What does innovation mean?
Innovation refers to something new, such as an invention, or developing and introducing new things. It can be a new product, but also be a new way of doing something or a new way of thinking.
So if you want to start thinking in new ways, use our list of innovation quotes and get inspired!
"Everything you’ve ever wanted is on the other side of fear.”
George Addair (1823 - 1899), Real-estate developer
“You can’t use up creativity. The more you use, the more you have.”
Maya Angelou (1928 - 2014), Poet, memoirist, and civil rights activist
“To avoid criticism say nothing, do nothing, be nothing.”
Aristotle (384 - 322 BC), Philosopher
“Innovation is the future delivered.”
Jorge Barba
“When we really pay attention, everything is your teacher.”
Ezra Bayda (1944 -), Author and Zen teacher
“What is now proved was once only imagined.“
William Blake (1757 - 1827), Poet, painter, and printmaker
"Innovation is anything that is new, useful and surprising"
Drew Boyd
“Vulnerability is the birthplace of innovation, creativity and change.“
Brene Brown (1965-), Research professor, lecturer and author
“A dream will not become an innovation if there is no realization.“
Ciputra (1931 -), Businessman & philanthropist
“Innovation is like looking for pieces in a jigsaw puzzle. You have to find a lot of pieces that don't match to find the one or two pieces that match.“
Edward Conrad (1956-), Businessman, author and scholar
“Finding opportunity is a matter of believing it’s there.”
Barbara Corcoran (1949 -), Businesswoman
“I have been impressed with the urgency of doing. Knowing is not enough; we must apply. Being willing is not enough; we must do.”
Leonardo da Vinci (1452 - 1519), Polymath
“Doing the right thing is more important than doing the thing right."
Peter Drucker (1909 - 2005), Management consultant, educator and author
“There is nothing quite so useless as doing with great efficiency something that should not be done at all.”
Peter Drucker (1909 - 2005), Management consultant, educator and author
“Whenever you see a successful business, someone once made a courageous decision."
Peter Drucker (1909 - 2005), Management consultant, educator and author
“Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work.”
Thomas Edison (1847 – 1931), Inventor
“I have not failed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.“
Thomas Edison (1847 – 1931), Inventor
“There’s a way to do it better. Find it.“
Thomas Edison (1847 – 1931), Inventor
“The value of an idea lies in the using of it.“
Thomas Edison (1847 – 1931), Inventor
“The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again, but expecting different results.“
Albert Einstein (1879 – 1955), Mathematician
“Creativity is intelligence having fun.”
Albert Einstein (1879 – 1955), Mathematician
“If at first the idea is not absurd, then there is no hope for it.“
Albert Einstein (1879 – 1955), Mathematician
“The creation of a thousand forests is in one acorn.”
Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803 - 1882), Essayist, lecturer and philosopher
“Either write something worth reading or do something worth writing.”
Benjamin Franklin (1706 - 1790), Founding Father of the United States
“Daring ideas are like chessmen moved forward; they may be beaten, but they may start a winning game."
Johann Goethe (1749 - 1832, Writer)
“Uber, the world’s largest taxi company, owns no vehicles. Facebook, the world’s most popular media owner, creates no content. Alibaba, the most valuable retailer, has no inventory. And Airbnb, the world’s largest accommodation provider, owns no real estate. Something interesting is happening.”
Tom Goodwin (1968 -), Baseball coach and former baseball player
“When money, rather than innovation or value, is your competitive advantage, that’s when things get boring and stagnant, and monopolies take root.”
Hank Green (1980 -), Science communicator, entrepreneur and author
“You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.”
Wayne Gretzky (1961 -), Top scorer in NHL
“I skate to where the puck is going to be, not where it has been.”
Wayne Gretzky (1961 -), Top scorer in NHL
“Don’t be afraid to take big steps when one is indicated. You can’t cross a chasm in two small jumps.”
David Lloyd George (1863 - 1945), Politician
“The great thing in this world is not so much where we are, but in what direction we are moving.”
Oliver Wendell Holmes (1809 - 1894), Physician
“People think focus means saying yes to the thing you’ve got to focus on. But that’s not what it means at all. It means saying no to the hundred other good ideas that there are. You have to pick carefully. I’m actually as proud of the things we haven’t done as the things I have done. Innovation is saying no to 1,000 things.”
Steve Jobs (1955 - 2011), Co-founder of Apple
“You can’t just ask customers what they want and then try to give that to them. By the time you get it built, they’ll want something new.“
Steve Jobs (1955 - 2011), Co-founder of Apple
“Innovation is creating new value“
Diana Kander - Speaker, entrepreneur, author, and consultant
"The key is to embrace disruption and change early. Don't react to it decades later. You can't fight innovation."
Ryan Kavanaugh (1974 -), Film financier
“The best way to predict the future is to create it.“
Alan Kay (1940 -), Computer scientist
“We choose to go to the Moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard.”
John F. Kennedy (1917 - 1963), 35th president of the United States
“You can’t wait for inspiration, you have to go after it with a club.”
Jack London (1876 - 1916), Novelist, journalist and social activist
“Challenges are what make life interesting and overcoming them is what makes life meaningful.”
Joshua J. Marine - Author
“If the only tool you have is a hammer, you tend to see every problem as a nail.“
Abraham Maslow (1908 - 1970), Psychologist
“Listen to anyone with an original idea, no matter how absurd it may sound at first. If you put fences around people, you get sheep. Give people the room they need.“
William McKnight (1887 - 1978), Businessman & philanthropist
"When something is important enough, you do it even if the odds are not in your favor."
Elon Musk (1971 -), CEO of SpaceX and Tesla
“If I have a thousand ideas and only one turns out to be good, I am satisfied."
Alfred Nobel (1833 – 1896), Chemist, engineer and inventor
“The way to get good ideas is to get lots of ideas and throw the bad ones away.“
Linus Pauling (1901 - 1994), Chemist, peace activist and author
“If you do what you’ve always done, you’ll get what you’ve always gotten.”
Tony Robbins (1960 -), Author, speaker and philanthropist
“Be great in act, as you have been in thought.”
William Shakespeare (1564 - 1616), Playwright, poet and actor
“Innovation is staying relevant.“
Steven Shapiro
“A ship is safe in harbor, but that’s not what ships are for.”
William Shedd (1820 - 1894), Presbyterian theologian
“What good is an idea if it remains an idea? Try. Experiment. Fail. Try again. Change the world.“
Simon Sinek (1973 -), Author
“Innovation is implementation of something new.“
Paul Sloane (1950 -), Speaker, course leader and facilitator
“The secret of change is to focus all of your energy, not on fighting the old, but building on the new.“
Socrates (470-399 BC), Philosopher
“Innovation is the new competitive advantage.“
Julie Sweet (1966/1967 -), Business executive and attorney
“They did not know it was impossible so they did it.“
Mark Twain (1835 - 1910), Writer
“If you hear a voice within you say ‘you cannot paint,’ then by all means paint and that voice will be silenced.”
Vincent Van Gogh (1853 - 1890), Painter
“It’s easy to come up with new ideas; the hard part is letting go of what worked for you two years ago, but will soon be out of date.“
Roger von Oech (1948 -), Author and toy-maker
“They always say time changes things, but you actually have to change them yourself.“
Andy Warhol (1928 - 1987), Artist
“We are drowning in information, while starving for wisdom. The world henceforth will be run by synthesizers, people able to put together the right information at the right time, think critically about it, and make important choices wisely.”
E.O. Wilson (1929 - 2021), Biologist, naturalist, and writer
“When the winds of change blow, some people build walls and others build windmills.“
Unknown - Ancient chinese proverb
“He who asks a question is a fool for 5 minutes. He who does not ask a question remains a fool forever."
Unknown - Ancient chinese proverb
"Innovation is the process of creating value by applying novel solutions to meaningful problems.”
Unknown
“The Stone Age didn’t end because they ran out of stones.“
Unknown
"The force of innovation lies in the power of the collective intelligence. In the power of the many voices. Let’s make them heard."
Vocean
"Organizations cannot survive or thrive without brilliant ideas. And to be brilliant you need more than one idea. You need many. You need an ocean. An ocean of voices."
Vocean
Innovation means solving a problem or innovating with many ideas, which provides the conditions for successful implementation and better results. To do that, you need many ideas, from many people.
Vocean is a strategic space for involving the entire organization in the ideation process, with a focus on renewal. Here you can collect ideas, co-create around them, understand and overview the results together and use reports as a basis for decision-making.
The effect is that you have created a space for supporting ideas and open innovation in your organization, through maximum involvement and with the fastest implementation in an otherwise complex and time-consuming process.
Now you are ready to create a thinking organization where you maximize the opportunity to make informed decisions at a higher rate than ever, at a time when businesses need to be able to navigate an otherwise highly uncertain environment in order to be successful.
Use Vocean for strategic work such as business development, innovation management, workshops, hybrid meetings or simpler questions. The possibilities are endless. But the effects for your organization are measurable.
Vocean is an innovation platform that is easy to use. Invite participants via link or QR code and you are ready to go.
Want to succeed in innovation?
Make everyone's voice heard.
Do a Vocean!
For more reading:
Sweden ranks first as the strongest innovation country in the EU
Read Gartners Leadership Vision for 2023: Technology Innovation
Do you know what Disruptive innovation is?