. What makes this negative persona so dangerous is that it is such a subtle threat. Every day, thousands of great new ideas, concepts, and plans are nipped in the bud by devil's advocates.
Why is this persona so damning? Because a devil's advocate encourages idea wreckers to assume the most negative possible perspective, one that sees only the downside, the problems, the disasters-in-waiting. Once those floodgates open, they can drown a new initiative in negativity."
So what is a body to do? Adopt one or more of the following Innovation Personas and you'll have a chance to put the devil's advocate in his place:
"1. The Anthropologist...
2. The Experimenter...
3. The Cross-Pollinator...
4. The Hurdler...
5. The Collaborator...
6. The Director...
7. The Experience Architect...
8. The Set Designer...
9. The Caregiver...
10. The Storyteller..."
Read more in The 10 Faces of Innovation from FastCompany.
