The Engaging Brand

A Thin Line Between Madness and Creativity

I remember as a child being in the car when Dad picked up a colleague from the airport. On the way home they were talking about droplet formations and having a lively discussion about how water acts under certain conditions. They couldn't agree so Dad pulled into a car wash, bought his token and then both of them got out to see the water in action. I can remember thinking "My Dad IS completely mad!" as he got back in and drove away soaking wet through... I asked him later and he said

• Anna, never be afraid of seeming mad, be afraid of not seeming anything
• You don't find every answer in a book, sometimes you have to find the answer in life
• Neither of us were right....never assume, test out your theory before making a plonker of yourself (Somehow the plonker was a little ironic after seeing him in a car wash!)

Oh and always remember to get back into the car to finish the discussion before the soap starts :)

Dad was in many ways Mr Average in the way he lived his life, what made him different was the way he never let go of the child inside his mind.  Adults don't walk into a car wash, but a child would have found it exciting! What Dad found out that day he used in building a new machine that became a best selling brand in the farming world...My lesson - There is a thin line between madness and creativity

Imagine a world without imagination

A prominent leader said to me today, imagination is for children...practical ideas are for adults...hmmm not sure how you get the ideas without imagination. It got me imagining a world

• Where we worry less about terms like Web 2.0, Podcasting, Social Media and more about how we can use technology to help change the world for the better...
• Where we talk about verbs rather than functions.....conversations vs marketing, value vs finance, hearts and minds rather than HR, creating experiences vs sales
• Where we can interact with the web with all 5 senses....taste food before we buy, smell perfumes, touch clothes....
• Where we love searching for the truth according to the person rather than the illusive objective, one truth that doesn't exist
• Where we enjoy what we have, rather than what we haven't
• Where we learn to use the other 95% of our brains...phew could you imagine the effect!
• Where we give more than we take
• Where we all play angel advocates with ideas....
• Where we move from the world being "flat" to the world being 3D
• Where we move from reviewing performance to creating legacies

Some may seem far fetched....but then my Nana remembers not having food during the war, women not having the vote, no central heating, TV's or no Web and can you believe it ....even a world without mobile phones!
Imagination lies at the evolution of the world, imagination is a precious resource, imagination is a skill we were given at birth and yet the world tries to remove through socialisation - forgetting how it can be used for the power of good.....how much do you value imagination for yourself, your friends, your team, your customers...when did you last time dream or let others dream?

The (Not So) Big Idea, Idea!

I sometimes think that we keep searching for that big idea, when in reality those small ideas are often the most important. Here is tonights challenge....what about thinking about going to work tomorrow and inspiring those itsy bitsy, teeny, weeny ideas that could

• Inspire people by feeling achievable
• Be built upon to turn into something bigger
• Create impetus for culture change...small ideas actioned can lead to empowerment, success and the feeling of being listened to..
• That gives momentum to that creativity that we know is within your team
• Help simplify the business and make the environment more enjoyable

Now let go forth and multiply those small ideas...

Is Your Mind Foggy

Today, I have spent around 7 hours in a car driving through rolling fog. When you come across fog, there is no point in putting your lights on full beam, no point in increasing speed..no slowing down and dimming the headlights is the answer. Accepting the fog and working your way through, knowing that it will clear...

Mmmm...made me think about social media fatigue, lack of creativity, leadership uncertainity - all need patience, all need you to slow down and allow yourself the chance to work your way through the fog. Force it and the risk of accidents are too high....

So just turn down the speed, pump up the volume on your favourite podcast, relax and the fog will start to lift and the journey will once again become clear.

Bringing back Curiousity to Your Brand and Business

I took my cat to the vet last night, and as always I love to learn, so was asking the vet about the treatment. To my shock he turned round and said "Stop being curious, you don't need to know that is my job!"

Wow, is that the world we live in....do we live in a world that shuts down curiosity, that shuts down learning. I hope not and I would urge people to develop curiosity - beat the curiosity shut down and break free into a world of expanded knowledge. To be lead you need a wide perspective, then the ability to filter and decide. Never shut down that childlike quality of curiosity...curiosity is what takes a brand, a team, you forward.

Here are some phrases that I think any manager should be using BEFORE making a decision. Yes, your job is to MAKE the decision but curiosity develops a better decision, a decision based on a wide perspective.

• I wonder what would happen if....
• What if we were a start up, what would we do...
• What if we had no budget what would we do..
• If there were no restrictions what would we do...
• Why do we need this or that...
• How could we simplify this ...
• In an ideal world what would happen..
• Imagine a world when.....
• How could we make this happen...

Think Outside the Diamond

I always feel uncomfortable with the phrase 'Think outside the box', not sure if it is because it sounds vague to me or whether it sounds like a throw away line. However, when I was speaking to Beth Kanter for the next podcast...I remembered a phrase that I do use...Think Outside the Diamond!

I have this phrase on my desk, as for me a box is flat and has sharp edges...a diamond is such a better analogy. Let me try and explain my weird thinking :)

D - Diamonds are multi dimensional as are most problems. Ensure that you view the problem from all sorts of views and opinions.
I - Its value comes from the perception of others. A diamond is not the rarest resource but people have a perception of its value. To create value in your idea, work on creating value from the perception of others.
A - A diamond shines because of the different light sources...look for inspiration outside your normal sphere to find the sparkling idea.
M - Mine for ideas, information. Any problem worth solving will need digging, need hard work and a team of people to find that hidden gem...called a solution.
O - Ornate. Diamonds are tough, hard  - they are also known for beauty. In leading people, you need to be tough, even hard at times but you must learn to combine that with bringing a sense of joy and beauty to your working environment.
N - Never underestimate the fact that although diamonds can be faked although people may initially be fooled, once they get a closer look, they will see the truth. Very like business!
D - Diamonds are forever...leaders should see themselves as leaving an enduring legacy that will survive even when they have moved on...

Imperfection - The New Black?

In developing any brand (Employer, personal, leadership, product) you can be caught out if you are looking for perfection. Beta is now a part of the successful company's ethos. Imperfection is a huge part of your evolution!

• Be willing to try new ideas...test them, try them, see if they work -  if not, you can always change it.
• People love to be part of a company, a team that are willing to embrace new ideas, encourage new thinking....they can forgive imperfection, they rarely forgive slowness or apathy.
• People who work with you want to work for a human being, part of being human being is making a few mistakes. As long as you own up, as long as you are honest...people will stay with you. Imperfection can be engaging!
• When you are wanting to move forward, you will need to take risks. If you spend too much time looking for the perfect answer...then in the meantime, the question will probably have changed!

The more you push the boundaries, the more you increase your creativity to your work, the greater the chance of success...and the occasional mistake. But the alternative is lagging behind and not differentiating yourself against the competition. Yes, you need to manage risk.....but the greatest risk is not experimenting or evolving in a world that does not embrace blandness.

Traffic Light Management

I have total dislike for traffic lights, possibly because I grew up in the country where there was no need for them. I hate living near a city now and a 5 mile journey will take 45 mins because of all the traffic lights!

Today as I was driving I thought this is like work - there you are wanting to get to your destination (goal) as quickly as you can and there are all these stop, amber signs.

STOP - Meetings, sign offs, rules, regulations, politics

Now I am not a total maverick and there needs to be some amber

AMBER - Updates, coaching, milestones, deadlines, feedback etc

I think for any journey, be it in a car or with an idea - the intention must be to clear the stop signs, clear as many of the obstacles as you can without making the risk too high. Keep the idea traffic flowing...be an amber manager for more complex projects and a go-go manager when the risk is low.

Naturally Creative Leadership

I am a real believer that we can learn much from nature. Today, I was thinking about how nature uses time to form a new birth. The seeds of new life incubate and over time, develop the strength to enter the world and blossom or grow. For me that is how ideas should be allowed to flourish. Scott Berkun spoke about this on the last podcast.

Ideas in the early stages are so

• Prone to over analysis disease.
• In need of love and care, water to let them flourish.
• In need of protection from the "That will never work" managers.
• In need of regular check ups to see if the idea is growing and has enough resources to feed its growth.
• Defenceless to facts, figures, budgets....ideas at the start are unproven...they need to live a little before they show you their potential.

Not all ideas are great, not all ideas will work, not all ideas are ready to be born.....but they need to be respected as a potential seed of growth - often it is the least popular idea that wins through.

Is failure an option for people

I remember one boss, trying to inspire us demanding "Failure is not an option!" Did it inspire...of course not, it just made us fear failure, resulting in us taking a more conservative route. The result - a diluted idea, with a diluted return and a diluted team spirit. I remember writing in my ideas book at the time "Failure will always be an option when I am a leader!"

Firstly, here I mean failure through trying hard not failing from "can't be bothered" The latter should have no place in business, anyway!

No one wants to fail, if you want people to push the boundaries you have to give people the safety net of not being punished for failing. Indeed, it should be the opposite, they should be recognised for being brave enough to have a go.
I remember being captain at hockey - I never got mad when someone missed a goal scoring opportunity, I would be more frustrated when people did not get themselves in a position to score.... Failing is learning, failing is saying that you are trying to push the boundaries, failing is saying we are wanting to create success.

To be successful, you need to fail...otherwise you are just playing far too safe as a boss. To be successful you have to encourage a little failure, encourage growth from failure, inspire "bouncebackability" from failure.

Failure ends with the word - lure.....apt as you will lure talent to your leadership brand if you encourage people to succeed through a few failures a long the way.