Tuesday, April 9, 2013

Creation Myth

 Haley Scholars Spring 2013 Reading Groups


By Danielle Hall

Malcolm Gladwell's essay “Creation Myth: Xerox Parc, Apple, and the Truth about Innovation” chronicles the ways that leading technology companies took different approaches to innovation and creating products that would advance technology and prove profitable and marketable for mass consumption.

One notable concept that Gladwell discusses is the necessity of threat and constraint for innovation. Here, Gladwell illustrates how Xerox Parc’s “imaginative poverty” in many ways thrust Steve Jobs and Gary Starkweather into more creative ventures that fostered the development of the mouse and the laser printer, respectively. Gladwell states “For an actual product, you need threat and constraint—and the improvisation and creativity necessary to turn a gold-plated three-hundred-dollar mouse into something that works…and costs fifteen dollars.”

Gladwell’s essay demonstrates how the culture of a creative environment can help determine the nature of what is produced. What new or useful idea did you pick up or consider regarding creativity, environment, technology, innovation, or results after reading the essay?Why was that idea notable to you?

4 comments:

Ajeenah Johnson-Brown said...

While reading Gladwell's essay, I thought about all the Apple products from the iphone to the ipad. What I noticed is that as a company Apple and numerous other companies strive to create these small products. For example, Apple first introduced the ipad. However, in this past year they have introduced the mini ipad. Everyone wants something small enough that they could bring with them everywhere. That is the environment component. We live in a society where it is accepted to use technology in church, class,meetings, etc. So a small product would be the ideal product to have.

Joshua Jones said...

While reading the essay I noticed that Jobs wanted to change the norm for products. He wanted to make products more for the customer and less for the big corporations.In order for his company to be successful he made the technology open to people for an affordable price.In today's society we use this as a model because in business the customer is always the most important thing.

Sandra said...

In the case of Steve Jobs, he helped advance smart phone technology. Many apps that are so common place now start of as Apple products first. He has made touch screen devices more compact and easily portable. Apple keeps coming out with new devices to accommodate customers and newly accepted technology.

Unknown said...

I think that competition has always been beneficial for companies and people in general. Steve Jobs would not have made the products like the ipod or the ipad if he did not have competitors that were trying to out do him with their products. as long as the competition fair and just, i feel that competition should welcomed in everyone's life.