We here at Innovation Excellence are passionate about innovation AND education, because it is not just companies that need to innovate, but countries too. And the countries that do the best job of educating the next generation of innovators will be the ones that will live at the top of the food chain and reap the monetary and societal benefits.

The myth that creative people are 'right brained' and logical people are 'left brained' is a lie. Nick Skillicorn tries to find out the truth about how your brain generates ideas.

According to a recent Huffington Post/YouGov poll 28% of Americans did not read a book last year. As an author, I find this both disappointing and yet not surprising. Fortunately most people read. But is what you are reading enhancing your creativity, or just furthering your intellect?

Be sure to take some time to play with your brain over the holidays, starting with these fun brainteasers.

It used to be that we would read about the future and then wait for it to happen. Now, it seems that we read about it as it’s happening and the impact is already being felt in business, economics and society. Just as in past years (this is my 5th list), this list reflects what I’ve read and written about over the last 12 months. Have a great holiday!

There's a saying in marketing, "It's not the steak, it's the sizzle." In other words, people do not really buy a product. Rather, they buy the emotions and feelings associated with the product. Steak is not bought because it's a chunk of beef. But, because if it is well cooked, it will taste delicious (if you are not a vegetarian, anyway!)

What can leaders learn from Nigel Kennedy? Too much planning stiffens the performance. Too much spontaneity makes the performance sloppy. Like most things in life, it’s a clever balance. What other transferable lessons from Kennedy’s musical performance can we learn?

Stories are how we learn, remember, communicate. Stories infuse emotion into sometimes dry material making the content memorable. See my 8 Point Story Primer below to build your capacity to use story.

Education sprouts in many forms depending on how you look at it. Our views of what it should look like and how it should materialize depend on our value of it and our experience with it. What if a class consisted of words that led to information that whirled into blended realms of creativity set up just for students, created by students..

A look at the difference that culture and climate make in innovation - inside organizations.