Successful Companies Focus on Creative Thinking

Posted on July 23, 2012 by Harry K. Jones

As a result of a series of photos I’ve been posting on Facebook, I recently received several e-mails asking about our creativity seminars and keynote presentations. I must admit that I’m a bit surprised at the number of people who claim that they’re NOT creative in the least. I would have to disagree with them, pointing out that creativity is an inherent human phenomenon! This is a critical message that we’ve been sharing for years now.

We not only share the message but also provide tips, tools, and strategies designed to reveal this hidden asset to those attending our seminars. Let me take just a moment to explain why this is such a critical message for so many in today’s chaotic environment.

Creativity Is Seldom Taught

There will soon be a day, in the very near future, when one MUST demonstrate his/her creativity and innovation in order to compete in the workplace — and yet we’re not sharing that message in our schools. High school teachers don’t have time to do so and feel the kids will get that message in college as they are prepped for a career.

College instructors feel the kids should have been exposed to creativity and innovation in high school — they have more important subject matter to deal with on the college/university level. Really? As a result, these college graduates suddenly find themselves in the workplace where they are expected to know how to be creative and innovative.

Today’s business owners and/or CEOs don’t have the time, desire, or sometimes the knowledge to teach new employees how to be creative and innovative. They fully expect them to have attained these skills prior to applying for work.

Creativity in Business Is a Competitive Strategy

I remember spending the day with 150 CEOs while speaking at a leadership conference. The subject of creativity came up as a potential competitive strategy.

I shared a quote from Tony Buzan’s book, Use Both Sides of Your Brain:

“The average business executive has spent between 1,000 and 10,000 hours formally learning economics, history, languages, literature, mathematics, and political science. Ironically, those same executives have spent less than 10 hours learning about creative thinking!”

During a table activity following that comment, a good number of those CEOs agreed that they hadn’t even experienced 10 hours learning about creative thinking!

So how do you gain that creative-thinking competitive edge if no one in the organization has been taught how to do so? Today, successful organizations in every industry recognize this challenge and are doing something about it by training their employees at every level. Call it what you want — creativity, innovation, or thinking out of the box — you’d better be focusing on how best to take advantage of the untapped potential of your current staff.

It doesn’t matter if you have 3 employees, 300 or 3000 … you can increase your productivity and profitability by providing your people with those critical creative-thinking skills.

Call us today at 1-800-886-2629 for further details on scheduling a creativity seminar that could be the decisive factor in attaining the success you seek.

About Harry K. Jones

Harry K. Jones is a motivational speaker and consultant for AchieveMax®, Inc., a company of professional speakers who provide custom-designed seminars, keynote presentations, and consulting services. Harry's top requested topics include change management, customer service, creativity, employee retention, goal setting, leadership, stress management, teamwork, and time management. For more information on Harry's presentations, please call 800-886-2629 or fill out our contact form.

Creativity for Success

Posted on June 5, 2012 by Harry K. Jones

A recent increase in contacts about our Creative Innovation seminar and keynote presentation from both Fortune 500 companies and Entrepreneurial start-ups illustrates the fact that the business world is finally recognizing the value of a creative mind.

In today’s very competitive, chaotic marketplace your product and/or service MUST stand out among your competitors if you hope to thrive and survive.

If you doubt this cruel reality, stroll through your local shopping mall and note the growing number of obvious vacancies. This same trend can be found in suburban plazas, strip malls, and downtown locales.

Today’s choice: Distinct or Extinct! Whether you know it or like it, you’re moving toward one of those destinations every day. The choice is yours!

Over the past few years, we’ve witnessed a rapid increase in the creative investment in automotive technology, food packaging, communication, home entertainment, travel, and many other areas.

According to IBM’s most recent global study, the majority of CEOs believe the key to navigating today’s volatile, uncertain and increasingly complex business environment is creativity. However, is this just business leaders talking the talk or are 21st-century businesses really committed to being creative?

As usual, you’re going to find leaders on both sides of that equation. However, those who invest the time, money, and energy in tapping the creative potential of their existing staff will soon find a decisive advantage in the marketplace.

Ultimately then, leaders will be faced to realize that it is people we must invest in before buildings, products and technology.

Are you focusing on the critical need to provide your people with the tips, tools, strategies, and training necessary to take advantage of their creative potential?

If not, call us at 800-886-2629 to learn more about the many options we offer to assist you in your pursuit of creative excellence.

About Harry K. Jones

Creative 13-Year-Old Boy Finds a Need and Fills It

Posted on September 16, 2011 by Harry K. Jones

Do you know why kids are so creative? … and enthusiastic about it at the same time? It’s simple! They have yet to learn that they’re NOT creative.

An amazing study was once conducted among kindergartners that certainly illustrates this point. The children were given a white piece of paper with a medium-sized black dot in the center of the page. They were asked to describe what they saw. Here are just a few of the answers they recorded.

A squashed bug as seen from an airplane.
A snowman’s eye which fell into the snow as he ran away.
An ice-fisherman’s hole in the lake after he left.
A rabbit hole in a snow-covered back yard.
The top of a telephone pole in Alaska as seen by an astronaut.

The same picture was later shown to a group of seniors in high school, and the majority of them agreed on the same answer — a black dot on a white piece of paper!

What happened to this last group of students between their first and last years of school? They obviously lost their creativity, imagination, and resourcefulness. They had little or no desire to let their minds wander without the fear of rejection. Can you imagine what happened between their senior year and their first day in the work world? Frightening isn’t it?

Well, let me tell you about a young man who managed to avoid that sad transition.

His name is Hart Main, and he’s only 13 years old. This young entrepreneur has done for candles what Netflix did for movie rentals and Groupon has done for coupons. Last November his 12-year-old sister was selling candles to raise money for school. Hart, who wasn’t crazy about the girly scents, joked that there ought to be candles for guys — guys who didn’t want their bedrooms to smell like lavender soap or fresh laundry.

I’m sure a lot of people would agree with Hart. However, the difference between this young man and those people is very obvious. He took action! He did something about what he identified as a challenge.

He created a candle with a masculine aroma. He calls them “ManCans,” and they’re available in a variety of unique scents such as Grandpa’s Pipe, New Mitt, Fresh Cut Grass, Campfire, New York Style Pizza, Coffee, Dirt, Bacon, Crackerjack, Sawdust, Hot Coco, Buttered Popcorn, Bubblegum, and Breakfast in Bed (bacon coffee flapjacks).

He sells each ManCan for $9.50 and is certainly doing well for a startup. He’s averaging 300 orders a week and requests for his products are growing. Hart makes the candles in soup cans, so he purchases soup and donates it to local soup kitchens. He then returns the empty cans, and he and his mother make the candles in their kitchen. He orders oils from suppliers around his home state of Ohio and combines them with the wax. They’re currently looking for a space to rent as making the candles in the kitchen is getting out of hand.

Adults close to the 13-year-old entrepreneur are impressed how the 13-year-old has risen to the challenge of running his own company. Hart is apparently very much in charge of this business and is as hands-on as any CEO would be at the age of 50. He handles himself so well in media interviews and with the whole business that it’s amazing to watch, because you have to be reminded that this is a 13-year-old middle school student who simply wanted to be able to buy a bicycle with the extra money he would earn.

If a young man like this can capitalize on his creativity, most others can as well. In our creativity seminars, the majority of those attending deny they are creative. Is that true or are they in denial or unaware of their potential?

If you were given that piece of white paper with a black dot, what would you see?

Check out Hart’s website at www.man-cans.com. Listen to this young man as he describes his journey in this short video clip.

About Harry K. Jones

Mirror, Mirror on the Wall

Posted on March 10, 2011 by Harry K. Jones

We’ve watched the majority of airlines discover unique ways of adding to their coffers … charging for extra bag fees, window and aisle seats, WiFi, movies, snacks, blankets, additional leg room, and boarding sequence to name just a few. There’s serious talk now about charging bathroom use and overhead bins.

Apparently, it’s worked so well for airplanes that the airports are jumping on the bandwagon in their search for potential revenue generators. I’ve recently witnessed a number of terminals that are placing ads in the bins used for transporting our belongings through security X-ray machine.

Now, they’re attempting to sell ads to companies that are willing to pitch their products and services to travelers in the bathrooms! They’ve recently rolled out a campaign using 150 mirror ads at O’Hare International Airport in Chicago. In the future. the man in the bathroom mirror could be someone trying to sell you car insurance or deodorant.

When a traveler walks into select airport bathrooms, he or she will see movie poster-style ad displays over the sinks. Some are still images, while other are high definition videos.

As a traveler walks to the sink to wash his or her hands, the full-frame ads shrink into the corner to “reveal” a mirror.

Brian Reid, the founder and president of Mirrus, the company that manufactures the mirror ads, says:

“Bathrooms are often the last places people stop before they board an airplane, and the first places they visit when they get off an airplane.”

Reid says sensors detect when a traveler steps in front of the mirror and track how long they stand there, but no cameras watch or record reactions to the mirror ads.

Thus far, some pretty big advertisers have signed up, including Pepsi, Geico, Illy coffee, Microsoft, Dove, Spanx and Zappos.com. Airports share in the ad revenues and virtually do little or nothing to maintain the new source of advertising.

Mirror ads are also being used in sports arenas across the country, venues where there are only two places people are guaranteed to visit: their seat and the bathroom.

According to Clear Channel, market research suggests consumers remember brands advertised in mirrors at a rate of five times greater than other methods of advertising. The location of the mirror ads also allows advertisers to target gender-specific audiences.

Take a look at this short video and see how you feel about this newest attempt to make a buck at the expense of your privacy!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C9J5rygMNFw

About Harry K. Jones

Creativity Looms as Crucial Success Strategy

Posted on January 28, 2011 by Harry K. Jones

I’m going to ask you to stretch your imagination here for just a few minutes. Think back to a few cherished memories from your past … maybe your high school prom or even your wedding. Relax and remember all of the wonderful details of that evening and especially the facility in which it was held.

Now with that picture in your mind’s eye, pause to attempt visualizing that very special event being held in a funeral home! Yes, a funeral home … because that’s exactly what’s happening from coast to coast!

I just read an article in USA Today describing a new trend in the U.S. where traditional funeral homes are marketing their centers “not just as a place to mourn the dead, but as sites for events celebrating the living, including weddings, birthdays, anniversaries, holiday parties and proms.”

The article explains that funeral homes can be less expensive than other venues, there’s greater availability, and they’re often quite beautiful. Most importantly, while the economy has caused many traditional wedding venues to close their doors, funeral homes aren’t going away.

An Indianapolis funeral home now employs a “special events coordinator” who said no one had thought of marketing her facility for other events “because people had tunnel vision … they saw the facility as nothing more than a traditional funeral home and marketed it that way. However, I don’t see a funeral home; I see an events center.”

While many may laugh at this “re-frame,” her Community Life Center holds a dozen events each month and has nearly every Friday, Saturday and Sunday booked this year, including 99 weddings! They’re also booking birthday parties, anniversaries, holiday parties, business meetings and proms.

The lure? It is often less expensive; there is greater availability; and the settings—inside and outside—can be nothing short of wedding-picture perfect. Don’t look for this emerging trend to be short-lived. In fact, it’s growing very rapidly.

This is nothing more than creative business minds channeling innovative options to deal with the ever-challenging economic environment facing our country today.

A few years ago, banks and credit unions would have laughed at the thought of having their own Facebook page or at using Twitter to communicate with those they serve. Today, these are very productive strategies which continue to grow.

Consider the fact that eBay’s founders took the concept of the flea market, one of the world’s oldest business and escalated it to a world of profits by moving it to the Internet.

Google’s original offering was nothing more than a digital version of my elementary school librarian, who knew where absolutely everything was kept.

I often think Facebook emerged from a memory of our grade school practice of the spiral notebooks we passed around listing who was the best kisser, worst dancer, coolest dresser, etc. We just did it person-to-person as we lacked the Internet.

Andy Warhol traced a Campbell’s Soup can onto canvas and created pop art. Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta channeled Madonna and created Lady Gaga.

We’ve witnessed a growing interest in our creativity seminar (“Creative Innovation: Out-of-the-Box Thinking“) as well as our keynote presentations ( “Get Back in the Box!” and “Tennis Shoes & Blue Jeans – Back-to-the-Basics Approach to Creativity and Innovation“) over the past couple of months. Organizations are starting to deal with the realization that creative thinking can make them more competitive and give them a definite advantage in the eyes of their targeted markets.

That creativity exists in the minds of current leaders and staff members. It needs only to be recognized, channeled, and utilized as the tremendous asset it is. Are you tapping that explosive potential within your organization or are you “waiting for things to get better someday”? You might want to think about that … before your competition does!

About Harry K. Jones

Stop – Look – Listen – Learn

Posted on October 29, 2010 by Harry K. Jones

We’ve heard that phrase all our lives, but few people ever heed the wisdom embedded within those four small words. I’m in New York City this week, winding down what has been a very intensive boot camp for leadership and frontline employees.

In this program we delve into a wide variety of subject matter as the demands of leadership at every level has radically evolved as a result of our ever-changing, chaotic, global environment.

One of the targets of our focus in this program is the need for creativity. To compete in any industry today, we must be constantly searching for new and unique ways to market our products and services … regardless of what they may be.

The best method to illustrate this critical aspect of leadership is to share examples of those who have successfully utilized their creative juices to produce positive results … and those examples can be found everywhere today.

We simply must pause long enough to examine them in preparation to adapt these valuable lessons to meet our own needs.

I’ve been coming to New York City for decades now. In fact, I lived here in Greenwich Village for a while in the days of starving artists and hippies. I’ve watched this metropolis continually evolve to meet the needs of millions who live here and the billions who visit. However, it never ceases to amaze me that those who live in the midst of creativity seldom recognize it.

For instance, both vehicle and pedestrian traffic has constantly increased over the years in the heart of New York City. There appears to be no end in sight. “Crowded” would be an understatement. The “Big Apple” boasts the largest subway systems in the world, more than 13,000 taxis, and a population of well over nine million! Add an average of 47 million tourists each year, and you’ve got a real party!

With all of those traffic figures in mind, NYC has attempted what many would consider to be impossible. They closed 42nd to 47th Streets to traffic! They’ve drastically altered the three-way intersection where Broadway meets Seventh Avenue … a popular destination for so many tourists every year. They’ve created a very unique Pedestrian Mall in New York’s Times Square! The heavy traffic has been replaced by hundreds of patio tables, chair and umbrellas where people can hang out, read a book, and have lunch while taking in the sights. It’s become the world’s largest open-air “hospitality” room and, thus far, has been a tremendous success enhancing safety conditions, offering a welcome oasis, and changing the overall “feel” of the city!

While many would invest time and energy explaining that such a project simply couldn’t possibly be accomplished … other creative minds have overcome the odds and DONE IT! Take the time to look around you, and you’ll discover new examples of creativity emerging on a regular basis, Stop, Look, Listen, and Learn! You’ll be glad you did!

About Harry K. Jones

Would You Gamble on a Pop-Tart?

Posted on September 27, 2010 by Harry K. Jones

When it comes to thinking out of the box, many struggle with simply letting their imagination run free. Ironically, the flexibility to do just that is often times critical to your success.

Visualize the chaos of New York City’s Times Square and the obviously intense competition of one of the largest cities in the world. If you were given the opportunity to open any kind of establishment amidst that treasured real estate, what would it be? What service or product do you think might attract the attention of the millions of people who traffic that famous few blocks of real estate? You might be surprised.

Two week ago, Kellogg’s “Pop-Tarts World” Mega-Store opened, joining M&Ms and Hershey as yet another sugary tourist attraction in Times Square. Located on 42nd Street between 6th and Broadway, the store will include a cafe selling—you guessed it—Pop-Tarts. Promoters have promised a few surprises for those who struggle to visualize 3,000 square feet dedicated to toaster pastries. Among them is “Pop-Tarts sushi,” which is minced Pop-Tarts wrapped in a fruit roll-up. The cafe will serve 30 different snacks and desserts, allowing visitors to design their own Pop-Tarts by adding frosting, toppings, and drizzle.

Customers will be able to eat Pop-Tart sushi, order a customized pastry, create a custom box filled with a mix of their favorite flavors or chose a Pop-Tart T-shirt from a collection of colorful designs.

In fact, just about the only attraction at Pop-Tarts World which won’t put five pounds on you is an hourly light show. Makes sense doesn’t—I know I personally never feast on a Pop-Tart without the ambiance of a light show! The intent is for visitors to feel like they’re being “frosted” by red and white light, then “sprinkled” by brief pulses of multicolored lights, and then “wrapped in foil” by one last bright light.

Pop-Tarts, two layers of pastry with sweet filling, has been a Kellogg mainstay for nearly 50 years; about two billion sell each year. However, as unbelievable as this may sound, it wasn’t until the recent rise of social media that Kellogg grasped the dedication of Pop-Tart fans. The Pop-Tart’s Facebook page is one of the social network’s 20 most popular!

Bottom line—never rule out any possibility! Monitor current trends, remain flexible, and be willing to risk the radical expansion of your comfort zone. Oh, and start your day with a Pop-Tart!

About Harry K. Jones

Creativity Keeps on Truckin’

Posted on September 22, 2010 by Harry K. Jones

Our creativity keynote presentation for “Get Back in the Box!” is one of our most requested programs in these challenging times of constant change.

The same can be said for our full- and half-day seminars for “Creative Innovation – Out-of the-Box Thinking.”

I’m continually amazed by the limited thinking of many who attend both programs. When asked, most people reply that they are NOT creative. I’m never certain whether this response is a result of shyness, humbleness, ignorance or denial. Everyone has a degree of creativity whether they realize it or not.

I’ve also had a number of people state that creativity may work well if you work for Disney, Google or Hallmark Cards, but they simply can’t see a place for it where they work. How do you show creativity in a dentist’s office, lumber yard or post office? This attitude is nothing more than a lack of vision, desire and application. I’ve seen many examples of creative ideas enhancing advertising, marketing, customer service and design in organizations many would consider lacking in opportunity for innovative thinking.

Applied creativity can enhance any situation. For instance, during a recent routine trek to the airport, I found myself approaching a semi-truck. As I neared the rear of this over-sized behemoth, I couldn’t help but notice a large, colorful message painted on the rear door of the semi-trailer. It stated simply:

Our Most Valuable resource sits 63 feet ahead!

I couldn’t help but admire this unique use of something as simplistic as a door on the rear of a semi-truck. Think about it:

There are more than ten million semi-trucks on U.S. roads today!
There is always someone driving behind every one of those trucks that will have no alternative but to read any message appearing on that rear door!
Consider the number of cars in a single day that will be a captive audience to that rolling billboard and its communication.
Consider as well the enormous potential of the millions of trucks which offer little or no message in this valuable space.
Also consider the many possible messages conveyed by those 8 powerful words:
- This company obviously appreciates its employees.
- Therefore, it probably values and appreciates its customers as well.
- The driver is probably better trained and more aware of his/her driving as he/she strives to live up to this message.
- If this company is creative in this way, it is probably creative in other ways as well.
- And the list goes on.

It required very little time and minimal cost to place that message on the rear of a truck that is now promoting that company from coast to coast 24/7, whether rolling down the highway or parked in a truck stop while the driver grabs a bite to eat!

Think about it! This company is headquartered in Nebraska. I saw the message in Michigan and shared it with a large conference audience in Missouri the very next day! That’s pretty impressive ROI!

How many other drivers may have done something similar?

I wonder how many other trucks are spreading that message every day on behalf of this very creative company?

Why not sit down with your staff and brainstorm how creativity and innovation could possibly benefit your organization in ways that have never been considered? Thirty minutes of creative brainstorming could provide a lifetime of valuable benefits!

To prove my point and solidify this message … The name of that creative company is Shaffer Trucking of Lincoln, Nebraska, and you can learn more about them at CreteCarrier.com.

About Harry K. Jones

Everyone Is Creative! Few Realize It!

Posted on August 13, 2010 by Harry K. Jones

Are you creative?

The answer is a definite “NO” from 90% of those asked!

How accurate is that answer? Not very!

Are those who answered lying? Not at all!

The majority of people today honestly don’t believe that they’re the least bit creative. Yet, that opinion is disproved almost daily. Some of the most creative and productive ideas on record have originated from the most unassuming people in the organization.

Consider the following examples:

The McDonald’s “Happy Meal”
The UPS “Right Turn Strategy”
The Nike waffle iron sole for running shoes
The dial telephone invented by an undertaker
The Birdseye Frozen Food quick-freezing process

These are just a few of the many breakthrough ideas which have changed our way of life in this country. The opportunities abound. Most are simplistic in nature. They’re all around us and continue to surface daily. We simply credit their discovery to those who are more creative than we are … which is usually untrue. The credit actually goes to those who are curious, confident, eager to expand their comfort zones and unafraid to take calculated risks.

Here’s another perfect example:

In 1991 a group of investors came up with a novel idea. After the NCAA championship basketball game between Duke and Kansas in Indianapolis, they invested $65,000 to buy the floor on which the final four games were played. That was a “calculated risk”! Would you have gambled on such an idea?

They then cut this brand new basketball floor into 22,000 little pieces. These investors then sold those little 6×5 pieces of floor to 22,000 loyal fans as souvenirs for $24.95 each. This creativity turned their $65,000 investment into $548,900 in less than one week! A profit of more than half a million dollars in one week!

Again, those opportunities are everywhere and we need to recognize them and take action. So, keep your eyes open, unleash your imagination, and be open to new concepts, strategies, products and services. Be one of those “creative minds” who continuously changes the world we live in!

About Harry K. Jones

Hot Dogs Make Waves!

Posted on July 7, 2010 by Harry K. Jones

The ingenuity of the American entrepreneur never ceases to amaze me! The tougher times get for our country financially, the more creativity and innovation surface to cope with it. The tenacity of our great people is unequaled anywhere in the world.

John Deere is credited with the phrase, “Find a Need and Fill It” … but two men from the Holland, Michigan, area are credited with taking it to heart in a way which satisfies a lot of boaters and just may prove to be very profitable for themselves.

The two friends have created a very simple Hot Dog Stand on Pontoons. They bought a 1976 25-foot pontoon boat and 50-horse Johnson outboard last winter and have been busy rigging it with a stainless steel grill, steam tables, and a full-sized refrigerator and freezer—and the generator to run them.

They painted the pontoon and fitted it with 15-foot flags from the stern shouting “ice cream” and “hot dogs.” They recently hit the waters of Lake Macatawa, not far from Lake Michigan. They sell hot dogs, bratwurst, chips, ice cream, pop and water to boaters who pull up to order or call ahead. They’ll be able to pull up to people’s docks, as well, although Coast Guard regulations won’t allow any customers onboard.

They said they ran the gamut of official OKs, from Coast Guard to sheriff’s department to health department to townships.

Meanwhile, the two are keeping their day jobs. They plan to be open for drive-through, weather permitting, 5 to 8 p.m. Fridays and 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays, likely with extended days and hours on holiday weeks.

Personally, this venture makes so much sense that I struggle to understand why it hasn’t been attempted on every lake in the U.S. to some degree. It’s a great money-maker for those who initiate such a venture but also great for all of those who are served! Good luck, gentlemen and congratulations for thinking “out-on-the-lake”!

AchieveMax® Blog

Business articles on change, creativity, customer service, leadership, motivation, teamwork, and time management, written by AchieveMax® professional speakers.

Category Archives: Out-of-the-Box Thinking

Successful Companies Focus on Creative Thinking

Creativity Is Seldom Taught

Creativity in Business Is a Competitive Strategy

About Harry K. Jones

Creativity for Success

About Harry K. Jones

Creative 13-Year-Old Boy Finds a Need and Fills It

About Harry K. Jones

Mirror, Mirror on the Wall

About Harry K. Jones

Creativity Looms as Crucial Success Strategy

About Harry K. Jones

Stop – Look – Listen – Learn

About Harry K. Jones

Would You Gamble on a Pop-Tart?

About Harry K. Jones

Creativity Keeps on Truckin’

About Harry K. Jones

Everyone Is Creative! Few Realize It!

About Harry K. Jones

Hot Dogs Make Waves!

About Harry K. Jones