INos was invited to host a series of conversations on the elements of Vital Innovation at the new Los Angeles Microsoft Flagship Store.

In the interview, he speaks about helping leaders shape new Cultural Operating Systems that can drive their organizations toward a sustainable culture of innovation.

He recommends an approach to doing business that uses data to organize but philosophy and story to integrate and make meaning. And in different situations, alternately or together, leaders must use technology and human relationships to solve complex problems. Long-term failure is eminent when businesses rely too much on technology OR relationships to do business. They both matter.

Listen to the interview here.

because an organization will develop a culture of its own whether it is purposefully shaped or not,
it’s worth while to consciously craft a culture
that reflects the organization’s intents & endeavors
…an important part of culture crafting is a discerning approach to language
…because language shapes perception in overt & subtle ways, care must be taken that conceptual framing & word choice consistently reflect, define, & reinforce organizational (& individual) core values
…to this end we at INos have come up w/ a, (constantly expanding), list of what we call ‘watch-it words’; that is, words that require a special degree of care in their use
(stay tuned for more about this list of words in later blogs)
…one of the words that has recently made our watch-it list is the seemingly innocuous; ‘nice’
…’nice’ is a word most of us use nearly every day, but did you know that the Latin root of the word is; ‘nescius’ meaning ignorant, literally; ‘not-knowing’? (ne = ‘not’ & scire = ‘to know’)
…the development of the meaning of the word ‘nice’ has been described by linguists as; ‘extraordinary, even for an adjective’
…some history then;
pre-1300 the word ‘nyce’ in English was used to mean; ‘foolish’ or ‘ignorant’, (the word was most probably borrowed from the old French; ‘nice’, meaning; ‘silly’), although several other meanings, including; ‘timid’, are found in Middle English for this time period
…over time it’s meaning evolved further;
to ‘fussy, fastidious’ in the late 14th century
to ‘dainty, delicate’ circa1400
to ‘precise, careful’ in 1500s,
(it is still used as such, think; ‘nice & early’, or; ‘a nice, even spoonful’ & its cousin the noun; ‘nicety’ also designates a kind of distinction)
…by the 16th & 17th century it was often difficult to determine exactly what was meant when a writer used word ‘nice’ …the overuse that would eventually wring most of the word’s meaning out of it had begun
…by 1769 nice had come to mean ‘agreeable, delightful’
by 1830; ‘kind, thoughtful’
…by 1926, it was pronounced by linguist & English language style guide author H.W. Fowler as; “too great a favorite with the ladies, who have charmed out of it all its individuality and converted it into a mere diffuser of vague and mild agreeableness”
…setting Fowler’s chauvinism aside, we get the point, the word nice comes to us now in the early part of the 21st century, gently spiraling out in multiple directions, each w/ no ultimate destination of meaning
…at best we can say that the word indicates a sort of measured & agreeable distinction, although of exactly what sort,
it is difficult to be entirely certain
…nice is an unnecessary obfuscation, in a word, it is; ‘noise’
…still, is that too harsh? …well, let’s talk about noise for a minute;
-noise is that which blocks, distorts, changes or interferes w/ the meaning of a message in communication
…the word noise is generally taken to mean an unwanted sound, though it is also used to refer to other unwanted phenomenon
…in electronics, noise is perturbation to a signal; like the noise heard in a weak radio transmission
…in computing terms, it is data without meaning;
data not being used to transmit a signal, produced as a by-product of other activities
…’signal-to-noise ratio’ is the ratio of useful information to false or irrelevant data in a conversation or exchange, such as off-topic posts or spam in online forums & communities
…while it is probably safe to say that most words go thru an evolution of meanings, when a word has been tumbled down a path that brings it to a place more ambiguous than precise, it has become noise
…the use of pleasant ambiguities like ‘nice’ skews the signal to noise ratio in our lives away from clarity & authenticity, towards polite but vacuous non-conclusions
…& thus; ‘nice’ ends up on the INos ‘watch-it list’
…please note that the words on this list are not banned or even discouraged exactly, but we believe that they require a certain degree of mindfulness in their use
…we at INos invite you to consider all the ways in your life that language shapes perception, the obvious & the subtle associations words develop as they are shaped by human society & our animal natures
…consider the meanings & senses, as well as the dictionary definitions, etymologies & origins of the words you speak every day; do they help define, & reinforce your core values? …monitoring the signal to noise ratio of seemingly innocuous or mundane language choices plays an important part in purposefully shaping & consciously crafting the culture of organizations & relationships so that they consistently reflect our inspiration, intention & vision

Here a link to the slides

INos (pronounced: IN-oh-es) stands for: ‘INnovatives’ Operating System’

…but what do we mean by that?
…and what does that mean for you?

…well, let’s start w/ the term ‘Operating System’ …a common definition for the term is:

…that software which directs computer operations, controlling and scheduling the execution of other programs, managing storage, input/output, etc.

…so, our use of the term is a bit metaphorical* …the ‘software’ we’re talking about here is conceptual; it’s a mindset and approach that supports and otherwise encourages innovative approaches in much the same way a computer OS provides a standard platform for different programs

…as stated above, the ‘IN’ in ‘INos’ stands for ‘INnovative’, but there are some other words & concepts ‘IN’ there  …below are those words & our definitions for them in our organization’s context:

IN words & concepts:

Leading:

• Interest: Consciously becoming a part of a community, and bringing your whole ‘self’ to it
• Inspiration: Engaging an internal team and external community in forwarding change.
• Individuation: Guiding the personal transformation that comes with any initiative

Culture Crafting:

• Intentionality: Using frameworks to establish coherent structure and setting out to truly transform
• Inclusion: Involving each person concerned, each step of the way.
• Inquiry: Eliciting points of view and creating common ground.
• Individualism: Protecting, developing, and accessing independent thought, diverse experiences, and creative genius.

Producing:

• Interdisciplinary: Acknowledging what makes a team by uniting artists, engineers, business professionals, marketers.
• Inception: Defining original ideas to be developed.
• Incubation: Cultivating a space for beginnings, experiments, any first steps.

Operating:

• Initiatives: Developing and improving organizational operations.
• Integration: Uniting people, processes and technologies.
• Integrity: Utilizing forwarding social intentions to meet business goals.

Marketing:

• Insight: Connecting with audiences, fans, customers, stakeholders and communities.
• Introductions: Shaping language to convey visionary brands, disruptive innovations, and social movements.
• Interactions: Driving change by connecting people with the companies that serve them.

Now that we’ve delved into what we mean by ‘INos’, let’s return to our second question; “What does (INos) mean for you?”

Language shapes perceptions. Exploring the above definitions and concepts for yourself or together with your team will afford you new perspectives, and clarify your own intentions, helping to add meaning to your work and life.

*There is some precedent for this metaphorical use of the basic computer software term ‘Operating System’; writer & philosopher Terrence McKenna for instance once famously said; “Your culture is your operating system”

Do you want to create something new and meaningful? Whatever medium you chose to express yourself through, you will do it with ease, engagement and joy, when you are aware of some of the key elements of vital innovation.

Led by our team of innovators and visionaries, this panel workshop will provide you with insights and perspectives that will allow you to be an innovation leader, catalyze community genius, plan and act holistically, and engage and learn with your community.

In addition to our INos team members, we will have Sheila Hardy – President of Eve’s Lime Production on our panel, who brings her collaborative production model to filmmaking.

The Panel will be moderated by Susan Johnston, Founder and Director of the New Media Film Festival (www.NewMediaFilmFestival.com)

Location
ShowBiz Software
500 S. Sepulveda Blvd. Ground Floor
Los Angeles, CA 90049

Date and Time
06:30pm Tuesday, August 17th, 2010