The most powerful ideas come from thinking wider.

The most powerful ideas don’t come from thinking more deeply. They come from thinking wider.

Our brains automatically filter out vast amounts of data as they try to be efficient and process information quickly. This makes decision making faster but it also makes it harder to come up with novel and original ideas.

When we hear a word or see an image our minds unlock a string of associated ideas each connected to another. These cluster together around familiar themes. This is great for efficiency as it helps us move from analysis to action but it also limits our ability to think broadly and make more original connections.

Creativity thrives when we lower these cognitive filters and let more information in. Psychologists call this process lowering our associative barriers.

Some of history’s greatest innovations came from unlikely associations:

The printing press – Johannes Gutenberg combined two unrelated areas: the precision of coin punches (from his experience working at a mint) and the mechanics of wine presses (used for applying firm, even pressure) to invent the movable-type printing press. This made printing much faster and cheaper.

ATM (cash) machines – By merging the concept of vending machines with bank tellers, ATMs gave the public much greater access to banking. Cash withdrawals and other banking services were available anytime, anywhere.

Duolingo – Learning a new language can be difficult and tedious. But Duolingo made it fun and absorbing by making it more like a game.

Innovation is often about connecting unrelated things in novel ways.

As Sarnoff Mednick wrote, “The more mutually remote the elements of a new combination, the more creative the process or the solution.” In other words, the greater the difference between two concepts the more creative the idea is likely to be.

That’s why linking a Peregrine falcon with hunting is obvious, but linking it with an aircraft is more interesting. The result was the American B-2 stealth bomber. Its sleek, aerodynamic shape was inspired by the smooth contours of the Peregrine falcon, avoiding sharp edges that would reflect radar signals.

Intersectional ideas are groundbreaking because the concepts involved are so different. Of course, not every unlikely combination leads to something useful and making these types of ideas work can be challenging.

But when they do work it can be transformative.