Hey everyone, here we go. . . . . .
IN OUR WORLD
Sorry for the delay in posting today, BUT I had problems with my router, which we solved and are up and going
A big THANKS to everyone who participated in our FIRST ever public workshop. It was a sell out with 40 people engaged in a dynamic, participatory learning experience filled with cutting edge information that we developed into knowledge through a series of exercises. The idea was to deliver a day of learning around the only two skills you need to be successful, communicating and thinking. The beautiful Park Cities Hilton hosted the event here in
Chris Ryan did a herculean job of putting the whole thing together from the marketing all the way down to the fantastic completion certificates.
One of our participants said I could share this:
Steve,
Congratulations on a very successful training course Tuesday. Having worked for a global training and consulting firm in the past, I am keenly aware of the nuances and challenges of conducting a day long forum. I was pleased to see the content applicable to everyone regardless of age or career stage and you successfully kept the audience engaged for the entire day. That is a huge feat in itself. Well done. All the arrangements were handled to the smallest detail making the entire experience an A+. Steve, you exceeded my expectations. Thank you for a fantastic day. I have been enriched.
Monica Coney
VP Strategic Development
Smith, Frank & Partners, L.L.C.
5400 LBJ Freeway,
972.490.4377 Ext. 853
817 825 0545 Cell
972.490.4376 Fax
mconey@smithfrank.com
Being our first time at an open to the public event, we learned a lot and will be able to package this idea and take it on the road for the rest of the country.
On another note, the latest Creative Venture program, Repeatable Successful Acts, which is built around a two year study on the shared behavioral traits of top sales producers, has become a huge hit with bookings and direct application consulting opportunities filling the calendar!
Next week it’s off to
THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW
Last week I focused on the intuitive aspect of thinking, that powerful initial feeling and idea you get or your “gut feeling”. This week I want to take a look at strategic thinking or the ability to apply solutions.
Strategic thinking is where our ability to plan comes from and planning is one of the big deficients in both management and leadership models. I am constantly amazed at the number of people who go through critical activities without even the most cursory of plans. The reason, they don’t know how to plan. They don’t understand the planning process. You may find this hard to believe, but most people don’t even plan their day. They react to the events that they believe automatically fill their insanely hectic days. The reality is they only APPEAR chaotic because the participants in the day don’t know how to plan. Planning brings a sense of direction to, tasks, projects and events.
You might ask, “If people don’t know how to plan their time, why do you get over 133,000,000 hits when you Google (you know you have an impactful brand when a noun becomes a verb) time management?” People try to plan. They go to workshops, they buy calendars and time planners, and in fact I know a lot of people who buy new planners every time they are in an office supply store. They are in constant search for the perfect fit. This deep desire to find something that really works plays a huge part in the ineffective manner in which most people plan. Here is a quick checklist for ideas to help you start your strategic planning journey with daily planning:
- Daily plans need to be simple. Don’t create long winded descriptions of any item.
- Use verbs so the daily plan leads to activities. I’m not kidding. Don’t write “expense report”, instead write, “Complete expense report”.
- Keep it constantly visual. You need to connect to your plan and the best way to do that is to keep it visual – in plain site on your desk or computer.
- Be flexible. Don’t fill every space with something to do. Flex with the unexpected but don’t give allow your plan to give way to it.
- The Rule of 1 Place. If you have separated your daily plan from the place where you write stuff down you can easily get confused. This is one of the reasons many day timer type planners have places to take notes. It is best to keep EVERYTHING in one place. It stops the “where the hell did I write that down”.
- The Law of Priority. Make sure you know what is and is not critical. This is the NUMBER 1 key aspect of planning and you would be shocked at the number of people who focus on the small stuff because it’s easy and loose the priority of the important.
At Creative Ventures we have used a VERY SIMPLE daily form for our planning needs. We designed it to fit our culture and this tiny, simple tool is used by many of our clients. Send me a note and I will send it to you.
Start your strategic thinking with a small step into planning by taking command of your daily time!
ENTERTAINMENT
MOVIES: To big movies break this weekend with the musical Mama Mia and the latest in the Batman franchise – The Dark Knight. Both will get me in the theaters this weekend where the temps should reach triple figures in
NetFlix Fans: Vertigo – The AFI (American Film Institute) recently released its Top 10 list of movies in 10 genres. One of them was mysteries and this was #1 in the category. A great Alfred Hitchcock film (though I would have chosen North by Northwest).
TV: The
BOOKS: Buying In – by Robert Walker. Ever wonder why we buy the brands we do? Why are we so loyal to our brand of beer or laundry detergent? This book will give you some insight into the reasons why.
MUSIC: I am amazed at how the creative process can manipulate energy as though it were a piece of clay. I watched a great documentary on The Who this week and was set to post a Who video, when I stumbled on this version of a Who song by The Blue Man Group. These performance artists design and explode creative energy in a way that always makes my head spin.
WEB SITES: Cool website about concert info.
SOUTH OF
OK, I give up. Can anyone understand what the hell is going on with the economy? This was the most South of Normal week in history. Here are a few examples:
- One day we hear that Freddie Mae and Freddie Mac are ready to collapse and they loose a huge hunk of their value. The next day we discover they are really OK and they show a +30 % increase in their market value. HUH?
- Banking is in the toilet, then Wells Fargo announces better than expected earnings and for the 21st straight year increased its payout to shareholders. They get a healthy 32% bump in the days trading.
- Companies start announcing they didn’t LOOSE as much as they thought and POW, they are rewarded by accolades. American Airlines and JP Morgan Chase to name a couple.
- US Bancorp, the 6th largest commercial bank reported a PROFIT of $.53 a share in a market where many banks are on the verge of sinking into their glutinous sub prime black holes. But the Street wanted $.59, so despite their success their shares dropped.
I give up!
“I don’t need to prove I’m right. I don’t need to be forgiven.”
The Who
Drop me a note with your comments at creativeventures@nova1.com.
Thanks for stopping by and until next time, Adios and Aloha.
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