Did you know that Creativity and Innovation is a competency that you can develop? We define the Creativity and Innovation competency as, "Creating new approaches, designs, processes, technologies and/or systems to achieve the desired result." Who do you know who is highly skilled at Creativity and Innovation?

With practice, you can grow and develop this skill just like other "hard skills" you might be good at like cooking, public speaking, employee coaching, or playing golf.

How do I grow as a leader: Creativity and Innovation?

Those with a highly developed skill of Creativity and Innovation exhibit the following:

• Notices unique patterns, variables, processes, systems or relationships.
• Expresses non-traditional perspectives and/or novel approaches.
• Synthesizes data, ideas, models, processes or systems to create new insights.
• Challenges established theories, methods and/or protocols.
• Encourages and promotes creativity and innovation.
• Modifies existing concepts, methods, models, designs, processes, technologies and systems.
• Develops and tests new theories to explain or resolve complex issues.
• Applies unorthodox theories and/or methods.
• Imagines new or revolutionary concepts, methods, models, designs, processes, technology, systems, products, services or industries.
• Combines knowledge, curiosity, imagination, and evaluation to achieve desired results.

Behaviorally, it comes more naturally and requires less focus for some of us to be creative and innovative. For the rest of us, it is a skill we may need to invest energy into developing in order to be more effective. Our Driving Forces will reward for some skills and not others. If your job or your environment demands something from you that isn't naturally present in your Behaviors or Driving Forces, you can develop it in your Competencies. 

What about you? How developed are you at the competency of Creativity and Innovation? What about the people on your team? Is this something you want your team to be strong in?