Need to innovate? Learn from Jackson Pollock.

Pour. Drip. Fling and splat!

Some innovations seem too simple.

Like punk rock, they evoke a “hell, I could do that!” response. But it’s missing the point.

Lasting and resonant ideas are built on something deeper. 

Like Jackson Pollock’s drip paintings.

They shocked the art world. Still do. They seem accidental, chaotic, and primitive. Anyone could do it.

But look deeper and discover a deep foundation: classical art. (8)

Pollock studied art under Thomas Hart Benton, a classically trained painter.

Under Benton, he learned to draw, studied great works, and put in his 10,000 reps.

“Tom Benton . . . did a lot for me. He gave me the only formal instruction I ever had, he introduced me to Renaissance art . . . I’m damn grateful to Tom. He drove his kind of realism at me so hard I bounced right into non-objective painting.” — JP

The rules of art ignited Pollock’s creative response and gave his paint drippings a framework.

Today being a product innovator is the same. We seek to disrupt, surprise, and make an impact.

But more than 95% of new products fail. Why?

Most lack a necessary framework.

More is needed to create a new idea. For it to cut through and stick, it must have depth and relevance.

We must follow three simple rules.

1. Determine a distinct customer.

2. Find a problem to solve.

3. Measure its market relevance. Skimp on any and fail.

Innovation is built within these limits. Limitations produce opportunity.

Simple right?

Hell, if it’s this easy, you should try it.

(8) “Unframed Space,” The New Yorker (August 5, 1950), p. 16.