When I talk about innovation, it may seem like a surprise when we’re really just all trying to in many ways survive. That’s my call to action to you today. Don’t just survive in these times, thrive, because believe it or not, people are thriving right now in this environment. This is the true meaning of innovation. Anyone can innovate when times are good. I think that’s frankly rather easy. But true innovation comes when times are challenging, when all your other avenues are closed and you’ve got to get really creative.
Hey, everyone. It’s Shama Hyder. Let’s talk about innovation. That’s right. You may not think about innovation as a buzzword right now because let’s face it, we’re living in some really surreal times. If you’re anything like me, in one way it feels like time is zooming by, and in another way it feels like it’s eerily slow, right? So much has changed. Many of us are keeping our social distance. Actually, I hope all of us are keeping our social distance and doing our part. But many of us for the first time are working from home or having to change our entire infrastructure with how we do business, how we relate, how we continue to keep our sanity, which I’m sure if anyone has kids out there especially can relate to that one.
So when I talk about innovation, it may seem like a surprise when we’re really just all trying to in many ways survive. But that’s my call to action to you today. Don’t just survive in these times. Really thrive, because believe it or not, people are thriving right now in this environment because this is the true meaning of innovation. Anyone can innovate when times are good. I think that’s frankly rather easy, right? You just have to up the ball a little bit. But true innovation comes when times are challenging, when all your other avenues are closed and you’ve got to get really creative.
So I want to share with you three examples of innovation right now of folks that are actually doing an amazing job during this COVID crisis, and they’re really positioning themselves as industry leaders and they’re making a difference to their communities. So let me give you three examples of innovation that are happening right now.
The first one I thought was really interesting. So this one has to do with a photographer. Now you might think, “Boy, that sure is a challenging position right now.” In fact, I’ve gotten emails from many of you who are photographers who’ve said, “Listen, I don’t really know what I can do right now. This is hard.” I agree. It’s hard, and yet, here’s a photographer who’s really been able to take her skill set, combine it with what’s happening right now, and create an entirely cool blue ocean differentiated strategy. And what I mean by this is she has become a front porch photographer.
So while this coronavirus madness and everything descends on us, many of us find ourselves at home with our entire families, perhaps for the first time. Now given how crazy schedules can get, it’s hard to get families all together. If your family’s like mine, you know that one person is out, the other person’s in. It’s a rare moment when everyone’s together under one roof, and what better time than to get a family portrait, right, or take a picture while everyone’s together?
There’s only one problem, social distancing, and we’re all trying to stay healthy here. So this photographer came up with this amazing concept of front porch photography. You gather your family on the front porch. She comes in, is at least 12 feet away, has a great camera lens, and captures that moment as a family. I love the concept, complete social distancing, great opportunity to capture a moment with your family, so I love that, great source of innovation in challenging times.
Second example I saw, and I thought this was really neat, a small local bakery is doing quarantine cakes. That’s right. So they’re putting their talents to good use towards quarantine cakes, creating smaller cakes. So generally cakes are… If you’re anything like me, you enjoy a cake when you’re at a party or you’ve got multiple people, but who’s really buying cakes when there’s not a lot of people gathering? Okay, well, if you’re also like me, then me, and you.
But if you’re looking for something a little bit smaller, quarantine cakes are baked for one or two people with fun messages on them, things like “Don’t touch your face,” “Remember to wash your hands,” and by injecting a little humor and really appealing to people with that sweet tooth, they’re keeping their business going and they’re getting massive press right now. So we love this idea of a bakery turning their talents towards quarantine cakes.
Let’s look at music. My third example comes to you via this DJ on Instagram, DJ D-Nice, who has from the comfort of his home been putting out amazing music parties, so he’s literally doing couch parties. Last time I checked, he had maybe 80,000 Instagram followers. I just checked before I hopped on camera here. He’s got 1.5 million followers right now, and it’s all because he’s having a good time. He’s encouraging people from the safety of their living rooms to join in. What an amazing thing. Now here’s a guy who probably gets paid to go DJ at events, but he’s taking what’s usually a paid gig and creating into massive visibility for himself.
These are some examples of folks that are innovating and absolutely doing an amazing job in this environment. So COVID or not, coronavirus or not, social distancing or not, this is your chance to innovate. Think about how you can really use this new ecosystem we’re living in, this new framework. How can you innovate within your industry? Leave a comment, subscribe. Looking forward to hearing your thoughts.
Hi there. This is Shama Hyder again. Thank you so much for watching my videos, I super appreciate it. Please share if you find this information valuable, and do comment. I love hearing from you, and be sure to subscribe. That way, you don’t miss a single thing.
