Alleluah! Alleluah! Alleluah!

Until Wednesday I thought creativity or innovation was beyond my reach. But on Wednesday I realized that even creativity is often a combination of two existing ideas or a reflection on the past. If that was the case, I had been creative a million times over. Then I read the next piece; a creative idea or product must also be useful . . . . ok not so many creative ideas. Although the few creative ideas that have surfaced truly have come from reflection in the oddest of places; the shower, the massage room, the elliptical machine, etc. That is where I imagine that the people at 3M must come-up with their amazing products like Art Fry and Dr. Silver's Post-it notes or the most recent, Post-it flag highlighters.

Long before email (and blogs) Post-it notes revolutionized the way people communicate and even think about the processes in their life. So rarely does one see a non-technical innovation so radically change communication and processes. It is hard to imagine that Art Fry's revolutionary creation started in the 1970's in search for a bookmark for his choir hymnal that would neither fall out nor damage the hymnal (i.e. requirements).

It was because 3M employees and scientists are encouraged to step outside of their own departments and projects to learn what people in other areas of the company are doing and spend time working on independent projects (15% of the time) that Fry learned about 3M researcher Dr. Spencer Silver's "failed" (was not sticky enough) adhesive. However, this adhesive was strong enough to stick to surfaces, but left no residue after removal and could be repositioned without damage. Fry took some of Dr. Silver’s adhesive and applied it along the edge of a piece of paper creating his hymnal "bookmark".

Fry soon realized that his "bookmark" had other potential functions and used it to leave a note on an internal report. Fry then found himself inundated with requests from co-workers for more of that sticky notepaper. Despite the internal success of the now Pull and Peel Notes, Fry had difficulty selling his product to his superiors. Fry was forced to prove their worth through testing them among the office and keeping track of how many pads were requested and having the staff journal their thoughts about the product. They were almost addicting to the 3M staff. This "bookmark" actually created a new way to communicate and to organize.

Finally, 3M crafted the name Post-it note for Fry’s "bookmarks" and began production in the late 1970s for commercial use. In 1977, test-markets failed to show consumer interest. However in 1979, 3M implemented a massive consumer trial and education strategy, and the Post-it notes finally took off. Today, we see Post-it notes scattered across every surface in offices and homes throughout the world. From a choir hymnal "bookmark" to an office and home essential, the Post-it note has revolutionized the way we live.

Now Post-it notes have graduated too many other related products; one being the Post-it flags. Unlike the Post-it notes the latest innovation, Post-it flag highlighters, were not developed out of requirements but from the combination of two existing innovations, the Post-it flags and highlighter. However what is consistent with Post-it and what makes this creative is the fact that 3M considered how one uses these products and in what context. When pondering the usages and timing of each of these products (possibly in the shower), one would determine that they are often used simultaneously and that combining the products would reduce time and increase convenience. As Art Fry would say, "Alleluah!"