You never know when a Big Idea can translate to big profits. We’ve poured through the vast sources of data — over 95,000+ academic papers on “Creativity in the workplace” at Academia.edu, collecting ton of stats that tell us: “the practice of creativity improves workplace performance.” But loads of data and numbers can make creative practice seem, well, dry. So here’s a more interesting anecdote to back up the data!
Oye Como Va: A Big Idea transformed a little song!
We love the song Oye Como Va (who doesn’t?). But, like many, we know the Santana version best. The Santana version is, according to NPR, one of the 100 most important American songs of the twentieth century. It is in the Latin Grammy Hall of Fame and it spent seven weeks on the Billboard 100 in 1971.
However, the original Tito Puente version was “written by Puente on the run, and allegedly recorded as an album filler.” This, according to Joe Conzo, Puente’s confidant and chronicler for many years. Conzo further writes that Puente did not score “Oye Como Va” until many years after it was composed. And during the song’s first recording, Puente simply told his musicians to “be as playful as possible.” This improvisational scoring gave the original piece a feeling of a jam session.
Puent didn’t have high expectaions when Santana requested permission to honor Puente with a cover of the song. But Santana’s Big Idea was to cover it with his signature rock style. Santana’s version was a quick success. Puente loved the adaptation.
However, when Puente went to deposit his ASCAP royalties. he saw what a big idea could do to a little song. According to biographer Josephine Powell, the teller at the bank had to help a disbelieving Puente to change his deposit slip. Instead of the $35 he had written on his deposit slip, she showed him the check was for $35,000! Puente was thrilled. He now had a down payment on a new house.
So even anecdotally, Big Ideas can turn little things into big profits!
Creativity practice in the workplace: A Big Idea whose time has come
In other Big Ideas, did you know that, according to Gallup, the practice of creative engagement increases productivity, sales and profits by 17%, 20% and 21% respectively. We hope you’ll think “O, that’s a Big Idea” whose time has come for your organization. We invite you to use our workshops and curriculum to boost creative engagement & increase your productivity.