Innovation starts with the heart—with a passion for improving the lives of those around you. When the iPad was introduced, Jony Ive, Apple’s head of design, talked about his passion for creating things that seemed “magical”—that were so far beyond what any customer might have imagined, they seemed like wizardry. You don’t achieve this by paying attention to customers, by putting them first, or even delighting them. You do it by setting out to amaze them—and it all begins with an attitude.

You have to be achingly eager to do whatever can be done, within the limits of physics and economics, to raise the quantum of human happiness in the world.

“Yes,” you say, “but in business, we have to be pragmatic. We have to focus on things that can actually be accomplished.” Fair enough, but often, we are blindly pragmatic. We are so conservative, so utilitarian, so process-focused, so data-driven, so obsessed with meager efficiencies, that we can scarcely dream of doing something “insanely great”—to borrow one of Steve Jobs’ favorite phrases.

As CEO of a health care system facing down a complex of challenges, Dr. Loren Hamel dreamed of engaging his 4,000 associates in reinventing the experience of healthcare from the heart. Watch his uplifting and eye-opening session with Gary Hamel (yes, they’re brothers!) at the MIX Mashup, in which they unpack the story of Lakeland Health’s passion-fueled transformation.  

READ Gary Hamel’s blog on The Heart of Innovation here.