29 June 2010

Being creative is not really original

Ever looked at an ad on television and thought "Wow! How did they think of that?"

Perhaps you have been in awe of a new book, strategy or song, and wondered how on earth they (the author) summoned the creative flair to engineer the idea.

Well, being creative isn't actually all about being different. It is highly attuned to being the same. Researchers looked at the similarities of 200 ‘highly creative' ad campaigns and found the vast majority (87%) could be classified into 6 key areas. They then looked at 200 less than successful ads and found that only 2% could be measure against consistent criteria. The success and failure of these ads was actually their level conformity to our expectations.

There are examples of this everywhere around us. Inconsistency just doesn't sell. I remember a few years ago Australian songstress Natalie Imbruglia bought out a song without a chorus...it was promoted and marketed as a brave new creative process. Hmmm, the fact I cannot remember it probably indicates how well it went on the charts. Even great musical pieces by modern creative geniuses such as Lennon, Cohen, Martin et al all had basic structures around melody and choruses. They followed the rules of our expectations.

To design something your peers will see as ‘highly creative' you need to firstly conform to their expectations, whatever they may be. Sure enough there will occasionally be a genius who will completely launch a creative paradigm in their field, but the vast majority of creative ‘gold' lies firmly embedded in hanging your creativity from a consistent platform and strategy.

Warm wishes,
Darren and Alison

With Compliments
Nils Vesk encapsulates the idea behind this weeks newsletter in this clip from Thought Leaders Studio. Nils discusses how we need to find the thinking behind others good ideas so that we can create our own innovative ideas.

Click here to watch Nils Vesk's clip on Copying Ideas

Are you making it personal?

It's hard not to make things personal isn't it?

The tough conversation you might have to have with a staff member about performance, the supplier who hasn't delivered on time, or maybe the customer who actually isn't right...
You may have even used the opening phrase "This isn't personal..."

So how did that work for you?

The ability to de-personalise a situation is arguably the most elusive, but most valuable skill you can possess in the area of people management. Remarkably, it is incredibly simple.

Using the phenomenal learning of the world's foremost expert in non-verbal communication, Michael Grinder, it's not about what you say, it's not even about how you say it.

When conveying feedback that is not positive, always use a ‘third point' for communication. Third point communication is using a visual medium (piece of paper, whiteboard etc) and directing your conversation towards it, rather than the person.

When we direct negative information towards the person (look them in the eye) it immediately becomes personal, unless you are a genius using empathic language. For most of us who aren't a modern day Carl Rogers', we are best to use third point.

From one person to another...it works!

Want to learn more about dealing with tough situations? Then register for Darren's 'Dealing with the Tough Stuff' Workshop this THURSDAY 17th JUNE. Click Here for more information

Warm wishes,
Darren and Alison

3 ways to boost your relationships

Regardless of what work you do or what organisation you work for, every business is a human business. Given this is the case then the success or failure of your business is totally dependent upon the relationships that you build, maintain, repair and sustain over time. Relationships, by their very nature, change, develop, grow, dissolve, go through hurdles, and evolve. Therefore to boost the key relationships around you engage in the following three actions:

1. Catch-up face-to-face – It sounds obvious but in the era of technology and desk-bound jobs we can often lose sight of the value of catching up with others face-to-face. I recently met with a colleague for a brief power-packed 20 minute meeting. The impact of that meeting for both of us was much stronger than any amount of phone-calls or emails could have made.
2. Aim to share and learn –Strong relationships in both your work and personal life are those that are characterised by mutual learning and growth. Relationships that strengthen over time stretch us and allow us to develop others. In your interactions today with colleagues, customers, clients or suppliers consider what you can share and what you can learn.
3. Mix it up – Relationships can fall into a pattern of similarity. To refresh and revive your relationships mix up your pattern of behaviour. Take a lunch-time walk with a colleague, meet a client or customer for coffee somewhere neither of you have been, send a thank-you gift to someone who has helped promote your business.

We look forward to catching up with you sometime soon.

Yours in friendship,

Darren and Alison

The Myth of Micro-Managing

People inherently value their freedom, and this is especially true at work. If you are a manager, supervisor, a leader or even a team member, it can be easy to fall into the trap of micro-managing your colleagues to get tasks done, particularly to get things done the way you want them done. The problem is that the stricter the control that is placed on individuals, the greater the chance that they will push back, even at a subconscious level.

Research that was mentioned in a Harvard Business Review blog this week identified that when shown a face of someone that they deemed as controlling, psychology students performed worse on a complex anagram task they were given. Our sub-conscious is a powerful tool.

As a manager and a leader often your drive is to get people to work smarter, harder, and faster. Do this through micro-management and you will find that you spend your whole day, and even week, micro-managing with limited chance of this changing in the future. Micro-management occasionally works in the short term, but in the long-term the very people you are attempting to micro-manage will undermine all of your efforts. This is not a rewarding situation for anyone to be in.

Instead consider the following approach to reduce control and promote productivity:

1. Clarify the expectations. What outcome is needed? What benchmark needs to be achieved?
2. Outline the ‘why' behind the project.
3. Explore options. There is more than one way to get things done. Model the creative thinking you want to see in others and provide the freedom of these options.
4. Hold people accountable (this includes yourself!)

Respect the fact that people value their freedom and the results may surprise you.

Warm wishes,

Darren and Alison