For the last couple of months, I took over as the acting General Sales Manager for my group of radio stations. I had to un-do a few things that the previous General Sales Manager had done and one of those was to show our sales staff that they were creative and capable of doing more than they had previously been told.
The area was creativity. Specifically, commercial writing. Our previous GSM was convinced that he could not write and so he found some creative ways to avoid writing such as hiring someone else to write his commercials.
Yet, I knew that everyone is capable if they are given a little guidance, so my training for a couple of days to our sales staff was designed to open their eyes to their own abilities and now they are working on doing their own writing.
What about you? Are you stuck? Need a fresh perspective? Here's a great article from Roundpeg to stir up, shake up, and wake you up:
Turn Off Auto-Pilot! Turn On Creative Thinking!
Do you sit in the same place everyday? Drive to and from work along the same route? Tackle problems in the same manner?
Habits are easy, and they help us get through the day. Do them too often, however, and you end up in a rut. Let the ruts get too deep and it is hard to find a new solution to a problem or challenge. Sometimes drastic measures are needed to break out of the rut
This is especially true for small business owners, looking for ways to take their business in new directions. Sometimes the best thing to do is Break the Habit!
If you need a fresh idea, try a new direction. Consider using a technique called “Random Input.” This technique helps you break away from restrictive thinking patterns. It opens a conversation about new solutions you normally might not associate with the problem.
You can do this anywhere, but my favorite location, is an outdoor cafe, with sunshine, a Latte, blank sheet of paper, and a pen. To get started, select a random noun from the dictionary or any noun which pops into your head. Since it works best if the noun is something you can see or touch like a car, or hat, I usually look for something on the street around me as a starting point for my brainstorm.
Next, look for ways to connect the noun to the challenge at hand. As you brainstorm, do not eliminate or evaluate ideas. Let your mind wander. Capture every idea. Yes, you will have some useless ones. Others may lead to valuable insights. And at least one is likely to make a startling, creative leap.
Here is an example of how Random Input can work. Imagine your challenge is to find a new fundraising project for a teen soccer team. You have considered all the conventional solutions, but nothing really exciting comes to mind.
Now is a good time to try random input. You see your favorite plant on your desk and decide to use the word “plants.” Brainstorming may lead to some of these ideas:
- Plant seeds in the spring, and selling the young trees in the fall
- Offer lawn care services instead of the typical car
- Sell decorative floral arrangements for holidays
- Solicit sponsors for the trees around the playing fields
You will generate even more ideas if you brainstorm with others. Invite 3 - 5 people to join you for short (20 - 30 minute) sessions. When it comes to brainstorming, two heads are definately better than one!
The ideas will be sketchy at first. Many will be may be useless or impractical. Yet, one might be original enough for the basis of an entirely new concept. Try it! Random input is a great new habit to develop.
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