A colleague at an automotive company once told me that when they needed a better fuel injection system, the engineers didn’t study cars. They studied cappuccino machines. That’s not a typo.

The precision and pressure control of high-end espresso makers sparked the idea that helped them revolutionize performance driving. And that’s the magic of what I call the “Where Else?” method—a tool I developed at Disney to spark innovation from the least expected sources.

Because breakthrough ideas rarely come from staring harder at your own process—they come from walking into someone else’s. Whether it’s a café, a hospital or a shark tank, inspiration is hiding in places many teams never think to look.