The anniversary gift that taught me the secret to lasting innovation

​

​

Click to watch (15:01) or scroll down to read on…

​
Hey there, innovation champions!
​

My brother and sister-in-law just celebrated their anniversary. Not a "big" one, but as I called to wish them well and asked if they were celebrating, my brother said they were helping their teenage son with homework. So... that would be a no.
​

But every time their anniversary rolls around, it sends me straight back to one of the most stressful—and ultimately transformative—moments of my creative career.
​

The Disaster That Changed Everything

Picture this: I'm creating their ketubah—their Jewish marriage contract—and I've bitten off way more than I can chew. My brother studied Japanese in college and went to graduate school in East Asian Studies. His bride studied Chinese. So naturally, they chose a garden theme combining elements of classical Japanese and Chinese scholar's gardens.
​

And I, always stretching my creative ambitions, decided to tackle it as a three-dimensional paper sculpture.
​

I thought I had months for this herculean project, with a Labor Day weekend wedding... but in April, plans changed. Suddenly it was Memorial Day weekend. Instead of months, I had mere weeks!
​

I worked like mad. Everything was perfect except for the final element—a complicated multi-windowed mat with complex curves that would complete the piece.
​

Remember, this was before digital cutting technology existed, so I'm attempting to hand-cut intricate curves with an X-acto blade at a consistent angle.
​

When I flipped that mat over to see the result... disaster. Complete, unacceptable disaster.
​

I stomped out of the room, tears flooding my eyes. For fifteen minutes, I swore, cried, and screamed. What was I going to do?
​

The Breakthrough Hidden in the Breakdown

But here's where the magic happened—and where this story becomes about more than just one panicked artist.
​

I had no choice but to tackle the problem. No time for a new mat. No resources for a do-over.
​

So I started slicing away at the edges of that "ruined" mat, bit by bit... and ultimately created an uneven, intentionally hand-cut, irregularly scalloped edge that proved far more interesting and charming than any machine-cut mat could ever have been!
​

My awful mistake had led to the most innovative element of the entire piece.
​

Why This Matters for Your Innovation Culture

Now, you might be thinking, "That's a nice story, Melissa, but what does this have to do with building lasting innovation cultures?"
​

Everything.
​

Because what happened in my studio that day illustrates the three essential elements of cultures that don't just innovate once, but keep innovating for decades. And it maps perfectly to my Create the Impossible™ framework:
​

Play Hard: When Pressure Meets Possibility

The first element is "Play Hard"—not in the Vegas sense, but in the sense of maintaining curiosity and experimentation even under pressure.
​

In that moment of crisis, I could have given up. I could have called my brother and said, "Sorry, I can't finish this." Instead, I played with the disaster.
​

Organizations that build lasting innovation cultures do the same thing. When Amazon's Fire Phone flopped spectacularly, they didn't retreat from hardware innovation. They played with what they'd learned and created Alexa—one of their most successful products ever.
​

The question for your organization: When things go sideways, do you retreat to safety, or do you play with the possibilities hidden in the problem?
​

Make Crap: The Courage of Imperfection

The second element is "Make Crap"—giving yourself permission to create imperfect solutions rather than waiting for perfection.
​

That scalloped edge wasn't what I'd planned. It wasn't "perfect." But it was exactly what the piece needed.
​

Companies with lasting innovation cultures understand this deeply. They know that breakthrough solutions rarely emerge from careful planning—they emerge from the willingness to try imperfect approaches and iterate quickly.
​

3M's Post-it Notes came from a "failed" adhesive that wasn't strong enough for its intended purpose. Rather than throwing it away, they played with its imperfection and discovered something revolutionary.
​

The question for your team: Are you creating space for beautiful imperfections, or are you so focused on avoiding mistakes that you're also avoiding breakthroughs?
​

Learn Fast: Building on What Breaks

The third element is "Learn Fast"—extracting insights from every experience, especially the challenging ones.
​

That ketubah disaster taught me something profound: some of our best innovations come not from our successes, but from how we respond to our failures.
​

Organizations with lasting innovation cultures have mastered this art. They've created systems for learning from setbacks, not just celebrating successes.
​

When Netflix's Qwikster announcement was met with massive customer backlash, they didn't just retreat. They learned fast, adapted their approach, and emerged stronger with their streaming-first strategy.
​

The question for your culture: Do you have systems in place to extract learning from every experiment, especially the ones that don't go as planned?
​

The Anniversary Test: Does Your Innovation Culture Have Staying Power?

Here's what I've learned from working with companies that innovate consistently over decades versus those that have occasional flashes of brilliance: The difference isn't in the initial innovation. It's in whether they've built cultures that can sustain and renew themselves.
​

Think of it as the "anniversary test." Marriages that last aren't the ones that had perfect weddings—they're the ones that learned to navigate challenges together, to play through difficulties, to embrace imperfection, and to keep learning from each experience.
​

Innovation cultures are the same. They're not built on avoiding problems—they're built on having frameworks for transforming problems into possibilities.
​

Your Legacy Challenge

So here's your challenge as we think about building innovation cultures that last:
​

Look at the last setback your team experienced. Not the catastrophic failure that everyone talks about, but the everyday disappointment. The project that didn't go as planned. The idea that didn't work out.
​

Now ask yourself:

• Did your team play with the problem or retreat from it?
• Were you willing to try imperfect solutions, or did you wait for the perfect answer?
• What did you learn, and how are you applying that learning to future challenges?

​
Because here's the thing about innovation legacies: They're not built from your successes. They're built from how you respond when things don't go according to plan.
​

That ketubah still hangs in my brother's home, nearly three decades later. And every time I see it, I'm reminded that our most lasting innovations often come from our willingness to transform disasters into discoveries.
​

Your innovation culture's anniversary test isn't whether you can avoid mistakes—it's whether you can transform them into your most charming and innovative elements.
​

Stay curious, stay playful, and keep creating the impossible!
​
​

I'd love to hear from you. What's one "disaster" that led to an unexpected innovation in your organization? Hit reply and share your story of transforming setbacks into breakthroughs!

Senior Leaders: Ready to build an innovation culture with staying power? Book a complimentary Innovation Strategy Session and let's explore how the Create the Impossible™ framework can help your organization develop the resilience to innovate consistently, year after year.
​
​

There’s a lot going on in the world right now—market volatility, AI disruption, global uncertainty—much of it beyond our direct control.
​
​
But here’s what I know: we still have agency. We still play our part.
​

In uncertain times, I refuse to obey in advance. I refuse to surrender to despair.

​
Instead, I take small, intentional actions every day. Because when we combine our small actions with the small actions of others, they add up to something powerful.

​
A wave.

​
A tsunami of positive change.

​
This tiny morning doodle might seem insignificant, but it’s actually profound self-care—and a visual reminder of something crucial for leaders: we can’t control the randomness and uncertainty swirling around us, but we CAN control how we respond to it.

​
Just like this improvisational sketch, innovation emerges from embracing the unknown, staying present with possibility, and trusting the process even when we can’t see the outcome.

​
In business, the most breakthrough innovations often come from these moments of uncertainty—when we lean into the discomfort, play with possibilities, and Create the Impossible™.

​
Your next breakthrough might be one doodle, one conversation, one bold experiment away.

​
Ready to transform uncertainty into your competitive advantage?

​
👉 Book your complimentary Innovation Strategy Session and let’s explore how to turn your biggest challenges into breakthrough opportunities.
​
​

That's it for this week!
​

Creatively yours,
Melissa

​P.S. When you’re ready to build a culture of thriving innovation, so your team can Create the Impossible™, here are three ways I can help:

1) Download my FREE Innovation Culture Assessment to evaluate where your team stands

2) Download the first 50 pages of my book, The Creative Sandbox Way™, to reconnect with your creativity

3) Click here to schedule a complimentary Innovation Strategy Session

Did someone forward this email to you? If you'd like more articles like this right in your own inbox, click here to subscribe!​​