Here's all you need to know: The attention span of a goldfish is 9 seconds. The attention span of a human being is 8 seconds. Got that? Now, think about why most "Professional Development" programs in corporations under-perform. OK. time's up. Here's why:

The delivery platforms that most organizations use to "educate people" exceed most people's ability to concentrate. The content may be good, but participants' ability to stay engaged usually flames out in a few minutes.

Which is just one of the reasons why I love MyQuickCoach, the invention of Jon Peters -- one of the first multi-media savants into the Micro-Learning space.

Jon and his team have produced more than 2,700 quick hitting videos (usually 5 minutes or less), featuring thought leaders from a wide range of disciplines.

Here's one of yours truly on the power of appreciation and acknowledgment. I don't know if Jon has any goldfish for clients, but I'm sure he's thought about it.

Jon's email address: jpeters@athenastudios.com

MyQuickCoach
Innovation Starts with the Individual (1:38)
Idea Champions (that's us)

Posted by Mitch Ditkoff at 12:43 AM | Comments (0)

This just in! Brainstorming in most organizations sucks. Or, if "sucks" is the wrong word, how about "severely under-delivers"? The good folks of Idea Champions (that's us) have found a way to put an end to this madness. Yes, we have. And yes, we can. Click here for a taste of where we're coming from -- 13 brief videos of us laying it all on the line. Think brainstorming is a waste of time? Click here.

Posted by Mitch Ditkoff at 06:59 PM | Comments (0)

Recently, I gave a keynote presentation to 150 people in the health care industry. After being introduced, I decided, as I usually do, to leave the safe confines of the podium ("a platform raised above the surrounding level to give prominence to the person on it"), dismount the stage, and "walk my talk" -- weaving my way in between the 20 round tables in the room, each with their own pitchers of water, tent cards, and little bowls of red and white mints.

For a keynote speaker, dismounting the stage and walking into the audience is always a risk -- the same kind of risk people take when they decide to get married, instead of just date. Or, why it's often easier to love humanity than just a single human being.

People, in theory, are interested in learning. People, in theory, are interested in listening to an outside speaker, especially when he's flown in from who knows where. But in reality, it's a completely different story. How do I know? By looking. By seeing. And by feeling what is really going on.

To the AV guy in the back of the room, there were 150 health care professionals in attendance, but to me there were 12 different subgroups -- some large, some small. Twelve different mindsets. Twelve different tribes. And while they were all being paid by the same employer, they were all paying a very different kind of attention to what I was saying -- all thinking very different thoughts.

Mind you, I'm not claiming to be psychic or a mind reader, but after 25 years of doing this kind of work, a person develops a curious ability to sense what people are thinking.

GROUP 1: "Thank you! Thank you! Tell it like it is, my brother! Finally, somebody is speaking the truth! Hallelujah!"

GROUP 2: "Please do not come any closer to my table, sir. And, under no circumstances, approach me with a microphone. First of all, I have nothing to say and, second of all, even if I did, nobody in this room would be listening to me."

GROUP 3: "Excuse me. I... don't believe I've ever heard of you. Do you actually know anything about the nuances of our industry?"

GROUP 4: "It all sounds good to me. Makes perfect sense. But... um... er... how much extra work is this going to mean for me?"

GROUP 5: "I wonder what's for lunch. I sure hope it's not that awful chicken they served us last time. That wasn't chicken. That was shoe leather."

GROUP 6: "Flavor of the month alert! Last year it was Excellence. The year before that it was Lean Management. Now, it's Innovation. This too shall pass."

GROUP 7: "Hmm.. How can I seem to be interested when this guy gets close to my table so my boss won't think I don't really care."

GROUP 8: "Innovate! Yes! We totally need to innovate! Absolutely! Wait a minute! Isn't that why they pay our senior leaders the big bucks?"

GROUP 9: "Very cool. Good timing. How can I get my team on board?"

GROUP 10: "Earth to keynote speaker! It's all about priorities. I mean, if I had more time to innovate I would, but all I'm doing these days is running from one meeting to the other."

GROUP 11: "Theoretically speaking, I am with you 100%. Maybe 200%. But when push comes to shove around here, we are not in a business likely to innovate."

GROUP 12: "Innovate, schminnovate! We need more head count."

My point? Every keynote audience is a melting pot of varying perceptions, assumptions, and needs. In order for keynote presenters to be effective, they need to find their "golden mean" -- their own sweet spot between the inevitable extremes that will be represented by the audience. Any attempt to convert the "slackers" or align with the "early adopters" will create nothing but more separation, resistance, and duality. In the end, it all comes down to what Mark Twain said years ago: "When you speak the truth, you don't need to remember a thing."

MitchDitkoff.com
My clients
What my clients say

Posted by Mitch Ditkoff at 10:16 PM | Comments (0)

Idea Champions is thrilled to announce the full return of Co-Founder, Steven Raymond McHugh to our roster of innovation consultants, trainers, facilitators, and change agents.

Steven and I (Mitch Ditkoff) founded Idea Champions 30 years ago and have delivered services to a wide variety of forward-thinking organizations since then. Bottom line, Idea Champions would not have materialized without Steven's brilliance, wisdom, energy, humor, vision, soulfulness and love of coffee. As far as facilitators of group process goes, he is in the 99th percentile of WOW. Tuned in, totally engaging, awake, and skillful beyond the norm. I have learned a lot from him and continue to do so.

Ten years after Steven and I started Idea Champions we decided to go our separate ways for a variety of reasons that were not necessarily reasonable at the time, but needed to happen. In the interim, we have stayed in touch -- as friends, fellow change agents, and referring sources. Now the wheel has turned and we are back in the saddle again -- a phenomenon of possible great value to you and your organization.

Phase One of Steven's return to Idea Champions includes the facilitation of two game-changing workshops and trainings for our clients: Seize the Future and Agile Leadership/Agile Teams.

If either of these interest you, feel free to call us at 845.679.1066 or email: info@ideachampions and Steven will get back to you within 24 hours to explore the possibilities. If you are looking to raise the bar for innovation, increase leadership capabilities, and get the collaboration juices flowing, this is for you.

Idea Champions
Our clients
What our clients say

Posted by Mitch Ditkoff at 09:59 AM | Comments (0)

GREETINGS! Mitch Ditkoff here, author of this blog. I have just launched a GoFundMe campaign to create the support I need to write, edit, publish, and promote my next book on storytelling, tentatively entitled Storytelling for the Revelation. Click this link for more info and a simple way to contribute. Every little bit helps. Thanks for considering this and for being a Heart of Innovation reader.

MitchDitkoff.com
Idea Champions

Posted by Mitch Ditkoff at 07:24 AM | Comments (0)

The forward-thinking Islamic school, in Melbourne, Australia, that I have been consulting with for the past year (Al Siraat College) has some new job openings for teachers in their Primary and Elementary schools. This is a great opportunity for an open-minded, committed, adventurous educator to make a big difference and have an extraordinary experience at the same time.

Click here for more info. And here, as well.

Posted by Mitch Ditkoff at 08:55 AM | Comments (0)