Why Your Best Ideas Aren’t Always Yours

We all like to think our best ideas are the product of our own brilliance. But if we’re being honest, some of the most innovative solutions don’t come from a single person—they come from a collective. The truth is, your best ideas might not even be yours, and that’s actually a good thing. Whether you’re working in a federal agency, a local government, or any other public institution, leveraging the ideas of others—especially through collaboration and crowdsourcing—can take innovation to a whole new level.

When you’re responsible for leading a project or implementing change, it can be easy to feel like you need to have all the answers. But often, the people around you have unique perspectives that you might not have considered. A co-worker from another department might have a solution you didn’t think of, or an employee at a different level of government might bring a fresh take on an old problem. This is where crowdsourcing comes in. It allows you to gather a variety of insights and suggestions from people you might not usually hear from. And often, those ideas are the key to solving complex challenges. Instead of one brain working overtime to find a solution, you’ve got many minds contributing their diverse knowledge.

A lot of innovation in government traditionally comes from the top-down—leadership makes decisions, and everyone else follows suit. But some of the most effective innovations have actually bubbled up from the ground level. Employees who are interacting with processes daily often have the clearest view of what’s working and what needs improvement. So, when their ideas are actively solicited, they can be the driving force behind meaningful change. Crowdsourcing is gaining traction in the public sector because it gives a voice to the people on the front lines. By creating opportunities for ideas to flow upward, you’re empowering employees to think creatively and feel ownership in the solutions their agencies implement.

Sometimes the best ideas come from where you least expect them. Sure, you might get suggestions from experts in a particular field, but every once in a while, the most impactful idea might come from someone without the same level of experience. The magic of crowdsourcing lies in the fact that it democratizes innovation. The more you open up your organization to external input—whether it’s from employees, citizens, or even contractors—the more likely you are to find those hidden gems. NASA, for example, used crowdsourcing to solve a problem related to predicting solar flares. They invited non-experts to take a stab at solving it, and sure enough, a retired engineer and a radio frequency expert—neither of whom worked in astrophysics—came up with a winning solution. This shows that sometimes the best ideas come from the most unexpected places.

Creating something truly innovative takes more than one mind. The most successful organizations are tapping into the collective brainpower of their workforce and stakeholders. By creating opportunities for collaboration and encouraging input from different levels, you’re not only increasing the quantity of ideas but also the quality. So, the next time you’re looking for a breakthrough idea, remember: your best ideas aren’t always yours. In fact, they might just be waiting to emerge from the collective minds around you.