Creative Solutions for Business & Education

Incompatibility Between Avast! Free Antivirus & Window XP SP3?

2010-11-26T21:01:00.002Z

I recently tried a couple of free antivirus software solutions having paid for one for several years which has now got too clever (you can't get just the antivirus; it has to scan for malware, be a firewall, wash your underwear, the usual story) and clashes with most other protective software on my PC.

I found AVG free version to be good, but it's huge, takes up loads of space and tries to make itself the centre of your universe ... "Do you want to use AVG as your default search engine' etc. It's also pretty slow loading and within one reboot repeatedly displays a banner telling me that mscvr80.dll can no longer be found so I did a bit of research on St Google and Avast! free version came up highly recommended. It seems to be just an antivirus and does what it says on the can; well mostly. After a couple of scans I noticed that my desktop was erratic loading from reboot or when the PC was first switched on: sometimes it loaded but most times it showed me desktop icons but no taskbar, quick launch bar or start icon, and in that state it remained locked until a reboot, when sometimes it sorted itself out ... until today.

Today I spent 7 hours searching for every solution I could that may account for the desktop not loading properly. My PC almost lived in safe mode and I tried system restore (several times), various C; prompt command (from web articles), antivirus and antimalware scans, but no result.

In desperation, I tried what I should probably have done first, I uninstalled Avast! free antivirus, et voila, everything worked fine.

This incompatibility with Windows XP, especially SP3 is rarely mentioned but by chance I noticed that a couple of people had reported similar problems with their desktop not loading after installing Avast! antivirus. At least one article mentioned that it was the Avast! software itself that had become corrupted.

I don't know or understand the reasons, but I do know that if you're having problems with your desktop loading in Windows XP and have Avast! antivirus installed, it may be worth trying to uninstall the antivirus software first as you could save yourself 7 hours of frustration (and no work!)

Important Business Reviews

2010-11-25T13:10:00.002Z

We often think of these as the bottom line, profit-and-loss, growth etc but these are symptoms of underlying causes, and those underlying causes are our relationships, conduct and integrity.

Let me give an example:

I recently engaged a company to do some Internet advertising for me. I agreed over the 'phone what was to be done and we agreed that I would receive written confirmation, VAT receipt etc through the post within the next 3 days or so. A week later nothing had arrived: I rang the company. We agreed to leave it another couple of days. Nothing. Since that time (another week) I have written 3 e-mails and spoken to people twice, receiving promises of a return call from their Accounts Team, but still nothing.

If this typifies their behaviour with other customers, the chances are that their bottom line will not be too healthy before very long: in fact I would anticipate them going out of business.

But if the problem is considered to be the bottom line, it doesn't tell the story.

The story (and the remedies to the problem) lie in their relationships, their integrity and customer focus (or in this case the severe lack of it). They say but do not do! Perhaps they're so focussed on getting new clients that their existing ones fall off the list.

This is too common today in business, which is why when new companies arise who really appreciate their clients and customers and treat them especially well, they succeed, and why many of our established names who rely on past reputation are disappearing from the market place.

And Academia, which strives ever more to be a business, is not free from this plague ...

Recently, an external expert whom a University was relying on for input to a new course, visited the UK from Canada and came to a meeting at the University. One academic pretty much opened the conversation with, "Well, no-one asked you to come!"

We can talk about success as much as we like, but true success (personal fulfilment, financial and otherwise) will only come when we manage to get our business focus on relationships in order.

Financial measures of success are merely the symptoms of the true underlying reason for that success (or failure).

Integrity & Ethics

2010-01-28T11:08:00.002Z

How we deal with people is crucial to our success (and theirs) in all areas of life.

Life without integrity is like a lighthouse without a light: everything's fine until darkness falls or the storms break.

Simple Solution: IE8 Information Bar Not Working

2010-01-28T10:54:00.003Z

I recently logged on to the Windows Update site, only to receive the message,

Install the ActiveX control required to view the website
The website will not display correctly on your computer without this control. To install it:

1. Right-click the Internet Explorer Information Bar. It's located just below the address bar.
2. In the right-click menu, click Install ActiveX Control.
3. In the Security Warning dialog box, click Install.

Unfortunately, there was no 'Internet Explorer Information Bar' showing below my address bar in IE8.

However, there was no information bar just beneath the navigation bar on my IE8!

This was strange, as I had only visited the site a couple of days previously and everything worked fine. I use Windows XP Pro as my operating system and I run ZoneAlarm Pro firewall and BitDefender 2008 antivirus software.

I searched Google for answers and as usual there were lots of in depth analyses and a load more questions back ... but no answers.

So, I put together a few bits I'd gleaned from the dicussions (I am not a computer expert; quite the opposite), did a bit of digging and came up with a solution that worked for me.

So here it is:

I remembered that I had been frustrated by how slow IE8 was running so I had been into the Tools > Manage Add-Ons menu and switched off accelearators etc. However, one Add-On I'd also switched off (disabled) which was the cause of my problems was the MUWebControl Class. So I switched it back on again (enabled it) by right clicking on the word 'Disabled' and then choosing 'Enable' from the dropdown box ... and voilá, everything worked fine.

I understand that this may not work for you but if it does, you will be saved a lot of time and friustration.

Trust me; I've been there!

Hope this helps!

Lessons from Buena Vista Orchestra

2009-10-22T22:47:00.000+01:00

Last night was one of the most amazing experiences I've enjoyed for a very long time. Eight months after buying the tickets, I witnessed the phenomenon that is the Buena Vista Orchestra (also known as Orquestra Buena Vista & Buena Vista Social Club).

Many of the original stars from that special night in Carnegie Hall in 1998 have since passed on, but what remains is still a testament to the skill, passion and fun of Cuban musicians, many of whom have been formative in the creation of what we now know as Latin music.

Reflecting on why they were so special, I came up with several things that set them apart from other concerts and bands I have seen (and enjoyed):

A sense of history - Many of these people have helped to create the music synonymous with Cuba, the platform on which today's musicians build. Age is no issue; it's a strength and a valuable commodity. Experience is something we often overlook as we clamber to be new and different; often too insecure to learn from those who've gone before.

A sense of value and heritage - These people are firmly connected to their music and cultural roots. It's not a problem; it's a bonus. They are not afraid of their culture, nor to share that culture and history with their audience, most of whom have little or no connection to it (apart from music). It's not about preaching; it's about showing and sharing; inviting others on board ... and judging by the response of the 2500 people at the concert, they were successful.

They connected with their audience - Many of us could learn a great deal from the members of Buena Vista Orchestra. They brought something that can be difficult to connect with if you're not a part of that culture ... and enabled us to connect with it. Even musicians often fail to connect with the complex rhythms, how the pieces fit together, how the melodies interweave. Others can't handle the fluidity and movement in the music, music that doesn't sit comfortably with a click track yet is devilishly tight. Yet, this wasn't a problem for the audience as these masters of their art communicated with people's hearts and souls, calling them on board to experience something new, even if they didn't understand it. They felt it, were drawn in by it and stoked the fire for more ... which they got!

They promoted each other - The musicians were clearly 'old school' in their playing, but that is what made it so great. There were no stars on stage; they were all stars and they created a platform for their colleagues to shine. Their playing was an expression of themselves but was for each other and the audience, not self-indulgent and about themselves ... a lesson many of us could learn.

They exuded joy - Music wasn't just something technical to be played; it wasn't just an exercise in playing the correct notes; being safe or cerebral. The music they played was part of them; it was their soul; their passion; something to express who they are; from their hearts. It was something to enjoy and that enjoyment spurred each other on and fired the audience. Their enthusiasm and passion was infectious, drawing others in.

They were themselves - As we passed the stage door after the gig (and there was no-one else around ... how rare is that?) the band emerged and were no different to how they were on stage; smiling, laughing and very willing to give time for a brief chat and sign tickets.

It took me a long time to fall asleep last night. I was full of the gig and my mind raced over and over through the tunes and why I'd enjoyed the evening so much.

Now all I need to do is apply some of what I've learnt and hopefully those I meet will benefit.

Thank you Orquestra Buena Vista. Long may you continue to inspire those who have the privilege and pleasure of witnessing your concerts (and your music).

Interested in Becoming a STEM Ambassador?

2009-10-09T17:40:00.001+01:00

The STEMNET web site defines a STEM (Science Technology Engineering & Mathematics)Ambassador as

'An everyday person from a real working background who volunteers their time for free to act as an inspiring role model to young people'.

STEM Ambassadors help to stimulate the minds and imaginations of young people. They provide a refreshing change to regular lessons and activities for students and staff, bringing a fresh perspective to STEM subjects and careers.

Each Ambassador is registered, trained and CRB checked.

The STEM Ambassadors programme is STEMNET’s flagship programme, relying on over 18,000 volunteers who offer their time and support free of charge to promote STEM subjects to young learners. It is an invaluable and free resource for teachers, helping them deliver the STEM curriculum in fresh and innovative ways.

The programme aspires to make a real difference to the delivery of STEM subjects to young people. Key objectives include making every school in the UK aware of the programme and providing over 27,000 STEM Ambassadors nationwide by 2011.

The STEM Ambassador programme is co-ordinated by STEMNET via 52 organisations across the country to fulfil a brokerage role to schools through STEMPOINT contracts. Through strong links with business organisations the brokerage service aims to ensure that all schools and colleges can offer their students programmes which support the curriculum and increase the quality and quantity of students moving into further STEM education, training and development.

STEMNET aim to be recognised as the leader in enabling all young people to achieve their potential in STEM by:

Enabling all young people, regardless of background, are encouraged to understand the excitement and importance of science, technology, engineering and mathematics in their lives, and the career opportunities to which the STEM subjects can lead

Helping all schools and colleges across the UK understand the range of STEM Enhancement & Enrichment opportunities available to them and the benefits these can bring to everyone involved

Encouraging business, organisations and individuals wanting to support young people in STEM to target their efforts and resources in a way that will deliver the best results for them and young people.

I recently signed-up as a STEM Ambassador. If you're a teacher and the above interests you then you can find more about my particular input to the STEM programme here.

If you have a passion to help schools and students in their STEM activities then why not contact your local STEM provider for more details. Full details on the STEMNET web site.

Personal Development & Business Start Up Reading

2009-10-07T10:21:00.008+01:00

There are a number of books that I have been reading over the past year-and-a-half that have made a significant impact on my thinking and how I view what I do, what I say, the decisions I make each day etc. These were all recommended to me personally by friends and other people I have met at business meetings etc (NB. All book titles are linked to The Book Depository, what I consider to be the best online bookstore; most prices are heavily discounted and all delivery worldwide is free. I always use The Book Depository: I have never been disappointed and I always use them in favour of Amazon, especially because of the postage I save).

Creativity, Change & Innovation Titles

The Element by Sir Ken Robinson - In all great people there is a spark, an element which enables them to reach their full potential and become world leaders in their field. If we can tap into our element we can reach our full potential too.

Out of Our Minds by Sir Ken Robinson - Creativity is at the heart of talent and success and there is a 'war' for talent. Yet just about every education system around the world focuses on only part of intelligence; the intellect. This book is quite deep and very thorough. It explores the need for creative people, both now and in the future, and the need to engage our emotions, not just our reasoning ability as we help people to reach their creative potential.

The Heart of Change by Dan S Cohen - Dan Cohen looks at the process of change and how to manage it effectively so that we take people with us, on our side, rather than alienating them and forming enemies within our own companies. A number of real-life stories provide case-studies on how change has been effectively managed in a range of different situations.

The Ten Faces of innovation by Tom Kelley - Available in Hardback and Softback editions, this book by the General Manager of the World famous design company, IDEO. He explores the strategies they use to foster original thinking and addresses how to overcome the 'devil's advocates' in our organisations.

Personal Development & Enhancement Titles

I Want to Make a Difference by Tim Drake - How to make a positive difference in your own life and the lives of others by changing your mindset. Making life better for your family, friends, colleagues and customers.

S.U.M.O Shut Up Move On by Paul McGee- Paul investigates how we can move from the pont of wishing to achieving. By taking responsibility for our life we can change our attitude, learn to seize opportunities and even respond to adverse conditions with a positive attitude. humorous and pointed all in one go.

Starting Your Own Business Titles

Anyone Can Do It by Sahar & Bobby Hashemi- The founders of Coffee Republic tell how they moved from day jobs to risking everything as they set-up the UK's first New York style coffee house and how that expanded to become a top brand with over 100 outlets around the UK and employing over 1000 staff. The story as it was ... warts and all.

The Small Business Start-Up Workbook by Cheryl B Rickman- This book leads you through the thoughts, processes and activities required to conceive and start your own business; step-by-step. As the title suggests, this is a workbook and therefore, it contains activities to undertake and checks to help ensure that all necessary bases are covered. Very practical, thorough and well thought-out.

Spare Room Start Up by Emma Jones - This is a really practical help on how to start up your own business 'in your spare room' i.e., working from home. Emma uses 3 key themes; business, lifestyle and technology to provide a base on which to build a home business, from scratch and at low cost. Well organised, easy to read, easy to pick-up where you left off.

Start Your Business Week by Week by Steve Parks- The attraction of this book is that Steve Parks breaks down the process of starting a business into week-size chunks, thereby making it accessible and less daunting. Checklists, tasks, targets and useful contacts all help to set-up your own business over a six-month period.

The White Ladder Diaries by Ros Jay- Journalist Ros Jay gives insight into how she set-up White Ladder Publishing with an emotional, touchy-feely quality. The book provides plenty of helpful advice and helps you learn from Ros's mistakes, providing a diary of the lead-up to the first day of trading and beyond.

Setting Up and Running a Limited Company by Robert Browning - Tackling more specific issues surrounding establishing and running a limited company, this book answers many of the questions you need to ask in order to meet the specific requirements relating to a limited company. Appointment of Directors, accounts, shareholders, meetings, minutes and more; the book takes some of the fear out of these formal procedures providing practical help and advice.

The Financial Times Guide to Business Start Up 2009 by Sara Williams- Formerly 'The TSB Small Business Guide' this book has sold well over 1-million copies to entrepreneurs and business owners. A comprehensive guide to starting your own business this is a highly detailed book with lots of useful contacts and advice. Also works as an ongoing business reference book.

I hope these provide you with hours of reading and the help you need to get yourself and your business up-and-running, and to keep you up-and-running.

Making Complex Ideas Easy to Understand

2009-10-07T07:41:00.000+01:00

If you read my last blog entry (below) you’ll remember that I discovered what is perhaps my key skill, making complex things easy to understand, following a long period of working with people whose background was very different to my own and thought very differently to myself.
This discovery didn’t come overnight and it was only after working in often difficult and frustrating circumstances that I was able to find my talent, even if it did have to be confirmed by people around me before the ‘light went on’ and I realised what it was!

In reality, the little phrase I now use to crystallise my skill, Making the Complex Easy was only finally formulated a couple of months ago whilst talking to my business mentor about it. Thankfully, Sandra is very persistent and also very perceptive and the phrase eventually fell out as I tried to capture what I did in less than a paragraph!

We were discussing my experiences whilst studying for my PhD; whilst working in the pharmaceutical industry; whilst working in schools; with friends; in church. Time and time again the examples we discussed had the same repeating theme:

How can I make it easy for others to understand what I’m saying?

This was important to me becasue I have always been someone who has had to work hard to understand things. Combine this with a severe lack of contentment if I couldn’t really ‘get inside’ and understand what I was trying to learn. Knowledge for me has more to do with its application than knowledge for knowledge’s sake.

By understanding something I can use my knowledge in how I decide to move forward and use it in my own life and situations.

So, I suppose it was a natural progression that I should want others to enjoy the same opportunities. Here are a few of the instances we discussed of how and when I’d made complex things easy:

My PhD was focussed on pain relief and what was involved in helping us control painful stimuli, so important in conditions like malignant diseases. More than once I was asked to explain what I was investigating by friends who had no science background. So, I was often trying to explain complex pharmacological and biochemical processes in simple terms like opening and closing gates, keys in locks, motorways and side roads.
One of my tasks whilst working in the pharmaceutical industry was training sales representative, many of whom were from a marketing and selling background and without any science input, on the decidedly unsimple process of our body’s immunological response to infection by viruses. Here terms like cavalry, snipers, secret messengers and chewing and spitting were used to demystify the process.
My last role in the pharmaceutical industry before I accepted redundancy was to provide technical and information support to physicians and researchers on the data available to support the use of a specific drug in difficult-to-treat and potentially life-threatening conditions. The problem I was faced with was that I had over 600 slides in my presentation with a usual time slot of a lunch break (i.e., between 10 minutes and 1 hour). My solution was to reverse the process and devise an interactive presentation where my audience told me what they wanted to talk about and we ‘dipped-in’ and ‘dipped-out’ of the presentation and information available. This seemed a revolution to many of my audience and I spent hours discussing how they could put together a similar format for their own work, thereby enabling the passing-on of important information in a more targetted way: reducing a complex array of slides to easy-to-digest, smaller segments.
Whilst working I often took time out to visit schools and help children to understand what they were learning in the science of sound arena. As a drummer and percussionist I was used to making sounds (noise some would call it) and as a scientist I understood some of the principles behind the sounds I was making. So I took samples of my drums and percussion into schools and we experimented together and began to understand what made some sounds high, some low; some loud and some soft. What amazed me after these lessons was that I received a lot of feedback on how the children had used some of the more socially orientated skills (listening, talking, thinking together) and the reasoning and experimental approaches in their other subjects and in generally working together in other lessons. Making it easy in one subject had been transferrable to other areas of school life (and hopefully in their wider life).
My daughter, who is no scientist, was revising for her GCSEs and needed to understand the basics of the electrophoresis of DNA for DNA profiling. Saying the word is difficult, let alone understanding it. So I explained that the long strand of DNA is cut into lots of smaller pieces by enzymes (chemical saws). The result is a bit like a shoal of fish: some very small; some larger; some longer; some big and some huge. The plate onto which the sample of ‘chewed DNA’ is placed is like lines of fishing nets and when the electric current was switched on, it was a bit like a river or the tide flowing, taking the fish with it. Little fish was pass easily through the nets and the longer and larger fish would get stuck more quickly or have to work harder to swim through the nets. The huge fish wouldn’t be able to get through at all and would stay where they were. At the end of the experiment when the electric current is switched off, it is like taking a snap shot or photograph of where all the fish are. The ‘bands of fish’ are like the bands of DNA on the plate: smaller fish/pieces of DNA have travelled furthest, largest fish/pieces of DNA haven’t been able to move at all. My daughter understood this more pictorial, less scientific approach and manged to answer questions on her GCSE paper, getting a Grade B which was a true miracle.

… and I guess that’s why I’m so passionate about making difficult things easy to understand … once we understand them we have chance to use the knowledge and achieve more than we thought possible.

There will always be those who like to keep things complicated because it gives them a sense of power and importance; they are the only ones who know. But in a world where increasing co-operation is becoming a key factor (especially in business) and clarity of understanding paramount, the sharing of knowledge in an easy to understand way is, I believe becoming ever more crucial, not only for success, but for survival.

What We Have Not What We Don't!

2009-10-06T10:55:00.004+01:00

I don’t know about you, but one of the biggest hurdles I’ve had to overcome (and still fight daily) is the idea that others know more than me, especially in areas where I am dubbed an expert.

I think a lot of it goes back to when I was younger, especially in my teen years where, although I was in the top set at school there were those around me who were like a cerebrum on legs: they oozed ability, knowledge and were more concerned with where they’d lost two or three marks in their exams than with where they’d gained them!

The problem with hanging out with these guys wasn’t anything to do with their personalities: most of them were really great people to be around. It was the toll that it all took on my self-confidence and self-esteem. My mind had a field day, reinforcing all those doubts that had ever dared to enter my thinking, or had been placed there by others.

It wasn’t until I was in my 40’s that I was forced to go back and revisit these difficult and confusing times when recovering from serious illness. During the long, slow, often painful process that was called recovery I was forced (in the nicest way possible) to see these things in their true perspective and identify the lies that I had taken on-board and made an integral part of my life and psyche.

One of the biggest mistakes I had made was when I started looking at my abilities in comparison to others. We live in a competitive world where we are continually compared to others BUT there is no need for us to do it to ourselves. When we go for a new job, invariably our skill sets, talents and background will be compared to those of others competing for the same job. That is the interviewer’s job.

HOWEVER, we want to be at our best in those situations, showing others our true self and abilities.

If we focus on what we don’t have and what we can’t do as well as others, then we will never see our own unique talents; our own unique skills and the things that we CAN bring to the table that others can’t.

Here’s a couple of examples from my own life that may help:

When I left school, I went straight to university but was so clueless and dispirited about what I wanted to/could do that I gave up after a term (though I did return with my first drum kit … but that is another story!). I worked for 3 years and then decided that I would go back to studying as I had a much clearer idea of where I wanted to go (and where I couldn’t go at that time without a degree). I entered the first year of my degree expecting to be worse than the fresh young things entering straight after their A-levels. I looked to the brightest of them for encouragement and help but I was always aware in my own mind that I wasn’t as good as them. That was confirmed in my exams at the end of the year. For some reason and I still don’t know why, I decided over the Summer holidays that I would really work for myself and make sure that I understood what I was doing. This meant re-learning a lot of what I’d not learnt very well during my first year. The second year was different. Nothing changed in my ability to work with others, but my internal focus was now on what I could do rather than what I couldn’t. I really WANTED to learn and understand to the best of MY abilities. I came top of the year in my second year exams, something I could never have dreamed of. I wasn’t the brightest on paper (my A-level results wer mediocre at best) but my focus had changed and I’d achieved my potential (albeit with a lot of hard work). I passed my degree with a higher grade than I would ever have expected and then went on to higher study. The point I’m trying to encourage you with is that if we look at ourselves it’s very easy to see what we lack. But we have so much to offer that others don’t, and others rarely see the failings in ourselves that we do! I’m definitely not trying to propose some self-help mantra but I am suggesting that a change of focus can bring a change of attitude and facilitate us reaching our fuller potential.
Another example was when I was working as a member of a Medical Department’s clinical research team in the pharmaceutical industry. I knew some of my strengths: people skills, patience, generally up-beat and good to be around etc. But, it took several years of working with the Dark Side, i.e., members of the Marketing Department, to really bring my core skills to the fore. Medical Departments generally work to a dinosaur type time-scale; it takes a long time to design, set-up, run, and report clinical trials. Marketing work very much in the here and now and want results today (or yesterday if possible). Initially I worked to set-up a Medical-Marketing Interface, a group of people from both departments who could get together on a regular basis to discuss what their priorities were at that time, what they were for the next year and the reality of what information was likely to become available or be wanted in that time. These were not easy meetings but they gradually evolved into a broader set of discussion forums that really helped the two departments work together more effectively. They opened the way for more constructive interaction rather than shooting at each other from the parapets. Through them there was also much closer collaboration in the construction of sales and marketing literature and this is where I discovered something that had probably been obvious but I’d never seen it! My personal ‘gem’ was an ability to make complex and highly technical scientific and medical ideas easy to understand by all, including those from a non-technical and non-scientific background. This did two things: a) It boosted my confidence; I did have something special to offer and b) it paved the way for my last role in corporate business, that of communicating and building professional relationships with members of the medical and research communities and providing fora in which we could openly discuss data supporting the use of specific drugs in difficult-to-treat-conditions. It was also interesting that when I left my job, many of the most moving ‘good-bye’ messages came from these same people.

It took me a long time to realise that it’s not always simply how much we know, it’s a lot more to do with recognising our own skills and talents, developing and using these to the best of our abilities, whilst never missing the opportunity to hear what others are saying about us. As we refine our path, we will be amazed at what we have to offer and as with my university exams, we may just move from being one of the crowd to being a leader.

Even if we don’t, I can guarantee that you’ll feel so much better about yourself and be more confident with what you can offer.

Service or Ripped-Off?

2009-10-01T14:16:00.002+01:00

So goes that start of a conversation I overheard today whilst out shopping at our local Market.

What a damning inditement on all those free offers we are continually bombarded with in order to grab our business; offers which, in reality, have nothing free in them. They are a hook to get us to buy and clearly in the mind of individual concerned they had been forgotten: it was the financial transactions that had been remembered, not his free gifts (if they had actually ever received any).

This set me thinking … again … about how we sell ourselves daily: in business and in our own lives. We used to have a saying at work;

'There's no such thing as a free lunch!'

i.e., You don't get something for nothing; everything costs.

To some point I agree. But where that cost lies is the divider between something being perceived as an offer of service and being taken for a ride.

If we make our customers pay, they see it as being taken for a ride and their trust is often shattered. If we take the cost, our customers see it as a service, as a favour, and it builds trust … and if we do make a mistake in the future they are far more to help us solve it than make demands.

This is a simple division, but one which businesses and individuals ignore at their peril … every day. We promise but don't deliver. We offer something for free ... but there's a catch!

Perhaps we need to think more carefully before we advertise our next free offer because if we fail to deliver on that offer, we make our customers (and friends) ever more cynical and thick-skinned: we turn them off rather than turning them on to what we really have to offer. In reality, we turn them off to us because we fail to deliver on what we’ve promised. It is ourselves that we are selling short and it is ourselves that get the bad publicity. We gain the label 'Can't be trusted'.

The idea of personal integrity is getting ever more lost amidst spin and short-term fire-fighting. High profile figures expect us to believe their words, even though we see they are contrary to their actions (the cover up). However, for those who are prepared to match words with actions, the opportunities are huge. There is a saying I like to use for personal encouragement:

'Where the darkness is darkest, the faintest light shines brightest'.

I'm not on my own when I say that by being honest and open, yes, even admitting our mistakes, we build an opportunity for growth and success; for competitive advantage. Despite what the macho businessmen (many of whom are scared witless of failing) may say, customers like attention and they like vulnerability because that makes us just like them, complete with faults and failings, and they can relate to that.

Lesson from a Business Enterprise Day

2009-09-22T13:55:00.000+01:00

Yesterday I visited a local secondary school to help with a business enterprise day for their Year 9 students (aged 13/14).

The group I helped with comprised 4 teams with between 4 and 7 students per team. Their task throughout the day was to create a business that designs and manufactures paper ducks for selling to potential buyers’. Materials were provided, including paper for making the ducks and a range of extras for decorating and enhancing the finished product.

Meeting and observing the students was fascinating. Some were confident, some felt they’d a lot to offer, some were team leaders and some were just bossy!

However, there was another group that caught my eye. These were the students who were shy, lacked confidence, were easily distracted and retreated into their own worlds, could so easily be overlooked or had been identified with special needs. On the face of it, there wasn’t a lot they could offer in the face of more boisterous and confident competition.

In reality, they were some of the most significant contributors to the day’s activities once they were engaged.

The groups who included these students in their discussions and activities benefitted from a whole range of skills and insights that may otherwise have been overlooked or lost:

Organisational skills
Sorting skills
Creative skills
The ability to single-mindedly apply themselves to the task they’d been given
People skills (an unexpected one this)
The ability to think wider than the problem
The ability to see different kinds of solutions

I was very interested that the winning group was ‘organised’ by a student who does not have a reputation for shining in lessons. She organised, steered, encouraged and to quote the girl giving feedback, " … was the boss!"

From that same group came one of the most insightful comments of the day.

As part of their ’selling’ exercise, each group had to state why their particular products should be chosen. Again, a ’special needs’ student stated quite simply,

“Because ours are made with love!”

What a beautifully simple selling point. Their paper ducks weren’t just ordinary ducks, put together on some production line, each one a replica of the other; they were special because they were each made with love. Care, attention and a bit of the maker had been invested in these little paper creations. That won it for me!

Ability is far more than getting answers right or doing lessons well in class. There are so many people who have skills that get lost in the crowd, or lost in the noise and activity of others around them.

Diamonds rarely just appear on the surface; they must sought after, discovered and often mined from great depths in the earths crust.

I have been reminded to spend more time looking for those gems that, once found, stand out from those around them, and to invest time and effort in encouraging them to use their talents and gifts.

Independence or Interdependence?

2009-09-20T14:20:00.002+01:00

Independence breeds suspicion; interdependence cultivates trust and success … but dare we take the risk?

Making The Complex Easy

2009-08-27T06:11:00.004+01:00

One principle that seemed to underpin many of my university lecturers and some work colleagues was, 'Why make it easy when you can keep it complex?'

This might seem a bit cynical but I think many of us have a real fear when it comes to being the 'Knowledge Broker' ... we want to be the person to whom the others will come when they want help to understand something or learn about a particular process or even start a new relationship.

The gaining of knowledge has always been important but for me the key is not so much what you know: it has a lot more to do with how you use it.

Unapplied knowledge is largely useless, apart from a warm inner feeling of knowing it! And the key to applying knowledge is often understanding it in the first place. If we don't understand we can't act or apply. The danger is of course, that we don't step out unless we know absolutely everything which is equally paralysing and ineffective.

Many hold onto their knowledge from a position of power: they know; we don't; so they hold the power and potentially the key to our forward movement. Some hold onto their knowledge because they may not know how to pass it on ... for whatever reason. The end result is the same: unapplied knowledge and no ability to expand and develop except through the restricted lines of access to single knowledge brokers.

But how do we make it easy for others to understand?

I would argue that in the first instance, we have to want to make it easy for them to understand. If we have this attitude we will be prepared to take the time to think about how best to pass it on to our target audience, whether that is at work, our family, friends or even strangers. There's a lot of psychology that we can bring in here relating to our audience wanting to learn, their background, their ability to learn etc, but I think if we are prepared to look at our audience and also want to pass the information on we will find a way.

Let me give you a practical example that may help ...

My daughter recently took her GCSEs and when it comes to science, she is definitely no Einstein!

PROBLEM:

As part of her forensics course, she was learning about the process of DNA profiling (NOT a simple concept for GCSEstudents). She was struggling to understand what was happening during the process of breaking down the DNA and coming up with a result from electrophoresis of the sample i.e., multiple bands visible on the gel plate.

SOLUTION:

Firstly my daughter has a very pictorial way of thinking. Secondly, she has encountered the principle of fishing using nets. Fishing using nets??

Yes. I described the process to her in simple fishing terms as follows:

Imagine that when the DNA has been cut up into smaller pieces by enzymes it resembles a shoal of fish of all types, lengths and sizes. Some pieces are small, like minnows. Some pieces may be a bit longer, like small eels. Some pieces will be larger, like large fish and some will be really big like dolphins, sharks and whales. Imagine that the gel plate onto which the DNA is spotted is like a line of fishing nets. When the electricity is applied to the gel plate it will be like a river or tidal flow and the fish will try to swim with the current, through the nets. The little fish will pass easily through all of the nets so they will swim through each net as they get to it and they will travel furthest in the time allowed. Slightly larger fish may get through one or two nets but they will be slower than the little fish. As the fish get bigger they will be less able to get through the nets and some will be too large to get through any of the nets so will stay where they started.

The result is that at the end of the experiment, the smallest pieces of DNA will have moved furthest and the largest pieces will have moved the least distance, or even stay where they started, showing up as lines or spots along the gel plate.

My daughter understood the principle of fish swimming through the nets and so she also understood the basics of the physical principle of the pieces of DNA migrating along a gel plate under the influence of an electric current (electrophoresis).

The great ending to this story was that she had a question in her science exam on explaining the electrophoresis of DNA ... and she answered the question without referring to fish or nets once!

Sometime explaining things so others can understand is the gateway to future success. As Richard Gerver quotes from a teacher he met in China, who bucked the trend and instead of expecting his class to bow to him on entry to the classroom and thank him for the knowledge he was about to impart, actually bowed to the class and thanked them for allowing him to teach them. When asked why he did this he said something like, "Teaching is my privilege and I never know who I am teaching: I may be teaching the person who will discover a cure for cancer."

The advantages of making anything easy to understand are many and we hold the map to that road. It's not about trivialising; it's about helping others take the next step along a road where they may achieve what we cannot.

And if we can make the complex easy to understand, we open more doors for others to pass through.

Seeing Things Differently

2009-08-26T15:02:00.001+01:00

Have you ever found it difficult making your voice heard?

Over the years I have had what I thought to be ‘moments of inspiration’, those thoughts and ideas that are going to make a big difference, that will help people change how they see things, new ways of looking at familiar situations … only for my inspired thinking to make no difference whatsoever.

I’m not trying to make out that I’m some sort of genius, or a radical thinker, but I do get frustrated when I see things differently to others and my ideas are rejected simply on that basis; they are different to how others see them. The most debilitating situation is where I have little power to test them out or no influence to bring about the change(s) I see.

When I was working in a large corporate business I would see situations that with little effort (and a bit of common sense) could be positively changed and improved: a process; the situation in the office; how we dealt with customers; how people could feel a greater involvement in their job. But if others didn’t see the same issues as important or relevant (defined as whether the idea would take their career in the right direction) the ideas would just disappear under a mound of ‘more important issues that needed to be addressed’.

However, in my own job within that business I did get some opportunities to apply my ideas to my own sphere of work; how I dealt with others; how I presented the information I had; how I engaged people of all backgrounds and abilities in understanding what I was saying; how I helped others to have some influence in their place of work.

Many of these things were quite small in comparison to the perceived ‘bigger’ issues but they made a big difference for myself and for those with whom I worked. I found I started to receive invitations to speak at a wide range of events and meetings which covered the full spectrum of academic medical and corporate involvement: Professors, doctors, nurses, administrators, students, specialist groups, school children. I also received a lot of positive feedback along with a few invites to be involved in activities outside of my professional and work situation.

One prediction currently voiced is that unless businesses and organisations are prepared to try something different, to listen to and engage with ideas they wouldn’t normally, to find new ways of working and creating environments in which their staff are actively engaged in contributing ideas and to the health of the organisation, they will close. Some of those ‘big boys’ currently ranked in the Top 100 or Top 50 businesses will not exist within the next 5 years.

I still hear many stories from friends who work in organisations and businesses obsessed with the bottom line at the expense of their staff. ‘Our strength is our people’ may be proudly displayed on their advertising and in their corporate lobbies, but in reality they pay not even lip service to these claims, instead actively demotivating their staff through ridiculous work loads and targets (knowing they can be replaced if the burn-out), justifying their removal of simple staff benefits and incentives which are needed most when the chips are down, failing to engage in training and skill-building so that when the recession reverses they are in a position to emerge strong and in-front, and perhaps most suicidal of all, allowing key, experienced staff to leave; removing their advantage when it is most needed.

Why is this? I honestly don’t know!

It defies common sense (which may be part of the issue) and it defies logic. It seems that many companies engage in management styles and policies that would be a part of a great plan for killing-off their opposition … but they use it on themselves!

What better way to kill off a corporate or business community than to restrict its members’ ability to communicate, develop relationships, create and engage with new ideas and yes, HAVE FUN!

Perhaps it arises from a fear of being different or thinking differently (even though that is what they may profess to want).

The world needs new ideas, new ways of thinking, new ways of engaging people in their daily work. Perhaps listening to some of those weird and wacky ideas may just provide the escape route many are looking for.

Let’s stop resting in the comfort zone so that new ways of thinking and new ideas can at least be evaluated and given a chance … and then we may just find the lifeline we’re looking for.

Busy Managers Least Effective

2009-08-05T11:58:00.001+01:00

So reads the headline of a recent article posted on the CrimsonBusiness web site (view original article Here).
Here is an excerpt from the article that makes sober reading:

“Busy managers are inefficient because they remain focused on performing tasks and rarely get an overview of what their team is doing,” said Jacobs. “With these kind of people it’s not unusual to see staff sitting around with nothing to do, while their manager is racing around stressed out.

“An effective manager delegates as much as they can to their team, and invests all the time they release into developing that team. Overall it becomes a machine that’s driven to meet goals, with the manager turning into a true leader.”

Jacobs advised managers to be willing to delegate tasks without abdicating responsibility for them, as willing being on hand to review objectives and offer support.

He said it was very important to give clear and specific instructions when delegating and a failure to do so was the most common reason for problems arising.

Wow! What earth shattering news! Is common sense really so scarce in the business world these days that an article like this needs to be written?

If it is then we're in serious trouble.

I believe that it's not only those managers who are overly busy that suffer. Research conducted in the 1980's showed that as a person took on an additional role, their efficiency at both jobs was greatly reduced. There were also arguments for keeping people management and project management roles separated, partly for the efficiency reason but also because the skills required for the two roles are very different. One involves objects and processes; the other involves human beings (who, though it may come as a shock to some, are NOT processes; neither are they objects ... resources!). Although people can be stretched, they are not as resilient as many materials and do snap, at which stage repair is a long, difficult and costly business for all concerned.

How many people do we know who are actually good at both jobs? I suspect that the answer is, 'Very few'. Yet today it is commonplace for people to be split across multiple roles, in multiple divisions and to assume responsibility for people care.

People this does not work!

Not only do we end up with over busy managers, but we also have demoralised staff and I would argue that this is a deadly combination.

Perhaps it's not just the busyness that is the problem, but the nature and the diversity of that busyness.

The problem is that jumping off this accelerating treadmill is a risk that could prove costly, but until people are prepared to take that risk, we chart a course to increasing inefficiency, stress and confusion and we chart a course to slow (or not so slow) self-destruction.

Knowing, Doing, Teaching

2009-07-26T12:28:00.002+01:00

I meet many knowledgeable people who are excellent at their job or in their area of expertise who then make the mistake of thinking that they must also be good teachers.

No matter how much we know or how good we are at what we do, there is not some mysterious connection which allows others to ‘catch’ what we do. Admittedly, it is often easier to pass on practically-based skills through demonstration.

But is that enough?

Learning, the assimilation and acquisition of knowledge and skills, is as dependent on the recipient as the teacher, possibly even more so. Put simply, unless our knowledge is translated into a form which can be received, understood and acted upon by the recipient our efforts are in vain.

The situation is made even more difficult by the fact that each of us thinks and learns in different modes:

Some learn best when the ideas are translated into mental pictures (I am one of these)
Some need to see things written down before they can take them in
Some learn better one-to-one
Some learn best in group settings where they can discuss ideas and bounce them around members of the group.

So, if we are to be good teachers we cannot adapt a one method fits all approach, neither can we simply assume that what works for us will work for others too.

If we are to be effective teachers we must recognise how our audience responds and which methods will work. This may mean including a number of different approaches throughout a session. But perhaps the most important skill it requires is the ability to listen to our audience and to read their body language. We also need to take feedback at the end of our session so that we can learn how to be more effective in our communication.

We also need to be honest and acknowledge if we are not good teachers, wherever we ‘teach’ others. If we are prepared to learn and acknowledge that we are a work in progress, our teaching and ability to pass-on knowledge and skills will evolve and become more successful.

Sometimes we will also need to acknowledge when we don’t have the answers, expertise or ability and look for those who do.

I remember times throughout my own education where people have crossed my path who were gifted teachers. What stands out now is that these people had a real passion to pass on knowledge and skills in ways that I could understand. The amazing thing is that many others in my class at the time also remember these people as being ‘inspirational’ even though their method of learning was different to my own.

For all the rubbish people throw at teachers/lecturers/educators, there are those whose vocation in life is helping others to learn. Everyone needs to learn and we have all benefitted from those we all-too-often to slag-off. We all know those little ‘funnies’ like, ‘Those who can, do: those who can’t, teach.’ What a load of spheres! The skill of teaching others requires as much ‘can’ as any other job; probably more.

There will always be those who leave us cold or even turned-off; those who tar the rest with a bad image.

Our responsibility is to make sure that whenever we teach others, from bringing up our children, to helping others join in with our hobby, to teaching in schools or showing people what to do in our places of work, we take into account how our audience learns.

That may even mean being radical and actually asking them! Be assured that if we listen to the answers and act on them, our teaching will be more effective, more fulfilling and a great source of learning for our audience and for ourselves.

And sometimes we will need to be honest enough to admit that we need to ask others for help … or even let someone else do the job.

HR: A Waste of Time?

2009-07-10T11:34:00.001+01:00

How many Human Resources departments contain people whose ability to communicate on a human level is close to or less than zero?

I have friends who see themselves as leaders of people and therefore, the ideal material for a career in HR, when they would be better suited as guards in a prison camp.

Just recently a local school was in need of help from the Local Education Authority due to problems that have arisen through poor leadership. When things came to a head, the messenger of doom from the LEA HR Department advised the staff that the problem was in hand but they were no means out of the muck so they’d better not rest on their laurels.

Excellent! Why not just say, “You bunch of incompetents! You need our help and we are going to be watching every move you make.” Like Boris in Golden Eye, “We are invincible!“

Had the problem arisen through shortcomings by the very experienced staff who taught at the school, fine; but they weren’t! They were the result of rules imposed by a rather single-minded head, who had little regarded for advice by teachers, parents or the LEA and who ruled with an iron rod in a velvet sack.

Separating out the issues from the emotion, this situation did not need a social incompetent from the LEA HR department to exercise their authority. It needed and still needs someone to say, “You know what? This is a pretty sticky situation you’re in but you have the experience, we have the expertise so let’s work together and we’ll sort it out.“

HR departments are no different to any other. They are run by people and need (perhaps more than ever, because of the weight of authority they carry, good, basic, grunt level human interactive and social skills.

(As a quick aside … Why do they deny this authority? In case of legal comeback? Smoke and mirrors? Deceit? I can still remember being told by one HR Commandant that they can only advise and not tell … hmmm!)

It’s not about power (though I think for many it is about getting a kick/security from being in control and influencing others; not necessarily for good). It’s about empowering; giving people the tools and support they need to achieve the tasks and overcome the threats, barriers, hurdles they face. Poor leadership says much more about the leaders than those they lead.

There is a flip side to this …

There is a saying that “where the darkness is darkest, the light shines brightest.” I want to thank those seemingly increasingly few members of HR departments who really do stand out as being people who fit the job like a silk glove (rather than a boxing glove). Those who

Are a source of inspiration, support and common sense in a quagmire of ego
Really are the personal side of a department that purports to be about people
See themselves as having a personnel role rather than just a project manager

Those people who prove daily that HR does not stand for Human Remains.

Surely, if HR is going to be effective they have to communicate and interact effectively with the people for whom they have responsibility/oversight. If they do, great. If not, then they are potentially rather a waste of time!

Hearing or Learning?

2009-06-29T12:35:00.000+01:00

I’ve heard many different presentations, lectures, seminars and general talks, amounting to hours of arguments, explanations, persuasion, debate, facts, figures, methods and madness.

But after all my hearing, how much did I actually learn?

The answer is probably not that much.

Let me explain. It is easy to sit and listen to what people have to say. But all too often ‘it goes in one ear and out of the other.’ We hear the words but they don’t engage with our mind; they just pass through.

What was it that made me listen and learn?

I think the most influential factor was the presenter, rather than the subject material.

Some years ago I was undertaking some presentation training. I remember one trainer having a coloured star that they threw on the floor before we gave a talk. We were to stand on the star and then give our presentation. It all seemed a bit bizarre at the time, but their strap line was ‘You are the star, you are the presentation.’ They were saying, what we deliver is influenced by who we are and how much we can engage with the material we present: how much of ourselves we put into the presentation. We need interest and passion to stimulate our hearers and to engage them in our ’story’.

I think this is true to a point, but I think there is another essential quality we overlook and that is the ability to engage with our audience; who they are and where they are at.

We’ve probably all listened to experts in various fields giving talks on their pet subjects and areas of speciality. The content of their talk is rarely in question. However, their ability to connect with what they are saying often is. No matter how passionate, knowledgeable and interested they are in their subject, unless they can express things in terms, methods or pictures which which their audience can engage, their valuable knowledge will either ‘go in one ear and out of the other’ or even ‘float straight over the audience’s heads’.

Sometimes we will be introducing new ideas so it is not easy for our audience to understand, but we still need to give them the best chance of engaging with what we have to say and being able to apply it for themselves.

It’s not something we learn once and then we’ve got it made. like any skill, we need to refine it, hone it and practice it.

I recently learned the hard way on exactly this point. I was to give a talk to a group of people which was to be interesting and engaging. I was given a profile of the audience and put together my talk accordingly. I decided I’d try something a bit different and rather than simply giving them a ‘this is how you do it’ type of presentation, I decided that I’d give them something that they could use in their own lives to enhance what they do and how much they enjoy life. I spent hours preparing the talk (mainly because it was some time since I’d done anything like this). I gave the talk and received good applause at the end.

I then did something which was very risky; I asked for feedback on my presentation. This was done low key and one-to-one by the organiser. The feedback showed that many had interpreted my style as rather egotistical (I have been giving examples from my own life story where I had made mistakes and looked at how I could have avoided these), that there seemed to be a lot of theory and that on the whole, although it was interesting they didn’t feel as if they had learnt anything.

I found this feedback interesting and a bit ironic, as part of my theme had been ‘unless we try something we’ll never know whether it succeeds’! But whose fault was this? It certainly wasn’t my audience. Despite my research and care in preparing my talk, I had missed the mark; I had failed to measure my audience and in so doing, had largely wasted their time.

I hadn’t wasted mine; I made a mistake and learned from it.

So, if you give talks and presentations, give them with enthusiasm and passion, but never forget to gauge your audience so what you know can be passed on and they can both hear what you’re saying and learn from it.

Until next time …

What Does It Take To Change?

2009-06-20T08:37:00.002+01:00

Yesterday, as I was sat discussing business plans with an advisor, I was asked, 'What do you think makes it possible to bring about change?' My mind was racing!

I won't go into the details of the discussions that followed but I will mention one or two observations that we both made and some thoughts that came to mind:

Is change always necessary to achieve our goals? Too often we want change for the sake of change, not because it is the best way forward or the best way to achieve our objective. No! Change isn't always necessary.
If do we need to change, is it easy? The answer here is No: Change is rarely easy. In order to change we need to disturb the status-quo, how it's always been done and bring a bout a shift that not only provides a plan of how to do it, but also the inspiration and motivation to achieve it. We need the right people to drive the process and bring about the changes, not with a whip of chords but by personal example and commitment.
How do we bring about change? The person driving the process needs to believe that it will work and then persuade and take others with them through to completion. I was talking to a friend whose boss thought that a particular activity would be 'good for staff morale.' However, when asked if they would be taking part, the immediate answer was, 'On no! Not me.' At that point a great idea lost credibility, not because the person perceiving the idea wasn't taking part, but because they had no intention of taking part. Sometimes we have great ideas that we can give to others to execute because we don't have the necessary skills etc, but we believe in the idea and our passion motivates those who execute it on our behalf. Demonstrating that we have little or no personal belief in our idea a) is immediatelyperceived by those carrying it out and b) immediately raises doubts and drains energy. The plan may be executed, but by firing squad rather than enthusiasm. The result is negative not positive.

Too many books make change sound essential and easy.

I believe change is good when it's necessary and is easier when the people behind the change can champion it effectively and get the 'buy-in' from those who have to make the adjustments.

I think there's too much hype around the subject leading us to believe that unless we change we can't hope to be successful or even survive as businesses and as people. I also believe that many of the changes implemented relate less to what's needed and more to an individual or group of individuals who want to put their mark on something, what I would call 'ego-driven change' rather than 'purpose-driven change.'

Here is a very contemporary example of ego-driven change ...

This is the exam season here in the UK. One of the people responsible for setting-up exam rooms told me of a recent event where an exam was stopped by an invigilator, not because of an irregularity in the paper, or a fire alarm but because the sign outside the exam hall, asking passing students to 'Be Quiet Please, Exams in Progress' was written in red ink on a white background rather than black ink on a white background. The exam was suspended until the offending sign had been changed. Who instigated such mind-numbing stupidity? I suspect someone who was wanting to put their stamp on the education policy. Who benefitted from this? The students taking the exam? Definitely not! Their thought flow was disrupted and they were extremely hacked-off. The person making the sign or the college? No. Time and materials required to effect the change cost money. I'm very sure that such change did result in making a difference. However, I'm too polite to write down my views on exactly what difference the change made!!

False Economy

2009-06-19T16:09:00.009+01:00

'Our biggest asset is Our people.'

So boasts many a company. But how much do they really engage with that statement. Is it just another trite cliche, there to impress those on the outside?

One of the best indicators for how much a company really thinks about its people and how much it values them is how much it actually invests in them, demonstrated clearly by size of the budget assigned to continue their development, even when times are tough.

I have friends in a number of large, 'innovative', 'people-focussed' organisations whose first axed budget was for training and development. All too often I'm told, 'Stuart, there is no training budget this year. It's been cut in the current economic climate.'

To me that really says, 'As a company we don't really value our people.'

We talk much about investing in people, supporting our staff, being people-focussed when in fact we're anything but!

The most valuable commodities when times are hard are creative and innovative ideas which can only come from our people, not our products. Those creative ideas not only help a company survive and save money in the hard times, they are the gateway to future expansion and success. As one business author wrote, 'Those companies with a survival mentality will die.'

It is those companies that really invest in their people who will reap the rewards, survive and thrive.

Perhaps some of our companies would benefit more from a cut in management during hard times so that the money they save can be invested in those who can change fortunes.

And perhaps then they would actually believe that their biggest asset is their people.

Expenses, Integrity & Me

2009-05-26T21:29:00.002+01:00

Like me, you’re probably getting tired of all the current revelations surrounding the exploits of our politicians and their ‘accounting errors.’ I feel sorry for those politicians whose names have not been in the headlines because they have actually been honest (but not for those that simply haven’t been caught yet!).

I have also been amazed at the naivety of those concerned to think that they can use a few weasel-words to cover-up what were quite clearly blatant attempts to defraud …

“I am humiliated by my error of judgement” … But it obviously didn’t feel too humiliating when making the initial fraudulent claims, before being found out.

“I overlooked this accounting error” … No! You made a fraudulent claim and failed to declare it.

“I have paid back the expenses I shouldn’t have claimed” … Okay, but how long has it been going on? What haven’t you told us about?

“I made an error of judgement” … About the expenses or the risk of being caught?

Do the government bodies e.g., HMRC, allow us to say, “Sorry! That non-payment of tax was a small accounting error. I’ve admitted it now so no need to worry about it further.” I think not. Argue with the taxman and court beckons. In fact they are one of the few groups of people who can expect us to pay them back for their mistakes (sometimes large sums of money if we’ve not noticed an erroneous tax calculation … which is interestingly our fault for not noticing the error in the first place. Sorry. Have I missed something?).

In the past I have commented to friends about the various activities of politicians outside of Parliament, only to be told, “Oh! That’s their private life. You shouldn’t worry about that; they wouldn’t do that in Parliament.”

I would argue that if an individual can knowingly act dishonestly in one area of their life, they can act dishonestly in any area of their life.

We are what we are.

Trust and integrity are keys for success in any area of our life. Unfortunately, too many people want to be trusted without having to be responsible for their actions … and when we let people down through deliberate deceit, it takes a long time to rebuild the trust we’ve shattered.

Our politicians are human beings who, because of their public visibility (and the thirst of the media for ‘news’) are easy targets for the snipers. In no way can I condone what has happened. I am probably as annoyed by the deceit as the next man.

BUT it does challenge me re-examine what I do and ensure that my dealings with others, in business and everyday life, build trust; not destroy it.

We all make mistakes.

What I am concerned with here is that those are genuine mistakes or misjudgements, rather than a clever manipulation of the English language to cover deceit and polish a turd!

Teamwork Suffering in Downturn

2009-04-16T17:11:00.016+01:00

I have just read a very disturbing, yet unsurprising article reporting that 12% of workers admit to having become more insular during the recession.

At the very time when companies need greater interaction and greater interdependency (teamwork), individuals are seeking to protect their own workloads and projects and around some 27% admit to working longer hours.

The report quotes Mike Bourne, professor of business performance at Cranfield University School of Management as saying,

“Team collaboration and knowledge sharing is essential to help businesses chart a way through the current climate. However, while some employees are understandably worried about job security, firms with business processes to automate teamwork are able to reconcile both workforce productivity and personal performance.”

See report here.

I'm not sure whether it is part of British DNA or culture, but we seem to really struggle with the concept of working together to achieve a common goal. Perhaps we've had experiences where we've been betrayed by those whom we have trusted, or had others leapfrog over us as they take our ideas and use them for personal gain and promotion.

Unfortunately, these sad characters will always be with us.

But teamwork is exactly the forum that will help to expose these individuals and it provides the team with a level of security impossible to achieve on an individual level. Who in their right mind (if they are that way inclined) will take on a group of people, a group which is likely to include members of the management team?

But teamwork isn't really about sinking these rogue battleships; it's about achieving an objective more quickly, efficiently and completely than is possible when we work alone.

The proof is in the marketplace. Look at the most successful companies and see how many of these use teams and creative approaches to problem solving and company direction. A recent survey suggested that in business cultures which engender trust and co-operation, productivity is around 269% greater than where it is absent.

I guess it's up to us whether we choose to believe the statistics and give it a go ... or continue as we are. Only time, and possibly company solvency will tell.

It's Official: Drumming is Good for Your Health!

2009-03-27T11:39:00.005Z

I recently read a BBC news article which links drumming to improved health although an obvious response is "It may be good for your health but what about your ears?" Bear with me for the next 5 minutes.

Over recent years there has been a lot of interest in links between music and health, and music and brain activity. Only today I read an article in our local paper that two guitarists playing a piece in unison generate the same brain wave patterns.

But my interest really is in the field of drumming and percussion as I run workshops in these for a wide range of clients: schools, businesses, community etc.

Over the years I have been struck how often people change during a workshop:

Inhibitions decrease
Confidence grows
People begin to listen to each other
People respond to each other
Those who are shy may become leaders
People begin to smile and feel great about themselves (no small order when your group comprises young adults who feel neglected by society)!

A blind friend of mine has commented more than once, "I really enjoy these events because it feels as if my head has been hoovered clean of the rubbish that was there before I started."

So, when I cam across the following article it was great to see that others are experiencing similar responses and in this particular article, the benefits are even wider and deeper.

Here's the BBC article. It makes very interesting and encouraging reading:

DRUMMING FOR HEALTH
As presented on the BBC, 10th February 2009

Could a natural rhythm - which some experts believe we all possess - be a cure for a variety of health problems?

Some certainly think so. Musician Simon Lee, from Kent, is called on to teach drumming to patients with problems ranging from addiction to autism, and learning difficulties to mental health issues. He has even offered help to terminally ill patients needing palliative care. And he says the results are amazing.

Experts believe that rhythmic drumming can aid health by inducing a deep sense of relaxation, reducing stress, and lowering blood pressure.

"Drumming has a number of benefits," said Simon. "It can energise or relax. It can foster a sense of playfulness or release anger and tension. It can also help in the conquering of social isolation and the building of positive relationships."

One patient, an alcoholic, told Simon her drumming sessions had helped her so much it had given her the inspiration to continue with a gruelling detox course. "She said when she came into the clinic she was extremely negative and the first two or three days the treatment was purely about detox and heavy stuff," said Simon.

"The drumming was the first time she engaged and smiled." She said "I came out of myself and saw that I could survive."

Simon, who also carries out drumming sessions for the general public, said there was a growing interest in the therapeutic effect it could have, both on the individual and the community. "There is strong evidence to suggest that drumming may actually be a healing activity," he said. "Some have gone so far as to prove that time spent drumming can positively affect our immune systems, levels of stress and psychological well being."

Until next time ...

What I Can Do or Who I Am?

2009-03-24T20:35:00.004Z

I have recently been enjoying Cuban music, in particular that of the Buena Vista Social Club and its members.

For those of you who are not familiar with this group of musicians, the story is a modern-day fairytale ...

Cuban music has for decades been the envy and shining star of the World (especially Latin) music scene. Many of the stars who put it on the map had retired or had to find an alternative living to make ends meet: selling lottery tickets or shining shoes in the street, or selling tobacco.

In 1996 Juan de Marcos González, a young Cuban bandleader and arranger was fascinated with the old stars of Cuban music traditions such as Son, Guajira, Son Montuno, Rumba and Bolero. He set out to see how many of them were still living (many had been stars in the 1940’s, 1950’ and 1960’s). To his amazement he was able to contact a large number of these national treasures of Cuba’s musical heritage; the list was impressive:

Don Rubén González - legendary pianist and pioneer of the mambo
Orlando ‘Cachaito’ López - third generation bassist
Ibrahim Ferrer, Piya Leyva, Raúl Planas, Manuel ‘Puntillita’ Licea and Omara Portuondo - legendary singers
Compay Segundo and Eliades Ochoa - tres player and guitarists
Amadito Valdéz – percussionist
Barbarito Torres - Laoud player extraordinaire
Manuel ‘Guajiro’ Mirabal - Cuban legend, trumpet
... plus more

In order to understand the stature of this group, each one of these names was at the very top of their profession, many having had a significant impact on the history and direction of Cuban music. Each one of these musicians (plus other top calibre musicians) performed together, in the same room at the same time to record the largest selling Latin album ever (over 8 million copies sold). Everyone enjoyed working and performing on the album and no-one was interested in where their name went on the list of credits. Music was being made for the love of the music and no thought was given to any potential financial gain (though this was eventually considerable).

Live performances in Amsterdam followed release of the CD, and the jewel in the crown was when this group of Cuban musicians were able to play a sell-out concert at Carnegie Hall, New York in 1998, captured on film and CD. When you read the album notes and DVD booklet or watch the performances, the joy and emotion of making music together is clear.

This fairytale ending to the story was that these humble people found a new lease of life as they achieved global recognition and ‘stardom’ when many of us would think of taking it easy: most were in their 70’s or 80’s (Compay Segundo was in his 90’s).

By 2005 many of these great characters had passed on and only recently (Feb 2009) the great Cachaito also died ... but their legacy continues.

Why have I taken the time to mention all of these people?

Well, imagine a group of top name Rock n’Roll stars gathering to record an album, or business 'icons' producing a new book. Now think about the ego problems; who they would work; who they wouldn’t work with; who would want their name at the top of the list?

For me, the great power and impact of these Cuban recordings is the enjoyment, passion and love of the musicians for their music that shines through so clearly. Everyone is in it for everyone else, making the whole band look great. It’s even recalled that at one stage, Ibrahim Ferrer had a bad throat and was struggling to sing and suggested that perhaps someone else should finish the album! That’s a bit like Eric Clapton suggesting someone else should finish off his guitar solo. This level of humility is rarely seem today in a world of get what we can, when we can, however we can.

This excursion into Cuban music has taught me a lot more than just the notes and beats. Engaging with characters of history (and today) who are prepared to make everyone else look good by playing their part has re-challenged me to ask myself, “Is that the sort of character I am? Do people use me in for who I am as well as what I can bring.”

I read many stories today where the key to a ‘successful’ career isn’t so much what you can do, but what you a as a person bring to a particular situation. I also read that our output usually reflects our personality.

All I can say is that I hope some of my 'performances' haven’t really let people know what I was feeling on the day!!

I know that rediscovering my love of Latin music through encountering these characters has re-challenged me to be a person that other people want to know, rather than a person whose talents are admired. It has also reminded me that I cannot try to project and hide behind a different ‘persona’. Just as music is too transparent for that, so too is our daily walk. If we are not consistent, the cracks and inconsistencies will soon show!

I guess my priority is consistency as a person and as a business professional.

Can We Afford to Suspend Training in Our Organisations?

2009-03-04T21:16:00.005Z

With the credit crunch and current downturn in the economy, the greatest temptation is to pull in our belts, cut back on our spending, save what we can and try to weather the storm.

Unfortunately, life in the turbulent waters continues for everyone and some will successfully ride that storm whilst others will capsize, sink and drown.

Can we predict who will survive?

In all honesty, probably not BUT we can say who has the best chance of survival.

The survivors are those who will become creative with their time, their staff, their talents, their money, their business practice and more. They will see new ways of doing things, identify new niches, identify staff who can perform new roles and new tasks and create strategies that will enable them to negotiate the obstacles and steer towards fertile fishing grounds.

But in order to do this, there is still the need to train staff, not only for now but also for the future. Failure to do so will lead to inertia and a lag-phase before they can take full advantage of the new scene. Failure to do so will allow others in to steal the goods and opportunities.

Planning for the future involves taking steps now. Training is a key part of the success strategy and planning process. And it needn’t cost very much, especially if companies learn how to look within themselves for the talent they need. Part of that process involves a reorientation to find out what talents lie within that are currently hidden and capitalising on those to help on the road to the future.

Perhaps it’s time to stop looking outward for talent and look for help that will enable us to discover the talent we already have. With so many current recommendations NOT to cut back on training, can we afford to ignore the calls?

Karate, Kata, Kumite & Kime: A Business Model

2009-02-28T18:43:00.002Z

The idea of drawing parallels between martial arts and business practice is not new. John Barnes and Richard Richardson, two highly successful businessmen and entrepreneurs (Harry Ramsdens) liken business to Judo in their excellent book Marketing Judo. They show how it is possible for the small players to compete and in many cases succeed over larger corporations.

As a practitioner of Shotokan karate, I understand the importance of training, fitness, discipline and tenacity.

Within karate there are different components which, when practiced make up the whole picture. The main components are Kata and Kumite.

Kata comprise structured sequences of moves which include attacks and blocks (defences) using hands, feet and body. Traditionally, a karateka (practitioner of karate) progresses through different kata as a structured route to the black belt. Once attaining black belt, we continue to improve these kata whilst learning new more advanced kata containing further techniques and their combinations.

Kumite is basically fighting; the application of attacks to specific parts of the body, mainly nerve plexus' and key sensitive spots, and blocks. During kumite we learn control, stealth, tenacity, surprise and control. I mention control twice because when you are facing someone with the tools to inflict serious damage, the understanding of body position and distance is paramount, not inly to survival but to success.

Kata and kumite both depend on learning the basics; how to punch, how to kick, how to move the body by transfer of weight, how to transfer power, how to remain strong whilst being relaxed and how to use different muscle sets in harmony to achieve maximum power.

The basics depend on a potentially 'mystical' and often misunderstood word, Kime. Kime is probably best described as being when both the body and brain are executing sharp, crisp, penetrating, and hard techniques that utilizes the entire person. Kime is when technique is 'grounded', when it 'comes up through the floor', where the body’s entire musculature is used in a sudden explosive moment, and when the mind is linked to the technique. (Mark Groenewold).

It doesn't take a lot to start drawing parallels between business practice and these different components. Here are a few to start with:

Basics - Have we got our basics right; knowledge, process, relationships, targets, aims etc?
Kata - Do we construct our basics into structures that help us progress, using them to shape what we do and how we move, build our skills, check and refine what we're doing?
Kumite - Do we apply our basics and structures in such a way that we are able to out-manoeuvre our competitors, know where to target our efforts, defend our resources, develop and hone what we have so that it is even more effective?
Kime - Have we learnt how to use what we have to its maximum potential? Are there things that we can combine in a new way to produce even greater results, greater service, greater enjoyment and fulflment, greater satisfaction, greater growth ... etc?
Control - Have we assessed our position and that of our competitors? Do we see how they are moving? Can we implement strategies that won't cause undue injury? Are we willing to take the risk to win?

When myself and my children gained our black belts we were told, "Now is the time that you start to learn." I think that is a good reminder to each and every one of us that no matter how long we have been in business, or working in a particular field or doing a particlar job, we can always improve IF we are willing to learn from what we have done and what we are doing and apply it to the future.

Tools for doing this? God gave us brains, common sense and the ability to relate to others (relationships). I would argue that these are the best tools we have to start on the road.

Perhaps when we appreciate our interdependence rather than striving for continual independence we will learn some of these 'mysteries' of life and business.

You may not practice karate, but you can apply the principles.

Do We Already Have the Resources In-House?

2009-02-23T13:02:00.000Z

No matter how much business operators try to convince me, I have never fully bought into the idea of using outside, contract staff.

Let me explain ...

There are times when new people bring a different dynamic to what we do and how we operate and these individuals can play a key role when we don't have the internal expertise. However, whilst working in the Pharmaceutical Industry I used to become exasperated when managers declared that 'we need to hire in external expertise' before they had taken any steps to determine whether that expertise already existed in-house.

All of us have many talents and abilities which have become latent or hidden over the years.
Perhaps we've

Forgotten about talents we once had or hobbies we once enjoyed
Assumed we'll never need softer, touchy-feely skills so have locked them away and forgotten about them
Always wanted to give something a try but haven't had the chance
Been told at school that we'd never succeed in a particular area, even though we really enjoyed it or worse still, were good at it!
Been told we'll never be successful

... the list goes on and I'm sure you can add your own reasons.

Let's consider one or two ways in which companies would benefit if they used in-house expertise over hired-in expertise. Companies would have

People working who are already fully conversant with the culture
People already established within the social networks of the company, with established relationships across multiple disciplinary areas
Chance to develop their people, thereby increasing their sense of belonging and resulting in potentially greater job-satisfaction, commitment and input

I would also suggest that they'd save considerable costs and time delays that inevitably occur when new people are brought into existing structures and cultures. Contract staff cost more, it's just that we perceive that they're easier to get rid of when we know longer need them without worrying about pensions etc and we can often 'hide' their costs elsewhere in the figures by keeping them off the headcount! But what happened if we had people that were so flexible that we didn't have to adopt or pay homage to the 'hire and fire' methods we have become accustomed to?

The problem is that bringing in people from outside or looking outside of the company is simply too easy. We don't have to ask too many questions and we don't have to worry about changing who we are or what we do.

But coming one step back, wouldn't it be much healthier for all concerned if companies di take time to help their staff discover and develop talents, whether they are forgotten or hidden, so that at least they knew what was in the melting pot. With information, it is possible to make reasoned decisions. Making these decisions in the absence of information is dangerous and potentially life-threatening to a company.

Sometimes it is unavoidable that external talent is required to achieve a goal. My challenge would be, how often could we avoid it and enjoy the benefits by a bit of preparation and enough conviction to take the risk?

The results of ignoring what and whom we have can be very telling and equally catastrophic. In 1917 Forbes first quoted their top 100 Companies. When this list was re-visited in 1987, 61 of the original companies were no longer in existence and of remaining 39, only 18 were still on the Top 100 list. The main reason for dropping off the list or going out of business was that these companies had stayed still and tried to fight what was going on around them. The 18 companies that stayed in the Top 100 were those that adopted a strategy which embraced change. And for this, discovery and implementation of creativity within each member of the workforce was key.

We are all creative. Do our bosses and companies know that? Have they looked for it or do we perhaps need to find our talents and let those in our place of work know?

What are the Dangers of Self-Esteem & Self-Confidence?

2009-02-19T17:20:00.003Z

This may seem to be a pointless question after my last few posts, but self-esteem and self-confidence, like most other qualities must be held in balance.

We have all met the 'over-confident' and those whose ego and self-esteem are so inflated that they are nothing short of a pain (or danger) to be around.

Just as a balanced diet should be exactly that, BALANCED, so confidence and esteem must be balanced with and grounded in reality.

Historically, we have been taught that many bullies, aggressive, violent or anti-social individuals have a problem with low self-esteem and low self-confidence. More recent, controlled research suggests that these characteristics are commonly demonstrated when unearned self-esteem (an inflated sense of self-importance or superiority over others) is challenged or the individuals concerned feel humiliated.

These people have a self-esteem or self-opinion that is over-inflated and has no grounding in reality. As a consequence, it is very frail when challenged.

Why mention this?

Well, I think it is important to understand that seeking increased self-esteem and self-confidence as entities on their own is not a healthy pursuit. Both characteristics need to be grounded in reality and grounded in the context of our character.

Both characteristics are also under our control. We have a RESPONSIBILITY as well as a right to handle the skills we have and the best way to do that is by grounding them into reality.
I saw a scary video the other day of a 10-year-old boy in America addressing a crowd of 20000 people. Great! Good for him! But what is so scary is that he was a clone of the high pressure salesmen and public speakers we fear, and at such a young age is highly susceptible to being manipulated, as well as manipulating others. The content of what he had to say was actually very good, but his delivery bore no relationship to his age or experience. The words he used were of someone at least 20-years his senior ... and that is probably where they came from. This was not a demonstration of healthy self-esteem and self-confidence.

So, I'd like to finish where I started my first entry a few days ago ... which is by relating self-esteem to self-worth.

If we feel that intrinsically we have value (which I differentiate from importance) we are more likely to respond to the needs around us because we are confident that what we bring has value, even if it isn’t necessarily the total solution.

I believe that building and increasing self-esteem in others (and in ourselves) is a frequently overlooked tool for birthing success; in everything we do

How Can We Build Self-Esteem & Confidence in Others?

2009-02-17T07:23:00.009Z

Self-esteem is the foundation on which confidence can build. People who feel valued and know their self-worth are then more able to try new things and be prepared to fail. Unfortunately, failure has become a dirty word in business and we love to make scapegoats of those who have failed. But in so doing we continue to hammer the nails in our own coffin, because unless we are prepared to try something new, to put ideas together that have never been put together before, to experiment with them and see if they work, creativity and innovation die. If we stifle or kill self-esteem, we stifle and kill creativity and our success. The three are intimately associated with one another. The most successful and rapidly expanding businesses today are those where creativity thrives; Innocent Drinks and the Virgin franchise are just two examples.

And where creativity is lost? The businesses die.

As pressures increase to be successful, we often exclude the very things that can save us. One of those things is risk-taking, of which we are sorely afraid. We continue to work harder at what we’ve always done in the hope that ‘this time it will work’. Why should it if it hasn’t worked before? If it has worked before but we’re struggling now, why use the tried and well-trodden path to the cemetery? Risk-taking is the basis of creativity and the foundation for success. But in order to take those risks we need the confidence, and to build confidence we need a foundation of self-esteem.

Simple ways to build self-esteem include basic rewards such as a verbal or written ‘Thank you’, recognition in front of peers, recognition of a team in a company publication, a small gift, anything that says ‘We appreciate your efforts.’

Perhaps we should re-learn the art of celebrating our failures. They don’t have to be big announcements (there are undoubtedly people waiting in the wings to pour on scorn). But by celebrating the failures with those who’ve tried it is possible to learn from the mistakes and to move forward. Punishment achieves nothing apart from a misplaced sense of dispensed justice. We forget that the greatest discoveries affecting our lives today were the end of a line of repeated failures. People like Thomas Edison went through hundreds, even thousands of prototypes before they came up with the end product. Underlying that tenacity and perseverance was undoubtedly high levels of self-esteem and self-confidence which enabled them to face the failures, learn from them and move on. These inventors would undoubtedly have been inspired and encouraged by others and needed to draw on that as onlookers criticised and ‘commented’ on their failures. But it is their self-esteem that is likely to have held them on-course through the storms.

Sometimes we just need to let people have a go and discover for themselves. This is the basis of my workshops. I can show them plenty of what I can do, but in the end it only really works when each person has the opportunity to try for themselves. Having discovered that they can or can’t do something they can move on, either to something new or build on what they’ve started.Sometimes we need to revisit where they’ve been and help them change a wrong perception. For example, they may have tried something once and decided that they can’t do it, when in fact they just need to try it again.

There are many ways we can help, but perhaps the biggest part is through our relationships with others. As we develop and use these we have the opportunity to encourage, correct, draw alongside and help. These things also take time, effort and patience, so it can be useful to weigh-up how much effort and time we can/are prepared to give.

Benefits from the results are potentially huge and long-lasting and the return on investment greater than we can ever perceive.

But we need to take that risk ...

_____________________

If you are interested to learn how we may be able to help you, please either visit our websites:

Waywood Creative: http://www.waywoodcreative.com/

Waywood Training: http://www.waywoodtraining.com/

Or contact me directly on

Tel: +44 (0)1509 553362
Mob: +44 (0)7814 628123
E-mail: stuart@waywoodenterprises.com

______________________________

What are the Benefits of Building Self-Esteem & Self-Confidence?

2009-02-15T07:51:00.005Z

In short, many!!

But let’s start by considering what we will avoid.

When we are continually dragged down by low self-esteem and low self-confidence the impact is much wider than our work; it affects our whole life!

Biologically, our bodies set-up defence mechanisms against infection to keep us healthy, but the prolonged stress caused by poor self-image counteracts those mechanisms and renders us more susceptible to infection.

In addition, prolonged secretion of hormones and other natural chemicals which usually help us maintain good health, become imbalanced all over the body.

We suffer skin rashes and conditions such as eczema
Our breathing suffers and we can precipitate asthma
The lining which protects our stomach from the acid it contains erodes and eventually the acid digests our stomach tissues leading to ulcers
Other digestive disorders
Heart conditions
Increased risk of stroke
High blood pressure
... etc.

The emotional drain can

Lead to bouts of low mood
Precipitate full-blown depressive illness

The severe lack of confidence affects everything we do ...

We become less inclined to try anything new (or even continue doing what we are doing)
We hide ourselves away as a defence mechanism, trying to avoid the possibility of anything else that may reinforce the low self-image and pain we feel
We become less inclined to go out, either for exercise or to be sociable.

So the detrimental effects can be catastrophic on a personal and professional level.

Confident people with a good level of self-esteem are less prone to the above list of horrors (although as with all things, over-confidence and inflated levels of self-importance can also be detrimental to our own health and the health of others).

When we are confident, we are more likely to

Think clearly
Contribute ideas to discussions and meetings
Be able to speak candidly about serious issues affecting us or our workplace
Help each other
Be more creative and innovative.

Creativity and innovation are clearly more complex entities than simply being a function of our self-confidence or self-esteem. They involve different patterns of thinking and assembly of ideas, but they are much more likely to occur where we can interact with others, openly, candidly, confidently.

In my next post I'll be looking at a few ways in which we can start to build self-esteem in others and how that affects our living and working environments.

How Can We Affect Self-Esteem & Self-Confidence in Others?

2009-02-14T07:01:00.004Z

It is always worth considering what impact we can and do have on the self-esteem and self-confidence of other. If these qualities in us are affected by external input from our parents, peers etc (i.e., others) then we too can have significant impact on the self-esteem and self-confidence in others.

Let’s consider as an example, the boss who wants to add some stretch to the expectations of his staff in order that they can develop and grow in their roles. How can he help them to grow and develop and achieve these goals? I would argue that one way is to reinforce their self-esteem and develop their self-confidence. These promote not only independent thinking and working, but also the security to approach others for assistance if and when needed. But what happens if this boss

Sets targets, and then continually reviews them and re-sets them as they are met?
Sets targets that are simply not achievable?
Introduces so much stretch in the objectives that they push the individual beyond their elastic limit?
Continually focuses on targets that are not being met and ignores those that have been achieved or exceeded?
Provides criticism and objective advice without praise and reward?

These scenarios are all too common in business today; many through pressures to perform in difficult or changing economic climates; many through personal drive or feelings of the need to achieve or survive; many through ignorance. Whatever the reason, the end result is the same; underachievement, low morale, suspicion and loss of best staff (either voluntarily or through ill-health).

When the pinch comes the focus can be turned so strongly onto the objective that we neglect the means of achieving that objective, our staff. Survey after survey shows that the best results, greatest growth and greatest stability arise where people feel valued, rewarded and are given the freedom to try, in other words, where people have a feeling of worth (self-esteem) and the confidence to make a significant and recognised contribution (self-confidence). It’s also interesting that in many cases, reward constitutes little more than acknowledgement and being thanked. It does not necessarily have to be a salary increase or monetary award.

The problem is that in many cases, praise, thanks and acknowledgement have been consigned to the annals of history. The positive side to this is that where there is a cultural change from a praise vacuum to one of acknowledgement, the change in atmosphere, attitude and motivation can be remarkably rapid and greater than could be expected.

So, if encouraging others costs nothing, apart from a bit of pride, self-discipline and effort, but reaps such great rewards, what are the barriers to us starting, now?

Pride?
Time?
Image?
Effort?
Expectations?
Office structure?
... other reasons?

If survival, growth and development are priorities in our businesses then none of these barriers is too great to overcome. Most are personal anyway. And if it is a case of reorganisation or redundancy, then there can be little argument against the case.

The benefits of building self-esteem and self-confidence in others and ourselves are that we are laying the foundations for greater things; creativity and innovation.

More of that next time ...

Self-Esteem & Self-Confidence

2009-02-13T10:42:00.003Z

Today I'm going to start a 'mini-series' on what I see as possibly one of the most crucial elements to any success story: self-esteem and self-confidence. I've put them his way round for a reason that will become apparent as you read on ...

So let's start at the beginning ...

What are they?

The Oxford English Dictionary defines them as follows:

Self-Esteem

noun confidence in one’s own worth or abilities

Self-Confidence

noun a feeling of trust in one’s abilities, qualities, and judgement

At a first glance they may seem to be the same thing. Indeed, they are very close, but self-confidence is based more around what we can do whilst self-esteem is based more on who we are; our worth.

Both are incredibly important in shaping our lives and enabling us to achieve our potential. If we have no self-esteem then achievement becomes much more difficult and we often sabotage our own efforts (at least mentally) before we start or give ourselves chance to achieve anything. Without self-esteem there is little or no foundation on which to develop self-confidence.

Our lives are a tapestry of events; some good and some bad. The proportion and magnitude of these events can be highly significant in developing our self-esteem and ultimately, self-confidence (or lack thereof).

Here's a couple of simple scenarios which help to demonstrate this (based on two friends of mine):

Friend A came from a family where achievement was the norm. Mum and dad were both high flyers and the level of expectations in the family was high. Older brother was at university studying astro-physics and younger brother was a brilliant pianist. Unfortunately, my friend was less academic although he was extremely practical. You can imagine that when his test and exam results came in, he was not at the top of the list. He was frequently berated by his parents for underachieving. His self-esteem fell. He felt that he was worth little because he could not do what was expected of him. Not surprisingly he rebelled and became a real problem ... until he left home and eventually set up his own business repairing cars, servicing and tuning engines. His reputation spread and he became a very successful businessman. Not surprisingly he also became very confident and happy with his lot! It wasn't that this young man had no ability; it was that his abilities were overlooked because he did not fit into the expectations of others. He needed the chance to discover and apply his many talents, and when he did ...

Friend B came from a totally different background. The members of his family were not high achievers. His dad worked at a local company as a storeman and his mum worked in a local bakery. My friend was very good at electronics and always had things in pieces. His sister loved art (but was not top of the class). Both parents were full of encouragement for my friend and his sister. Fast forwarding ten years ... both my friend and his sister became very successful in their respective fields. And both were very confident people. When they speak of their parents, they both speak with great affection, with genuine thanks for how they were trusted and for the confidence that was instilled in them because of this. They were valued as individuals and given the chance to experiment and fail, knowing that their parents were always behind them. They knew this and it shaped their high self-esteem and self-confidence.

Now I know that these two examples are probably towards the extreme ends of the spectrum, but they are real examples which demonstrate how important self-esteem is for developing self-confidence. I also understand that in order to achieve some things, we need to aim high and be motivated and pushed on by those around us. But if our core belief doesn't allow us to accept those things we need, then we will not achieve our potential; we will only be driven into greater self-doubt.

We may look at ourselves and think that we have very little to offer. Is that the truth? Or is it because we lack the self-esteem and self-confidence to see beyond that to what potential we really have? It's often how we see things that makes the difference.

Light in the darkness or darkness
threatening the light?

It is also worth considering what impact we have on the self-esteem and self-confidence of others ... but that's for next time.

The Power of Music to Change the Label

2009-02-08T17:44:00.004Z

Don’t you just love the way we label people … loser, nobody, somebody, hero … etc.

But we make these decisions with very little supportive evidence .

We look at people, perhaps at what they’ve done (or not done) and then we decide on their value, which is incredibly subjective and can be based on such strong scientific principles as ‘How we feel’!!

I recently ran a drumming workshop with a group of people aged from 19 into their early 20’s. If you were to put labels on them, many would have opted for terms like 'nobodys'.

In fact if you asked them who they were, they’d probably tell you that they are nobodys (based on what society has told them) because they are a group who have struggled with school and come from backgrounds which have resulted in such low self esteem that they rate their value as zero.

BUT they are one of the BEST groups I have ever run workshops for! Period.

Sure, many were shy but they were great listeners, sensing changes in feel and rhythm, and when we stopped, everyone stopped on exactly the same beat. Some were prepared to try solos. They were willing to give it their best shot.

Here are some labels I would use for this group:

Winners
Brave
Enthusiastic
Great learners
Listeners
Smilers
Relaxed (eventually!)
Contributors
An inspiration to me

And if that is being a nobody then I want to be one too!

Thank you all for making it such a great session and teaching me what it takes to overcome personal barriers and uncertainties to make things rock!

You are an inspiration and don’t let anyone ever tell you that you are a nobody.

You have more going for you than you may realise for some time. But once you can grasp how special you all are and what talents you have, then you will see yourselves very differently.

I just pray that the rest of us will give you chance to shine as you did in our workshop.

**************************

I was greatly encouraged to receive the following comments from one of the youth leaders after the event …

“I thought the session was tremendous. It was a great environment for our guys, many of whom have low self-esteem. The way they were able to join in with the session without feeling pressured worked really well. Overall, the evening was a memorable event for our guys and a very enjoyable one!” TS; Youth Leader

Our History Dictates Our Destiny?

2008-11-26T10:19:00.000Z

Lately I've been thinking about how our achievements in life are shaped and moulded by our history and experiences, with some of the strongest stimuli for success or failure being in our childhood years. I know this can be an over-simplification but listening to life stories, I find it very interesting how often there are clear trends. First the negative impact ...

Interviews with many porn stars and ex-porn stars show a clear relationship between childhood abuse, neglect, violence and family break-up and the tendency to enter the sex-industry, ultimately leading to appearance in porn films ('porn star' status). The heart-breaking truth behind these people is that their self-esteem and self-value has been shattered at a very early age, their level of expectation is low, and even more worrying, they are left feeling that they have no intrinsic value. So, they sell their bodies, lock down the emotions and tell the world how glamorous it is, whilst dying inside. If you want to read some stories of people who has managed to escape the industry try this link ... http://www.thepinkcross.org/pinkcross_articles

Secondly the positive impact ...

Many successful business people (and in broader life) can recount times in their childhood when they were actively encouraged by their parents or mentors to 'reach for the skies' and give it a go. Great musicians frequently cite back to the encouragement they received from their family when those around them (siblings, teachers etc) were being negative about their prospects in life. Tony Campolo, an American sociologist recounts how every morning he was sent packing to school. His neighbour, a boy of similar age to himself, was always sent out with the words 'Go and conquer the world'.

Okay so this may sound rather cliched but the truth is that our expectations will often drive what we do and what we achieve. And those expectations, in most cases, are nurtured and inspired by others who believe in us, see our potential and encourage us to use it.

Sure there are also people who have an amazing strength of will and who, despite being repeatedly put down, are determined to achieve. This is frequently a response to escape from their surroundings to a 'better life'. But somewhere desperation, self-belief or a combination of the two drive success.

So what am I saying?

I guess it's that each and every one of us has a responsibility to encourage others to achieve their potential, whenever and wherever we can. Put down the fears that we will be overtaken, or someone else will get our job. We all have the potential to be a mentor and the fruits can be huge, both personally and financially.

Equally, we have the potential to block others, prevent them from discovering their dreams and stop them achieving these.

Sure, we may stay on top of the pile but at what cost to us personally?

What if we encouraged someone to reach for the skies and they just happen to achieve this goal ... and take us with them.

It's a risk we take. But until we try we'll never find out.

Innovation: A Team Sport

2008-10-01T20:17:00.003+01:00

Innovation and creativity are not entities and they do not happen spontaneously.

They are the fruits of people, people interacting and working together, complete with all of the friction and personality clashes. Innovation is analogous to a musical writing partnership or team sports. If all roles are performing well, we get a positive force for innovation. And just with sports teams, it is not essential to have total excellence in every area. Some of the most effective and innovative teams have true excellence in one or two areas combined with strength in many others. There may be stars in our team, but the team is the powerhouse.

Perspiration, dedication and hard work are also at the centre of creativity and innovation, honing skills practiced and developed over long periods of time, until they really work. Here are Some basic principles for success:

Stretch for Strength: Flexibility is more important than strength, size or power. Many 'giants' of the business world have disappeared as smaller, more nimble companies stole the market through exercising their flexibility and operating according to new business models.

Go for distance: Innovation is less about a programme and more about a way of life; a culture. It is a culture that should be at the centre of every part of an organisation and one which continues to evolve and develop with time, and over time. It is about longevity rather than fad.

Never give in: Wherever there is innovation there are obstacles and these must be overcome. Personalities within our teams will be able to see ways around whatever obstacle is in the way or objection raised. At these times close collaboration and problem sharing are essental for going the distance.

Fight the mental battles: One of the biggest obstacles or hurdle to our progress looms in the battle of the mind; our psyche. To quote Tom Kelley, 'Innovators have the uncommon sense to pursue ideas long after others give up.'

Celebrate the coach: Behind every great sports team there is a geat coach. Behind every great project team there is a great coach. They may not be in the limelight, but they labour tirelessly in the background making sure everything and everyone stays together. The right coach brings out the best and we notice the difference

The most successful teams comprise a rich mix of different types of people with different personalities or personas, different talents and abilities, different temperaments. The correct mix will produce sufficient innovative friction to push forward the team and push forward the innovative process.

When innovation is experienced, it is a mighty force to inspire further innovation. Perhaps the most important step is to make a start, no matter how small, get the innovation engine turning over, see the benefits and build on them. And these benefits will be pretty obvious when they occur, hopefully enough to overcome politics and convert even the most cynical as they see a turn-around in their group, department, business unit or company.

And innovation doesn't just turn companies around, it becomes a way of life.

5 Simple Steps to Creative Thinking and Idea Generation

2008-10-01T19:59:00.004+01:00

Every so often I read a really practical book. Today’s feast was written back in the 1940’s by James Webb Young, an advertising guru. The great thing about a great book is that it is timeless. Much has changed in the world since Mr Young first wrote this short work, but the human mind still works in the same way and the need for creative ideas is ever more important.

Thankfully, this time-proven formula still works with great effect … as long as we don’t do our favourite ‘cutting the corners’!

The following process has a track record of success for creating new ideas across a wide sphere of disciplines, from poetry to painting, engineering to science, from advertising to legal.
The aim is to make new connections between existing events or subjects, completing a new picture, analogous to making a jigsaw for the first time.

It is essential to understand that this is a sequence and not just a list of tasks. Therefore, each step should be completed in the sequence listed. Each individual step is the foundation for success at the next stage.

1. Collect Raw MaterialsThis step is often skipped or only partly completed but is a key to the overall success of the process. The quality of ideas generated depends on the quality of the preparation and assimilation of the raw materials. Raw materials can include paper and magazine cuttings, photographs, advertisements, original observations.

Two types of raw materials should be collected:

Specific – Those relating directly to the area of interest, customer group, proposed product etc.
General – Those relating to the broad subject of life events and current affairs. The more widely we spread our net for general materials, the greater our chance of generating creative ideas. This is an ongoing process on which we can build each day.

It is a good idea to assemble these into some kind of order or pattern. Scrapbooks are a great way to collect general materials. Specific materials can be catalogued in some way to make retrieval easier.

Do not short-cut step 1.

2. Digest the MaterialsThis step involves taking each piece of information and studying it from as many angles and in as many different ways as you can. Really try to ‘get inside’ what it is about, what it is saying, how it looks etc. Continue this process with each piece of specific and general information, looking at the facts and trying to bring them together to see how they fit. A ‘fit’ may be found for some pieces of information without too looking too deeply. As bits of ideas come to mind, write these down, no matter how wild or part-formed they are. This process will help cement them in the mind and is a precursor to generation of complete ideas.

It is hard work and at some stage the mind will become tired, but keep going at this stage as you will develop a second burst of mental energy. Only when everything becomes a complete jumble with no clear solution anywhere should you stop this process.

3. Drop the SubjectA common trait in the creative process and idea generation is that these ideas come to us when we are least expecting them to, and often when we are doing something that is totally unrelated to the area in which we have been seeking to generate ideas.

So, this third step is quite simple; get as far away as possible from the thinking process on our chosen area. Do something different, preferably something where you can relax and something that you really enjoy. Typically, this will be a topic or activity in which you feel most creative, such as, listening to music, reading poetry, playing a sport.

This allows our subconscious to mull over the information we have input in steps one and two.

4. The Idea from NowhereAt some stage an idea will ‘appear as from nowhere’ and usually during a pretty mundane activity such as eating breakfast, having a bath or shave, going for a walk. This is the point at which you must write it down to capture it (having a pencil and notebook in the pocket at all times is a very useful exercise) and then …

5. Test the IdeaOnce ideas have been generated it may be apparent that they are not the complete picture or not as great as first thought. However, the best way to test these is to expose them to a trusted judicious few. This may seem a bit of a threat. After all, we may not feel like sharing ideas with others (hence the word ‘trusted’) and we may be afraid of them being shot down in flames (hence the word ‘trusted’).

What is most interesting is that a good seed of an idea will generate more flesh from those who encounter it. So, our idea will benefit from the wisdom and experience of others and grow as they add their ideas to it. The idea expands into opportunities and possibilities that we may have overlooked.

What we end up with is a creative solution, shaped and developed from an idea into a practical solution.

You can download your own free copy of these 5 steps, in PDF format, using the following link … 5 Steps to Creating Ideas, either by clicking on the link which will open the document in Adobe Acrobat Reader (or whatever PDF software you have on your computer) and then saving the file to your computer, or by right clicking on the link and using the ‘Save Target As‘ (Internet Explorer) or equivalent for other browsers (such as Firefox).

Until next time …

Innovation: Courage to Create Success

2008-09-18T22:51:00.001+01:00

Sometimes the first ingredient we need for innovation is courage; courage to go with our convictions, even in the face of opposition.

3M is a global company with a reputation for creativity and innovation, but anyone who has worked in almost any ‘creative and innovative organisation’ will tell you that reputation and actual practice are often poles apart. Sure, they like to take the credit for their public successes but what they don’t publicise so freely is just how much perseverance, tenacity and sheer dogged single-mindedness the individual champions of the case have to be in order to make their individual success a company success.

I was reminded recently of the account of Richard Drew, an iconic figure within 3M culture and the person responsible for not one, but two truly innovative products that put 3M well and truly on the map, both as an organisation and later as an innovative company.

Drew joined 3M with a less than glowing background of being a college dropout who played banjo in dance bands at night whilst studying engineering through a correspondence course. He had an entry level job as a lab technician. One of Drew’s tasks was to take batches of 3M’s Wetodry sandpaper to a nearby St Paul automotive body shop. At the time (1921) two tone colours were all the rage for cars, and on one of Drew’s visits a painter was cursing and swearing because he had just ruined a paint job. There was at that time no way of ensuring a good line between the colours except through the use of glues and paper etc.

Drew saw the problem and decided to come up with a solution.

Now it would be great to say that he was supported by the company for his efforts, but he wasn’t. 3M was a sandpaper manufacturer not a tape manufacturer so Drew had to ‘go underground’ to do his work, experimenting with all sorts of oils and resins to produce a superior adhesive. He was told to stop on at least one occasion and agreed until the attraction of his own little project became too great and he started again. When he had come up with a good prototype, he needed to manufacture the finished article for which he needed a specific piece of machinery. He was refused. So he used his initiative and used a series of $99 sign-offs (he was allowed to authorise payments up to $100) which slipped ‘under the company radar’ to buy the machine.

In 1925, Richard Drew successfully produced the world’s first masking tape with a pressure sensitive adhesive backing … and the rest, as they say, is history. Well it would be if Drew hadn’t come up a few years later with another invention of the first see through adhesive packaging tape, Scotch Tape, again after persevering against the odds.

Of course today, the name of Richard Drew is synonymous with the innovative spirit of the company, but at the time he was making it big for the company through his determination and conviction to succeed, it was a battle; a battle which involved stepping around the rules, lying low, persevering against the odds.

Innovation is often a rough path which is only seen and appreciated by the end-results of products or processes, not during the actual process of arriving (except by those who are driving it).

So the next time we are looking for innovation in our business, we need to remember that it is often a long and winding road, and a road that will require a lot of sweat and toil along the way, not only with the project at hand but with all the devil’s advocates and ‘jobworths’ who tell us that it won’t work. This is why we need to lok at adopting a creative and innovative culture which understands the processes, pitfalls and obstacles and which helps, not hinders the process which is the lifeblood of company survival and expansion.

What Are We Worth?

2008-09-11T11:16:00.006+01:00

Perhaps a bit of a rhetorical question, but I assure you there is no catch.

Our sense of value and our value system are both complex entities, arising from our life history. Most of us have had knocks of one kind or another: bereavement, redundancy, failure in achieving something we were aiming for, family breakdown, work pressure … the list is very long.

Thankfully, many of us can recover from these blows, some more quickly than others. However, for some people a combination of blows arrives at the wrong time (childhood, especially adolescence) or too close together. In those cases the impact can be catastrophic. Someone full of hope and confidence one day can turn into a shy recluse with no sense of direction the next, whilst others kick out at anything and anyone who gets in the way or tries to help. Their world has literally been shattered. I remember a good friend at school who for no apparent reason started picking on anyone and everyone, eventually causing total classroom disruption resulting in suspension. We thought he was an idiot. It was only years later that we discovered he’d come downstairs to breakfast one morning to find his mother packing the car to leave. Bang! Just like that: out of the blue without warning. The emotional cost took years to repair and included many broken and dysfunctional relationships along the way. We were also forced to think about our lack of response.

Sadly, my friend’s situation is mirrored with alarmingly increasing frequency today.

But I also remember another couple of other friends who always seemed so confident, almost cocky, about their life and where they were going. And they did go! Both became very successful in their respective fields; one as a scientist, the other as craftsman. Why were these two so different? I think much of it came from what was being fed into their lives. Their parents were always encouraging them to try something new, go for something they couldn’t achieve. And if they failed? They could always have another go.

Now I know it is naive at best to simplify all situations to a single formula, but it is generally well accepted that a person’s self-identity is forged through their life experiences and relationships. Repeated criticism or comparison with other people results in loss of confidence and unwillingness, often through fear, to try something in case we fail. It also leads to the perception that ‘I am worth nothing.’ The opposite is true, with those receiving encouragement (including correction) achieving a more balanced and fulfilled lifestyle. And success is often thrown in there too.

It is also accepted that what we practise at school becomes a lifetime habit. Our businesses are plagued with people who continue to play out their school scenario, as bullies and manipulators, or as doormats. They have a misguided sense of self-importance or self-value; either too high or too low. Self-confidence is a good attribute when held in balance with other life skills. But too much or too little can be disruptive and at its extreme, devastating.

And the problem extends further into society, where we see the impact of people who are unable to respond to their circumstances or surroundings.

The great news is that we all have intrinsically equal value and worth.

The bad news is that others, or we ourselves project a value which then puts us on a sliding scale, based on what we can do, or our cash value in terms of income or cost to society. These false measures need to be clearly delineated from intrinsic worth and value. Of course, when we enter into a job or role, there is a basic need to be able to perform that role competently, and hopefully bring something extra as well. But that has to do with our value to the employer: it does not affect our value as an individual.

So where am I going with all this?

Our childhood influences adulthood, in terms of how we think and how we act towards ourself and others. That childhood will have been influenced by positive and negative inputs which will also have influenced our perceptions. Those perceptions, in turn, influence how we operate at work, at home or with our friends. However, these perceptions and responses are habits formed through the practice of life and like any other habit, they can largely be reshaped and changed into new habits. We don’t really have an excuse for, ‘Well, that’s me and that’s the way I am [forever and always shall be].’

We each have a responsibility to look at ourselves and see how, where and if we need to change these habits: thought patterns, attitude to others, attitude to ourself, emotional response.
And therein lies another issue; we are generally very poor at emotions!

Most of us have gone through life with the good old British stiff upper lip, being afraid to engage, let alone express our emotions for fear of what we may discover. And our education system does nothing to help, effectively switching off emotional engagement by the age of 11, leaving many ill-equipped to handle life. I know I’ve used the analogy before, but it’s like an athlete who only trains one half of their body for a 100m sprint final. It’s absurd to even consider, yet we do that everyday with children from as young as 3 or 4 years old, up until they are 18 or older and then we are surprised that they can’t handle life.

So it is little wonder that poor self-worth and low self-esteem are cancers in today’s world.

Thankfully, creativity allows re-engagement with our emotions and therefore, provides a safety valve for when pressures and trials arise. It is something we all possess and something we can all discover and apply. I believe that passionately and it is one of my key motivators and driving forces.

And by applying that creativity across our businesses, in practice, planning and development, implication, sales and marketing, management structures, team structures … through the people we have, the future, as one mobile company proclaims, is bright. Our who business benefits:

Within the business, our people will feel more fulfilled, more engaged, more appreciated, they will be more willing to contribute, more willing to work harder and longer hours (if required), the atmosphere will change for the better
Outside the business, our customers will notice the change and the wider social net will benefit.

On a scale of 0 - 100, we all score 100 for worth, but sadly, many score less than 20 when it comes to self-worth or valuing others. And that must stop.

Until next time …

Postscript: Wouldn’t it be great if our governments actually believed in the concept for our education system; not for political gain but for the good of the nation, and empowered those with the appropriate skills and vision to make it happen!

Creativity: The Other Global Crisis

2008-09-10T09:07:00.001+01:00

Perhaps one of the most eloquent and engaging speakers I have heard is Sir Ken Robinson. he has this style which instantly puts one at ease whilst totally drawing us in to what he has to say. If you want an example, pour yourself a coffee and Watch Ken Robinson Talk to see him in action (opens in a new window ... use the 'Close Window' button after viewing).

In one of his more recent appearances he continued to present some uncomfortable facts which will impact us all unless things change. Here is a sample of out-takes from his talk. Full article here (opens in a new window).

The world is facing a crisis of human resources ... "I believe that fundamentally we have both underestimated and continue to misuse - if not actually abuse - many of our most important talents; our talents, our children's talents, and the talents of the people who work with us. And unless we fix [this crisis], I feel we're not going to make much progress fixing the other one."
Both crises are the result of our "industrial mindset," which is incompatible with modern society and modern business. Both manifest themselves in terms of imbalances. In the natural world it is the imbalance of gases in our atmosphere, although human activity is also disrupting many other ecosystems. In society we have legions of people dislocated from their own talents, legions of people suffering from all kinds of anxiety, legions of people in dysfunctional communities. And there is an enormous cost of handling this.
In California (Robinson's new home town) spends $3.5bn a year on the state university system; it spends $9.9bn on the state prison system. Similar figures exist for other Western countries, as well as other US states. The UK spends millions of pounds a year on remedial education, to try to get kids through a system which many of them are bucking against. And we spend millions of pounds a year on career counselling, because people have not found their way.
The result for educators, employers and HR professionals is that it is vital to have an understanding of "the ecology of human resources.
As a society, we must improve our understanding of human capabilities. We believe mistakenly that creativity and intelligence vary in inverse proportion to one another. The things we take for granted as being true are the real problem; the enemy of making the best of ourselves is common sense.
Thankfully creativity is not dead but merely latent, in most adults.
Work by Land and Jarman showed that in a smaple of 1,500 children aged 3-5, 98% ranked as "geniuses" in divergent thinking. In children aged between 8 and 10 years the figure fell to just 32% and by the time children had reached between 13 and 15 years it had declined further to a mere 10%. In other words, children become less creative as they grow older. What coincides with this period of development, aside from hormonal changes and socialisation, is that they enter formal education where they have learnt a) there is one answer to every question, b) don't look, because that's cheating and c) don't copy from anybody else, because that's cheating too ... even though outside of school we call this collaboration.
This mindset goes well beyond school and college. Land and Jarman also performed a control test of two-thousand adults (aged 25+) where only 2% ranked as geniuses. We don't grow into creativity, we grow out of it, because of the ways in which we become institutionalised and socialised. Education is a big piece of this, but work is an even bigger piece.
Creativity is most frequently associated, in the workplace, with innovation but it is equally important in helping society cope with, and harness, technological advances. No matter what we do or where we do it, technology is going to swamp us: new information systems are going to subvert all the things we take for granted.
The over-25s think we're OK, but we're not that great. We have learnt digital technology like a second language, so we kind of speak phrasebook digital compared with our children. IT systems are becoming more and more pervasive, but they're not fundamentally avoiding the powerful need for better and better use of human resources. To the contrary. Human resource is the only way we can engage with these things properly ... and at this moment we are locked into an industrial mindset about our own capabilities.
Business people can help to nurture creativity and imagination by thinking of organisations as organisms rather than organisations A better metaphor is from agriculture. A farmer can't make a plant grow. A plant grows itself. A good farmer provides the conditions for growth. And a great plant doesn't just grow from the top, it grows everywhere simultaneously, as do healthy organisations, which have a reciprocating relationship among the parts.
There is a huge difference between a creative team and a committee: great creative teams require real expertise among managers and leaders to work. It's a skill-set that we need to be teaching managers and leaders.
Great teams, large or small, are deliberately diverse: they have people from different backgrounds, experiences, ages and responsibilities in the organisation. The processes employed by these teams ensure that their diversity is not an impediment but a resource.
The best senior managers are those who are not afraid to let teams congregate for specific tasks and then disband, to form other teams as necessary, perhaps one of the best ways to spread cultural information around the organisation.
It is essential to create the right habitat, in terms of culture and environment. Anyone who is serious about making more of people must be serious about the environment in which they work. And not just the colour of the walls: innovative organisations have a rigorous approach to questioning algorithms of behaviour and changing the environment as need be.
Challenging stuff.

What I think is obvious is that we have a long way to go. BUT we need to make a start, no matter how small to change the inertia of creative decline. and just perhaps some of our organisations and social structures will be rebuilt into healthy living cultures.

Until next time ...

Success in Failure; Humility in Leadership

2008-09-09T11:35:00.000+01:00

Whilst hopping around the Internet recently I came across a great article on The London Business Forum website from an interview with Sir Richard Branson. As I read it, I was struck by an individual who is totally passionate about what he does whilst also being ready to learn, change and improve.

I remember Richard Branson being set-up for a fall on more than one occasion by our beloved British Press. When he was trying something new or attempting a new record, the snipers of the true British spirit shot … and if he failed, the “I told you so” or “You read it first in the ***” kinds of headlines prevailed. It was more important that he’d failed than what he’d attempted. And yet, if we talk to any successful businessman, failure is always on their list and it’s seen as part of their road to success (and perhaps that is why so many of our current journalists will never be successful … but that’s another story!).

Anyway, please enjoy the following except from Sir Richard’s interview:

‘Many of the audience wanted Branson to dispense some entrepreneurial advice, and he didn’t disappoint, mixing the common-sense with some fascinating and salutary anecdotes. “The importance of protecting the downside,” was a key lesson to learn, he said. This is why, when he cut a deal with Boeing to buy his first second-hand 747, it included an option to sell the plane back after one year. Boeing’s only concern, he said, was that Virgin “wouldn’t live up to its name but would actually go all the way.”

Similarly, he had a valuable tip on how to retain entrepreneurial dynamism while you’re growing: as soon as the number of staff hits 100, split the firm in two. In this way, he said, Virgin Records ended up being 20 different companies that “didn’t even share switchboards”. It’s a philosophy that Virgin still tries to observe in spite of its gigantic size. Of the group’s 200 branded companies, “none of them are massive in any particular field,” Branson said, and each has to stand on its own two feet”. The people who lead each business are managing directors, and are incentivised accordingly. “Virgin has created about 200 millionaires over the years,” he revealed.

The moment you go from one company to two companies, you’ve got to start learning the art of delegation, he added. “So what I try to do when we set up new businesses [is this]: I’ll go in, I’ll immerse myself for a month or two, I’ll learn all about that industry, so that if a managing director does come to me and wants to talk to me about mobile phones or trains, I’ll know something.”

True delegation means giving people the freedom to make mistakes, he said. “[My parents] would always look for the best in what [I] did. They were great believers in lots and lots of praise… And I think if you’re the leader of a company, this is even more important. You shouldn’t be looking for people slipping up, you should be looking for all the good things people do and praising those. People know when they’ve slipped up, they don’t need to be told.”

Another defining characteristic of Branson’s personal management style was his willingness to be humble, and to listen to criticism, where staff and customers are concerned. “I do try to make an effort,” he said. “If I’m on a Virgin plane, I’ll try to meet all the passengers. I’ll have a little notebook in my back pocket. I’ll meet all the staff.” He stressed the importance of tiny details, saying that only by getting these right will you end up with “an exceptional company rather than an average company.”

Ultimately, business is not about “balance sheets, money, profits and loss,” he argued. It is about “creating something you’re really proud of, something the people who work for you can be really proud of… the actual business aspect is simply there to be mopped up at the end.”

The fact that he never got a tight grasp of financial matters was probably a benefit, he suggested, in that it persuaded him never to bring in accountants too early in the development of a venture. “You’ll get one firm of accountants that will tell you, based on their own preconceptions, why starting an airline is a ghastly idea and every other airline fails and you’re going to lose a lot of money. You’ll get another set of accountants who’ll tell you why they think you’re going to make money. But they have no idea one way or the other.”

Far more important is to create something that you, yourself, really want and value, he concluded. “If it’s exceptionally good then people will always turn up and use it.”
Perhaps it’s time to regain and re-embrace some of the old ‘British Spirit’ without being ashamed (and without extreme nationalism). And it’s time to put to death the insipid political correctness that will undoubtedly ruin so many ventures. We are not all the same. Celebrate the fact and be prepared to try to succeed, even if we must embrace failure.

Above all, be prepared to be humble; to learn, to change, to improve … and to acknowledge that we may not have all the answers on our own, but they are often in our colleagues, friends and family if we are prepared to look.

Until next time …

How Creative is Creative?

2008-09-07T21:13:00.004+01:00

I often get into discussions about creativity and I'm amazed how few understand what the word means. Most seem to apply the term creative to a strange breed of artistic misfits, 'the creatives' who don't really fit in but are a necessary evil for success of the business.

But many people are really surprised when I begin enthusing about each of us being creative. I see furrowed brows as they wrestle with the idea that they may possess something that is so 'out of the ordinary.'

But is it?

I guess that for many of us the idea of creativity is alien because we haven't engaged it since primary school. Thankfully, there are those who have managed to retain their creative skills, through hard work, battling against the odds, a good teacher/tutor or just out of passion for what they do. From them we can all learn a lesson. To them, creativity is nothing special; it is a part of who they are and what they do.

And I think therein lies the secret. As we engage with our creativity more and more often, our practice becomes a habit, and our habit begins to influence whatever we do, wherever we do it. It is no longer something out of the ordinary; it becomes part of our ordinary.

So how creative is creative?

The answer is different for every person. I think that the question is not one of quantity but quality and of how we apply what we have.

What we need to do is discover and identify just what our creativity is ...

Bridge Builder, Pace Setter or Record Breaker?

2008-08-21T11:28:00.010+01:00

How often do we come up against an issue or problem and immediately think,
"I can't do that"?

How often do we look to others to solve our problems because we feel inadequate?

Why do we think others find things easier than we do?

In reality, our insecurities and failure to identify our own strengths can be a real barrier to our success ... as can our fear of criticism of others if we fail.

But take heart! Just about all of the most successful people in every walk of life have made serious mistakes. In fact some of them even declare that they expect to make mistakes in order to succeed. Many of today's multi-millionaires have failed badly, to the point of bankruptcy. But their main strength is a failure to accept defeat when they are down. They learn from their mistakes, apply that knowledge and continue to strive for success.

Look at the competitors in the Beijing 2008 Olympic games. We see the victors, who have trained hours each day for many years to achieve their peak which enables them to take on the rest of the world and win.

But think also about those athletes who don't come in the top 3 positions ...

Do they see that as failure?
Does that make their efforts a waste of time?

I think you only need to listen to some of the interviews to realise that for many, simply making it to the Olympic games was their dream. Having competed, they are now spurred on to try even harder and improve their performance.

Think also of the bigger picture ...

National pride (such as the Afghan Taekwondo bronze medal winner who won his much troubled country's first ever Olympic medal)
Potential for improvement
Opportunity to learn from errors and improve

All oftese things have significant value; value which is key to future success, not just today's glory.

And for those medal winners (in some spectacular cases, previously unknown athletes) who have dedicated themselves to training and discipline; they have reaped rewards beyond their expectations. But they can't just stop here. The will need the same (possibly greater) focus and dedication to stay at the top of their sport until the decide to retire.

We may all have different goals, different reasons for doing things, different abilities and different strengths, but we all have the ability to try for somthing we currently find impossible and achieve it. The sub-4-minute mile was considered impossible until Roger Bannister achieved it. Interestingly, when that barrier had been overcome, many other athletes broke the same barrier within a short time after the original record had been set. Why was that? perhaps it was simply the fact that their targets had been re-set because of the achievement of one other person. The impossible had become possible.

So what are our targets? Do we want to be the pace setters or the followers? Both are important. We need to decide in our own mind and then head for that target, and in order to achieve that goal we may need to rethink about ourselves, what we are achieving and what we can achieve.

Pablo Picasso wrote, "I am always doing that which I can not do in order that I may learn how to do it"

Interestingly, Sir Kenneth Robinson also wrote, "Creativity suppressed either deserts or subverts."

Are we going to suppress our own abilitites through lack of self belief or fear of failure?

I hope not.

Until next time ...

The Invisible Creatives Amongst Us

2008-03-17T15:39:00.007Z

"We need more creatives."

"Where are our creative people?"

"Where will we find the next generation of creative people for our business?"

"What is creativity?"

"We've always done it this way; how can we change?"

These are all issues I've discussed with friends over the past month or so. Creativity is seen almost as the Holy Grail, yet like the Holy Grail, it is elusive, can't be found, remains a mystery. It is something restricted to certain 'gifted' artistic individuals, or to a group of social misfits who sit isolated in their own thoughts dreaming up ideas.

The truth is that creativity is not restricted neither are creatives 'misfits'. In order to be truly creative, interpersonal skills are prerequisite; interaction is important and the good news is that it is present in normal people! We all have the potential to apply creativity, whether we work in a scientific, mathematical, engineering, human science or artistic environment.

The question isn't so much,"Where are the creatives?"

but more

"How can I discover and apply my own creative abilities?"

We tend to think that the grass is greener on the other side; someone else always has better resources than us; someone else always has better ideas than us.

But is that true?

These 'other people' potentially start with the same resources as we do but develop them in a different way, or perhaps they are able to see the potential in who and what they have! The trend over recent years has been to hire the bright young graduates emerging from our centres of academic excellence, replacing existing experience with a new vibrant culture.

But how new and how vibrant is it? Sure there's lots of energy, so I guess in that sense it is vibrant. But how can people emerging from an educational system, still naïve in so many areas of life, experience and reality possibly hope to contribute significantly to our creative culture, if it's not been there in their education? And how can people who are uncreative (the majority emerging from this 'acreative' educational culture) then teach others to be creative? I would suggest that the answer is 'With difficulty.'

However, if we take time to look closer at our people we will surely see a wealth of potential. Perhaps the silver foxes with their experience do have something to offer after all! Perhaps their years of effort, challenges, mistakes and triumphs count a lot more than we realise towards a creative culture we seek after so earnestly. Creativity involves risk, experiment, a combination of experience with naïvity; bringing together different personalities, who perhaps don't naturally sit comfortably together, rubbing the corners off each other to produce a creative spark.

The companies that know the importance of creativity and the creative culture thrive and grow, identifying and releasing it within their existing staff, harnessing the benefits of experience and tempered persistence along with the enthusiasm of newcomers.

Companies that don't, including some of our big corporate players are likely to become historical names in the not too distant future unless they fail to embrace the concept and change accordingly.

Blindicles for the Arts or Articles for the Blind?

2008-01-26T15:15:00.000Z

'Articles for the Blind' frequently fall through the letterbox of my blind friend.

I use the term blind rather than the PC 'visually impaired' because many of us sighted people hear the term 'visually impaired' ('VI' to those in the know!!) and think instinctively of someone who 'can't see very well'. I use the term blind because this friend does not have any perception of light or dark, let alone image discernment; her vision is 100% impaired … plus some!!

I have learnt a huge amount from this friend, including that two of the most frequent misconceptions are:

Guide dogs are not so well trained that you say, “Take me to the corner shop” and then just follow them. It is the owner, not the dog who learns the route; the function of the dog is to get their owner to the destination in one piece … most of the time!
They are 'Guide Dogs' not 'Blind Dogs': it's the owners who are blind, not the dogs!

So, why do I choose to tell you about a blind friend in particular? Well, despite a complete lack of visual function she is incredibly creative!

Surprised?

Isn't creativity a visually inspired thing?

Obviously not.

When I first discovered that my friend had no perception of light and dark, I was intrigued to find out what she 'saw' when she closed her eyes: Was it black? Was it white? Was there colour?

Her response made me take a step back … "No! There is just nothing!"

Yet, as we talked about colour and shade and clothes and house decorations I was staggered that she had the most amazing concept of colour and co-ordination. She could go into her wardrobe and pull out clothes that matched and then go to her jewellery and find an appropriate necklace and earrings. It didn't matter to me whether what I saw as green related to how my friend saw green. I was confronted with was a lady who, when she closed her eyes (or kept them open for that matter) could 'see nothing' yet could perceive in her mind colour matches and co-ordination to fine degrees of detail.

My friend could describe pictures she saw in her mind, musical pictures that were stimulated through conversation, sounds, taking a walk … many things. During discussions new light would be thrown on old problems simply because she was able to see things from a different perspective. And it was amazing how many times those ideas were the key that unlocked the door to new discoveries and new ways of doing things.

I was struck how differently we could see situations; metaphorically and physically (though she had a slight disadvantage!) and yet how synergistic these views often were. They weren't 'right' or 'wrong'; they complimented each other, rubbed against each other, challenged each other and in so doing released something new. One of the great things about creativity is that it can be sparked when we come face-to-face with people who see things very differently from us, in this case, quite literally! Some magic moments occur when my view is challenged or even destroyed by that of my friend. These are the times when connections are made between things that don’t naturally connect for me and true creativity is born.

I know that my perspective on life has been greatly enriched by knowing this friend. I hope that each of us can find something fresh from relationships that we have in business or our personal lives that may have become stale or contentious because of our very different views.

Perhaps if we see the potential rather than the problem we will all benefit.

Taking Personal Responsibility for Etiquette

2008-01-23T09:33:00.000Z

As a follow-up to a recent post ... I was very interested to read an article just now on corporate e-mail etiquette and was left asking myself the question,

"Do we really think about what we're doing?"

I suspect the answer is probably 'No' in many cases as we try our hardest to either empty our inbox, or look for someone else to solve the problem. Neither of these intentions is bad unless we are the one who should be solving the problem. But is the e-mail inbox the only problem? I think not. Myopia (short-sightedness) is common in so many areas of our daily existence. We have often become pre-conditioned to respond in such a way through repeatedly acting that same way; sometimes acting before thinking. The result is that we often, inadvertently (or intentionally?) overload others.

Perhaps you, like me, are looking to make 2008 a year where those knee-jerk and pre-conditioned responses are identified, addressed and resolved. This is not an easy or pain-free course of action and will undoubtedly need to continue to be re-addressed. However, I am confident that the benefit of my actions will be much wider than just myself: the change in me and my attitudes will impact those around me.

So, instead of looking for some kind of 'policing' in situations like excessive e-mail, might it not be a good idea to address the problem at the root: the people who are sending them and bring about a change in attitude and awareness. Rather than being reactive to something that has already happened, wouldn't it be better to stop it from happening in the first place?

Honest Debate - A Creative Tool?

2008-01-14T14:23:00.000Z

Hi! I've not written anything down for a while because I have had my nose in books researching for my business. My entry for today is short and basic.

I never cease to be amazed how many of the triggers that release creativity are so simple. Nothing deep and complicated; nothing highly theoretical; nothing special really ... just a gateway to looking at the same problem in a different way. For example, take a problem, look at the key elements in that problem and then start thinking about the effects of opposites: What would be the situation if that wasn't to happen?

And as I looked at these tools, it struck me that some of the greatest stimulators of creativity are when opposites meet; when we are placed in situations, or with people who take a different, possibly contrary view to our own.

And I wondered whether we lose creative opportunities because we are afraid to engage in open, honest, frank debate and in some cases take an opposing view. I'm not suggesting that we look for every opportunity to put people together who go for each other's jugular, but I am suggesting that by encouraging honest debate between people or departments which don't naturally fit together, we may be able to stimulate some new, otherwise unidentified solutions to our problems.

I also think that some our meetings would also be more fun and productive!

2008-01-05T17:43:00.000Z

'Oh! I've known you for ages. I don't think it's my job to tell you when you've done something well ... just when you need to improve'

So ended a conversation with someone I'd known for years ... and it hurt ... and it set me thinking!

I see many people, especially young people/young adults with a desperate need to be affirmed, noticed, respected (in the true sense) and encouraged. They have many 'friends' and colleagues whom they have known for a long time, but somehow the familiarity has also put scales on the eyes of friends, so that they no longer encourage or feed positives into their life ... only a destructive neutrality.

And yet I am often just as guilty as my friend for either prejudging (appearance, comments from other people etc) or just looking for things I can improve in others, whilst missing the core values and reasons why they are my friend in the first place. What should be a relationship becomes a monologue: I forget their needs and aim to fulfil my wants.

I remember friends at school who were devastated when they had tried their hardest and yet weren't quite good enough because the standard of their work didn't compare to the standard of work submitted by other members of the class. Rather than being helped and encouraged, they were targetted by teachers and fellow pupils; they were the butt end of jokes; they were labelled 'thick', 'stupid', 'dunces' (and worse) ... and I was right there with the crowd taunting them!!

What effect did this have on the individuals concerned?

They responded in a number of ways. They became:

Discouraged ... they perceived themselves as not good enough.
Demotivated ... their enthusiasm and interest declined and not surprisingly, their marks got worse
Disillusioned ... long-term, some of my friends gave up in that subject
Some became Disenfranchised from the education system ... they continually got into trouble with teachers, pupils and in some cases the law, and very sadly, some lost hope.

But thankfully, some became very successful people, running their own business and enjoying life.

So what happened to buck the trend?

In most cases there was either an individual who took interest in them, coached and encouraged them, hung in there and made a difference. In other cases the inner drive of these people to prove to themselves that they had value and could succeed was so strong that they drove themselves to achieve what they had been told could never happen.

I hear sad stories about people like Robbie Williams and Mick Hucknall, two high profile, talented personalities in the music world who were told by teachers at school, 'You will never amount to anything.' Ouch! Wouldn't it have been so much better if their talents had been spotted, encouraged and nurtured so that they could reach and enjoy their success without so many hangups and low self image.

As we look to cultivate our relationships with others we should start by 'earning the right' to their friendship by building trust and demonstrating that we are worth having as a friend. And once we have built these friendships and relationships, it is the responsibility of each of us to accentuate the positive rather than highlight the negative or, equally as destructive, make no comment at all.

I believe that by applying these principles to our relationships, in all areas of life, we will benefit, our friends will benefit, those around us will benefit and ultimately our businesses and ventures will benefit.

Success = Creativity + Integrity

2008-01-04T20:54:00.000Z

I was reading an article in the headlines today which stated that fewer and fewer people trust what they read in adverts, and suspicion is at an all time high online as surfers are afraid to follow advertising links in case their e-mail address is somehow 'captured' and they are bombarded with unwanted communications from the company and third party associates.

Combine this with an all-time low level of trust in business marketing campaigns as a whole and we face a bit of a crisis ... We need to communicate with people about our products and services, but how do we achieve that without being thwarted at the first step?

Can I suggest that one word sums up the answer ... integrity.

Over the past few years there has been a significant change in both the offline and online business arenas, from being company driven to being consumer driven: What do our customers want? rather than What do we want to give our customers? Creative (or not so creative) techniques have been used to 'breech customer defences' and get them to buy. Unfortunately, a lot of these techniques, though very creative, were also one-sided, excluding the customer.

However, the wind of change now means that customers have what, to some, may seem like too much power in dictating markets.

As I looked a little closer at this problem something very basic struck me: this new modus operandi is sales and marketing (offline and online) driven by relationships. Sure, we can dress this up in all sorts of jargon, but the basis is now,

"If you want me to buy from you I want to know you, I want to know what you stand for, I want to know what you are trying to sell me, I want to know how I benefit from having it and then I can make a decision on whether I want to buy it"

Unique Selling Points (USPs), selling the benefits of products and customer focused selling have always been good techniques and known to bring improved customer response. However, now the customers have caught up! They are tired of being given half truths or part information about products; and rightly so.

Unfortunately, presenting only the advantages and successes of a product, whilst omitting to declare some of the disadvantages has been the accepted norm in many companies, particularly if those disadvantages have no associated health risk. However, the more scary fact is that this practice also occurs in the health and pharmaceutical industries where the consequences are nothing short of dangerous or life-threatening. Newspaper headlines with significant impact on the company, publicised when it is discovered that certain unwanted side effects or adverse effects were conveniently 'omitted' from the dossier submitted for approval.

If we take time to consider this, the effects seen in the relatively small, selected population used in clinical trials are certainly going to be seen when the drug is released to the wider community and used by millions of patients, often worldwide. Integrity is compromised in an effort to gain (often short-term) return on investment to please the shareholders. Creativity without the integrity leads to compromise at the least; disaster at worst.

But the impact on the wider business community in these situations. There is a massive loss of trust by the customers; not only against in the 'offending' company but against all companies in the same business sector. We all suffer from the lack of integrity of others.

So, I welcome much of the shift that has taken place because I see it as a return to the basics of human interaction and relationships. As businesses we are now accountable to our customers and we are required to be open and honest if we want their custom, business and loyalty.

Historically and in the future, the most successful businesses are/will be those that display integrity and use their creativity wisely. No longer can we simply sell to our customers ... we need to gain their trust and loyalty first, and we can only really do that by establishing a relationship with them, by including them in our decisions and listening to what they have to say, even if we can't act on every request we receive. However, once we have their trust, it is easier to be open about our mistakes and we are seen to be human and not just some corporate threat. We may also be creative in asking our customers their ideas for solutions to our problems?

2008 is a new start for me as I venture out in my own business. After 18 years in the pharmaceutical industry I have witnessed much that is good and bad. My priority is to take the best that I have learnt, be transparent in what I do and keep an open ear to those I deal with.

I want to ensure that my creativity is tempered, no, driven by integrity.

Another Year of Potential

2008-01-01T15:08:00.000Z

As Big Ben struck 12 o'clock, another new year dawned: a year full of potential to do good or bad, to help or hinder, to get stuck in or give up.

And yet with all this potential in front of us, we are probably still reeling and recovering from the previous year and its activity, demands, successes and failures.

If we are to adapt to the ever-increasing rate of change in our world it will be our ability to recognise the changes, be open to them and respond to them. It will be an ability to work together with our colleagues and friends. It will be our ability to be open to new ideas, to work with new people (perhaps even those we don't like) and be prepared to engage and increase our creativity for problem solving, product identification, relationship building, selling ... or whatever aspect of life impacts us most.

There is great potential in our schools, colleges and universities to inject passion into our students, to find new ways which enable them to discover their own talents and abilities, and not least, find new ways to resurrect and increase our own passion for what we do.

I'm excited by all that 2008 holds ... challenges and triumphs ... hope you are too.

I wish you all a very happy new year.

Stuart

Information overload - Is this the real problem?

2007-12-27T10:53:00.000Z

Information Overload Predicted Problem of the Year for 2008 ... So reads one of yesterday's headlines.

Apparently, for 2008 the US-based advisor to knowledge economy decision makers, Basex Inc. have deviated from their normal practice of announcing a Product of the Year or Person of the Year to forecasting a Problem of the Year.

This problem is not new, but Basex's chief analyst Jonathan Spira says that it has grown as the technology we use increases our expectations for an instantaneous response to our request.

I believe that same expectation exists for instantaneous solutions to our problems.

Two causes of this overload are:

Copying someone in on an e-mail or hitting the reply to all button
The availability of more information to sift through for the correct answer (whether in an old e-mail or via a search engine)

These have resulted in more information and requests, more interruptions, more time wasted looking for the right information or answers, and perhaps most significantly, today's workers being much less productive. Spira indicates that workers get disorientated every time they stop what they are doing to reply to an e-mail or answer a follow-up phone call because they didn't reply within minutes, and estimating that they then spend 10 to 20 times the length of the original interruption trying to get back on track.

To put all this in context, it is estimated that such disruptions cost the U.S. economy alone, $650 billion in 2006.

Spira comments, "It's always too much of a good thing." None of these technologies we use are in themselves a bad thing ... it's just when they are used to excess. I worked in an office which was perhaps 20 yards long, contained only 25 staff and yet people in that office (who could see each other) often sent e-mails in preference to getting-up and talking to someone. Perhaps our lawyers have had too much influence with their 'Get it in writing' slogan or perhaps people are too afraid to make mistakes to cover their back.

So, is the issue really just one of too much information? Perhaps the problem is also a reflection of our corporate cultures and structures. In our thrust to please the shareholders we want instant response, instant results ... and instant show for our labours.

However, if we take a step back, we know that this is impossible!

I remember being taught in the early 90s that it is impossible to take anything less than a 3 or 6 month cycle in order to make a reasonable prediction of performance e.g., sales. Long-term planning (3, 5, 10 years) was the foundation of any successful business. Yet, only 10 years later we are predicting performance on a monthly basis or even less. The underlying noise and fluctuation is seemingly ignored ... sales increase in January and we're doing well; they decrease in February and it's someone's fault.

The development of ideas, development of products, development of our work cultures, the development of most things takes time and thought.

I would challenge us that the very thing we need for success, creativity, has been squeezed out of our businesses in return for short-term gain. We all want creativity, but rarely know what we're looking for, or how to implement or cultivate it within our business. Creativity needs space for experimentation, play, mistakes and improvements. It requires interaction between departments and people of different skill sets. Many of our company cultures pay lip service to 'allowing mistakes' but we all know the reality ... a blame culture.

Whilst this mentality persists, whilst we continue to stifle creativity, our businesses will continue to struggle, continue to lose sense of identity, continue to lose sense of direction, and most significantly, continue to lose our lifeblood, our best staff.

So, in order to counter the impact of this information overload, we need structures in place that provide effective support for staff, allowing them to develop and to do their job efficiently whilst reducing unnecessary interruption. We need to give them space to experiment and encouragement to take risks and then support them if these don't work out. And we need to allow them the time to do this.

Too much information and no structure to manage the problem has potentially catastrophic consequences for our businesses if we don't take steps to combat this cancer of the 21st century. We may resist the urge to immediately follow up an e-mail with an instant message or phone call, we may make sure the subject line clearly reflects the topic and urgency of an e-mail and we may avoid copying in more than necessary or using the reply to all button, but the problem is larger than just the amount of information out there ... The amount of information available will only continue to increase.

How we handle that increase within our businesses is a key to success or failure.

Whatever happened to the dreamers?

2007-12-26T15:45:00.000Z

So echoes the chorus of one of the most haunting songs of 2006. Jack Savoretti sings of dreams lost, the decline of true visionaries ... and the hole that leaves in our world.

For many of us, our dreaming was snuffed-out at school or in education...

'Stop dreaming boy!'

'If you don't stop dreaming and get on with your work you'll be no-one; get nowhere!'

'Get real!'

'What good is it if I can't touch it?'

'In your dreams!'

And yet, more recent discoveries show the important of dreaming in our creativity ... and it also shows the paucity and severe crisis in business because the creatives just aren't there any longer. Intelligence isn't just about answering questions that are posed ... sometimes it's about looking beyond those questions to the root of the problem, making connections that weren't otherwise there, being creative, dreaming a little, from which the true life-changing solutions arise.

A good friend with whom I worked for a number of years had come into the Pharmaceutical Industry from being a professional dancer and lighting engineer: one of the rare people who worked both sides of the stage. Her ideas flowed like water and it wasn't long before she'd established links with doctors that had previously been unreachable. Sales started to increase BUT this wasn't the way our company worked! She was told to stick to our tried and tested methods. Eventually she left and started working for another company who allowed her to use her dreaming and creativity ... and surprise, surprise ... she's been the top sales representative consistently throughout 2007.

Suppressing dreams is not only fatal to our own development and fulfilment, it is also death to our business and industry.

Innocent drinks works with an underlying ethos that encourages creativity and dreaming in all departments ... and celebrates when those dreams result in success. In just 8 years the company has grown from a 3 man outfit selling drinks from a stall at a small music festival into a business with an annual turnover of more than £76 million pounds. Try telling them that dreaming doesn't work or isn't reality.

Thankfully, there is a re-converging of the arts and the sciences ... a broadening of the definition of intelligence, a broadening of co-operative projects where both fields benefit.

And what is the source of this Renaissance?

A resurrection of the dreamers!

I often wonder what would have happened if I'd followed my inclinations to dream. What would have been the impact on me, my family, my friends, my business, my self-perception, my insecurity .. my life.

Never give-up dreaming. Dream against the odds. Bring about change. Challenge the boundaries and see the changes!

Happy Christmas - Take a break & recharge!

2007-12-24T16:33:00.000Z

Today is Christmas Eve ...

I love this time of year because I try to take time to rest, relax and recharge. It's very easy to get caught up in the hustle and bustle, the adverts and marketing which tell us that in order to be happy we must have this or that product ... until we feel that we're on a carousel and we can't jump off.

So, why not find somewhere quiet and amongst the joy, partying and celebrating take some well-earned rest and recovery!

Wishing you all a very Happy Christmas & Peaceful New Year.

... and if you like poetry, here's something I wrote about the first Christmas ...

THORNS AND STRAW

A back street stable in a crowded town.
Anguished screams; an occasional moan
Go unheard in the noise of a night
Of hustle and bustle, and rooms packed tight
With people, so busy and unaware
That a virgin's sweat means God is here.

No warm, cosy glow; only candle-lit straw.
A manger and oxen and filth on the floor.
No sweet smelling incense or soft comfy chair,
But cold stone walls; acrid smells in the air;
And the breath of animals to supply the heat,
In this hole in the rock on an unnamed street.

But God's not ignored the place that He's chosen
To visit as a baby, when the night air's frozen.
He treats some shepherds, the lowest of the low,
To front seat tickets at the greatest light show;
And singing and music like they've never heard before,
Which leaves them face down, shaking on the floor.

"Get up! Rejoice! For your king is here!
Run to the town and worship Him there.
Not in the palace so lofty and tall,
But lying in a stable, accessible to all.
So go! Take gifts and sing and feast,
For the mightiest God, has come down for the least."

And in palaces and castles hundreds of miles away,
A country's elite, at the end of the day
Study changes in the stars and heavens which bring
News, that on earth is born a king.
A king so great that creation bows down,
And brings its own offering, unseen in the town.

Their journey is long and filled with pain,
Across scorching deserts and rugged terrain.
As days turn to months and months to years;
Following the bright star whenever it appears.
Then rejoicing and thanks when at last they find
A small boy, just walking; the Lord of mankind.

With regal bows and language unknown,
They offer their gifts to Mary's son.
Gold, incense and myrrh; "What can I believe?"
His mother wonders as the visitors leave
To journey back east, their hearts on fire.
They've seen and worshipped the true Messiah.

And as years roll on by and the crowd's anger grows,
In reaction to this radical who constantly shows
That God has no favourites; our rules don't apply
To the values of heaven. "Crucify!" they now cry,
So He's crowned and beaten and then nailed to a tree;
This King, Priest and Sacrifice; thorns and straw set us free.

The Ken Robinson talk that made a difference

2007-12-12T20:27:00.010Z

Today, I have a video for you. It lasts 19 minutes so get a coffee ... sit down .. relax ... watch ... and enjoy.

Probably one of the most encouraging and challenging talks I have seen in recent years.

If the video doesn't start use the following link (the video will open in a new window which you can close, using the 'Close Window' button after viewing) Watch Ken Robinson Talk

How relevant are our emotions in our outlook & learning?

2007-12-10T15:17:00.022Z

I was reading a book today and came across a quote from psychologist Daniel Goleman, which seems to sum up pretty well where we currently find ourselves in education, business and society.

Here are some of his thoughts:

'These are times when the fabric of society seems to unravel at ever greater speed, where selfishness, violence and a meanness of spirit seem to be rotting the goodness of our communal lives ... Those who are at the mercy of impulse - who lack self-control - suffer a moral deficiency. The ability to control impulse is the basis of will and character. By the same token, the root of altruism lies in empathy, the ability to read emotions in others; lacking a sense of another's need or despair, there is no caring. And if there are any two moral stances that our times call for, they are precisely these, self-restraint and compassion ... When it comes to shaping our decisions and our actions, feeling counts every bit as much, and often more, than thought; we have gone too far in emphasising the value of the purely rational, of what IQ measures, in human life.'

Goleman points at the changes needed to bring about a revision and resurgence of individual and community values and creativity. Stimulation and development of only one area of our personality quashes the full potential of us as people (individuals and in our communities).

Only when each of us we are able to redress the balance and open up ourselves to facets of our lives that have lain dormant or remained underdeveloped/undeveloped can we begin to release our true potential and creativity. Then, our crisis in the business and indeed world arena may begin to be challenged and effectively reversed. Until next time ...

The creative paradox

2007-12-06T18:51:00.029Z

For decades we have been educating and training people to be academics. Those who succeed take the highest places of honour, those who don't ... well, we'd rather not talk about them.

But who are the REAL losers in these systems. I think the short answer is ... everyone!

We focus on training people to become thinkers, but at the same time deprive them of a key aspect of their intellectual capacity ... creativity.

Creativity isn't just something done by a small subset of people, locked away in a special 'creative room' that most of us never see. True creativity is something in which everyone of us can engage and comes when we apply all of our intellectual faculties ... reasoning, emotions, feelings ... when we allow our whole brain in on the party.

Think about an athlete preparing for a key race. We wouldn't expect them to exercise only one leg and one arm. We may laugh at the idea, but our traditional education systems do exactly that with our brain ... one part thrives and the other part atrophies.

And worse still, what if our brain doesn't connect with these logical, deductive learning processes? In two words: we struggle. Worse still, we become convinced of our own failure because we don't hit the academic standards (which after all are only set against one dimension of criteria).

There are many amazingly creative people who fall by the wayside because they are never allowed to achieve their full potential. Even the so-called 'academic successes' fail, as critical areas of personal development involving the emotions, interactive skills and basic team player skills have been squeezed through the academic mangle and been left behind.

Business cries out for creative people but is rarely in a position to get any: it doesn't really know how to recognise and test for creative people within its own walls and the end-products of university or college education rarely have the necessary skills or abilities.

It's a sobering thought ... one I will be looking at further. But what do you think?