New businesses and ventures need to be creative and introducing new ideas to be able to keep their competitive advantage in the market. It is also crucial to understand the role of creative thinking in the innovation process. Creativity is about producing new ideas which make the the business process or life easier and more efficient.

However, although creativity is appreciated in some cases, there are people who are professional IDEA KILLERS. So, it is important to know their response to your creative idea and have a plan in place to cope with it. The below list is the most common terms you hear from a professional IDEA KILLER:

1. "Naah."

2. "That's the dumbest thing I've ever heard."

3. "Can't!"

4. "Yes, but what if...? (shows the extreme disastrous situation)"

5. "We already tried that, ... years ago!"

6. "I don't see anything wrong with the way we are doing it now"

7. "We've never done anything like that before"

8. We've got deadlines to meet.... we don't have time to consider that"

9. "It is not in the budget"

10. "Where do you get these weird ideas?" *

So, be careful, if someone tries to shut you down when you are trying to discuss a new idea, you need to find a different approach or person to talk to. It is frustrating that some people don't see the value of creative ideas, but you should keep your will strong and do not give up, specially when you hear one of the above answers!

Originally published on Entrepreneurship and Innovation Hub Blog

* Kurayku and Hodgetts, Entrepreneurship, 8th Ed 2009