It is often hard to really see how things change when you are in the middle of it. We take for granted so much that was simply unattainable just a short while ago.

Web 2.0 tools allow the rapid prototyping of an idea for low cost. We can then work towards perfection by easily making modifications. An example.

Youtube allows us to easily access video created by other people. Great video can be done by almost anyone with a great idea and a strong vision. Matt Harding is a great example. He took some video he made while traveling and created something special. It has been watched about a million times at youtube.

Simple idea. Dance the same dance around the world. The familiar mixed with the exotic. All in less than 3 minutes.

He expanded this, using some corporate sponsorship, to become a 6 month trip though 39 countries, resulting in this video with an incredible opening. It was better.

It was not a big marketing agency that created this but a guy with a camera and an idea. The prototype demonstrated what would work, permitting another effort to enlarge the scope. This video has had over 10 million views since it came out 2 years ago.

Now he has a new one. It came from another idea. In the previous videos, he was the only one dancing. He wanted to include other people. So he went back to the corporate sponsors, pitched the idea to them and here is the result, in high definition.

Where the Hell is Matt? (2008) from Matthew Harding on Vimeo.

It has had almost 5 million views at Youtube since it was uploaded June 20. It does not have the spectacular opening of the second video but it has so much more humanity. From the opening, similar to the first video, to the people from around the world.

Seeing children and adults from every continent dancing ‘together’ is incredible. Simple yet so evocative.

Creativity can come from anywhere. The tools of innovation are so simple and cheap today that a much larger pool of talent can be accessed. Smart companies will access them.

Successful companies will help foster an environment where ideas can be seen, examined and modified as we work towards perfection.

Technorati Tags: Social media, Web 2.0