Whether we call it writer’s block, creative block, or the blues – sometimes we can’t come up with a single idea or a simple response. We’re stuck and there seems to be no way forward. This can happen for hours or it can happen for days. And sadly for some, it can happen for years. [...]
Category Archives: Brilliant Actions
Six Ways to Deal with Stumbling Blocks to Creative Thinking
Also posted in Creative Thinking Techniques, Musings Tagged creative blocks, creative thinking, creativity, Stumbling blocks, writer's block Leave a comment
On Track with de Bono, Six Hats and Creative Thinking
Don’t know how my Dad felt about it, but when I was young I loved it when we had to stop at a railroad crossing and watch the trains go by. One time while we were waiting, Dad asked me if I knew what the sign near the track said. I said no, so he [...]
Also posted in Brilliance, Creative Thinking Techniques, Focus, Leadership, Teamwork, The Good Doctor: Prescriptions for Better Thinking, Thinking Skills Tagged creative thinking, Edward de Bono, innovation, lateral thinking, Simplicity, Six Thinking Hats, Six Value Medals, team building, team work, The Power of Perception 1 Comment
Leadership Lemonade – five insights to develop better change leaders
An insightful article appeared today in the McKinsey Quarterly, Developing Better Change Leaders. The message of the article is that leadership too often overlooks the “softer” skills needed to spread and embed change throughout an organization. Here are some of their insights: Leaders can’t ask others to change if they’re not willing to change themselves. Tie [...]
Also posted in Brilliance, Communication, Leadership, Seven Lemons of Leadership, Teamwork Tagged change, change leadership, leadership, leadership training, teams Leave a comment
Taking the plunge with new ideas – 7 questions for idea assessment
Hand over the money, I’m armed! If you’ve ever attended a brainstorm session you have, like me, heard the phrase: “There are no bad ideas.” And like me, you probably said to yourself: “Oh yes there are!” During a brainstorm, we shouldn’t judge ideas because judgment stifles idea generation. But once the idea generation phase [...]
Also posted in Brainstorming, Creative Thinking Techniques, Thinking Skills Tagged brainstorm, idea assessment, idea generation, new ideas, utica bank robbery Leave a comment
Nine Constraints To Innovation & Change
Innovation may be the latest business craze, but for most organizations, the achievement of bold innovation targets is difficult. To make matters worse, any one of these nine constraints make the task of innovation more difficult, if not impossible: Brilliance Activator helps leaders uncork the creative power of their teams to develop products and services [...]
Pink Slime, Leadership and Slime Balls
Barb Shelly wrote a commentary in the Kansas City Star titled: ‘Pink Slime’ A Product Of Our Cheap-Beef Economy. In that article she quotes Donald D. Stull, a cultural anthropologist at the University of Kansas, saying this about pink slime: “It is interesting to watch how framing really transforms the dialogue. It seems to [...]
Also posted in Brilliance, Communication, Creative Thinking Techniques, Leadership, Teamwork, Thinking Skills Tagged communication, creative thinking, creativity, innovation, leaders, leadership, pink slime 1 Comment
Is brainstorming an ideas generator or a myth?…part two
Is Jonah Lehrer’s argument against brainstorming all wet? Brilliance Activator helps leaders uncork the creative power of their teams to develop products and services that delight customers, increase repeat sales, and improve their profit margins. Receive regular insights and information from Brilliance Activator by subscribing to our free newsletter.
The Seven Lemons of Leadership – Episode Seven
What do leaders do? According to Robin Ryde in his book, Thought Leadership, leaders talk. In other words, communication is at the heart of being a good leader. “Crummy Communication”, the seventh of The Seven Lemons of Leadership, is one of the most serious reasons for failed leadership. In the video that follows, I discuss [...]
Also posted in Brilliance, Communication, Leadership, Seven Lemons of Leadership, Teamwork 2 Comments
The Seven Lemons of Leadership – Episode Six
“Corked Creativity,” the failure of leaders to put the creative power of their teams to productive and profitable use is the Sixth Lemon of Leadership. For over ten years the business press has published article after article about the necessity for creativity and innovation in organizations. They’re necessary not only for success but for continued [...]
The Seven Lemons Of Leadership – Episode Five
Economics are at the heart of business. But how we define economics, what we enable economics to encompass, determines whether our leadership is rich or poor. This episode of The Seven Lemons of Leadership examines the cause of poor economics and what we can do to avoid it. Brilliance Activator helps leaders uncork the creative [...]
Also posted in Customer Service, Economics, Focus, Seven Lemons of Leadership, Teamwork Leave a comment