Whenever Aladdin wanted a wish fulfilled, he rubbed a magic lamp to invoke the genie. You? What do you have? I'll tell you what you have. You ALSO have a genie, but yours is virtual. No need to rub. Just click.

But before you do, you'll need to bring a challenge, opportunity, or problem to mind. Then frame it as a question beginning with the words "How can I?" Something you REALLY want to see manifest in 2010 -- whether it's business or personal.

Once you have your "How can I?" question, click here. And if you like what happens with our online Genie, you can order the offline genie, here. Or license it for your intranet.

And while you're at it, check out my book on the art and science of manifesting new ideas.

Posted by Mitch Ditkoff at 04:54 PM | Comments (0)

Since the beginning of time, pundits, psychologists, and philosophers have been waxing poetic about the differences between men and women.

Many well-researched theories and observations have been postulated -- everything from variations of XY chromosomes to moon cycles to shopping habits.

Though I am not a pundit, psychologist, or philosopher, I would like to take this moment to propose yet another difference between the sexes -- something I've been noticing for years, but never completely understood until this morning's opening of Christmas presents:

1. Men and women wrap presents completely differently.

Presents wrapped by women look really good. The edges are square. The tape is in all the right places. There are no unnecessary wrinkles, crunched up paper, or rips. The presents women wrap could easily be photographed for a catalog or Good Housekeeping centerfold.

Presents wrapped by men are usually a joke. Asymmetrical. Random. Pitifully sophomoric. Like an old pair of sweat pants stuffed into a drawer a little too quickly before the dinner guests arrive.

2. Men and women open presents completely differently.

Women look for the seams and the tape and use their tapered fingers in mysteriously delicate ways so the wrapping can be flawlessly removed, flattened, folded, and used again in the future.

Men are huns. They rip. They tear. They plunder the paper as if it was a small village needing to be taken over immediately.

The remains of the wrapping, no matter how beautifully conceived by the giver, ends up in a balled-up heap of chaos on the floor -- unusable for anything but kindling or throwing at other males across the room.

NEXT WEEK: Nail care

Posted by Mitch Ditkoff at 04:19 PM | Comments (1)

OK. Go get a cup of tea, coffee, wine, goat milk, brandy, or whatever your favorite libation is and watch this 5-minute video shown at Sony's Rome conference last year. It's a very mind-opening peek into the present... and the future. The implications? Something for you to noodle on...

Thanks to Alan Roettinger for the link.

Posted by Mitch Ditkoff at 10:40 AM | Comments (1)

What you can learn about innovation from the long and semi-glorious history of the zipper.

We can help

The X Factor

Innovate, Schminnovate

Posted by Mitch Ditkoff at 09:34 PM | Comments (0)

Mozart was composing and performing for royalty at 4. Ethan Bortnick, from Hollywood, Florida, is not far behind. Yes, practice makes perfect, but then there are those who are prodigies.

And how about this 11 year old?

Posted by Mitch Ditkoff at 05:33 PM | Comments (0)

OK.
Confession time.
I've never liked FAQs.
They always seemed so predictable.
So boring.
So customer-servicey.
That's why I wrote this.
Makes FAQs more fun to read.
(Don't bail out too soon.
It builds).
Well, I guess you'll be the judge of that, eh?

Idea Champions

Posted by Mitch Ditkoff at 03:15 AM | Comments (0)