As a long time football fan (of the currently dreadful Pittsburgh Steelers), I have heard the National Football League described as a “copycat” league. As soon as one team finds an offense or defense that is unique and successful, it is quickly imitated by every other team looking to replicate the success. True enough, but by no means unique.

We live in a copycat society. Look no further than your Christmas gift list for evidence. Zhu Zhu pets are white hot. Great. Mechanical rats. Uggs are the ridiculously hot footwear for teenage girls, despite being quite uggly, if you pardon the bad pun. And it applies to matters larger than a gift list. There was a time when the Prius stood alone as a homely, eco-friendly egg on wheels. Now it has plenty of company. Large suburban houses became so ubiquitous they earned the dubious McMansion moniker.

This copycat phenomenon might be interesting, almost amusing,  if it did not extend to an area of much greater significance. Us.

I worked with global corporations as a senior executive for over 25 years prior to starting a leadership coaching practice some 5 years ago. Over the last 10 years, hardly a day would go by when the CEO or other senior executive wasn’t decrying the lack of creativity on the part of the workforce. It seems that the copycat phenomenon has extended to people, stunting the creative muscle, and minting copycat employees. In business parlance, the watchword became “innovation.”

If you could sit in most corporate meetings to discuss succession, you would not be able to swing a dead cat (or zhu zhu pet) without hitting a leader lamenting the dearth of innovation in their organization. It happens every day. But it does not have to happen tomorrow.

Start with you. I know that downsizing has put increasing pressure on fewer employees to do the work of (formerly) many more. Plus, it is all too easy to fall into the trap of keeping your head down to avoid getting it shot off. Yes, it is hard to be creative when you are paranoid and overworked. But ironically, if you do not, you just might be the next “cost savings” to be implemented by your company.

Begin by lifting up your head and taking a look around. Try to identify one or two things that might make a difference in the business that are within your control. Take a few minutes and think. Deeply. Stay in touch with your markets, customers and products. Read some trade magazines to identify trends. Read more in general. Search the web. Look for an idea. An edge.

Then put it to work. If you need to clear it with your boss first, then do so. Begin the conversation with “I was thinking …”. If you strike pay dirt, do not relax. There is likely a copycat sitting next door.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, December 8th, 2009 at 9:28 am and is filed under Career Advice. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.