Creativity: The Other Global Crisis

Perhaps one of the most eloquent and engaging speakers I have heard is Sir Ken Robinson. he has this style which instantly puts one at ease whilst totally drawing us in to what he has to say. If you want an example, pour yourself a coffee and Watch Ken Robinson Talk to see him in action (opens in a new window … use the ‘Close Window’ button after viewing).

In one of his more recent appearances he continued to present some uncomfortable facts which will impact us all unless things change. Here is a sample of out-takes from his talk. Full article here (opens in a new window).

• The world is facing a crisis of human resources … “I believe that fundamentally we have both underestimated and continue to misuse – if not actually abuse – many of our most important talents; our talents, our children’s talents, and the talents of the people who work with us. And unless we fix [this crisis], I feel we’re not going to make much progress fixing the other one.”
• Both crises are the result of our “industrial mindset,” which is incompatible with modern society and modern business. Both manifest themselves in terms of imbalances. In the natural world it is the imbalance of gases in our atmosphere, although human activity is also disrupting many other ecosystems. In society we have legions of people dislocated from their own talents, legions of people suffering from all kinds of anxiety, legions of people in dysfunctional communities. And there is an enormous cost of handling this.
• In California (Robinson’s new home town) spends $3.5bn a year on the state university system; it spends $9.9bn on the state prison system. Similar figures exist for other Western countries, as well as other US states. The UK spends millions of pounds a year on remedial education, to try to get kids through a system which many of them are bucking against. And we spend millions of pounds a year on career counselling, because people have not found their way.
• The result for educators, employers and HR professionals is that it is vital to have an understanding of “the ecology of human resources.
• As a society, we must improve our understanding of human capabilities. We believe mistakenly that creativity and intelligence vary in inverse proportion to one another. The things we take for granted as being true are the real problem; the enemy of making the best of ourselves is common sense.
• Thankfully creativity is not dead but merely latent, in most adults.
• Work by Land and Jarman showed that in a smaple of 1,500 children aged 3-5, 98% ranked as “geniuses” in divergent thinking. In children aged between 8 and 10 years the figure fell to just 32% and by the time children had reached between 13 and 15 years it had declined further to a mere 10%. In other words, children become less creative as they grow older. What coincides with this period of development, aside from hormonal changes and socialisation, is that they enter formal education where they have learnt a) there is one answer to every question, b) don’t look, because that’s cheating and c) don’t copy from anybody else, because that’s cheating too … even though outside of school we call this collaboration.
• This mindset goes well beyond school and college. Land and Jarman also performed a control test of two-thousand adults (aged 25+) where only 2% ranked as geniuses. We don’t grow into creativity, we grow out of it, because of the ways in which we become institutionalised and socialised. Education is a big piece of this, but work is an even bigger piece.
• Creativity is most frequently associated, in the workplace, with innovation but it is equally important in helping society cope with, and harness, technological advances. No matter what we do or where we do it, technology is going to swamp us: new information systems are going to subvert all the things we take for granted.
• The over-25s think we’re OK, but we’re not that great. We have learnt digital technology like a second language, so we kind of speak phrasebook digital compared with our children. IT systems are becoming more and more pervasive, but they’re not fundamentally avoiding the powerful need for better and better use of human resources. To the contrary. Human resource is the only way we can engage with these things properly … and at this moment we are locked into an industrial mindset about our own capabilities.
• Business people can help to nurture creativity and imagination by thinking of organisations as organisms rather than organisations A better metaphor is from agriculture. A farmer can’t make a plant grow. A plant grows itself. A good farmer provides the conditions for growth. And a great plant doesn’t just grow from the top, it grows everywhere simultaneously, as do healthy organisations, which have a reciprocating relationship among the parts.
• There is a huge difference between a creative team and a committee: great creative teams require real expertise among managers and leaders to work. It’s a skill-set that we need to be teaching managers and leaders.
• Great teams, large or small, are deliberately diverse: they have people from different backgrounds, experiences, ages and responsibilities in the organisation. The processes employed by these teams ensure that their diversity is not an impediment but a resource.
  The best senior managers are those who are not afraid to let teams congregate for specific tasks and then disband, to form other teams as necessary, perhaps one of the best ways to spread cultural information around the organisation.
• It is essential to create the right habitat, in terms of culture and environment. Anyone who is serious about making more of people must be serious about the environment in which they work. And not just the colour of the walls: innovative organisations have a rigorous approach to questioning algorithms of behaviour and changing the environment as need be.
  Challenging stuff.

What I think is obvious is that we have a long way to go. BUT we need to make a start, no matter how small to change the inertia of creative decline. and just perhaps some of our organisations and social structures will be rebuilt into healthy living cultures.

Until next time …

 

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Success in Failure; Humility in Leadership

Whilst hopping around the Internet recently I came across a great article on The London Business Forum website from an interview with Sir Richard Branson.  As I read it, I was struck by an individual who is totally passionate about what he does whilst also being ready to learn, change and improve. 

I remember Richard Branson being set-up for a fall on more than one occasion by our beloved British Press.  When he was trying something new or attempting a new record, the snipers of the true British spirit shot … and if he failed, the “I told you so” or “You read it first in the ***” kinds of headlines prevailed.  It was more important that he’d failed than what he’d attempted.  And yet, if we talk to any successful businessman, failure is always on their list and it’s seen as part of their road to success (and perhaps that is why so many of our current journalists will never be successful … but that’s another story!).

Anyway, please enjoy the following except from Sir Richard’s interview: 

‘Many of the audience wanted Branson to dispense some entrepreneurial advice, and he didn’t disappoint, mixing the common-sense with some fascinating and salutary anecdotes. “The importance of protecting the downside,” was a key lesson to learn, he said. This is why, when he cut a deal with Boeing to buy his first second-hand 747, it included an option to sell the plane back after one year. Boeing’s only concern, he said, was that Virgin “wouldn’t live up to its name but would actually go all the way.”

Similarly, he had a valuable tip on how to retain entrepreneurial dynamism while you’re growing: as soon as the number of staff hits 100, split the firm in two. In this way, he said, Virgin Records ended up being 20 different companies that “didn’t even share switchboards”. It’s a philosophy that Virgin still tries to observe in spite of its gigantic size. Of the group’s 200 branded companies, “none of them are massive in any particular field,” Branson said, and each has to stand on its own two feet”. The people who lead each business are managing directors, and are incentivised accordingly. “Virgin has created about 200 millionaires over the years,” he revealed.

The moment you go from one company to two companies, you’ve got to start learning the art of delegation, he added. “So what I try to do when we set up new businesses [is this]: I’ll go in, I’ll immerse myself for a month or two, I’ll learn all about that industry, so that if a managing director does come to me and wants to talk to me about mobile phones or trains, I’ll know something.”

True delegation means giving people the freedom to make mistakes, he said. “[My parents] would always look for the best in what [I] did. They were great believers in lots and lots of praise… And I think if you’re the leader of a company, this is even more important. You shouldn’t be looking for people slipping up, you should be looking for all the good things people do and praising those. People know when they’ve slipped up, they don’t need to be told.”

Another defining characteristic of Branson’s personal management style was his willingness to be humble, and to listen to criticism, where staff and customers are concerned. “I do try to make an effort,” he said. “If I’m on a Virgin plane, I’ll try to meet all the passengers. I’ll have a little notebook in my back pocket. I’ll meet all the staff.” He stressed the importance of tiny details, saying that only by getting these right will you end up with “an exceptional company rather than an average company.”

Ultimately, business is not about “balance sheets, money, profits and loss,” he argued. It is about “creating something you’re really proud of, something the people who work for you can be really proud of… the actual business aspect is simply there to be mopped up at the end.”

The fact that he never got a tight grasp of financial matters was probably a benefit, he suggested, in that it persuaded him never to bring in accountants too early in the development of a venture. “You’ll get one firm of accountants that will tell you, based on their own preconceptions, why starting an airline is a ghastly idea and every other airline fails and you’re going to lose a lot of money. You’ll get another set of accountants who’ll tell you why they think you’re going to make money. But they have no idea one way or the other.”

Far more important is to create something that you, yourself, really want and value, he concluded. “If it’s exceptionally good then people will always turn up and use it.”

Perhaps it’s time to regain and re-embrace some of the old ‘British Spirit’ without being ashamed (and without extreme nationalism).  And it’s time to put to death the insipid political correctness that will undoubtedly ruin so many ventures.  We are not all the same.  Celebrate the fact and be prepared to try to succeed, even if we must embrace failure. 

Above all, be prepared to be humble; to learn, to change, to improve … and to acknowledge that we may not have all the answers on our own, but they are often in our colleagues, friends and family if we are prepared to look.

Until next time …

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What Are We Worth?

Perhaps a bit of a rhetorical question, but I assure you there is no catch.

Our sense of value and our value system are both complex entities, arising from our life history.  Most of us have had knocks of one kind or another: bereavement, redundancy, failure in achieving something we were aiming for, family breakdown, work pressure … the list is very long. 

Thankfully, many of us can recover from these blows, some more quickly than others.  However, for some people a combination of blows arrives at the wrong time (childhood, especially adolescence) or too close together.  In those cases the impact can be catastrophic.  Someone full of hope and confidence one day can turn into a shy recluse with no sense of direction the next, whilst others kick out at anything and anyone who gets in the way or tries to help.  Their world has literally been shattered.  I remember a good friend at school who for no apparent reason started picking on anyone and everyone, eventually causing total classroom disruption resulting in suspension.  We thought he was an idiot.  It was only years later that we discovered he’d come downstairs to breakfast one morning to find his mother packing the car to leave. Bang!  Just like that: out of the blue without warning.  The emotional cost took years to repair and included many broken and dysfunctional relationships along the way.  We were also forced to think about our lack of response.

Sadly, my friend’s situation is mirrored with alarmingly increasing frequency today.

But I also remember another couple of other friends who always seemed so confident, almost cocky, about their life and where they were going.  And they did go!  Both became very successful in their respective fields; one as a scientist, the other as craftsman.  Why were these two so different?  I think much of it came from what was being fed into their lives.  Their parents were always encouraging them to try something new, go for something they couldn’t achieve.  And if they failed?  They could always have another go.

Now I know it is naive at best to simplify all situations to a single formula, but it is generally well accepted that a person’s self-identity is forged through their life experiences and relationships.  Repeated criticism or comparison with other people results in loss of confidence and unwillingness, often through fear, to try something in case we fail.  It also leads to the perception that ‘I am worth nothing.’  The opposite is true, with those receiving encouragement (including correction) achieving a more balanced and fulfilled lifestyle.  And success is often thrown in there too.

It is also accepted that what we practise at school becomes a lifetime habit.  Our businesses are plagued with people who continue to play out their school scenario, as bullies and manipulators, or as doormats.  They have a misguided sense of self-importance or self-value; either too high or too low.  Self-confidence is a good attribute when held in balance with other life skills.  But too much or too little can be disruptive and at its extreme, devastating.

And the problem extends further into society, where we see the impact of people who are unable to respond to their circumstances or surroundings.

The great news is that we all have intrinsically equal value and worth. 

The bad news is that others, or we ourselves project a value which then puts us on a sliding scale, based on what we can do, or our cash value in terms of income or cost to society.  These false measures need to be clearly delineated from intrinsic worth and value.  Of course, when we enter into a job or role, there is a basic need to be able to perform that role competently, and hopefully bring something extra as well.  But that has to do with our value to the employer: it does not affect our value as an individual.

So where am I going with all this?

Our childhood influences adulthood, in terms of how we think and how we act towards ourself and others.  That childhood will have been influenced by positive and negative inputs which will also have influenced our perceptions.  Those perceptions, in turn, influence how we operate at work, at home or with our friends.  However, these perceptions and responses are habits formed through the practice of life and like any other habit, they can largely be reshaped and changed into new habits.  We don’t really have an excuse for, ‘Well, that’s me and that’s the way I am [forever and always shall be].’

We each have a responsibility to look at ourselves and see how, where and if we need to change these habits: thought patterns, attitude to others, attitude to ourself, emotional response. 

And therein lies another issue; we are generally very poor at emotions! 

Most of us have gone through life with the good old British stiff upper lip, being afraid to engage, let alone express our emotions for fear of what we may discover.  And our education system does nothing to help, effectively switching off emotional engagement by the age of 11, leaving many ill-equipped to handle life.  I know I’ve used the analogy before, but it’s like an athlete who only trains one half of their body for a 100m sprint final.  It’s absurd to even consider, yet we do that everyday with children from as young as 3 or 4 years old, up until they are 18 or older and then we are surprised that they can’t handle life. 

So it is little wonder that poor self-worth and low self-esteem are cancers in today’s world. 

Thankfully, creativity allows re-engagement with our emotions and therefore, provides a safety valve for when pressures and trials arise.   It is something we all possess and something we can all discover and apply. I believe that passionately and it is one of my key motivators and driving forces. 

And by applying that creativity across our businesses, in practice, planning and development, implication, sales and marketing, management structures, team structures … through the people we have, the future, as one mobile company proclaims, is bright.  Our who business benefits: 

• Within the business, our people will feel more fulfilled, more engaged, more appreciated, they will be more willing to contribute, more willing to work harder and longer hours (if required), the atmosphere will change for the better
• Outside the business, our customers will notice the change and the wider social net will benefit.

 

On a scale of 0 – 100, we all score 100 for worth, but sadly, many score less than 20 when it comes to self-worth or valuing others.  And that must stop. 

Until next time …

 

Postscript:  Wouldn’t it be great if our governments actually believed in the concept for our education system; not for political gain but for the good of the nation, and empowered those with the appropriate skills and vision to make it happen!

 

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Innovation: Courage to Create Success

Sometimes the first ingredient we need for innovation is courage; courage to go with our convictions, even in the face of opposition.

3M is a global company with a reputation for creativity and innovation, but anyone who has worked in almost any ‘creative and innovative organisation’ will tell you that reputation and actual practice are often poles apart.  Sure, they like to take the credit for their public successes but what they don’t publicise so freely is just how much perseverance, tenacity and sheer dogged single-mindedness the individual champions of the case have to be in order to make their individual success a company success.

I was reminded recently of the account of Richard Drew, an iconic figure within 3M culture and the person responsible for not one, but two truly innovative products that put 3M well and truly on the map, both as an organisation and later as an innovative company.

Drew joined 3M with a less than glowing background of being a college dropout who played banjo in dance bands at night whilst studying engineering through a correspondence course.  He had an entry level job as a lab technician.  One of Drew’s tasks was to take batches of 3M’s Wetodry sandpaper to a nearby St Paul automotive body shop.  At the time (1921) two tone colours were all the rage for cars, and on one of Drew’s visits a painter was cursing and swearing because he had just ruined a paint job.  There was at that time no way of ensuring a good line between the colours except through the use of glues and paper etc.

Drew saw the problem and decided to come up with a solution.

Now it would be great to say that he was supported by the company for his efforts, but he wasn’t.  3M was a sandpaper manufacturer not a tape manufacturer so Drew had to ‘go underground’ to do his work, experimenting with all sorts of oils and resins to produce a superior adhesive.  He was told to stop on at least one occasion and agreed until the attraction of his own little project became too great and he started again.  When he had come up with a good prototype, he needed to manufacture the finished article for which he needed a specific piece of machinery.  He was refused.  So he used his initiative and used a series of $99 sign-offs (he was allowed to authorise payments up to $100) which slipped ‘under the company radar’ to buy the machine.

In 1925, Richard Drew successfully produced the world’s first masking tape with a pressure sensitive adhesive backing … and the rest, as they say, is history.  Well it would be if Drew hadn’t come up a few years later with another invention of the first see through adhesive packaging tape, Scotch Tape, again after  persevering against the odds.

Of course today, the name of Richard Drew is synonymous with the innovative spirit of the company, but at the time he was making it big for the company through his determination and conviction to succeed, it was a battle; a battle which involved stepping around the rules, lying low, persevering against the odds.

Innovation is often a rough path which is only seen and appreciated by the end-results of products or processes, not during the actual process of arriving (except by those who are driving it).

So the next time we are looking for innovation in our business, we need to remember that it is often a long and winding road, and a road that will require a lot of sweat and toil along the way, not only with the project at hand but with all the devil’s advocates and ‘jobworths’ who tell us that it won’t work.  This is why we need to lok at adopting a creative and innovative culture which understands the processes, pitfalls and obstacles and which helps, not hinders the process which is the lifeblood of company survival and expansion.

 

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Brainstorming: Dead or Alive?

Brainstorming seems to have been transient in many organisations, though in some cases the title has been changed but the process is essentially the same.

Probably ten years ago, Brainstorming was at its zenith, a hip tool that seemed to impact any and every scenario in businesses; management meetings, project teams, ideas committees.  All embraced it actively … and then as quickly as it arrived on the scene, it departed from many settings …  which is very sad.

For many, a brainstorm was little more than an excuse for firing out ideas, discussing them and then forgetting them.  The sessions were ill-structured, poorly manged and produced little lasting fruit.  And yet, over a decade later, innovation experts still sing the praises of this tool.

So, for those who have perhaps missed out on the power and value of brainstorming, here is a short(ish) summary of the method and its benefits.

Brainstorming is a very important technique, not only because it generates ideas but because it lays the foundations for a creative and innovative culture.  Bob Sutton, a Stanford University professor suggests that Brainstorming is especially beneficial for a number of reasons:

• Organisational Memory – Many valuable and experienced members of our organisations are too busy to be involved on project teams.  BUT they can spare an hour for a brainstorming session. The brainstorm thus allows us access to organisational expertise and knowledge that would otherwise be inaccessible.  During the session, possible solutions from past, present or future experiences may be explored, thereby drawing on the organisation’s memory and intelligence.
• Reinforcing an attitude of wisdom – The attitude of wisdom is the balance between confidence in what we know and a willingness to listen to ideas that challenge us and our worldview.  Brainstorming matches our wits and creativity with those of others, which can be humbling, but also makes us wiser.
• Increases visibility of team members - When run properly, the free-spirited atmosphere of brainstorming sessions allows people who may not normally be ‘visible’ to shine and to make their contribution, and their mark.  They are able to gain attention and status which may have otherwise passed them by.

However, a brainstorming session can only be as effective as those contributing, and in a large part, to those responsible for leading the group.  Here are some simple rules for making the sessions effective:

• Target focus – Start with a question that really states the problem in an open-ended but not too braod manner.  An example of this type of question would be, “How can we gain deeper insights into our first-time customers?”
• Stick to the rules – Go for maximum quantity rather than quality, encourage wild ideas, be visual, defer judgement until later, allow only one contribution at a time.  Make sure everyone knows these rules and make them visible to all (e.g., printed in large letters on posters, white boards etc which are positioned in clear view around the room); it is important.  By adhering to these rules we are able to keep the meeting and ideas focussed and empower members of the team to contribute.
• Number all ideas – By keeping a tally of how many ideas we have generated we are able to motivate and spur on the team to even more.  If we are aiming for 100 ideas (a good result for one hour’s work) and we have reached 94, it is unlikely that any team will settle for less than the target.
• Add and switch -  At some stage during the process ideas will dry up or slow down.  Rather than dwelling on this, it is a good idea to return to some of the earlier ideas and build on them for a while.  A good question to ask here is something like, “How might we apply these?”  Once we have answered a few of these, we can return to adding to the list, where it is quite common for ideas to freely flow again.
• Use space – Use the whole room; all vertical and horizontal spaces.  Use Post-Its and low-tech mediums that everyone can share and use.  Use a room that allows this to happen (rather than one which says, “Do not stick tape on the paintwork“).
• Pre-warm the brain – Set attendees a bit of ‘homework’ by asking them to think about the problem the night before and then sleep on it.  A pre-warmed brain is a good tool for increasing output during the brainstorming session.
• Include the physical – Verbal ideas are good, but some projects lend themselves to visual and physical ideas, such as the creation of prototypes, construction of crude models, drawing diagrams or pictures etc.  Make a good supply of ‘creative staples’ (plastic bottles, boxes, paper, tape, glue etc) available and visible.

So there we have it.  A few hints and ideas to breathe new life into our next brainstorming session.

I have to acknowledge and thank Tom Kelley for his book, The Ten Faces of Innovation [Profile Books, ISBN 978-1-86197-806-6] for help on this subject.

Until next time, happy storming of the brain!

 

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5 Simple Steps to Creative Thinking and Idea Generation

Every so often I read a really practical book.  Today’s feast was written back in the 1940’s by James Webb Young, an advertising guru.  The great thing about a great book is that it is timeless.  Much has changed in the world since Mr Young first wrote this short work, but the human mind still works in the same way and the need for creative ideas is ever more important.

Thankfully, this time-proven formula still works with great effect … as long as we don’t do our favourite ‘cutting the corners’!

The following process has a track record of success for creating new ideas across a wide sphere of disciplines, from poetry to painting, engineering to science, from advertising to legal.

The aim is to make new connections between existing events or subjects, completing a new picture, analogous to making a jigsaw for the first time.

It is essential to understand that this is a sequence and not just a list of tasks.  Therefore, each step should be completed in the sequence listed.  Each individual step is the foundation for success at the next stage.

1. Collect Raw Materials
This step is often skipped or only partly completed but is a key to the overall success of the process.  The quality of ideas generated depends on the quality of the preparation and assimilation of the raw materials.  Raw materials can include paper and magazine cuttings, photographs, advertisements, original observations. 

Two types of raw materials should be collected:

• Specific –  Those relating directly to the area of interest, customer group, proposed product etc.
• General – Those relating to the broad subject of life events and current affairs.  The more widely we spread our net for general materials, the greater our chance of generating creative ideas.  This is an ongoing process on which we can build each day.

It is a good idea to assemble these into some kind of order or pattern.  Scrapbooks are a great way to collect general materials.  Specific materials can be catalogued in some way to make retrieval easier.

Do not short-cut step 1.

2. Digest the Materials
This step involves taking each piece of information and studying it from as many angles and in as many different ways as you can.  Really try to ‘get inside’ what it is about, what it is saying, how it looks etc.  Continue this process with each piece of specific and general information, looking at the facts and trying to bring them together to see how they fit.  A ‘fit’ may be found for some pieces of information without too looking too deeply.  As bits of ideas come to mind, write these down, no matter how wild or part-formed they are.  This process will help cement them in the mind and is a precursor to generation of complete ideas.

It is hard work and at some stage the mind will become tired, but keep going at this stage as you will develop a second burst of mental energy.  Only when everything becomes a complete jumble with no clear solution anywhere should you stop this process.

3. Drop the Subject
A common trait in the creative process and idea generation is that these ideas come to us when we are least expecting them to, and often when we are doing something that is totally unrelated to the area in which we have been seeking to generate ideas.

So, this third step is quite simple; get as far away as possible from the thinking process on our chosen area.  Do something different, preferably something where you can relax and something that you really enjoy.  Typically, this will be a topic or activity in which you feel most creative, such as, listening to music, reading poetry, playing a sport.

This allows our subconscious to mull over the information we have input in steps one and two.

4. The Idea from Nowhere
At some stage an idea will ‘appear as from nowhere’ and usually during a pretty mundane activity such as eating breakfast, having a bath or shave, going for a walk.  This is the point at which you must write it down to capture it (having a pencil and notebook in the pocket at all times is a very useful exercise) and then …

5. Test the Idea
Once ideas have been generated it may be apparent that they are not the complete picture or not as great as first thought.  However, the best way to test these is to expose them to a trusted judicious few.  This may seem a bit of a threat.  After all, we may not feel like sharing ideas with others (hence the word ‘trusted’) and we may be afraid of them being shot down in flames (hence the word ‘trusted’).

What is most interesting is that a good seed of an idea will generate more flesh from those who encounter it.  So, our idea will benefit from the wisdom and experience of others and grow as they add their ideas to it.  The idea expands into opportunities and possibilities that we may have overlooked.

What we end up with is a creative solution, shaped and developed from an idea into a practical solution.

You can download your own free copy of these 5 steps, in PDF format, using the following link … 5 Steps to Creating Ideas, either by clicking on the link which will open the document in Adobe Acrobat Reader (or whatever PDF software you have on your computer) and then saving the file to your computer, or by right clicking on the link and using the ‘Save Target As‘ (Internet Explorer) or equivalent for other browsers (such as Firefox).

Until next time …

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Innovation: A Team Sport

Innovation and creativity are not entities and they do not happen spontaneously.

They are the fruits of people, people interacting and working together, complete with all of the friction and personality clashes.  Innovation is analogous to a musical writing partnership or team sports.  If all roles are performing well, we get a positive force for innovation.  And just with sports teams, it is not essential to have total excellence in every area.  Some of the most effective and innovative teams have true excellence in one or two areas combined with strength in many others.  There may be stars in our team, but the team is the powerhouse.

Perspiration, dedication and hard work are also at the centre of creativity and innovation, honing skills practiced and developed over long periods of time, until they really work.  Here are Some basic principles for success:

1. Stretch for Strength:  Flexibility is more important than strength, size or power.  Many ‘giants’ of the business world have disappeared as smaller, more nimble companies stole the market through exercising their flexibility and operating according to new business models.
2. Go for distance:  Innovation is less about a programme and more about a way of life; a culture.  It is a culture that should be at the centre of every part of an organisation and one which continues to evolve and develop with time, and over time.  It is about longevity rather than fad.
3. Never give in:  Wherever there is innovation there are obstacles and these must be overcome.  Personalities within our teams will be able to see ways around whatever obstacle is in the way or objection raised.  At these times close collaboration and problem sharing are essental for going the distance.
4. Fight the mental battles:  One of the biggest obstacles or hurdle to our progress looms in the battle of the mind; our psyche.  To quote Tom Kelley, ‘Innovators have the uncommon sense to pursue ideas long after others give up.’
5. Celebrate the coach:  Behind every great sports team there is a geat coach.  Behind every great project team there is a great coach.  They may not be in the limelight, but they labour tirelessly in the background making sure everything and everyone stays together.  The right coach brings out the best and we notice the difference

The most successful teams comprise a rich mix of different types of people with different personalities or personas, different talents and abilities, different temperaments.  The correct mix will produce sufficient innovative friction to push forward the team and push forward the innovative process.

When innovation is experienced, it is a mighty force to inspire further innovation.  Perhaps the most important step is to make a start, no matter how small, get the innovation engine turning over, see the benefits and build on them.  And these benefits will be pretty obvious when they occur, hopefully enough to overcome politics and convert even the most cynical as they see a turn-around in their group, department, business unit or  company.

And innovation doesn’t just turn companies around, it becomes a way of life.

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The Brain: Our Creative Powerhouse

Our brain is an amazing organ.

Located in our skull, at the top of our body, this relatively small structure is our own central processing unit (CPU).  Much more intricate and infinitely more powerful than any computer, our brain works silently 24 hours-a-day, 365/366 days-a-year, from before we are born until we die, controlling organ function, thought, emotions, movement, hormone levels … the list goes on.

To help put its complexity into context, there are estimated to be more connections/junctions in our brain than there are stars in the universe; that is more than 100 billion!

But even with our extensive knowledge and intense research efforts, many areas of the brain remain a mystery.  From what we do know and without getting into too much detail, our brain is divided into different anatomical areas with different structures and functions.  A significant part is dedicated to the processing of information fed in by nerves connected to our senses (e.g., touch, sight, smell & hearing), through the detection of changes in levels of hormones and other ‘body chemicals’.  Interaction of the different areas provides our thoughts, deductions, analyses, feeling and emotions.

And different areas provide specific types of thoughts and responses: emotional; rational; sexual.

It follows that what we feed into our brain influences what we get out.  Benefits of a healthy diet, exercise regimens and work/rest balance have all been demonstrated to one degree or another.  The way in which we ‘train’ our brain influences how much information we retain, how we process the information we receive and how we arrive at the conclusions we draw.  Our life experiences also greatly influence how we process information.  All of these factors add up to a very complex series of interactions and influences.

One thing we know is that the brain responds well and adapts, even changes when we repeat actions (we call this practice).  New skills are learnt, information retained and brain processes modified.  Think of learning a new skill … very rarely do we start off an expert.  Athletes train their bodies and brains for the physical and mental battles on the track and field.  Musicians train their fingers, hands, feet and minds as they master tunes and rhythms, read music and improve dexterity.  Actors learn their parts through the repetition of words and actions.

And in our school and colleges, we repeatedly stimulate our logical, deductive faculties through repetition and the exercising of our ‘left brain’.

But if we wish to be creative it is important that we understand the need to exercise our whole brain.  The right side is important in engaging our emotions, non-logical or deductive thinking and artistic skills.  When we hook this up with our logical thinking, we arrive at creativity.

Creativity is not a gift of the few it is a talent we ALL possess.  Neither is creativity something that just happens.  Just like any other skill, we need to work at it, exercising the different faculties of our mind and intelligence, honing the skills that make creativity part of our life.

Whatever area of life we find ourselves in, creativity has a place and application.  In one of my earlier articles, 5 Simple Steps to Creative Thinking and Idea Generation, I listed some time-proven steps which help us to train our brains to think creatively and come up with new ideas.  These steps were identified by a master of the advertising industry from the 1940’s, but they are equally applicable today across a broad range of disciplines.

Our brain IS an amazing organ and the potential IS almost infinite.  How we tap into that potential often lies with the way in which engage our faculties, however good or bad we think they are.  When we engage these effectively, we are repeatedly amazed by our own creative potential.

So let’s learn how to use our whole brain, our whole intelligence, rather than just our intellect, and benefit ourselves and others from the creativity that emerges.

Change: Necessary Evil or Exciting Challenge

Change!

It’s a relatively small word, but one that can strike fear into the hardest heart. 

For the last decade or so, we have been constantly told that change will continue to happen, it will continue to happen more often and that the need for change will continue.  We live in times where it would seem that nothing remains constant.

And when we hear about the ‘need for change’ we often become fearful, angry, pessimistic, cynical or just disbelieving!

Yet if we think about our lives, from the time of childhood we have naturally adapted to change.  We grew up, moved house, we changed schools, we made new friends, we lost others.  None of these experiences was particularly easy, but we got through them and we learned in the process. We adapted.  We changed. We fitted in.  Perhaps others fitted in around us.

What were the common features?  Well let’s think about changing school.  I think … 

• We needed to plan.  A new school meant perhaps new subjects, new books, new challenges.  With the help of teachers we planned for our new venture.  And where we didn’t or couldn’t, it was all the more difficult to make a good start.
• We understood the message.  We knew we were going to a new school and we knew when.  It wasn’t a surprise when it happened.  We may not have liked the idea, but we settled in much more quickly when we bought into it and accepted the change.
• We needed to adapt to survive.  We moved to a new school and needed to learn the building plan, the teachers, the new timetable, in order to operate effectively within that environment.  If we moved to a school where we were met by friendly faces who helped us settle in and showed us around, we settled in more easily.  If we were left to fend for ourselves, it was much more difficult and a much less pleasurable or easy experience.
• We needed to change some behaviours.  Some things that were acceptable in our previous school or at our previous age level needed to be modified or adapted to the new environment or culture.  Some things different.  We had to know the difference and act accordingly.
• We formed new relationships (and perhaps lost some).  In our new environment we met new people, perhaps whom we had never seen before, and built new relationships.  Some didn’t get off to a good start.  Others worked immediately, perhaps because we and our new friend ‘clicked’ in some way that made the process easier.  Some relationships dropped away, for a variety of reasons, but our social and working structure and support changed.
• We started working according to the new rules.  We adapted to the rules and regulations, we worked to the new timetables and in accordance with the wishes of our new teachers and mentors.  And as we settled in, we also contributed to the life of the new school making our own little imprint in sports, science, arts, mathematics … whatever.  We converted the plan into something personal and made it happen, not only for ourselves but also for others.  If we didn’t, we became familiar with detention, or exclusion, or pain!
• Our working style became part of us.  As we settled in to the new way of doing things, what we practised became habit, and a pattern for our daily, weekly, monthly routine … until the next change!

The fact is that most of the time we survived.  Unfortunately, as we grow older and often have more control over our life, we fall into patterns of doing things which last for longer periods of time.  Therefore, change becomes more difficult.

We know that for change to be effective, it must be well-planned and executed, but we also know that if we look back into our history we have faced it and come through it … in one piece.

Sometimes the biggest barrier to change is in our minds, through fear of the unknown and a fear that we may not be able to handle it.  But we have in the past.  And that should be an encouraging start.  We may not like the thought of change, but it is here to stay.  So the better we handle it, the better we are equipped to face and conquer the next challenge … and the next change.

Teamwork Suffering in Downturn

I have just read a very disturbing, yet unsurprising article reporting that 12% of workers admit to having become more insular during the recession. 

At the very time when companies need greater interaction and greater interdependency (teamwork), individuals are seeking to protect their own workloads and projects and around some 27% admit to working longer hours.

The report quotes Mike Bourne, professor of business performance at Cranfield University School of Management as saying,

“Team collaboration and knowledge sharing is essential to help businesses chart a way through the current climate. However, while some employees are understandably worried about job security, firms with business processes to automate teamwork are able to reconcile both workforce productivity and personal performance.”

See report here.

I’m not sure whether it is part of British DNA or culture, but we seem to really struggle with the concept of working together to achieve a common goal.  Perhaps we’ve had experiences where we’ve been betrayed by those whom we have trusted, or had others leapfrog over us as they take our ideas and use them for personal gain and promotion. 

Unfortunately, these sad characters will always be with us. 

But teamwork is exactly the forum that will help to expose these individuals and it provides the team with a level of security impossible to achieve on an individual level.  Who in their right mind (if they are that way inclined) will take on a group of people, a group which is likely to include members of the management team?

But teamwork isn’t really about sinking these rogue battleships; it’s about achieving an objective more quickly, efficiently and completely than is possible when we work alone.

The proof is in the marketplace.  Look at the most successful companies and see how many of these use teams and creative approaches to problem solving and company direction.  A recent survey suggested that in business cultures which engender trust and co-operation, productivity is around 269% greater than where it is absent.

I guess it’s up to us whether we choose to believe the statistics and give it a go … or continue as we are.  Only time, and possibly company solvency will tell.

Lessons from Buena Vista Orchestra

Last night was one of the most amazing experiences I’ve enjoyed for a very long time. Eight months after buying the tickets, I witnessed the phenomenon that is the Buena Vista Orchestra (also known as Orquestra Buena Vista & Buena Vista Social Club).

Many of the original stars from that special night in Carnegie Hall in 1998 have since passed on, but what remains is still a testament to the skill, passion and fun of Cuban musicians, many of whom have been formative in the creation of what we now know as Latin music.

Reflecting on why they were so special, I came up with several things that set them apart from other concerts and bands I have seen (and enjoyed):

1. A sense of history – Many of these people have helped to create the music synonymous with Cuba, the platform on which today’s musicians build. Age is no issue; it’s a strength and a valuable commodity. Experience is something we often overlook as we clamber to be new and different; often too insecure to learn from those who’ve gone before.
2. A sense of value and heritage – These people are firmly connected to their music and cultural roots. It’s not a problem; it’s a bonus. They are not afraid of their culture, nor to share that culture and history with their audience, most of whom have little or no connection to it (apart from music). It’s not about preaching; it’s about showing and sharing; inviting others on board … and judging by the response of the 2500 people at the concert, they were successful.
3. They connected with their audience – Many of us could learn a great deal from the members of Buena Vista Orchestra. They brought something that can be difficult to connect with if you’re not a part of that culture … and enabled us to connect with it. Even musicians often fail to connect with the complex rhythms, how the pieces fit together, how the melodies interweave. Others can’t handle the fluidity and movement in the music, music that doesn’t sit comfortably with a click track yet is devilishly tight. Yet, this wasn’t a problem for the audience as these masters of their art communicated with people’s hearts and souls, calling them on board to experience something new, even if they didn’t understand it. They felt it, were drawn in by it and stoked the fire for more … which they got!
4. They promoted each other – The musicians were clearly ‘old school’ in their playing, but that is what made it so great. There were no stars on stage; they were all stars and they created a platform for their colleagues to shine. Their playing was an expression of themselves but was for each other and the audience, not self-indulgent and about themselves … a lesson many of us could learn.
5. They exuded joy – Music wasn’t just something technical to be played; it wasn’t just an exercise in playing the correct notes; being safe or cerebral. The music they played was part of them; it was their soul; their passion; something to express who they are; from their hearts. It was something to enjoy and that enjoyment spurred each other on and fired the audience. Their enthusiasm and passion was infectious, drawing others in.
6. They were themselves – As we passed the stage door after the gig (and there was no-one else around … how rare is that?) the band emerged and were no different to how they were on stage; smiling, laughing and very willing to give time for a brief chat and sign tickets.

It took me a long time to fall asleep last night. I was full of the gig and my mind raced over and over through the tunes and why I’d enjoyed the evening so much.

Now all I need to do is apply some of what I’ve learnt and hopefully those I meet will benefit.

Thank you Orquestra Buena Vista. Long may you continue to inspire those who have the privilege and pleasure of witnessing your concerts (and your music).

STEM Ambassadors

The STEMNET web site defines a STEM (Science Technology Engineering & Mathematics)Ambassador as

‘An everyday person from a real working background who volunteers their time for free to act as an inspiring role model to young people’.

STEM Ambassadors help to stimulate the minds and imaginations of young people. They provide a refreshing change to regular lessons and activities for students and staff, bringing a fresh perspective to STEM subjects and careers.

Each Ambassador is registered, trained and CRB checked.

The STEM Ambassadors programme is STEMNET’s flagship programme, relying on over 18,000 volunteers who offer their time and support free of charge to promote STEM subjects to young learners. It is an invaluable and free resource for teachers, helping them deliver the STEM curriculum in fresh and innovative ways.

The programme aspires to make a real difference to the delivery of STEM subjects to young people. Key objectives include making every school in the UK aware of the programme and providing over 27,000 STEM Ambassadors nationwide by 2011.

The STEM Ambassador programme is co-ordinated by STEMNET via 52 organisations across the country to fulfil a brokerage role to schools through STEMPOINT contracts. Through strong links with business organisations the brokerage service aims to ensure that all schools and colleges can offer their students programmes which support the curriculum and increase the quality and quantity of students moving into further STEM education, training and development.

STEMNET aim to be recognised as the leader in enabling all young people to achieve their potential in STEM by:

• Enabling all young people, regardless of background, are encouraged to understand the excitement and importance of science, technology, engineering and mathematics in their lives, and the career opportunities to which the STEM subjects can lead
• Helping all schools and colleges across the UK understand the range of STEM Enhancement & Enrichment opportunities available to them and the benefits these can bring to everyone involved
• Encouraging business, organisations and individuals wanting to support young people in STEM to target their efforts and resources in a way that will deliver the best results for them and young people.

I recently signed-up as a STEM Ambassador. If you’re a teacher and the above interests you then you can find more about my particular input to the STEM programme here.

If you have a passion to help schools and students in their STEM activities then why not contact your local STEM provider for more details.  Full details on the STEMNET web site.

Making Complex Ideas Easy to Understand

If you read my last blog entry you’ll remember that I discovered what is perhaps my key skill, making complex things easy to understand, following a long period of working with people whose background was very different to my own and thought very differently to myself. 

This discovery didn’t come overnight and it was only after working in often difficult and frustrating circumstances that I was able to find my talent, even if it did have to be confirmed by people around me before the ‘light went on’ and I realised what it was! 

In reality, the little phrase I now use to crystallise my skill, Making the Complex Easy was only finally formulated a couple of months ago whilst talking to my business mentor about it.  Thankfully, Sandra is very persistent and also very perceptive and the phrase eventually fell out as I tried to capture what I did in less than a paragraph!

We were discussing my experiences whilst studying for my PhD; whilst working in the pharmaceutical industry; whilst working in schools; with friends; in church.  Time and time again the examples we discussed had the same repeating theme: 

How can I make it easy for others to understand what I’m saying?

This was important to me becasue I have always been someone who has had to work hard to understand things.  Combine this with a  severe lack of contentment if I couldn’t really ‘get inside’ and understand what I was trying to learn.  Knowledge for me has more to do with its application than knowledge for knowledge’s sake. 

By understanding something I can use my knowledge in how I decide to move forward and use it in my own life and situations.

So, I suppose it was a natural progression that I should want others to enjoy the same opportunities.  Here are a few of the instances we discussed of how and when I’d made complex things easy:

• My PhD was focussed on pain relief and what was involved in helping us control painful stimuli, so important in conditions like malignant diseases.  More than once I was asked to explain what I was investigating by friends who had no science background.  So, I was often trying to explain complex pharmacological and biochemical processes in simple terms like opening and closing gates, keys in locks, motorways and side roads.
• One of my tasks whilst working in the pharmaceutical industry was training sales representative, many of whom were from a marketing and selling background and without any science input, on the decidedly unsimple process of our body’s immunological response to infection by viruses.  Here terms like cavalry, snipers, secret messengers and chewing and spitting were used to demystify the process.
• My last role in the pharmaceutical industry before I accepted redundancy was to provide technical and information support to physicians and researchers on the data available to support the use of a specific drug in difficult-to-treat and potentially life-threatening conditions.  The problem I was faced with was that I had over 600 slides in my presentation with a usual time slot of a lunch break (i.e., between 10 minutes and 1 hour).  My solution was to reverse the process and devise an interactive presentation where my audience told me what they wanted to talk about and we ‘dipped-in’ and ‘dipped-out’ of the presentation and information available.  This seemed a revolution to many of my audience and I spent hours discussing how they could put together a similar format for their own work, thereby enabling the passing-on of important information in a more targetted way: reducing a complex array of slides to easy-to-digest, smaller segments.
• Whilst working I often took time out to visit schools and help children to understand what they were learning in the science of sound arena.  As a drummer and percussionist I was used to making sounds (noise some would call it) and as a scientist I understood some of the principles behind the sounds I was making.  So I took samples of my drums and percussion into schools and we experimented together and began to understand what made some sounds high, some low; some loud and some soft. What amazed me after these lessons was that I received a lot of feedback on how the children had used some of the more socially orientated skills (listening, talking, thinking together) and the reasoning and experimental approaches in their other subjects and in generally working together in  other lessons.  Making it easy in one subject had been transferrable to other areas of school life (and hopefully in their wider life). 
• My daughter, who is no scientist, was revising for her GCSEs and needed to understand the basics of the electrophoresis of DNA for DNA profiling.  Saying the word is difficult, let alone understanding it.  So I explained that the long strand of DNA is cut into lots of smaller pieces by enzymes (chemical saws).  The result is a bit like a shoal of fish:  some very small; some larger; some longer; some big and some huge. The plate onto which the sample of ‘chewed DNA’ is placed is like lines of fishing nets and when the electric current was switched on, it was a bit like a river or the tide flowing, taking the fish with it.  Little fish was pass easily through the nets and the longer and larger fish would get stuck more quickly or have to work harder to swim through the nets.  The huge fish wouldn’t be able to get through at all and would stay where they were.  At the end of the experiment when the electric current is switched off, it is like taking a snap shot or photograph of where all the fish are.  The ‘bands of fish’ are like the bands of DNA on the plate: smaller fish/pieces of DNA have travelled furthest, largest fish/pieces of DNA haven’t been able to move at all.  My daughter understood this more pictorial, less scientific approach and manged to answer questions on her GCSE paper, getting a Grade B which was a true miracle.

… and I guess that’s why I’m so passionate about making difficult things easy to understand … once we understand them we have chance to use the knowledge and achieve more than we thought possible.

There will always be those who like to keep things complicated because it gives them a sense of power and importance; they are the only ones who know.  But in a world where increasing co-operation is becoming a key factor (especially in business) and clarity of understanding paramount, the sharing of knowledge in an easy to understand way is, I believe becoming ever more crucial, not  only for success, but for survival.

Personal Development & Business Start Up Reading

There are a number of books that I have been reading over the past year-and-a-half that have made a significant impact on my thinking and how I view what I do, what I say, the decisions I make each day etc. These were all recommended to me personally by friends and other people I have met at business meetings etc (NB. All book titles are linked to The Book Depository, what I consider to be the best online bookstore; most prices are heavily discounted and all delivery worldwide is free. I always use The Book Depository: I have never been disappointed and I always use them in favour of Amazon, especially because of the postage I save).

Creativity, Change & Innovation Titles

The Element by Sir Ken Robinson – In all great people there is a spark, an element which enables them to reach their full potential and become world leaders in their field. If we can tap into our element we can reach our full potential too.

Out of Our Minds by Sir Ken Robinson – Creativity is at the heart of talent and success and there is a ‘war’ for talent. Yet just about every education system around the world focuses on only part of intelligence; the intellect. This book is quite deep and very thorough. It explores the need for creative people, both now and in the future, and the need to engage our emotions, not just our reasoning ability as we help people to reach their creative potential.

The Heart of Change by Dan S Cohen – Dan Cohen looks at the process of change and how to manage it effectively so that we take people with us, on our side, rather than alienating them and forming enemies within our own companies. A number of real-life stories provide case-studies on how change has been effectively managed in a range of different situations.

The Ten Faces of innovation by Tom Kelley – Available in Hardback and Softback editions, this book by the General Manager of the World famous design company, IDEO. He explores the strategies they use to foster original thinking and addresses how to overcome the ‘devil’s advocates’ in our organisations.

Personal Development & Enhancement Titles

I Want to Make a Difference by Tim Drake – How to make a positive difference in your own life and the lives of others by changing your mindset. Making life better for your family, friends, colleagues and customers.

S.U.M.O Shut Up Move On by Paul McGee- Paul investigates how we can move from the pont of wishing to achieving. By taking responsibility for our life we can change our attitude, learn to seize opportunities and even respond to adverse conditions with a positive attitude. humorous and pointed all in one go.

Starting Your Own Business Titles

Anyone Can Do It by Sahar & Bobby Hashemi- The founders of Coffee Republic tell how they moved from day jobs to risking everything as they set-up the UK’s first New York style coffee house and how that expanded to become a top brand with over 100 outlets around the UK and employing over 1000 staff. The story as it was … warts and all.

The Small Business Start-Up Workbook by Cheryl B Rickman- This book leads you through the thoughts, processes and activities required to conceive and start your own business; step-by-step. As the title suggests, this is a workbook and therefore, it contains activities to undertake and checks to help ensure that all necessary bases are covered. Very practical, thorough and well thought-out.

Spare Room Start Up by Emma Jones – This is a really practical help on how to start up your own business ‘in your spare room’ i.e., working from home. Emma uses 3 key themes; business, lifestyle and technology to provide a base on which to build a home business, from scratch and at low cost. Well organised, easy to read, easy to pick-up where you left off.

Start Your Business Week by Week by Steve Parks- The attraction of this book is that Steve Parks breaks down the process of starting a business into week-size chunks, thereby making it accessible and less daunting. Checklists, tasks, targets and useful contacts all help to set-up your own business over a six-month period.

The White Ladder Diaries by Ros Jay- Journalist Ros Jay gives insight into how she set-up White Ladder Publishing with an emotional, touchy-feely quality. The book provides plenty of helpful advice and helps you learn from Ros’s mistakes, providing a diary of the lead-up to the first day of trading and beyond.

Setting Up and Running a Limited Company by Robert Browning – Tackling more specific issues surrounding establishing and running a limited company, this book answers many of the questions you need to ask in order to meet the specific requirements relating to a limited company. Appointment of Directors, accounts, shareholders, meetings, minutes and more; the book takes some of the fear out of these formal procedures providing practical help and advice.

The Financial Times Guide to Business Start Up 2009 by Sara Williams- Formerly ‘The TSB Small Business Guide’ this book has sold well over 1-million copies to entrepreneurs and business owners. A comprehensive guide to starting your own business this is a highly detailed book with lots of useful contacts and advice. Also works as an ongoing business reference book.

I hope these provide you with hours of reading and the help you need to get yourself and your business up-and-running, and to keep you up-and-running.

What We Have Not What We Don’t!

I don’t know about you, but one of the biggest hurdles I’ve had to overcome (and still fight daily) is the idea that others know more than me, especially in areas where I am dubbed an expert.

I think a lot of it goes back to when I was younger, especially in my teen years where, although I was in the top set at school there were those around me who were like a cerebrum on legs: they oozed ability, knowledge and were more concerned with where they’d lost two or three marks in their exams than with where they’d gained them!

The problem with hanging out with these guys wasn’t anything to do with their personalities: most of them were really great people to be around.  It was the toll that it all took on my self-confidence and self-esteem.  My mind had a field day, reinforcing all those doubts that had ever dared to enter my thinking, or had been placed there by others.

It wasn’t until I was in my 40’s that I was forced to go back and revisit these difficult and confusing times when recovering from serious illness.  During the long, slow, often painful process that was called recovery I was forced (in the nicest way possible) to see these things in their true perspective and identify the lies that I had taken on-board and made an integral part of my life and psyche.

One of the biggest mistakes I had made was when I started looking at my abilities in comparison to others.  We live in a competitive world where we are continually compared to others BUT there is no need for us to do it to ourselves.  When we go for a new job, invariably our skill sets, talents and background will be compared to those of others competing for the same job.  That is the interviewer’s job. 

HOWEVER, we want to be at our best in those situations, showing others our true self and abilities. 

If we focus on what we don’t have and what we can’t do as well as others, then we will never see our own unique talents; our own unique skills and the things that we CAN bring to the table that others can’t. 

Here’s a couple of examples from my own life that may help:

• When I left school, I went straight to university but was so clueless and dispirited about what I wanted to/could do that I gave up after a term (though I did return with my first drum kit … but that is another story!).  I worked for 3 years and then decided that I would go back to studying as I had a much clearer idea of where I wanted to go (and where I couldn’t go at that time without a degree).  I entered the first year of my degree expecting to be worse than the fresh young things entering straight after their A-levels.  I looked to the brightest of them for encouragement and help but I was always aware in my own mind that I wasn’t as good as them.  That was confirmed in my exams at the end of the year.  For some reason and I still don’t know why, I decided over the Summer holidays that I would really work for myself and make sure that I understood what I was doing.  This meant re-learning a lot of what I’d not learnt very well during my first year.  The second year was different.  Nothing changed in my ability to work with others, but my internal focus was now on what I could do rather than what I couldn’t.  I really WANTED to learn and understand to the best of MY abilities.  I came top of the year in my second year exams, something I could never have dreamed of.  I wasn’t the brightest on paper (my A-level results wer mediocre at best) but my focus had changed and I’d achieved my potential (albeit with a lot of hard work).  I passed my degree with a higher grade than I would ever have expected and then went on to higher study.  The point I’m trying to encourage you with is that if we look at ourselves it’s very easy to see what we lack.  But we have so much to offer that others don’t, and others rarely see the failings in ourselves that we do!  I’m definitely not trying to propose some self-help mantra but I am suggesting that a change of focus can bring a change of attitude and facilitate us reaching our fuller potential. 
• Another example was when I was working as a member of a Medical Department’s clinical research team in the pharmaceutical industry.  I knew some of my strengths:  people skills, patience, generally up-beat and good to be around etc.  But, it took several years of working with the Dark Side, i.e., members of the Marketing Department, to really bring my core skills to the fore.  Medical Departments generally work to a dinosaur type time-scale; it takes a long time to design, set-up, run, and report clinical trials.  Marketing work very much in the here and now and want results today (or yesterday if possible). Initially I worked to set-up a Medical-Marketing Interface, a group of people from both departments who could get together on a regular basis to discuss what their priorities were at that time, what they were for the next year and the reality of what information was likely to become available or be wanted in that time.  These were not easy meetings but they gradually evolved into a broader set of discussion forums that really helped the two departments work together more effectively.  They opened the way for more constructive interaction rather than shooting at each other from the parapets.  Through them there was also much closer collaboration in the construction of sales and marketing literature and this is where I discovered something that had probably been obvious but I’d never seen it!  My personal ‘gem’ was an ability to make complex and highly technical scientific and medical ideas easy to understand by all, including those from a non-technical and non-scientific background.  This did two things: a) It boosted my confidence; I did have something special to offer and b) it paved the way for my last role in corporate business, that of communicating and building professional relationships with members of the medical and research communities and providing fora in which we could openly discuss  data supporting the use of specific drugs in difficult-to-treat-conditions.  It was also interesting that when I left my job, many of the most moving ‘good-bye’ messages came from these same people.

It took me a long time to realise that it’s not always simply how much we know, it’s a lot more to do with recognising our own skills and talents, developing and using these to the best of our abilities, whilst never missing the opportunity to hear what others are saying about us.  As we refine our path, we will be amazed at what we have to offer and as with my university exams, we may just move from being one of the crowd to being a leader. 

Even if we don’t, I can guarantee that you’ll feel so much better about yourself and be more confident with what you can offer.

Service or Ripped-Off?

So goes that start of a conversation I overheard today whilst out shopping at our local Market.

What a damning inditement on all those free offers we are continually bombarded with in order to grab our business; offers which, in reality, have nothing free in them.  They are a hook to get us to buy and clearly in the mind of individual concerned they had been forgotten:  it was the financial transactions that had been remembered, not his free gifts (if they had actually ever received any).

This set me thinking … again … about how we sell ourselves daily:  in business and in our own lives.  We used to have a saying at work;

‘There’s no such thing as a free lunch!’ 

 i.e., You don’t get something for nothing; everything costs.

To some point I agree.  But where that cost lies is the divider between something being perceived as an offer of service and being taken for a ride.

If we make our customers pay, they see it as being taken for a ride and their trust is often shattered.  If we take the cost, our customers see it as a service, as a favour, and it builds trust … and if we do make a mistake in the future they are far more to help us solve it than make demands.
This is a simple division, but one which businesses and individuals ignore at their peril …  every day.  We promise but don’t deliver.  We offer something for free … but there’s a catch!

Perhaps we need to think more carefully before we advertise our next free offer because if we fail to deliver on that offer, we make our customers (and friends) ever more cynical and thick-skinned: we turn them off rather than turning them on to what we really have to offer.  In reality, we turn them off to us because we fail to deliver on what we’ve promised.  It is ourselves that we are selling short and it is ourselves that get the bad publicity.  We gain the label ‘Can’t be trusted’.

The idea of personal integrity is getting ever more lost amidst spin and short-term fire-fighting.  High profile figures expect us to believe their words, even though we see they are contrary to their actions (the cover up).  However, for those who are prepared to match words with actions, the opportunities are huge.  There is a saying I like to use for personal encouragement:

‘Where the darkness is darkest, the faintest light shines brightest’. 

I’m not on my own when I say that by being honest and open, yes, even admitting our mistakes, we build an opportunity for growth and success; for competitive advantage.  Despite what the macho businessmen (many of whom are scared witless of failing) may say, customers like attention and they like vulnerability because that makes us just like them, complete with faults and failings, and they can relate to that.

Lesson from a Business Enterprise Day

Yesterday I visited a local secondary school to help with a business enterprise day for their Year 9 students (aged 13/14). 

The group I helped with comprised 4 teams with between 4 and 7 students per team.  Their task throughout the day was to create a business that designs and manufactures paper ducks for selling to potential buyers’.  Materials were provided, including paper for making the ducks and a range of extras for decorating and enhancing the finished product.

Meeting and observing the students was fascinating.  Some were confident, some felt they’d a lot to offer, some were team leaders and some were just bossy! 

However, there was another group that caught my eye.  These were the students who were shy, lacked confidence, were easily distracted and retreated into their own worlds, could so easily be overlooked or had been identified with special needs.  On the face of it, there wasn’t a lot they could offer in the face of more boisterous and confident competition. 

In reality, they were some of the most significant contributors to the day’s activities once they were engaged. 

The groups who included these students in their discussions and activities benefitted from a whole range of skills and insights that may otherwise have been overlooked or lost: 

• Organisational skills
• Sorting skills
• Creative skills
• The ability to single-mindedly apply themselves to the task they’d been given
• People skills (an unexpected one this)
• The ability to think wider than the problem
• The ability to see different kinds of solutions

I was very interested that the winning group was ‘organised’ by a student who does not have a reputation for shining in lessons.  She organised, steered, encouraged and to quote the girl giving feedback, ” … was the boss!” 

From that same group came one of the most insightful comments of the day. 

As part of their ’selling’ exercise, each group had to state why their particular products should be chosen.  Again, a ’special needs’ student stated quite simply,

“Because ours are made with love!” 

What a beautifully simple selling point.  Their paper ducks weren’t just ordinary ducks, put together on some production line, each one a replica of the other; they were special because they were each made with love.  Care, attention and a bit of the maker had been invested in these little paper creations.  That won it for me!

Ability is far more than getting answers right or doing lessons well in class.  There are so many people who have skills that get lost in the crowd, or lost in the noise and activity of others around them. 

Diamonds rarely just appear on the surface; they must sought after, discovered and often mined from great depths in the earths crust.

I have been reminded  to spend more time looking for those gems that, once found, stand out from those around them, and to invest time and effort in encouraging them to use their talents and gifts.

Independence or Interdependence?

Independence breeds suspicion; interdependence cultivates trust and success … but dare we take the risk?

Making the Complex Easy

One principle that seemed to underpin many of my university lecturers and some work colleagues was, ‘Why make it easy when you can keep it complex?‘

This might seem a bit cynical but I think many of us have a real fear when it comes to being the ‘Knowledge Broker’ … we want to be the person to whom the others will come when they want help to understand something or learn about a particular process or even start a new relationship. 

The gaining of knowledge has always been important but for me the key is not so much what you know:  it has a lot more to do with how you use it.

Unapplied knowledge is largely useless, apart from a warm inner feeling of knowing it!  And the key to applying knowledge is often understanding it in the first place.  If we don’t understand we can’t act or apply.  The danger is of course, that we don’t step out unless we know absolutely everything which is equally paralysing and ineffective.

Many hold onto their knowledge from a position of power:  they know; we don’t; so they hold the power and potentially the key to our forward movement.  Some hold onto their knowledge because they may not know how to pass it on … for whatever reason.  The end result is the same: unapplied knowledge and no ability to expand and develop except through the restricted lines of access to single knowledge brokers.

But how do we make it easy for others to understand?

I would argue that in the first instance, we have to want to make it easy for them to understand.  If we have this attitude we will be prepared to take the time to think about how best to pass it on to our target audience, whether that is at work, our family, friends or even strangers.  There’s a lot of psychology that we can bring in here relating to our audience wanting to learn, their background, their ability to learn etc, but I think if we are prepared to look at our audience and also want to pass the information on we will find a way.

Let me give you a practical example that may help …

My daughter recently took her GCSEs and when it comes to science, she is definitely no Einstein! 

PROBLEM: 

As part of her forensics course, she was learning about the process of DNA profiling (NOT a simple concept for GCSEstudents).  She was struggling to understand what was happening during the process of breaking down the DNA and coming up with a result from electrophoresis of the sample i.e., multiple bands visible on the gel plate.

SOLUTION:

Firstly my daughter has a very pictorial way of thinking.  Secondly, she has encountered the principle of fishing using nets.  Fishing using nets?? 

Yes.  I described the process to her in simple fishing terms as follows:

Imagine that when the DNA has been cut up into smaller pieces by enzymes it resembles a shoal of fish of all types, lengths and sizes.  Some pieces are small, like minnows.  Some pieces may be a bit longer, like small eels.  Some pieces will be larger, like large fish and some will be really big like dolphins, sharks and whales.  Imagine that the gel plate onto which the DNA is spotted is like a line of fishing nets.  When the electricity is applied to the gel plate it will be like a river or tidal  flow and the fish will try to swim with the current, through the nets.  The little fish will pass easily through all of the nets so they will swim through each net as they get to it and they will travel furthest in the time allowed.  Slightly larger fish may get through one or two nets but they will be slower than the little fish.  As the fish get bigger they will be less able to get through the nets and some will be too large to get through any of the nets so will stay where they started. 

The result is that at the end of the experiment, the smallest pieces of DNA will have moved furthest and the largest pieces will have moved the least distance, or even stay where they started, showing up as lines or spots along the gel plate.

My daughter understood the principle of fish swimming through the nets and so she also understood the basics of the physical principle of the pieces of DNA migrating along a gel plate under the influence of an electric current (electrophoresis).

The great ending to this story was that she had a question in  her science exam on explaining the electrophoresis of DNA … and she answered the question without referring to fish or nets once!

Sometime explaining things so others can understand is the gateway to future success.  As Richard Gerver quotes from a teacher he met in China, who bucked the trend and instead of expecting his class to bow to him on entry to the classroom and thank him for the knowledge he was about to impart, actually bowed to the class and thanked them for allowing him to teach them.  When asked why he did this he said something like, “Teaching is my privilege and I never know who I am teaching:  I may be teaching the person who will discover a cure for cancer.”

The advantages of making anything easy to understand are many and we hold the map to that road.  It’s not about trivialising; it’s about helping others take the next step along a road where they may achieve what we cannot. 

And if we can make the complex easy to understand, we open more doors for others to pass through.

Seeing Things Differently

Have you ever found it difficult making your voice heard?

Over the years I have had what I thought to be ‘moments of inspiration’, those thoughts and ideas that are going to make a big difference, that will help people change how they see things,  new ways of looking at familiar situations … only for my inspired thinking to make no difference whatsoever.

I’m not trying to make out that I’m some sort of genius, or a radical thinker, but I do get frustrated when I see things differently to others and my ideas are rejected simply on that basis; they are different to how others see them.  The most debilitating situation is where I have little power to test them out or no influence to bring about the change(s) I see.

When I was working in a large corporate business I would see situations that with little effort (and a bit of common sense) could be positively changed and improved:  a process; the situation in the office; how we dealt with customers; how people could feel a greater involvement in their job.  But if others didn’t see the same issues as important or relevant (defined as whether the idea would take their career in the right direction) the ideas would just disappear under a mound of ‘more important issues that needed to be addressed’.

However, in my own job within that business I did get some opportunities to apply my ideas to my own sphere of work;  how I dealt with others; how I presented the information I had; how I engaged people of all backgrounds and abilities in understanding what I was saying; how I helped others to have some influence in their place of work. 

Many of these things were quite small in comparison to the perceived ‘bigger’ issues but they made a big difference for myself and for those  with whom I worked.  I found I started to receive invitations to speak at a wide range of events and meetings which covered the full spectrum of academic medical and corporate involvement: Professors, doctors, nurses, administrators, students, specialist groups, school children.  I also received a lot of positive feedback along with a few invites to be involved in activities outside of my professional and work situation.

One prediction currently voiced is that unless businesses and organisations are prepared to try something different, to listen to and engage with ideas they wouldn’t normally, to find new ways of working and creating environments in which their staff are actively engaged in contributing ideas and to the health of the organisation, they will close.  Some of those ‘big boys’ currently ranked in the Top 100 or Top 50 businesses will not exist within the next 5 years.

I still hear many stories from friends who work in organisations and businesses obsessed with the bottom line at the expense of their staff. ‘Our strength is our people’ may be proudly displayed on their advertising and in their corporate lobbies, but in reality they pay not even lip service to these claims, instead actively demotivating their staff through ridiculous work loads and targets (knowing they can be replaced if the burn-out), justifying their removal of simple staff benefits and incentives which are needed most when the chips are down, failing to engage in training and skill-building so that when the recession reverses they are in a position to emerge strong and in-front, and perhaps most suicidal of all, allowing key, experienced staff to leave; removing their advantage when it is most needed.

Why is this?  I honestly don’t know! 

It defies common sense (which may be part of the issue) and it defies logic.  It seems that many companies engage in management styles and policies that would be a part of a great plan for killing-off their opposition … but they use it on themselves!

What better way to kill off a corporate or business community than to restrict its members’ ability to communicate, develop relationships,  create and engage with new ideas and yes, HAVE FUN!

Perhaps it arises from a fear of being different or thinking differently (even though that is what they may profess to want).

The world needs new ideas, new ways of thinking, new ways of engaging people in their daily work.  Perhaps listening to some of those weird and wacky ideas may just provide the escape route many are looking for.

Let’s stop resting in the comfort zone so that new ways of thinking and new ideas can at least be evaluated and given a chance …  and then we may just find the lifeline we’re looking for.