‘Nourish the crazy ideas because the good ones hide inside them’ – 35 inspiring quotes on creativity and innovation
My travels this month took me to the amazing Mosaic Summer School on Creativity and Management - held across three weeks in Montreal and Barcelona, in parallel with the Montreal International Jazz Festival and Barcelona GREC Music Festival! The participants included a broad mix of entrepreneurs, designers, educators, artistic directors, techies, urban planners, art historians, investors, authors, architects, musicians and even circus managers.
From the presentations, discussions and artiste interviews, here is my pick of 35 inspiring quotes on the power of ideas, creativity, design, innovation and entrepreneurship! (See also my quotes compilation from the Bangkok edition of this workshop series, and the photo essays on Montreal as Creative Hub and Montreal International Jazz Festival.)
Nourish the crazy ideas because the good ones hide inside them. - Roger Parent, Réalisations.net
If insects were to invite us into their world, what would it be like? - Anne Charpenter, Montreal Insectarium
A startup is a faith-based enterprise. - Steve Blank
Don’t shape creative people for jobs, shape jobs for creative people. - Pierre Giorgini, Lille Université
People create products, not processes. - Denys LaPointe, Bombardier
The power of metaphor is that it builds on something we are already familiar with. - Arthur Shelley, ‘The Organisational Zoo’
Part of being a great musician is to know your limitations. - Kevin Dean, The Kevin Dean Quintet
The only thing I know to do as an artist is to be honest and brave. - Erykah Badu, neo-soul queen
If you are a flautist, you see instruments everywhere. Even in pipes, brooms, chairs, ladders, pasta, crutches, wheels and barricades! - Xavi Luznao, musician
In the era of globalisation, the local is still relevant -- and perhaps more than before. - Montserrat Pareja-Eastaway, University of Barcelona
We give our team permission to try, fail – and try again! You must learn from your failure and show that you have learnt. - Elaine Bissonnette, Bell Canada
As we grow older, we become more cowardly and less creative. – Pep Torres, Museum of Ideas and Inventions
Have meetings standing up – they won’t last beyond 15 minutes! - Rick Seifeddine, Bell Canada
Entrepreneurship is a cult in Montreal. - Sylvain Carle, Real Ventures
Mobilisation of people is harder than just asking them for ideas. - Valerie Chanal, University of Grenoble
To understand your brand as a country, talk to people outside your country. - Jean-Christophe Bedos, Birks Group
When you follow your nose, anything can happen! - Isabelle Michaud, Monsillage
Creativity is about plagiarism. Plagiarise all the time, that is the only way things develop! - John Armitage, University of Southampton
Never forget your roots or your beginnings. - Alain Caron, bass ace
Architecture is the conversation between the building and the people. - Enric Ruiz Geli, Cloud 9
The dream of a smart city is to be efficient, productive, sustainable, social and free! - Alex Garrigues, Barcelona iCapital
A smart city has to be a learning city. - Josep Pique, Barcelona City Council
The new culture is not a question of working faster, but working together. - Jordi Corral, Roca Innovation Lab
Design is more than applied knowledge. - Armand Hatchuel, École des Mines
Art and citizen participation should be a fundamental part of how science is carried out. - Josep Perello, University of Barcelona
The cultural tissue of a city lies in its creativity, live performances, education and leadership. - Luis Bonet, University of Barcelona
Co-creation sounds super - but is a mess to organise! - Charles-Mathieu Brunelle, Montreal Space for Life
We are in the beginning of a new Renaissance. - Eugenia Balcells, visual artist
‘Gaudi’ means a whale of a time! – Daniel Giralt-Miracle, University of Barcelona
Many innovators will fail early on, but society needs more people to experiment more. - Xavier Castener, University of Lausanne
If you don’t innovate, you will be obsolete. Even younger companies are dying because they don’t innovate well enough. - Jordi Serrano, Future4Work
At current consumption growth rates, we will end up eating insects in 100 years! – Judy Auge, Alicia Foundation
A good chef interprets the recipe like a musician. - Jaume Biarnes, Alicia Foundation
Respect all the flavours you have in your life. - Carles Tejedor, Oil Motion
Later in life, you will remember not your successes or failures – but what you did not do. - Francesc Sole Parellada, Portes 7 restaurant
Wake up and dream – Richard Speer, Attraction Media
YourStory has also published the pocketbook ‘Proverbs and Quotes for Entrepreneurs: A World of Inspiration for Startups’ as a creative and motivational guide for innovators (downloadable as apps here: Apple, Android).
