Those who see what's obvious aren't necessarily brighter than others.  They're just more likely to observe that the emperor is naked.  Like children, they see what's actually there.  Their perceptions are less clouded by belief systems, taboos, habits of thought.  One responsibility of management—an important one—is to call attention to the invisible obvious, pointing it out as a child does (sometimes to the embarrassment of adults).  Doing so also requires supporting employees who take that risk, too, and other risks as well.

The best ideas aren't hidden in shadowy recesses.  They're right in front of us, hidden in plain sight.  Innovation seldom depends on discovering obscure or subtle elements but in seeing the obvious with fresh eyes.  This is easier said than done because nothing is as hard to see as what's right before our eyes.  We overlook what we take for granted.  Billions of tea drinkers observed the force of steam escaping from water boiling in a kettle before James Watt realized that this vapor could be converted into energy.