Hey everyone, here we go. . . . . .

IN OUR WORLD

Coming to you, once again from the beautiful springtime dessert oasis of Scottsdale.  Just finishing off one hell of a travel/project trip.  Three clients, three cities, four different projects in four days!

This was a great challenge, not only from the logistics, but the shift from project to project.  You have to use a fluid method of thinking.  You have to listen, to see the direction an idea is traveling then discover the right fit for the energy, for the team and for the company.

An ideas value is always in its traction.  Does the idea connect to the goal?  Does the idea add value to the team, the company and then the shareholder?  Can the idea be accomplished in a simple and powerful manner?    Is there a champion, someone who will be accountable for the ideas life?  Each of these questions is instrumental to a successful outcome.

The projects were diverse, involving education, sales strategy and leadership.  These companies are pushing new ideas that will have immediate impact on their market position.  Its exciting stuff, to see decisions, which have expense and risk impact as primary strategies to move companies to the next level!

Next week will involve the final designs on my new web site as well as the launch of a new strategy for a major retail client.

Exciting stuff!

HEY, YOU CAN FOLLOW ME ON TWITTER –CREATIVEVENTURE

AND ON FACEBOOK – STEPHEN HARVILL!

THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW

We are the only creature in the known universe that can commit to life of learning.  Our genetic capacity to learn new things is virtually unlimited.  In a world of constant change this biological and psychological factor should play a critical role in your corporate strategy.  With Generation Y kids moving from job to job at a rate of about 8 by the time they are 35, you should be developing strategies that move to keep young talent.  Learning is a big player in maintaining great team members.

There are lots of studies as to why good people leave companies.  At the end of the day it really comes down to two key factors:

• Do they feel of value:  This is a big deal.  In a recent exit study of key employees many said they never felt like what they did was really valuable to their boss or their organization.  To stop this wrong direction flow of talent, thing about TELLING THEM THEY ARE OF VALUE!  It is amazing how many said, no one ever thanked them for their work or showed them how they were connected to bigger picture.  Next, find ways to reward their work outside of traditional salary.  Oh money talks, BUT simple rewards make a huge impact.  I just finished designing a program for a client called FLASH.  It empowered key managers to make immediate rewards to team members for work that fit a filter we created.  The boost in moral was almost immediate.

• Growth:  Provide a path of growth for your people.  Develop education programs that have two core tracts.  The first is industry specific.  They want to learn more about what they do.  Second, create a track of general business skills.  Subjects like thinking, communications, and sales are great starters.  Create a reward system for those who complete these types of classes and watch them grow.

Simple, let them know they are of value and find ways for them to grow.  I have the honor of regularly teaching core curriculum for four of my clients and each time I am privileged to stand in front of these teams, I am reminded that I am looking at a pool of talent that my client was smart enough to cultivate.

ENTERTAINMENT

MOVIES: Nothing on the big screen to take to the theater.

NetFlix Fans:  Whiteout: Watched this on Pay Per View and it turned out to be a good choice.  About a US Marshall in Antarctica.

TV: The Discovery Channel has the epic LIFE on and The Pacific is on HBO.  About as good as you can get!

BOOKS:  The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo – By Larsson.  Little slow at the beginning but a great mystery read.

MUSIC: Death Cab for Cuties – great song – Summer Skin

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f-QtYDwqqHE

WEB SITES: Here is a little help on your life organization.

http://www.lifehack.org/

SOUTH OF NORMAL

A couple of things that made me stop and think; “hey the population located South of Normal is getting bigger!”

• Many of you may have remembered the Cold War, where nations were pitted against each other where their economic and political philosophies were in direct opposition.  Now it’s not country fighting country, but companies fighting countries, not on political grounds, but on technical grounds.  First battle – Google vs. China.
• Sidestep Stoner Syndrome:  This is a Twitter malady – “when your most profound thoughts are reduced to 140 characters, you often sound like Spicoli from Fast Times at Ridgemont High”.
• A drunken man was arrested in Pennsylvania for trying to give mouth to mouth resuscitation to a long dead possum.  Hmm, bet his day did not start out with that as a plan.

Drop me a note with your comments at steve@creativeventures.com

Thanks for stopping by and until next time, Adios and Aloha.

Hey everyone, here we go. . . . . .

IN OUR WORLD

I wish I could really relate the insanity of my schedule.  Of all the things I do and the intense amount of planning it takes to take any project from start to finish, my calendar remains at the mercy of the random universe.  It’s like a river, it’s in constant motion.

This week I get a call from a client that out of the blue cancels a project with no reschedule date, hey, it happens.  Last week I had a client call to book those same dates and I had to say “can’t do it, sorry, already booked”.  Did a quick scramble to call them back and tell them the dates are now available.  Too late, the project was tabled to some future date. AGGHHHHHHH!  As singer Brett Dennen says; “it’s enough to make you go crazy!!!!!!”

I worked on the RICH MEDIA side of my APPLICATION STRATEGIES this week.

Colton Woolford is my video guru and creative master when it comes to use of video.  We finished the almost final draft of a fantastic client video of a teambuilding project.  We then went back to the studio and I shot 5 new videos for my new web site as well as a ton of other applications.

The use of video is the most powerful tool for your story or delivering your message.  Through the development of technology, the filming process is now within the budget of any company and with an unlimited and free distribution system, the internet, I am positioning RICH MEDIA as a primary strategic tool for many of my clients.

I also had the great fortune to meet with a good friend and former client who is interested in push the envelope towards developing an extraordinary strategy around customer loyalty.  If it comes together it will be a FANTASTIC project!

Next week is an insane travel week with trips to Atlanta and back to Phoenix!

HEY, YOU CAN FOLLOW ME ON TWITTER –CREATIVEVENTURE

AND ON FACEBOOK – STEPHEN HARVILL!

THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW

Here are some financial bits that I found really interesting:

• Retail sales rose in February.  That’s good news, but the interesting part is that this rise absorbed a DECLINE in auto sales of 2%.  Despite that sink point, the overall retail picture is starting to improve almost every month.
• Say good bye to Bill Gates as the richest man in the world.  Mexico’s telephone king Carlos Slim hit the $53.5 billion point!  To give you an idea of the scope of that kind of wealth – if you used $1,000 bills and stacked them up, his fortune would reach the height of a building about 1,855 stories tall!  The other interesting part is that most of the billionaire club saw their wealth RISE during the decline of the recession during 2009.
• Companies are spending and transforming:
  • Met Life just bought AIG’s overseas health insurance and medical business for $15 billion.  Opportunity is found in all economic conditions.
  • Cisco just introduced a NEW mega router CRS 3 to handle the new wave of video and rich media booming on the internet.  Innovation pushing forward. They are ready for the explosion of internet TV that is just about to ignite!

I am amazed at the incredible variety of economic news that hits the media every day.  The economy is recovering.  The economy is tanking.  The world is on the brink of economic disaster.  The world is showing a strong recovery.  The market is up.  The market is down.  The Street predicts this and low and behold, the business community did that.

Nothing and I mean NOTHING shows the incredible random and flexible aspect of the world more than the smell of money!

ENTERTAINMENT

MOVIES: Repo Men: I’m really not sure that this will send me to the Studio Movie Grill or not!  Last week USA Today ran an article on the big wave of dinner/movie theaters that are developing to take advantage of the boom in movie going.  Interesting stuff!

NetFlix Fans:  This Is It: It doesn’t matter if you are a Michael Jackson fan or not.  This is incredible to watch from the sheer creative force you see on the screen.

TV: Set your DVR for the new FX series – JUSTIFIED.  It’s about a tough as nails US Marshall and is destined to become a big hit in my viewing.  It airs on Tuesday nights.

BOOKS:  Clever – Goffee/Jones:  The value of a clever employee cuts like a two edged sword.  Their passion makes them valuable while also making them difficult to manage.  This book shows how if you show them what needs to be done and allow them to figure it out for themselves; they can grow your company faster than any other internal factor.

MUSIC: Brand new from the wonderful Paolo Nutini!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x3xYXGMRRYk

WEB SITES: I am a singer/songwriter fan and this site is a pretty good place to keep an eye on the genre.

http://www.folkalley.com

SOUTH OF NORMAL

During tough times you might think that people would pull back from their charity work.  You know, “need to get conservative”, “not sure about the future” – stuff like that.  NOT TRUE.  We are behaving South of Normal finding ourselves in a compassion explosion.

• 94% of people surveyed feel it’s important to be personally involved in supporting a cause they believe in.
• 91% believe they can impact the world at large.
• 78% feel they can make a real and true difference.
• 65% talk to their children about important issues.
• Here is the biggy – it’s not just about talk, it’s about doing, doing on any level:  87% support a cause financially.

So DO SOMETHING.  It feels good!

Drop me a note with your comments at steve@creativeventures.com

Thanks for stopping by and until next time, Adios and Aloha.

Hey everyone, here we go. . . . . .

IN OUR WORLD

Due to an unexpected trip I am coming to you from the windy city of Chicago.  It pays to keep a bag packed when you are in my business!

This was a really good week of productive work:

• Personal Branding Project:  I got a big jump on getting ready for the debut of this program by designing the communication plan.  My client has fully committed to making this project its #1 sales priority.  When you are involved in a huge “change” initiative, communication is a core element and needs a simple, impactful and CONSISTENT plan.  It will become the heartbeat of the project.
• Repeatable Successful Acts:  This is my most active strategic platform and almost always begins in presentation mode.  The problem with that is that every client wants to allocate a different amount of time to the launch presentation requiring me to have about 6 different length programs.  I just finished a 45 minute version.
• Program Revision:  Getting stale and lazy can be a real problem in what I do.  I know the impact of my presentations, education and application models, so it would be easy to keep doing the same stuff.  Hey, it works so stick with it.  The problem is that new ideas are springing up all the time and I track them through my “idea journals”.  I then go back and add or delete content, or create new programs based around these new ideas.  This week I revised both my interpersonal communications and the presentation skills workshops.  A new fresh version for each.

Next week I am in the studio with my talented videographer to shoot some short Creative Ventures videos!

HEY, YOU CAN FOLLOW ME ON TWITTER –CREATIVEVENTURE

AND ON FACEBOOK – STEPHEN HARVILL!

THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW

I spend most of my time in the business process of “thoughtful reduction”, a methodology of thinking and planning that allows me to simplify complex issues.  This discipline has given me a world view that impacts virtually everything I do.

There is a simultaneously love and hate that goes on with the relationship between complexity and simplicity creating an odd and dynamic playing field.  When thoughtful reduction is introduced to a client either in presentation or meeting format there is an almost natural engagement that occurs.  People intuitively know that a simple, powerful and elegant plan has a strong chance of success than a traditional multi-layered approach to a problem.  The big issue is not engagement of the idea; it’s the application of that engagement on a consistent basis that becomes the problem.  We are drawn to complexity and the model of more is better.

I am getting ready to introduce a thoughtfully reduced plan for a company wide initiative that will require my client to both think and behave differently.  It is no secret to them this will be a HUGE endeavor and will require a level of rugged determination conscious in every aspect of the job.  This thinking discipline is evident in a wide range of companies showing huge success in a world of rapid and chaotic change.  In fact, the “philosophy” of simplicity the primary weapon in a war of “what the hell do I do next”.  Here are a couple of examples:

• ALDI GROCERY STORES: (http://www.aldi.us/index_ENU_HTML.htm ):  These simplified stores feature mostly generic brands at super discounted prices.  The stores feature clean, wide aisles limited selections that simplify choices.
• FLIP VIDEO RECORDER:  (www.theflip.com ) Feeding the insatiable appetite for immediacy that is the cornerstone of YouTube, this ultra compact and simple to use video recorder is the essence of simple.  It is revolutionizing the “raw” video market and turning anyone into a camera man.
• ANTS EYE VIEW: (www.antseyeview.com ) my good friend Ben McConnell’s social media and web bases strategy firm has a web site that is a good example of the minimalist movement of simple and clean design.

Your world is waiting for you to learn a new way to think that will bring you applications of brilliance that will drive your business.  LEARN to simplify.

ENTERTAINMENT

MOVIES: Green Zone: Matt Damon is one of my favorite actors and this will be a great escape this weekend.  By the way, I LOVED Alice in Wonderland!

NetFlix Fans:  13 Days: This is a great dramatized version of the Cuban missile crisis.

TV: Set your DVR to capture Man vs. Food.  This is a hilarious show about a guy that takes all those food challenges that restaurants offer – eat a 72 oz. steak in an hour and win a t-shirt type thing.  It is on the Travel Network.

BOOKS:  Start with Why – Sinek:  Good read on taking a new perspective on viewing what your company does.

MUSIC: Laura and I were invited to a charity event this week and we got to see the Pointer Sisters perform.  Man, those babe’s are still rockin!  This brought an audience of mostly old white folks (me included!) to their feet!!!!!!!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kNypedXSSlo

WEB SITES: Great media stuff.

http://blogof.francescomugnai.com/2009/07/40-exceptionally-well-designed-iphone-app-websites/

SOUTH OF NORMAL

Observations from the Academy Awards:

• My little movie list did great!  Eight of my TOP 10 were nominated for some type of Oscar with 6 being in the Best Picture category!
• All documentaries are made about incredibly depressing subjects.
• All non-fiction short story films are made about incredibly depressing subjects.
• People should spend a few moments thinking about what they might say should they win an award for which they are nominated.
• For some reason, I wanted Sandra Bullock to win more than anyone else.  I just like her.
• There were 65 jokes made a George Clooney’s expense.
• Where the hell was Jack Nicholson?

Drop me a note with your comments at steve@creativeventures.com

Thanks for stopping by and until next time, Adios and Aloha.

Hey everyone, here we go. . . . . .

 

IN OUR WORLD

 

Today I am coming to you from the beautiful Arizona desert where I am honored to have the opportunity to work with the insurance industry on the trends that are shaping business in 2010.  Perfect weather and a great group of people.  Scottsdale hosts a fantastic art festival every year and Laura and I had a chance to go yesterday.  I have been a student of the creative process for years and to have a chance to not only see the spectacular art work, but to also watch the artists work and visit with them was a wonderful treat!

 

Here are a couple of things:

 

• It’s pretty much unbelievable to me, but I got the personal branding project for a national company with a sales force of 500!  I based my program around ignoring the product (which is as high a quality product as exists in their industry) and focus only on the unique aspect of their sales professionals.  I built my model on corner hot dog vendors and independent graphic artists.  I guess the sheer oddness of the plan was too much to resist for them.  The project launches late in the 2^nd quarter with application designs then the launch in the 3^rd quarter.  Unbelievably exciting stuff!
• My Repeatable Successful Acts platform continues to roll as I now have three clients all involved in launching different elements as part of their sales platform. 
• My new presentations on FRAMING and TRENDS are getting a lot of interest and I have bookings on the calendar. 

 

My March newsletter, which highlighted the FRAMING idea, has generated a ton of email and I am grateful to have so many readers!

 

 

 

HEY, YOU CAN FOLLOW ME ON TWITTER –CREATIVEVENTURE

 

AND ON FACEBOOK – STEPHEN HARVILL!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW

 

I hate to beat a broken drum, BUT . . .   I continue to be absolutely amazed at the lack of focus organizations put on simple planning.  In two recent trips I saw companies winging things.  Flying by the seat of the pants.  The worst part was that these meetings were phenomenal opportunities to impact large numbers of their team members. 

 

I tell them wait a minute, are you telling me you have not really thought about how you can impact this meeting?  You have not really planned out the flow of ideas, the application of these new strategies, the levels of accountability everyone will face?  I swear to you it is not unusual to see the golf outing better planned than the meeting.

 

The loss of opportunity is staggering. 

 

So here is a simple reminder:

 

• SLOW DOWN:  Things have a tendency to speed up the closer they get to the event.  In an exponential growth cycle the biggest growth occurs near the end of the model.  As an event gets closer, close the door on input.  No last minute changes.  This forces the bulk of input to happen towards the beginning of the planning.
• NO MORE THAN 3:  You should never have more than 3 desired goals for anything, meeting, project, sales plan, ANYTHING.  Now use these 3 or less goals as a filter.  Every time something gets added to the meeting, stop, slow down and put the new item through your 3 part goal filter.  If it does not support the goals, say NO.
• CONCENSUS IS OVER RATED:  I believe in group think and getting input from as many legitimate sources as possible, but at the end of the day I believe in one person, the accountable, making the final call on a decision.  I see more time wasted in trying to get everyone to agree than almost any other aspect of team work.  Everyone is seldom right.  Get great input, and then make the call.

 

Try those three things and watch a great meeting result!

 

 

 

 

 

ENTERTAINMENT

 

 

MOVIES:  Alice in Wonderland:  Burton and Johnny Depp in all their glorious weirdness and add 3D – I’m in!

 

NetFlix Fans:   The Last Waltz:  Perhaps the greatest concert movie of all time.

 

TV:    Now that the Olympics are done, I get new episodes of House, The Mentalist and The Human Target.  Fantastic.

 

BOOKS:  Functions of the Executive – Barnard:  Though almost 20 years old this book still has a fantastic lesson in the critical nature of clear communication channels.

 

MUSIC:   “”Though some of its magic and some of it tragic, I’ve had a good life all the way.”  Jimmy Buffett from He Went To Paris – great video.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EMozCfz0cZM     

 

 

WEB SITES:   As the Oscars get closer thought I would re-introduce one of my favorite movie web sites (language warning):

 

 

www.aintitcool.com    

 

 

SOUTH OF NORMAL

 

I’m a science geek by nature and this little story made me science happy!

 

NASA has equipped a jumbo 747 with an infra red telescope that will be searching for signs of newborn galaxies and extraterrestrial organic matter.  The Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy will start collecting data this spring, making it the world’s biggest airborne telescope.  Its 45,000 ft cruising altitude puts it 10,000 higher than most commercial flights and above 99% of the atmospheric water vapor.  This translates to a clear shot to the heavens.

 

 

 

Drop me a note with your comments at steve@creativeventures.com

 

 

 

Thanks for stopping by and until next time, Adios and Aloha.