Jolt!

by Phil Cooke

  » NEVER MISTAKE LOYALTY FOR COMPETENCE OR VALUE. SOME OF YOUR MOST LOYAL EMPLOYEES ARE THE LEAST VALUABLE TO YOUR ORGANIZATION.

  Everyone has intrinsic value. Every person has worth and is important. But a great leader always knows the people who bring the most value to the organization. Those are the people to be developed, trained, and cultivated.

  Create an atmosphere of original thinking and you’ll have more loyalty than you’ll know what to do with. Most companies are so ignorant of how to develop an environment of innovation that if you do it, you’ll have people coming from every direction to work with you.

  5. WE’RE JUST NOT TALENTED ENOUGH.

  I’ve put this last on the list because of the most frequently asked question at workshops and conferences. People from all walks of life come up to me and say, “I’m just not a creative person, so I’ll never be able to do these things.” Others ask, “Can I ever be creative?”

  All of us were born creative. Find any child and play with him or her for five minutes and you’ll see creativity in action. Children can visualize worlds you’ve never dreamed of and places beyond imagination. The most bizarre fairy tales seem absolutely believable to a child, and there is no limit to the creativity of children.

  This is beautifully illustrated in Chris Van Allsburg’s classic Christmas book The Polar Express. A young boy is beginning to question the existence of Santa Claus, and after a breathtaking Christmas Eve trip to the North Pole on the Polar Express train, he discovers his ability to believe is directly related to his ability to hear a ringing bell on Santa’s sleigh. Early on, the skeptical young man can’t hear the bells, but as his belief in Santa grows, he slowly begins to hear the bell. When Santa gives him the bell as the first gift of Christmas, he and his sister can clearly hear its beautiful sound—but his parents can’t. Later, as he grows up, his sister loses her ability to hear it, as do most of his friends. But because he never stops believing in Santa, he is able to hear the sweet, clear sound of the ringing sleigh bell for the rest of his life.

  Creativity is no different. We all start out amazingly creative, but as we grow older, the ringing bell of creative thinking grows softer and softer. There is a difference of opinion about what causes this—the educational system, a growing maturity, the sense that we’re “supposed” to be more rational as we grow up, taking on adult responsibilities—whatever it is, it’s a tragic loss.

  Creativity is allowing yourself to make mistakes. Art is knowing which ones to keep.

  —SCOTT ADAMS, CREATOR OF DILBERT

  Granted, some people are more creative than others. Just as some people are stronger, faster, or smarter than the rest, some people seem to be born with more creativity. But the fact is, all of us were born creative, and we can all grow in creativity.

  How?

  Don’t be afraid to start with a blank page.

  Every great idea started from nothing, but most people can’t move past a blank page. Start making notes or drawing pictures—dancer and choreographer Twyla Tharp calls it “scratching.” Look for bits and pieces of ideas in any number of places—reading, watching, thinking, reflecting. Find places that “feel” more creative and spend time there. Perhaps it’s a museum, a bookstore, or an empty chair in your bedroom. Wherever it is, that’s where the creative process can start for you.

  Stop worrying about being wrong.

  The fear of being wrong is poison for the creative process. Creativity is not about right or wrong. It’s about problem solving. Begin thinking in terms of problem solving and you’ll master the art of creative thinking.

  Understand that creativity is not a state of being.

  Creativity is about action. You can’t “be creative.” Don’t believe me? Okay, try it. Try “being creative.” Any luck? I didn’t think so. Creativity is the process of doing, and that act of doing is solving problems. Look at the list of great creative people—writers, artists, engineers, software designers, advertising executives, animators, and many more—they all were concerned about solving a problem, and they solved it with their work. A novel about injustice, a software program that helps create better photos, the painted ceiling of a chapel, an advertisement that sells juice. Creativity isn’t about a state of being, it’s about an end result.

  That understanding alone will free you to instantly take your original thinking to a higher level.

  The best way to get a good idea is to get a lot of ideas.

  —LINUS PAULING, SCIENTIST AND HUMANITARIAN

  Learn the art of brainstorming.

  When I teach brainstorming techniques at workshops, my greatest obstacle is people who think they already know how to do it. Most people assume brainstorming is just getting a lot of people into a room and kicking around some ideas.

  Wrong.

  Effective brainstorming is a skill, just like good writing. Here are some tips to help you increase the productivity of your brainstorming sessions.

  Create the right atmosphere.

  Find a place with no distractions. I suggest a location away from the office, but that’s not necessary. In fact, at a resort or similar location, the “fun factor” may be too much of a distraction. I have difficulty being productive when there are windows in the room. Likewise, sometimes it’s best to find a brainstorming location with few other options so the team will stay focused on the goal. Just make sure it’s a relaxed atmosphere where original thinking can flourish. Don’t allow interruptions, and make sure everyone knows what the session is about so your team can be thinking about the issues ahead of time. Also, make sure the session is well supplied—paper, markers, chart paper, and don’t forget coffee, cookies, water, or other refreshments.

  Don’t include too many people.

  Jeff Bezos, founder of Amazon.com, says that the best sessions have no more people than you can feed with two pizzas. When you allow too many people into the session, it becomes unwieldy, unfocused, and hard to manage. Everyone will want to be involved, but you have to restrict it to the most pertinent people involved in the particular issue. I like to limit the session to six people if possible, and I rarely make it more than ten. Sometimes more can work, depending on the problem to be solved, but generally, keep the numbers lower.

  Have lots of ideas.

  Brainstorming is about volume. Make sure everyone knows there are no limits, no boundaries, not even budget constraints. The purpose is to get everything out on the table. You never know what your next big idea is, so at this point, don’t limit yourself to what you think is possible or affordable. I suggest you have someone keep a list of the ideas and number them. That will help later when you go back to review, and it gives you some sense of how many ideas are being generated. One good suggestion is to hang poster paper or butcher paper on the walls and have people randomly write or draw their ideas on the paper. It keeps people moving, ideas pumping, and momentum marching forward.

  No criticism allowed.

  In the initial stages of brainstorming, it’s not about how good an idea is or whether or not it will work. It’s about getting the ideas on the table. So the most important rule of a good session is no criticism. If someone tosses out an idea and you call it stupid or unworkable, chances are, it will be the last idea you get from that person. And who knows? His or her next idea may have been the big one that saved the company. Don’t let anyone criticize an idea or a person. Criticism is probably the biggest idea killer than can infect a brainstorming session.

  Keep it to an hour or so.

  Someone once asked film director Alfred Hitchcock, “What’s the perfect length for a movie?” His response: “The length of a film should be directly related to the endurance of the human bladder.”

  The same holds true for brainstorming sessions. I’ve noticed that after an hour, people start getting restless and off track. Keep the sessions to an hour and you’ll get the best out of people. In special brainstorming sessions, you can go longer, but I would provide long breaks at the top of each hour. Brains
torming is mental, but our minds are also connected to our bodies, and our bodies scream for breaks. Get up, walk around, get some coffee, or go outside.

  The fact is, if you’re having brainstorming sessions on a regular basis, an hour is all you need. Get into a regular habit of brainstorming with your key people and you’ll find that you become a finely tuned idea machine. Speaking of fine tuning—

  Fine-tune the ideas.

  At some point, it’s time to take the hopefully huge list of ideas and edit them to the best idea. This isn’t easy, but it is necessary. Start with the obvious ideas that can’t work because of budget, time schedule, or lack of resources. If someone suggested opening your sales conference with the Victoria’s Secret models, that might be out of your price range. Having your marketing retreat on top of Mount Everest might be a bit tough as well. Make your first edits on the things that stand out.

  Next, pull ideas that are probably good but won’t solve the particular problem you’re facing. Some great ideas are ahead of their time. Fine. Put them in your files and pull them out next year.

  In the end, you should have your list of real, practical ideas that could work. It may be good to let that list gel over time. Perhaps you bring the team back in a week to discuss which of those ideas will work best. If you’ve developed a great team, then politics and ownership of ideas shouldn’t be a problem. A great team knows it’s not about individual stars, and one person shouldn’t campaign for an idea just because it was his or hers. Develop a team that values the best ideas and will work to fine-tune the list until you all agree on the best possible solution.

  Follow the path of the unsafe, independent thinker. Expose your ideas to the dangers of controversy. Speak your mind and fear less the label of “crackpot” than the stigma of conformity. And on issues that seem important to you, stand up and be counted at any cost.

  —THOMAS J. WATSON, FOUNDER OF IBM

  Commit to a life of creativity and original thinking. Dress differently, drive home an unusual way, look at your job from a new perspective, stop taking people and things for granted. A life of creativity is a wonderful world where you’ll encounter new possibilities and see the world from a distinctive viewpoint. Just as in many other areas of change, some people will be upset with you. Lots of people out there hate creative thinking. They don’t like change, and therefore originality is something they are uncomfortable with and shun. Many people in corporate leadership don’t like their policies questioned or their dictates doubted.

  But the results of original thinking cannot be doubted, questioned, or criticized.

  Tom Kelley, in the closing of The Art of Innovation (see p. 87 here), wrote:

  Try it yourself. Innovation isn’t about perfection. You’ve got to shank a few before your swing smooths out. Get out there and observe the market, your customers, and products. Brainstorm like crazy and prototype in bursts. You know the drill. The next time you’re knee deep in a challenging project, don’t forget the true spirit of innovation. That’s right. Have some serious fun. (297)

  Perhaps the best-selling point for creative thinking is fun. It makes work seem like a playground and can transform your attitude toward your job and your business. Innovation can build teams of top performers and create a corporate atmosphere of excitement, enthusiasm, and loyalty.

  It works in your personal life as well. When you can view every aspect of your life as a creative opportunity, the mundane becomes a compelling adventure and you’ll begin to see everything in a new light.

  The classic advertisements for Apple computer said it best: “Think Different.”

  » JOLT #13

  EMBRACE AMBIGUITY

  Appreciating the Mystery of Life

  The test of a first-rate intelligence is the ability to hold two opposed ideas in the mind at the same time, and still retain the ability to function.

  —F. SCOTT FITZGERALD, NOVELIST

  If you really want something in life, you have to work for it. Now, quiet! They’re about to announce the lottery numbers.

  —HOMER SIMPSON

  I like to toss out provocative thoughts on Twitter and Facebook just to see the reaction. It often leads to fascinating discussions, but more than anything I’ve noticed just how black-and-white some people can be. They want clear and simple answers to everything and can’t tolerate shades of gray. But the truth is, we don’t have answers for a lot that happens in the world.

  Why does one family experience tragedy and another doesn’t? Why does a company fail in spite of a great product? Why is there so much need in the world? Why can’t I accomplish my dream?

  One of the hallmarks of the modern mind—especially during the last hundred years—was certainty. The rise of modern science made us believe that everything can be proven given enough time, and in the age of modernity, we came to see our world as something measurable, concrete, and exact.

  But we’ve discovered that life isn’t as exact as we thought. In our age of “scientism,” we put our faith in science and considered religious belief to be primitive and foolish. We discovered that, while science matters enormously, it doesn’t necessarily hold the promise we thought it did. Marriages still fail, rates of violence and crime have not fallen, and wars still exist.

  Life is wonderful, but it is also quite messy.

  As a pastor’s son, I attended more funerals by age twelve than most people attend in a lifetime. My dad conducted funerals for children, teenagers, young adults—many people who had no reason to die and every reason to live.

  Again I saw that . . . the race is not to the swift . . . nor favor to the skillful; but time and chance happen to them all.

  —ECCLESIASTES 9:11 NRSV

  If we are to understand real change, we have to accept the mystery of life, realize that it’s not always fair and that we don’t have all the answers. If postmodern thought can help us, this is perhaps its strongest argument. Life is not necessarily about certainty, being right, or finding all the answers.

  In a disrupted world, the secret to life is about asking the right questions.

  From the beginning, we have been creatures of choice. We are not ruled by instincts, robotic instructions, or programming. We have a choice—but within that choice is the great paradox.

  Choice means . . .

  • we are free to do evil as well as good.

  • we live in a world where birth, life, and growth are balanced by decay, disease, and destruction.

  • the responsibility to do the right thing—not the license to do what we please.

  • true redemption is in the struggle of life.

  • ambiguity.

  Listen to the evening news for very long and you’ll see the parade of people demanding “rights” for everything you can possibly imagine. On camera these people are quick to talk about rights, but not so quick to talk about responsibilities. Understanding ambiguity is to take responsibility for our own lives in spite of what happens to us. Accepting ambiguity may be our greatest act of faith.

  Bookstores are filled with books providing easy answers. Go to the self-help or business section and you’ll find a multitude of titles such as The Three Easy Steps to Financial Success, Living at Your Best, Successful Families, or The Secrets of a Strong Marriage. I’ve read most of those type of books over the years, and I have to admit that I’m still not as financially secure as I’d like, I could still be living better, my family does dumb things, and my wife and I continue to have our spats. I’ve discovered the search for easy answers is a futile effort that usually leads to failure.

  Yes, much of the information in these books is terrific. Many of the facts are right-on, and they include things that can really help people. But the truth is, life isn’t about finding easy answers—life is about asking the right questions.

  When you can get away from your obsessive search for effortless answers to the problems you face, you’ll begin to understand a much bigger picture.

  » LIFE DOESN’T ALWAYS MAKE SENSE
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  Sometimes no matter how hard we work, the project still fails. No matter how hard we try, our spouses still file for divorce. And no matter how much we intervene, a child still experiments with drugs or alcohol.

  I watched the TV news last night as a father wept because his thirteen-year-old daughter decided to take the family car on a joyride, lost control, and killed two young children. She came from a good family, she was an excellent student, and her parents loved her and raised her by the book. There was no reason for her impulse, but she did it anyway, and now three families are shattered.

  As I looked at that weeping father, I realized there are no easy answers in life.

  I saw all the deeds that are done under the sun; and see, all is vanity and a chasing after wind.

  —ECCLESIASTES 1:14 NRSV

  If you think the Bible is a story of fairy tales for wimps, think again. The Old Testament book of Ecclesiastes was written by a man who had seen everything, been everywhere, and owned as much as any man on the earth. He had enjoyed everything life had to offer, and all he saw was emptiness and vanity. He understood the difference between a life of true understanding and a life devoid of purpose and meaning. It’s a book that deals with the reality of living and doesn’t hold back or cut corners.

  Film critic and professor of theology and culture Robert Johnston wrote in his book Useless Beauty: Ecclesiastes Through the Lens of Contemporary Film:

  Medieval Old Testament scholars called Ecclesiastes one of the Bible’s “two most dangerous books.” (The other was the Song of Songs with its overt sensuality.) Though its trenchant observations on life reveal a fragile joy—a useless beauty—its paragraphs also brim over with a cynicism and even a despair that seem out of place in the Bible’s grand narrative. (19)

  But at the end of this despair, the writer of Ecclesiastes also offers us hope. He offers real wisdom instead of easy answers. Life is not a manageable project or a test to be taken. We can find small joys every day if we have eyes of faith. We can find meaning if we search for a greater purpose. And perhaps most important, we need to realize that life is a great gift.