Mozart on Genius
"Neither
a lofty
degree
of intelligence,
nor
imagination,
nor both together,
go to the
making of
genius.
Love, Love, Love.
That
is the
soul of
genius."
Posted by Mitch Ditkoff at 09:22 PM | Comments (0)
June 29, 2009I'm Giving Away the Farm
Tired of
big fat
business books
that cost $26.95
and take
way too long
to say
what you already know?
Well then,
here's a much
simpler,
less expensive way
to spark innovation,
creativity,
and fire in the belly.
Online it is,
free and clear,
fun to read,
low fat,
and just a click away.
Posted by Mitch Ditkoff at 12:35 AM | Comments (0)
June 28, 2009100 Simple, Low-Cost, Soulful Ways to Be More Creative on the Job
Have you ever noticed America's strange fascination with lists? Cruise any supermarket magazine rack and you will invariably notice some version of the following:
"5 Ways to Find Your Soul Mate"
"10 Ways to Profit from the Recession"
"50 Ways to Retire Before 40"
"The 100 Best Companies to Work For"
For years I ignored this phenomenon. Then I mocked it. But the more I thought about it, the more it made sense. Perfect sense.
Lists simplify.
Lists cut to the chase.
Lists help people make sense of the world.
And so, in honor of America's love of lists, here is my time-tested, easy-to-read, highly compelling, list of 100 Ways to Be More Creative on the Job.
1. Find the most creative people at work and ask for their ideas.
2. Brainstorm daily with a co-worker.
3. Tape record your ideas on your commute to and from work.
4. Present your biggest challenge to a child.
5. Take your team off-site for a day.
6. Listen more carefully to your inner muse.
7. Play music in your office.
8. Go for a daily brainstorming walk.
9. Ask someone to collaborate with you on your favorite project.
10. Exercise during your lunch break.
11. Turn on a radio at random times and listen for a "message."
12. Invite your customers and vendors to brainstorming sessions.
13. Think of five other ways to define your challenge.
14. Assign a "fun fairy" to each of your meetings.
15. Reward yourself, in specific ways, for small successes.
16. Introduce odd catalysts into your daily routine.
17. Get out of the office more regularly
18. Play with fun toys in your office whenever you get stuck.
19. Take more naps.
20. Take the train, instead of driving to work.
21. Work in cafes.
22. Transform your assumptions into "How can I?" questions.
23. Write down as many ideas as you can think of in five minutes
24. Redesign your office.
25. Take regular daydreaming breaks.
26. Dissolve turf boundaries.
27. Initiate cross-functional brainstorming sessions.
28. Arrive earlier to the office than anyone else.
29. Turn a conference room into an upbeat "think tank" room.
30. Read odd books -- having nothing to do with your work.
31. Block off time on your calendar for creative thinking.
32. Take a shower in the middle of the day.
33. Keep an idea notebook at your desk or in your briefcase.
34. Decorate your office with inspiring quotes and images.
35. Create a headline of the future and the story behind it.
36. Choose to be more creative.
37. Recall a time in your life when you were very creative. Feel it.
38. Wander around a bookstore while thinking about a challenge.
39. Trust your instincts more.
40. Immerse yourself in your most exciting project.
41. Open a magazine and free associate off of a word or image.
42. Write down your ideas when you first wake up in the morning.
43. Ask yourself what the simplest solution is.
44. Get fast feedback from people you trust.
45. Conduct more experiments.
45. Ask yourself what the market wants or needs.
46. Ask "What's the worst thing that could happen if I fail?"
47. Pilot your idea, even if it's not completely ready.
48. Work "in the cracks" -- small bursts of creative energy.
49. Incubate (sleep on it).
50. Test existing boundaries -- and then test them again.
51. Schedule time with the smartest people at work.
52. Visit your customers more frequently.
53. Benchmark your competitors -- then adapt their successes.
54. Enroll your boss or peers in your most fascinating project.
55. Imagine you already know the answer. What would it be?
56. Create ground rules with your team that foster new thinking.
57. Ask stupid questions. Then ask some more.
58. Challenge everything you do.
59. Give yourself a deadline -- and stick to it
60. Look for three alternatives to every solution you originate.
61. Write your ideas in a notebook and review them regularly.
62. Make connections between seemingly disconnected things.
63. Use creative thinking techniques.
64. Play with the Free the Genie cards.
65 Use similes and metaphors when describing your ideas.
66. Have more fun. Be sillier than usual.
67. Ask "How can I accomplish my goal in half the time?"
68. Take a break when you are stuck on a problem.
69. Think how your biggest hero might approach your challenge.
70. Declare Friday afternoons a "no-email zone."
71. Ask five people how they would improve your idea.
72. Create a wall of images that inspires you.
73. Do more of what already helps you be creative off the job.
74. Laugh more, worry less.
75. Remember your dreams -- then write them down.
76. Ask impossible questions.
77. Eliminate all unnecessary bureaucracy and admin tasks.
78. Create a compelling vision of what you want to accomplish.
79. Work on hottest project every day, even if only 5 minutes.
80. Do whatever is necessary to create a sense of urgency.
81. Go for a walk anytime you're stuck.
82. Meditate or do relaxation exercises.
83. Take more breaks.
84. Go out for lunch with your team more often.
85. Eat lunch with a different person each day.
86. Ask for forgiveness, not permission.
87. Invite an outside facilitator to lead a brainstorming session.
88. Take more risks outside of the office (i.e. surf, ski, box etc.)
89. Ask for help when you need it.
90. Know that it is possible to make a difference.
91. Find a mentor.
92. Acknowledge all your successes at the end of each day.
93. Create an "idea piggy bank" and make deposits daily.
94. Have shorter meetings.
95. Try the techniques in Awake at the Wheel
96. Don't listen to or watch the news for 24 hours.
97. Make drawings of your ideas.
98. Bring your project or challenge to mind before going to bed.
99. Divide your idea into component parts. Then rethink each part.
100. Post this list near your desk and read it daily.
NOTE: If your favorite way to be more creative on the job is not included on the above list, you may want to enter Idea Champions' First Annual 100 Ways to Be More Creative on the Job contest by clicking on the comment link below.
Prizes will be awarded in the following FIVE categories:
1. Most Intriguing Suggestion
2. Funniest
3. Most Likely to Start a Revolution
4. Wished We Thought of It First
5. Biggest Bang for the Buck
KIND ACKNOWLEDGMENTS TO: Anne Howe, David Beath, Jim Aubele, Gary Kvistad, Howard Moody, Farrell Reynolds, Hector Cruz Rosa, Jill Peckinpaugh, and Marcy Turkington for their wonderful suggestions.
Posted by Mitch Ditkoff at 01:16 AM | Comments (5)
June 23, 2009Greetings from Idea Champions' Chief Fire Starter
Greetings! My name is Og, Idea Champions' CFS (Chief Fire Starter). I'm in charge of helping our clients ignite new possibilities.
I just wanted to take this opportunity to let you know that the economic downturn has not, in any way, affected our business. We are absolutely fine. (The desk furniture we're burning for heat makes our office quite toasty).
We realize, of course, that YOUR business may be struggling -- with the market being as volatile as it is and consumer confidence way down. If so, feel free to call me at 845-755-IDEA. (Now that I have use of both my opposable thumbs, answering the phone has become quite a positive experience). At that time, I'll be happy to explain how we can help your organization raise the bar for innovation.
Or, if you want to get started today, buy our Founder's new book (which is the only book I've seen that gives me the credit I so richly deserve as the inventor of the wheel.)
Oh, I almost forgot to mention, I'm available for keynotes.
Posted by Mitch Ditkoff at 02:46 AM | Comments (0)
June 18, 2009What Might You Be Falsely Assuming?
If you or your company wants to innovate, the first thing you'll need to do is check your assumptions -- those arbitrary lines you've drawn in the sand.
The "box" people say they want to get out of? Nothing more than their collective assumptions -- and there have been many throughout history.
Some real whoppers.
Assumptions are your blind spot -- what you don't know you don't know -- what you don't see when you look in the mirror just before crashing into the car about to pass you.
Here are six (of many) ways to go beyond them...
SIX WAYS TO GO BEYOND YOUR LIMITING ASSUMPTIONS
1. Make a list of what you think they might be.
2. Ask your friends, co-workers, and customers.
3. Read these 30 examples, then note your own.
4. Brainstorm your problem through the eyes of someone else.
5. Everytime you see a FedEx logo, ask yourself: "What am I assuming about Project X?"
6. Turn your biggest limiting assumption into a "How can we?" question, then brainstorm it with a few friends.
This is just a starter list. Let me know how YOU identify and go beyond limiting assumptions and I'll post the mega-list here.
Or, you can invite me in to shed some more light on this topic. Unless... um... er...you're assuming I'm too expensive... I don't have a Ph.D... you're boss will never go for it... there's a freeze on spending... no one has the time... or any number of the other top hundred reasons why it can't happen.
Posted by Mitch Ditkoff at 06:56 AM | Comments (0)
June 17, 2009Go Beyond the Usual Suspects!
Most organizations brainstorm. The brainstormers, however, tend to be the same old "usual suspects" -- the self-declared creatives, content experts, decision makers, stakeholders, and senior officers.
Bad idea.
Brilliance can come from anywhere in an organization. That is, IF you create opportunities for unusual suspects to participate in your ideation process -- and that includes interns, new hires, front-line workers, geeks, freaks, customers, kids, and the guy who delivers lunch to your brainstorming sessions.
Explained Zen Master, Shunryu Suzuki: "In the beginner's mind there are many possibilities; in the expert's mind there are few."
Joel Rubinson, writing for Fast Company's blog, has some insightful things to say about this.
Get better ideas!
Posted by Mitch Ditkoff at 08:00 PM | Comments (0)
June 15, 2009Awake at the Wheel Lives!
"I don't usually post reviews of my book on this blog (seems too self-serving), but I couldn't resist with this one. It was just posted on Amazon by Paul Roth and captures a big piece of the book's DNA.
Here's the review:
"This book has allowed me to forgive myself for my obsession with all of the crazy ideas I have and have had over the years. Many of my crazy ideas got produced by someone other than me. Since reading this book about a year ago, I have given myself full permission to enjoy my ideas and fully stand by them.
Now they are becoming the reality that always seemed to elude me. This book has been a gift that has unlocked a door within me that I will never close again."
For more, join my Facebook Group.
Posted by Mitch Ditkoff at 06:17 PM | Comments (0)
June 14, 200926 Reasons Why Most Brainstorming Sessions Fail (and what to do about it)
Whenever I ask Idea Champions clients to tell me about the quality of brainstorming sessions in their company, they usually roll their eyes and grumble. Bottom line, most brainstorming sessions don't work. Not because brainstorming, as a process, doesn't work -- but because it's usually done poorly.
What follows are the 26 most common reasons why -- and after that, a list of what you can do differently to turn things around:
1. Poor facilitation
2. Wrong (or poorly articulated) topic
3. Unmotivated participants
4. Insufficient diversity of participants
5. Inadequate orientation
6. No transition from "business as usual"
7. Lack of clear ground rules
8. Sterile meeting space
9. Hidden (or competing) agendas
10. Lack of robust participation
11. Insufficient listening
12. Habitual idea killing behavior
13. Attachment to old ("pet") ideas
14. Discomfort with ambiguity
15. Hyper-seriousness (not enough fun)
16. Endless interruptions
17. PDA addiction (Crackberries)
18. Impatience (premature adoption of the first "right idea")
19. Group think
20. Hierarchy and/or competing sub-groups
21. Imbalance of divergent and convergent thinking
22. No tools and techniques to spark the imagination
23. Inelegant ways of capturing new ideas
24. No time for personal reflection
25. Pre-mature evaluation
26. No follow-up plan
WHAT CAN YOU DO TO TURN THINGS AROUND?
1. Find, train (or hire) a skillful facilitator
2. Make sure you're focusing on the right challenge.
3. Invite people who really care about the topic.
4. Invite people with diverse points of view.
5. Spend time clarifying the "current reality".
6. Start with a fun icebreaker to help change mindset.
7. Ask participants to establish clear meeting ground rules.
8. Design (or find) a more inspiring meeting space.
9. Establish alignment re: session goals.
10. Find ways to engage the least verbal participants.
11. Establish "deep listening" as a ground rule. Model it.
12. Invite participants to name classic idea killing statements.
13. Elicit the group's pet ideas in the first 30 minutes.
14. Explain how ambiguity is part of the ideation process.
15. Tell stories, play music, invite humor.
16. Go offsite. Put a "meeting in progress" sign on the door.
17. Collect all PDAs/cell phones. Establish "no email" ground rule.
18. Go for a quantity of ideas. Let go of perfectionism.
19. Encourage individuality, risk taking, and wild ideas.
20. Ask people to leave their titles at the door.
21. Start with divergent thinking. End with convergent thinking.
22. Use tools and techniques to spark original thinking.
23. Enroll scribes, use post-its, have an idea capture process.
24. Create time for individuals to reflect on new ideas.
25. Explain that evaluation will happen at the end of the session.
26. Identify and enroll "champions". Explain the follow up process.
Posted by Mitch Ditkoff at 07:45 AM | Comments (0)
June 07, 2009Here's to the Crazy Ones!
Find the "crazy ones" in your organization. Start listening to them. Give them room to think and act. They are the future.
Posted by Mitch Ditkoff at 09:02 AM | Comments (2)
June 05, 2009The Top 10 Reasons Why Your CEO Sabotages Innovation
There's a huge gap between CEOs saying they want their companies to innovate and actually acting in a way consistent with what they say.
This lack of congruence drives internal change agents crazy, catatonic, or out the door.
At the very least, it makes them cranky and unwilling to "go the extra yard" required to turn their inspired ideas into reality.
And so, as a public service to all of you out there whose CEOs are not walking the talk, here's our TOP TEN reasons why not.
After nodding your head and chuckling to yourself, choose one or two, align with some fellow change agents, and kick start the process of doing something about it.
"If not you, who? If not now, when?"
10. Innovation sparks dissonance and discomfort.
9. Innovation increases the amount of seeming failures.
8. Results only show up long-term.
7. More meetings.
6. CEOs conserve resources. Innovation requires more resources.
5. Innovation flies in the face of analysis.
6. CEOs assume the Board will not be impressed.
5. Imbalance of right-brain and left-brain thinking.
4. The perceived absence of time.
3. Over-reliance on cost-cutting and incremental improvement.
2. Inability to enroll a committed team of champions.
1. Insufficient conviction that innovation will make a difference.
PS: This list is only a conversation starter, folks. Speak up! Pitch in! Tell me your top ten reasons and I will publish version 2.0 next month.
Posted by Mitch Ditkoff at 11:47 PM | Comments (2)
