--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It may not be possible to 'win the…" description: "\"It may not be possible to 'win the future,' in President Obama's words, but if we're going to encourage more innovation, it's not enough for us to just..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/917/steven-johnson-9014_enough_it-may-not-be-possible-to-win-the-future_1477604.png" --- # It may not be possible to 'win the future,' in President… ![“It may not be possible to 'win the future,' in President Obama's words, but if we're going to encourage more innovation, it's not enough for us to just dig in and work harder. We also need to encourage surprise and serendipity. We need to play each other's instruments.” quote by Steven Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/917/steven-johnson-9014_enough_it-may-not-be-possible-to-win-the-future_1477604.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/917/steven-johnson-9014_enough_it-may-not-be-possible-to-win-the-future_1477604.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/917/steven-johnson-9014_enough_it-may-not-be-possible-to-win-the-future_1477604.png) > “It may not be possible to 'win the future,' in President Obama's words, but if we're going to encourage more innovation, it's not enough for us to just dig in and work harder. We also need to encourage surprise and serendipity. We need to play each other's instruments.” [Steven Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-johnson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Innovation requires not just effort but also surprise, collaboration, and openness to unexpected ideas. **In simple terms:** Innovation needs effort plus surprise and teamwork. Key Takeaway Embrace serendipity and collaborate. Themes innovation collaboration serendipity Mood inspirational optimistic Type strategic motivational When to use this quote - R&D - team projects - creative brainstorming - policy making Key Concepts systems thinking creative processes Questions to Reflect On - How can you foster surprise in work? - What collaborative tools help? A Different Perspective Too much focus on effort can stifle creativity. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Hard work](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hard-work/) [Innovation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/innovation/) [Play](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/play/) [President](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/president/) [Serendipity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/serendipity/) [Surprise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/surprise/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Winning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/winning/) ## Related quotes > [“I know that we have to start work quickly and intensively, whoever wants to be with us from the start will be welcomed. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guillem-balague/i-know-that-we-have-to-start-work-quickly-and-intensively-whoever/) [Guillem Balague](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guillem-balague/) > [My theme is going to be: Together we can win the future. The right policies lead to the right results. And I'm going to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/newt-gingrich/my-theme-is-going-to-be-together-we-can-win-the-future-the-right/) [Newt Gingrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/newt-gingrich/) > [I'm not here for anything other than world championships. I don't want to be here driving around and finishing races and scoring points. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-magnussen/i-m-not-here-for-anything-other-than-world-championships-i-don-t-want/) [Kevin Magnussen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-magnussen/) > [“Even if I win, what will my future hold? Can I put "saved world" on a college application? If I fulfil my destiny next…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tellulah-darling/even-if-i-win-what-will-my-future-hold-can-i-put-saved-world-on-a/) [Tellulah Darling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tellulah-darling/) > [We ought not to be over-anxious to encourage innovation in cases of doubtful improvement, for an old system must ever have two advantages over…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-caleb-colton/we-ought-not-to-be-over-anxious-to-encourage-innovation-in-cases-of/) [Charles Caleb Colton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-caleb-colton/) > [The most important thing we do to encourage innovation is give people the freedom to fail. And I think you can articulate that and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bobby-kotick/the-most-important-thing-we-do-to-encourage-innovation-is-give-people/) [Bobby Kotick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bobby-kotick/) > [Encourage innovation. Change is our lifeblood, stagnation our death knell.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-ogilvy/encourage-innovation-change-is-our-lifeblood-stagnation-our-death/) [David Ogilvy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-ogilvy/) > [The world needs a better understanding of how to encourage innovation. And innovators need to get better at it. Sign me up.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-metcalfe/the-world-needs-a-better-understanding-of-how-to-encourage-innovation/) [Robert Metcalfe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-metcalfe/) > [Creating open teamwork is the best way to encourage innovation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kay-koplovitz/creating-open-teamwork-is-the-best-way-to-encourage-innovation/) [Kay Koplovitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kay-koplovitz/) > [Government can encourage innovation, but mainly by doing less, not doing more.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-ridley/government-can-encourage-innovation-but-mainly-by-doing-less-not/) [Matt Ridley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-ridley/) > [Open platforms encourage innovation. Whenever you have a closed platform, a monopoly on commerce, and all these platform rules, it stifles innovation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-sweeney/open-platforms-encourage-innovation-whenever-you-have-a-closed/) [Tim Sweeney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-sweeney/) > [People still cling to this belief that innovation is just random and unpredictable. But if you look closely, there are some real patterns. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clayton-christensen/people-still-cling-to-this-belief-that-innovation-is-just-random-and/) [Clayton Christensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clayton-christensen/) > [I think frugality drives innovation, just like other constraints do. 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Despite everything you hear about declining standards…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-johnson/popular-culture-on-average-has-been-growing-more-cognitively/) [Steven Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-johnson/) > [“From am overall eclsyste,s perspective, if you're going to have 10million human beings trying to share an environment with other life-forms, it's much better…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-johnson/from-am-overall-eclsyste-s-perspective-if-you-re-going-to-have/) [Steven Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-johnson/) > [Nothing really says ... interactivity - which was so exciting and captures the real, the Web Zeitgeist of 1995 - than 'Click here for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-johnson/nothing-really-says-interactivity-which-was-so-exciting-and-captures/) [Steven Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-johnson/) > [“An innovation, or cluster of innovations, in one field ends up triggering changes that seem to belong to a different domain altogether.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-johnson/an-innovation-or-cluster-of-innovations-in-one-field-ends-up/) [Steven Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-johnson/) > [Every childhood has its talismans, the sacred objects that look innocuous enough to the outside world, but that trigger an onslaught of vivid memories…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-johnson/every-childhood-has-its-talismans-the-sacred-objects-that-look/) [Steven Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-johnson/) > [I suspect millions of people from my generation probably have comparable stories to tell: if not of sports simulations then of Dungeons & Dragons,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-johnson/i-suspect-millions-of-people-from-my-generation-probably-have/) [Steven Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-johnson/) > [“It is a great testimony to the connectedness of life on earth that the fates of the largest and the tiniest life should be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-johnson/it-is-a-great-testimony-to-the-connectedness-of-life-on-earth-that/) [Steven Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-johnson/) [Explore all 76 Steven Johnson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-johnson/) ## More Enough quotes > [I guess at it's very core love is connection that just makes so much sense you wonder how you used to live before you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-stone/i-guess-at-it-s-very-core-love-is-connection-that-just-makes-so-much/) [Benjamin Stone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-stone/) > [Failures happen. You can't cry over them. You just take it in your stride because you know that you have done your best... 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I don't need to see it through to the end. When it actually happens,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-sedaris/sometimes-it-s-just-enough-for-me-to-have-the-idea-i-don-t-need-to/) [Amy Sedaris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-sedaris/) > [The vast majority of organizations today have more than enough intelligence, experience and knowledge to be successful. What they lack is organizational health.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-lencioni/the-vast-majority-of-organizations-today-have-more-than-enough/) [Patrick Lencioni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-lencioni/) > [I'm an actor, so I'm never going to feel like I've done enough.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/italia-ricci/i-m-an-actor-so-i-m-never-going-to-feel-like-i-ve-done-enough/) [Italia Ricci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/italia-ricci/) > [I've been to Manchester enough to know it's a real place. It's not Factory Records and the Smiths bicycling around. I get it. 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