The lack of innovation about innovation is disheartening. Just read yet another article mansplaining (these articles always seem to be written by men) that innovation only happens ....

.... in cities (of more than 1 million people), in the office, face to face. Innovation cannot happen digitally, humans cannot understand nuance online, we are incapable of managing our online activities to avoid ‘Zoom fatigue’, and bonding & mentoring is impossible remotely.

In other words, we humans are only capable of doing what we have done before. We need to accept that there is only one way of working, that that has been codified & determined by our elders and betters, and we should do what we are told.

Innovate by all means, but innovate as you have been told to do. No, those new technologies change nothing, no, ubiquitous connectivity changes nothing, no, ‘the cloud’ and ‘wherever’ access to data changes nothing.

No, that super computer in you pocket changes nothing. No, the ability to easily interact with anyone anywhere in the world changes nothing. And most certainly no, podcasts & online learning change nothing.

See the problem? All around us innovation in the tools for how we work, learn, live, collaborate & communicate are advancing rapidly. But somehow these new tools & capabilities cannot enable us to innovate ourselves.

We are locked into systems that impede innovation, in the name of innovation. Innovate by doing what has been done before. Accept your limitations, submit to due process, work how we’ve always worked.

Enough. The world is changing. There are no borders, no boundaries to thoughts and ideas. Yes large cities are full of smart people. But a network of cities, across the globe have a lot more. Plug yourself into the world, stop being constrained by geography.

The way we are being instructed to innovate is so limiting. Through serendipitous meetings at work? Where there are a handful of people you can learn from. Really? Is that it. Is that the extent of my intellectual ambition?

When you can communicate with the world it is madness to design innovation around those you can physically interact with. ‘Most of the smart people work somewhere else’, as Bill Joy said.

Michael Raynor describes innovation as ‘anything that removes constraints’. Our problem today is that we are imposing geographic constraints on ourselves. Stop it. Get out there. Seek out the best, wherever. Innovate, wherever. /

And making my point - this came into my timeline. A VC explaining how all B2B founders used to be in the Silicon Valley area. But now are everywhere, so a different way of finding deals is necessary. #GeographyIsNotDestiny

PS. Innovation during a pandemic. @drorpoleg (based in NYC, 3500 miles away) and I launched an online #FutureProofOffice course. On a platform coded in Vancouver. Having originally met on Twitter. With zero face to face.

On Monday we start the 3rd running. With participants from Vietnam, Singapore, China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, India and Australia. All marketing online, all communication online. #InnovateWherever http://realinnovationacademy.com