“Can I help you find something?” You’ve heard that before, haven’t you? It’s the usual greeting you get from sales people as you walk into their store. Because I like the inefficiency of finding things on my own, my usual reply is, “No thanks, I’m just browsing.” But on one occasion I surprised myself, and the sales person, with a different response. When she asked the familiar question, “Can I help you find something?” I responded, “No thanks, otherwise how would I find what I’m not looking for.” Thankfully, she laughed. I had thought of giving that response on other occasions since I’m pretty sure that’s the intention of most retail marketers – not just to help you find what you’re
Out of Our Minds, by Ken Robinson should be your new best source when you think about creativity. I've recommended it before but just in case you haven't read it yet, here are his three roles and nine principles for creative leaders - along with a few of my own questions, in italics. The first role of the creative leader is to facilitate the creative abilities of every member of the organization. They do this first by recognizing that everyone has creative potential. Ask yourself if you really believe this about each member of your team. They recognize innovation is the child of imagination. How do you capture the imagination of your team? They believe we can all learn to be more creative
Do you like to hear recordings of yourself speaking? How about singing? If you’re like most people your first reaction to hearing yourself is to say, “That doesn’t sound anything like me!” It’s so different from what you hear that you don’t recognize it as your voice. But, while it’s not the sound you’re accustomed to, it certainly is your voice. It’s how you really sound to other people. “Yikes!” you say. It takes some time to get used to hearing yourself in a recording but for singers and people who speak in public it’s an invaluable tool. Why? Because it’s important for them to know how they really sound. As one of my musical mentors once said, “You can’t fix it if you can’t hear
