I think people should recognise the value of fresh thinking. Of transferable skills. Of being better for knowing less. And I have found another person to back me. None other than Richard Branson.

What drove his inspirational business?

As a well-known creator of inspirational business, Richard Branson writes regularly for Entrepreneur.com. In a piece that appeared this week, Branson is absolutely crystal clear on one thing. That having no experience in a field often made for greater success. This was the case with his record shops, his recording business and his airline. In fact many of the hundreds of companies Richard Branson has created are far better for him and his team knowing less. The Virgin empire became such an inspirational business because they looked at things with a fresh perspective.

He feels strongly that knowing about an industry can force you to focus on problems, rather than on how things could be done differently. And that this freedom makes for greater creativity because people can be, in Branson’s eyes, so very “constrained ……. by past lessons and industry history.”

An inspirational business can be founded on a few mistakes

I listened to a TED talk a while back by economics writer, Tim Harford. And his speech urges us all to embrace trial and error. He argues very successfully that many of the greatest inventions have come from a policy of trial and error. That we should all aspire to make better mistakes.

I like his thinking. I like it because he is urging us to try things. He believes creativity would flow more if we were brave enough to have a go. That mistakes should not always be frowned upon. Tim is another supporter of the ‘be better for knowing less’ theory.

Branson loves to see a few slip-ups

In his article, Branson admits to loving people with a track record that includes a few mistakes. Entrepreneurs who have come back from the brink are stronger and fitter. And they can use those lessons in other ways , moving on to create a truly inspirational business.

I’ve spoken to a few people recently who have been interested to hear about work I have done in their sectors. Knowing that I have had relevant experience makes them feel better. I can see the trust they have in my abilities move up a level. Yet for me, I don’t always get much benefit from knowing more. Because all businesses are different. And the people running them are all different. Knowing more about one industry doesn’t always help.

What does help is believing that inspiration comes from all sources. It isn’t always about the depth of your knowledge. It is about having the creativity and bravery to take a fresh approach. Branson puts it perfectly – we are all, to some extent, constrained by history and past lessons. And Tim Harford is right – not all mistakes are bad, we should be brave enough to have a go. Because your lack of knowledge, combined with your bravery, might just create a long-lasting, inspirational business.

Once in a while you read something or hear something that really resonates. It stops you in your tracks and makes you think. For me, these moments often come from TED.

The power of TED

If you haven’t discovered TED yet – here’s a quick run down. Originally TED was an annual conference bringing together people from technology, entertainment and design. Now it is a collection of events across the globe which brings together remarkable people who have ideas worth spreading. In fact that is the mission of TED: to spread ideas. They have a website holding a collection of inspiring, thought-provoking lectures no longer than 20 minutes long. Investigate TED talks – all the lectures are free.

The power of trial and error

So I have just watched one by Tim Harford. He’s an economics writer. And his speech urges us all to embrace trial and error. He argues very successfully that many of the greatest inventions have come from a policy of trial and error. That we should all aspire to make better mistakes.

I like his thinking. I like it because he is urging us to try things. He wants us to pull away from building little models to solve problems. To reject our instinct to simplify the complexities of our world in graphs and charts. And he believes we should accept that for many things there simply are no correct answers. There is only trial and error. There are only better mistakes.

Watch it and see if you too find it fascinating. It makes me wonder how much more creative we could become if we embraced his ethos – if we chose to focus on the results of trial and error and not just the final answer.