Status Quo doesn’t win. Smart Wins. How many times today have you encountered something that was not done correctly and, moreover, has stayed that in that condition because people have just accepted it that way? How many times have you thought, “This could be so simple to implement or change, why isn’t being done?” Sometimes, one must wonder how, as a nation, we have come to accept the notion that mediocrity is okay. How did it come to be that we have seemingly lowered our expectations?
“ innovation, creativity
and entrepreneurism are rooted in our history.”
The Bahamas is a country where innovation, creativity and entrepreneurism are rooted in our history. The very basis of our main economic driver, the tourism industry, came about because Sir Stafford Sands thought of a way to sell The Bahamas as a tourist destination, beating the other countries in the region to the punch and creating a competitive advantage. It was innovative, it was bold and importantly, it was successful.
In his book Rise of the Creative Class (2004) Richard Florida defines the creative class as people who “engage in complex problem solving” and “favour hard work, challenge and stimulation.” They also have a sense of self-identity and value openness and collaboration. In a March 2011 article in The Atlantic magazine, Florida postulates that the creative class in the Middle East, “spanning science, technology and engineering professionals, management and business executives, doctors, health care professionals and lawyers, as well as arts, culture and media workers” played a big role in bringing about the Arab Spring. It can be argued that those were the qualities shared by the brave men and women who envisioned and pursued the course towards an independent Bahamas. These are the qualities shared by people who, regardless of their chosen profession, see their surroundings a little differently and want to make an impact, want to do something better. A few months ago I was a guest on the Wendell Jones’ television show. During our discussion on the creative economy, Godfrey Eneas stated that he thought that the phone card vendors on the side of the road, stationed sometimes as close as 20 feet apart, were creative entrepreneurs because they were selling phone cards. I am still not sure about how this is so. Indeed, Mr. Eneas may be privy to insight that he has yet to share. What I am sure about is that if this is indicative of what we have come to consider creative or innovative then we should close up shop and call it a day.