Not much: Innovation doesn't happen as described in the popular press. Duh. ( )

Well-written, humorous. A good collection of tangible facts debunking myths, action plans, and things to avoid. ( )

I immediately liked this book after reading the "Commitment to research accuracy" page near the front. Any author who goes above and beyond in their effort to provide the most accurate information they can and even provides a link to report inaccuracies cares about his readers and this resonates throughout the rest of the book.

Mr. Berkun has clearly been on a quest to discover not only the basics of creative thinking, but how it relates to entrepreneurs and invention. Using this bottom up approach to innovation allows him to target 10 myths of innovation and analyze them so we can understand where they came from and how to avoid them. Each myth is allotted its own chapter and they are as follows (along with my quick thoughts on each chapter):

1. The myth of epiphany (epiphany looks like hard work and wears overalls)

2. We understand the history of innovation (the victors write the history)

3. There is a method for innovation (great chapter, worth the price of whole book)

4. People love new ideas (great ideas usually don't look great, ask Google)

5. The lone inventor (one of my favorite chapters - nobody goes it alone)

6. Good ideas are hard to find (have more ideas, have crazy ideas, have no fear with your ideas)

7. Your boss knows more about innovation than you (don't confuse power with creativity)

8. The best ideas win (winning isn't based on how good the idea is)

9. Problems and solutions (problems matter and how you define them matters more)

10. Innovation is always good (unintended consequences matter)

Berkun closes the book with chapters on hype and history, creative thinking hacks, how to pitch an idea and how to stay motivated. His aside in the hype and history chapter that "if you want to be creative, you must create things" is at first glance simple advice, but for me it speaks to the core message of this book: if you want to get anything out of this book you have to do something. He has provided the roadmap, we have to begin the journey.

Finally, Berkun does an excellent job of not only listing sources in each chapter (which is nirvana for those willing to further explore original source material), but his "Research and recommendations" appendix, specifically the ranked bibliography, were outstanding ideas and deserve special mention.

A definite must read for anyone interested in innovation, ideas, creativity and not only what not to do, but what to do on their innovation journey. ( )

Good introduction to basic concepts. If this areas is new to you, it's a great place to start. If you've read widely in this area, not much new. ( )

Quotes: "Many bright would-be innovators make similar mistakes: they fail to spend enough time exloring and understanding problems before trying to solve them."

"Discovering problems actually requires just as much creativity as discovering solutions. There are many ways to look at any problem, and realizing a problem is often the first step toward a creative solution."

My only problem with the book is my misunderstanding of what it was about. It's clearly called the Myths of Innovation, but I expected it to talk about how to innovate. ( )