Friday, November 6, 2009
Brainzenning - Up, Up, and Away
Thursday, November 5, 2009
Starting Over, Part 2
I'm a huge fan of NOT starting from scratch. If there's a remnant of a leftover idea, approach, or possibility sitting around, I always want to begin there and get that much of a head start toward a final goal by incorporating what I've done before.
Earlier this year, long-time friend Vince Koehler stopped by while in town. Vince shared his approach on collateral updates: he requires his staff to throw out all the copy on a brochure that's being redone and start over.
The reason? Doing so forces strategic thinking and a fresh creative view of the program that's being marketed. There's the potential for tremendous innovation value since this is another way of forcing a different look at a familiar topic.
If you've got a project that looks and feels like a re-do, why not give this approach a try? Toss out everything that's gone before, and it will feel just like starting over. - Mike Brown
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
Creative Quickie - Take Some Time
Keith Prather and I attended the October 21, 2009 Central Exchange CEO Series luncheon featuring Beryl Raff, Chairman and CEO of Helzberg Diamonds.
It was an interesting talk, especially when she went off script, discussing challenges in her career, how she developed a specialty in turnarounds, and the first meeting with her new "boss," Warren Buffett.
The first audience question was about what type of atmosphere she feels fosters innovation. Her answer was one where the status quo is challenged all the time and people "talk about ideas."
There's your creative quickie: see how often you're challenging the status quo today (vs. settling for what's okay or routine) and notice amid the time pressures of business, if you're avoiding "talking" about ideas.
Don't rush to "just do something." Invest time in strategic thinking and challenge your world as it exists today. - Mike Brown
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
A Whole Brain Network of Great People
I've extolled the benefits of surrounding yourself with both left brain and right brain people to complement what you lack in expertise and perspective. It's incredible to tap innovative people across the entire spectrum of points of view on strategic situations you're facing.
Monday, November 2, 2009
What Are We Trying to Say?
Many (okay, let's be real, nearly all) corporate visions, missions, values, BHAGs (you name it), sound alike. They either extol bland concepts (i.e., "our associates will be the best") or meaningless ideas (i.e., "our human intellectual capital will leverage world-class synergies").
If you have boring or confusing strategic statements in your business, here's an approach to correct it: ask the questions below to help simplify and enrich the language in your strategic statements:
- How would customers describe what we're talking about in ways very meaningful to them?
- If we were telling somebody who knows nothing about our business about why this idea is important to the company's success, what would we say?
- How would we communicate this in a way that really inspires our employees to greatness? How about potential employees?
- What are more emotional words to describe this statement?
- How will we talk about it when we've accomplished this goal?
- How would one of our mothers proudly tell a relative about what we're trying to do?
- If we had to explain this to children, what would we say so they could understand it and be able to act?
Give these questions a try with your management team or on your own. Take the words and phrases you imagine and start turning strategic corporate speak into language that moves the hearts, minds, and actions of everyone in your company! - Mike Brown
Saturday, October 31, 2009
Chicago Happy Hour and Tweetup - Monday Evening, November 2, 2009
If you're in Chicago on Monday, November 2, 2009, you're invited to a happy hour / tweetup for friends from this summer's Business Marketing Association conference and other great folks in the Chicago marketing and social media community.
It will be a casual opportunity to renew friendships and meet new people! Feel free to invite others as well!
Place: Frankie's Scaloppine & Pizzeria
900 N Michigan, 5th Floor (Directions Link)
Chicago, IL 60611
312-266-2500
Starting Time: 5:45 p.m., Monday, November 2, 2009
Twitter Hashtag: #bztweetup
If you have questions, email me at brainzooming@gmail.com

