Have you ever wondered how to make decisions that lead to innovation? Or, when to push yourself to link outside the box? I wanted to share three key takeaways from Adam Steltzner’s book “The Right Kind of Crazy”. The three lessons will peel back the curtain on how NASA’s JPL team followed a process that lead to radical innovation on the landing system for the wildly successful Mars Curiosity Rover.
Curiosity-based decision making vs Fear-based decision making. Fear based decision making can keep us from exploring unique and innovative solutions to wicked problems. When we make decisions based on curiosity and allow ourselves to explore what’s possible it can lead to crazy innovative results…the right kind of crazy.
The “Dark Room”. Innovation and creative problem solving aren’t a linear process and Stelztner lays out the concept of the Dark Room that embodies the moment that you feel stuck and are surrounded by unknowns. This is not he time to panic and give up, but to keep your head and press on by focusing on solving the problems in front of you.
The last key point that I took from this book was then idea of inclusive communication. Steltzner talks about the need to ensure that inclusive communication is necessary for deep and meaningful collaboration that will lead to crazy success.
Grab a copy of this inspiring story of the development of the Mars Curiosity rover and the process that lead to crazy innovation and mission success.
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