Hello Changeologists,
\nWelcome to this occasional post about\u00a0some of the things that excite me.<\/p>\n

An amazing innovation trick<\/strong><\/h2>\n

<\/a><\/em><\/span>Lots of things are supposed to be amazing, incredible or awesome and one can\u2019t be blamed for being cynical about another claim. But I swear this one is a cracker.
\nEvery time we\u2019re designing a project (or anything) we always have a model in our heads, and it\u2019s usually pretty predictable. It\u2019s that conventional model that\u2019s the enemy of good change projects. Not that there\u2019s anything wrong with conventional ideas per se\u2026most of what we do will always be mainly an assembly of proven ideas. But it\u2019s the cherries in the cake of conventional ideas that make projects really excite, stand out and make a difference.
\nSo here\u2019s the trick:<\/p>\n

\u00a0Just imagine that everything you THINK you\u2019re going to do in your project suddenly has become impossible or illegal. What could you do instead?<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

I\u2019ve brainstormed this with all sorts of groups, from Landcare volunteers, to professional project managers, to an entire conference of Victorian local government corporate planners. It is, hands down, the best generator of original ideas I\u2019ve ever seen. It also generates a lot of laughter and joy, and sometimes a palpable sense of relief when\u00a0people\u00a0realise they don’t\u00a0have to do something that bores them.
\nP.S. To supercharge this, do it wearing party hats!<\/p>\n

Could Idol be a better model for doing community grants?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

<\/a><\/span><\/em><\/span>I ran a little workshop for the Healthy Together team at Wodonga City Council last year that “crash innovated” an original model of doing community grants. Then, the Wodonga team, led by the redoubtable Tracey Farrant, went ahead, developed it, and made it happen, bless them!
\nIt’s just like an “Idol” talent quest. There\u2019s no long application form. Instead applicants just sketch the bare bones of an idea. Then they come together in a one-day workshop about innovation (to rev up their ideas) project design (to flesh out their plans) and pitch-making (to sell their projects). There\u2019s a bit of speed dating to, to encourage similar projects to work together.
\nThen, with a mentor, they have three weeks to shape up their projects into a winning pitch.
\nThe pitch session follows where teams have 5 minutes pitch their projects, and 5 minutes to answer questions from an audience consisting of all the other applicants, plus invited guests. Then the audience votes and projects with the most votes win!
\nI’m pleased to say the idea is spreading: two other Victoria councils have just taken it up.
\nIt tackles the major flaw in conventional community grant schemes, which is that both applicants and funders end up being stuck with whatever’s written in the original application form (usually thought up at five minutes to midnight on the night before the application was due) with little chance to innovate, re-think, deepen, and sharpen their ideas.<\/p>\n

<\/a>Self-drive takes\u00a0off<\/strong><\/h2>\n

The Changeology Self-drive site has its first 10 teams, mostly in local government, starting their 7 step project development process. Subjects include\u00a0cigarette butt litter, recycling contamination, rain gardens, and organics recycling in schools. It’s a brave experiment that I’m keenly hovering over.
\nThe\u00a0public pages of the\u00a0Changeology Self-drive site<\/a>\u00a0are freely viewable.<\/p>\n

Inspirations<\/strong><\/h1>\n

Here are some nice inspirations I\u2019ve come across in the last few weeks:<\/p>\n

Inglorious fruit<\/strong><\/h2>\n

How to stop waste and increase access to healthy food at the same time. This French supermarket chain decided to sell malformed fruit and veges, in their own aisle, with their own brand, and 30% cheaper. They faced only one problem \u2013 being sold out.
\nhttp:\/\/www.thisismarvelous.com\/i\/198-Watch-How-This-Supermarket-Got-People-To-Buy-Their-Trash<\/a>
\n<\/p>\n