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Did you ever wonder…

by Rick Baker
On Jul 6, 2010
…why being described as “stunning” is a great while being described as “stunned” is not?
 
…if people who watch horror movies are more inclined to embrace Change?
 
…how many substances behave like water, shrinking when heated and expanding when cooled?
 
…if the Internet will commoditize trust?
 
…why Saturn got those pretty rings while the rest of our planets did not?
 
…when the Greeks first used Arabic numerals?
 
…if it is sheer coincidence that the greatest modern physicist was named after one beer glass?
 
…if there is only one word in the English language that ends with the letters “mt”?
 
…why the Sun isn’t getting a bit more blame for global warming?
 
…if Dog The Bounty Hunter could catch Osama Bin Laden?
 
…why whoever made up our alphabet messed up the letter “w” so badly?
 
…why Evolution hasn’t come up with something less violent than the sneeze?
 
…if the bottled-water market is saturated?

Tags:

Beyond Business

Innovation & Creativity

by Rick Baker
On Jul 1, 2010
During a recent strategic-planning session we discussed corporate Values and Culture. I mentioned Spirited’s corporate Values are: Courage, Confidence, Conviction, and Creativity. I also mentioned each of these words had been defined, discussed, and described in blogs…because it’s risky to use words unless those words are understood.
 
This meshes with our philosophy: Values – Culture – Communication – Value
 
Some discussion and lots of thinking about innovation and creativity ensued.
 
So, now I am writing to share more of my thoughts…
 
About Innovation
                       
Do some search-engine exploration. Or, check LinkedIn questions & answers. If you do this then you can find hundreds of definitions of innovation, perhaps dozens credited to Peter Drucker alone.
 
A couple of years ago, I blogged about Innovation
 
In that blog, I proposed the following definition for Business Innovation:
 
Business Innovation [def’n]:
 
a thing done or provided to add value by solving a customer’s problem or satisfying a customer’s need
 
That definition of Innovation still works for me.
 
But – perhaps that’s because I have drawn some clear lines between Innovation and Creativity.
 
What’s the difference between Creativity and Innovation? And, how do I define Creativity?
 
First, Innovation and Creativity have two very important things in common.
 
Each is
  • heavily grounded in Imagination and
  • closely tied to Change.
Creativity and Innovation also have in common, but to differing degrees, elements of Surprise. I argue Creativity contains more element of Surprise. In some cases the element of Surprise is too great to be tolerated [apparently they placed Marconi in an insane asylum when he created the vision which led to wireless communication]. In other cases the element of Surprise shows up in revolutionary art forms [such as the jump-shift of Picasso’s art and Mozart’s music].
 
While, to my knowledge, Napoleon Hill did not present arguments in this direction, I believe his description of the two types of Imagination - synthetic imagination and creative imagination - provides an excellent way to describe the difference between Innovation and Creativity.
 
Here is an excerpt from Napoleon Hill’s Think and Grow Rich, (1937):
 
Synthetic Imagination – Through this faculty, one may arrange old concepts, ideas, or plans into new combinations. This faculty creates nothing. It merely works with the material of experience, education, and observation with which it is fed. It is the faculty used most by the inventor, with the exception of the “genius” who draws upon the creative imagination, when he cannot solve his problem through synthetic imagination.
 
Creative Imagination - Through the faculty of creative imagination, the finite mind of man has direct communication with Infinite Intelligence. It is the faculty through which “hunches” and “inspirations” are received. It is by this faculty that all basic, or new ideas are handed over to man. It is through this faculty that one individual may “tune in” or communicate with the subconscious minds of other men.
 
My point is: when we have successfully used what Napoleon Hill called synthetic imagination the result is a thing of Innovation and when we have successfully used what Napoleon Hill called creative imagination the result is a thing of Creativity.
 
In simplest terms:
  • Innovation is adjusting or repackaging existing things.
  • Creativity brings new things.
Napoleon Hill described, as many others have done since [using different words], how to go about the processes of developing skills related to both synthetic imagination and creative imagination.
 
The process he outlined for developing skills related to creative imagination will not be well-received by some...perhaps many. For example, some people firmly believe Creativity is something you are born with...or not born with. That is, Creativity cannot be learned. Other folks, my favourite being Edward De Bono, prove through training Creativity can indeed be learned.
 
And, what about that Infinite Intelligence thing Napoleon Hill talked about? Some will be very comfortable considering that to be God. Some will be extremely uncomfortable with the whole chapter of the book.
 
Regardless, few will argue against the existence of the amazing human experience we call “hunches”.
 
That alone provides enough common ground for explaining the difference between Innovation and Creativity.
 
With all that and much more considered:
 
Innovation happens when we think. Innovation happens when we consciously engage the logical and deductive workings of our brains...and we might as well call that thinking process and the brain parts used in that thinking process our synthetic imagination. So, we can revise our definition of Business Innovation as follows:
 
Business Innovation [def’n]:
 
arranging old concepts, ideas, or plans into new combinations to solve customers’ problems or satisfy customers’ needs
 
And...
 
Creativity happens when “flashes of inspirations” or “hunches” come to our consciousness. Since it is nicer to think each of us possesses a level of creativity and it is nicer to think each of us can learn to be more creative...we might as well call “inspirations” and “hunches” gifts of our creative imagination. So, we can define Business Creativity as follows:
 
Business Creativity [def’n]:
 
using “flashes of inspirations” or “hunches”, the elite gifts of our imaginations, to solve customers’ problems or satisfy customers’ needs
 
***
 
Footnotes:
  1. The definitions of Innovation and Creativity contain the phrase to solve customers’ problems or satisfy customers’ needs. The phrase is a qualifier, intentionally added to draw attention to the fact business innovation and creativity must serve a purpose and that purpose must be tested in terms of ‘value added’ as perceived by customers. This is required under the Values–Culture–Communication–Value philosophy, which is introduced at https://rickbaker.ca/post/2010/06/17/Do-family-businesses-have-better-values.aspx
  2. Napoleon Hill link  http://www.naphill.org

Assertive Curiosity – Igniting Passion at our workplace

by Rick Baker
On Jun 29, 2010
Dale Carnegie, in The 5 Essential People Skills, educated us about assertive curiosity. Assertive curiosity is a multi-faceted concept, described in 10 elements.  www.DaleCarnegie.com
 
If we want to summarize these 10 elements in a single word then that single word would be ‘passion’.
 
You may recall, I was asked, “How can we build passion into our workplace?”
 
Here is another answer: building a culture of assertive curiosity is a way to build passion.
 
Dale Carnegie Trainingsuggests 10 elements for building assertive curiosity at our workplace:
  1. Remember assertive curiosity is an emotional as well as an intellectual experience. Assertive curiosity is more about passion than about gathering facts. It is about teaching ourselves how to learn in ways that are meaningful, memorable, and effective. It is about conveying to your co-workers an excitement about learning.
  2. See yourself as both a student and a purveyor of real knowledge. Gather information from within and outside your field, striving to have leading-edge knowledge. Be dynamic about it, bridging the gap between theory and practice. Become an authority. Be comfortable saying, “I don’t know” [which is a mark of true authority] and couple that with an intention to find out.
  3. The operational/interactive component of assertive curiosity involves listening, questioning, being responsive, and remembering each human being is different from every other. Find the best in people. Ask the right questions and want to hear the answers. Seek the opinions of others. Find out what people think.
  4. Assertive curiosity involves being curios about and interactive with people without having a fixed agenda. Adjust to accommodate others’ interests. Be confident enough to understand other people’s ideas may be better than your own. Be a patient teacher. Share information about yourself in order to inspire others to share their personal information. Share your dreams.
  5. Work at having an appealing personal style. Be theatrical. Be interesting.
  6. Develop a fine sense of self-deprecating humour…to attract and engage others. Remember, both curiosity and humour thrive on the pleasure of surprise.
  7. Recognize what other people want to learn and also what they need to learn. Then, be creative as you work to spark their curiosity. But, be sure to have no agenda and have no expectation.
  8. Your company culture, as a whole, must support assertive curiosity. You must have visionary leadership coupled with tangible resources throughout you organization.
  9. Assertive curiosity should be mentored by senior management. Make curiosity a factor in employee performance appraisals. Provide training about curiosity. Reward curiosity.
  10. Build fun into your workplace.
If we work on these 10 things then we will ignite passion at our workplace.

Here’s a way to build passion into our workplace

by Rick Baker
On Jun 24, 2010
A few weeks ago I wrote a blog about The 4th Ingredient – Passion.
 
After reading that blog, one of my friends wrote, asking, “Considering the state of the marketplace over recent years, how can we build passion at our workplace?”
 
My immediate reaction was to comment that there is evidence of a groundswell of change…a change for the better…a move toward better values and better business practices. My point was the groundswell will make it easier to build passion into our workplaces.
 
But that may only be theory.
 
So, I made a decision to sketch out some practical suggestions on how we can build a culture of passion around our workplaces.
 
Here’s where I am at…
 
The SVP TEST  [yes, a little double entendre around the French words for ‘please’]
 
The SVP TEST consists of considering our work options and the actions we are about to take and asking 3 questions:
  1. Will this work engage my personal Strengths?
    1. My Innate Talents?
    2. The Knowledge I have gained around my innate Talents?
    3. The Skills I have gained around my innate Talents?
  2. Will this work provide sufficient Value to all affected by it?
    1. To clients?
    2. To people at our company?
    3. To allies?
  3. Does this work strike my Passion chords?
    1. Will I enjoy doing it?
The more YES answers the better!
 
We will not want to get overly analytical about this and we can not expect perfection. Some, perhaps many, things we must do at work will not receive a full set of YESes.
 
We must recognize: the more YESes the higher the likelihood of building a Culture of Passion at our workplace.
 
We must work to expand our YES answers as we take our SVP TEST.

How to get your business humming

by Rick Baker
On Jun 22, 2010
In his book The Sticking Point Solution Jay Abraham explained why businesses experience stagnation. www.abraham.com
 
Rather than post the negative, I will reword Jay’s 4 points as
 
How to get your business humming
 
How to get your business humming
1. Incorporate growth thinking into every aspect of the business
2. Measure, monitor, compare, and quantify results
3. Have a detailed strategic marketing plan with specific performance growth expectations
4. Know how to set appropriate, specific goals
 
No question, Jay’s advice is good advice.
 
***
 
Some suggestions on how to go about getting your business humming:
  • Concentrate on gross margin growth
  • Measure the ‘net present value’ of new clients...ie, don’t underestimate the value of new clients
  • Take simple tactical action and make simple strategic decisions…rather than doing one or the other*
  • Use simple practical tools and processes…aiming for timeliness of action rather than perfection
  • Learn simple measurement methods…if you are not convinced the action can work then don’t guess…don’t do it…only take action you think will work
  • When goals are being set…intentionally set the bar on the low side
  • Be open to ideas…that doesn’t mean act on all ideas…just be open-minded and consider many ideas
  • Make decisions quickly…act, test, and repeat what is working
  • Focus on the bright lights…some things will work better than other things…do more of the things that are working better
  • Build on your human Strengths [where Strengths = Talent + Knowledge + Skills]
Enjoy your success.
 
Footnote: Strategy and tactics should not be treated as isolated things. Whether openly discussed or not, the tactics we have employed in the past tend to remain 'nearby' in our minds. Tactics guide action and action generates results….results, accurately measured results, feed and inject value into the planning process.

Tags:

Entrepreneur Thinking | Marketing

People Networking…Succeeding in the 21st Century #5

by Rick Baker
On Jun 19, 2010
The purpose of this blog series is to develop a framework for best-practice people networking. That is, to provide those interested in succeeding at people networking with a guide…a guide to help them.
 
Not only are we trying to develop the How To Network framework, but we are doing it in a collaborative way. Business associates - LinkedIn friends - are sharing thoughts and exchanging input. This blog series presents some of the details of our idea exchanges. The full set of interactions can be found at LinkedIn.
 
My LinkedIn contact name is WFC Rick Baker.
 
Prior blogs can be found at these links [#1, #2, #3, #4].
 
At the Blog #4, I promised to adjust my definition of Networking and discuss the changes I make.
 
My first draft of the definition was:
 
Networking is meeting new people and re-meeting people in a business or social context
 
My LinkedIn friends felt this was not sufficient. The definition should contain a description of not just ‘what’ networking is by also ‘why’ we do it. We should define the purpose/goal of networking. While my LinkedIn friends had differing views about the purpose/goal of networking there was a common theme. The differences were more about the extent of the purpose than the direction of the purpose.
 
My LinkedIn friends felt the direction networking should take is delivering value. The purpose/goal should be to deliver value. My LinkedIn friends had strong views about making sure the value was given or exchanged rather than just taken. Some strongly felt giving value without expecting to receive value was the right starting mindset.
 
My LinkedIn friends had differing views about the extent value must be delivered. At one extreme, successful networking could be as small as helping the other person smile.  At the other extreme, successful networking could be as large as building a life-long relationship, a two-way commitment based on trust with an ongoing sharing of value.
 
I believe a one-way delivery of value to others could be sustainable for life. I mean, as long as we accept success happens when we deliver a small value to others there is no reason why we cannot keep delivering small value to others when they do not reciprocate. For example, we can smile at others every time we see them even if they never let us know they receive value.
 
My original definition did not attempt to incorporate success. I was trying to define networking in as simple terms as possible. I agree with my LinkedIn friends: in business we should not just do things, we should have some purpose behind the things we do.
 
So, on behalf of our group of LinkedIn friends, I have added ‘purpose/goal’ words to our 2nd draft definition, to ensure people know successful networking is about delivering value. However, we have not attempted to set limits on the extent delivering value must happen. If the delivery of value is as small as trying to help another person smile then that is successful networking. If much more happens and the exchange of value is as large as life-long shared commitments and value exchange then that, of course, is successful networking too.
 
Here is 2nd draft of the definition - Successful Networking:
 
Successful Networking is meeting new people and re-meeting people in a business or social context with the purpose of delivering and receiving value

Tags:

Definitions - Spirited Words Defined | Networking: The Joys of Connection

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