The problem with . . .

. . . is that it's dated, being the catch phrase to help push the creative juices in the 80's and early 90's; when TV was it, when corporations dictated everything and democratization of the market was at least 10 years away.  During those years, if a company wanted the innovative juices to start flowing, all you had to do was throw those magic words on the table - "let's think outside the box" - and voila; you were on your way! But times have changed. . .

With our initial discussion of  this in June of 2007, the sole point was that in the 21st century a new day is being ushered in. We are in the  midst of new times with a paradigm shift that is well underway.  The Google's, Apple's, crowdSPRING's, Facebook's and Threadless' of the world are already outside the box and if you want to be competitive and have your share of the market you are going to have to take it to the next level. 

What is the next level?

The intersection. . .

You want to be a Millionaire . . .

. . . then you have to hang out with Millionaires.

I use this idea loosely as my actual point behind the statement is this; if you are aspiring to reach a particular goal you need to be around people who have been there and done that - and can help you get there.  

If you are striving towards a goal it will help you greatly to have mentors who can guide and help you in avoiding as many pitfalls as necessary.  You may not be able to steer clear of ALL of them but if you can position yourself to make five mistakes instead of ten then I think making only 5 mistakes will win out every time. Being able to have access to people who can help you with your weaknesses and add valuable ideas to your mix of thoughts is something you should highly desire.

Additionally, when you are reaching for that goal, surrounding yourself with people who are smarter than you is rule number one (particularly when you are starting your own business). I guarantee you, if you are the smartest person in the room, you will be in trouble. 

For some people doing this can be difficult because it could mean changing the crowd of people that you hang out with.  If the company that you keep doesn't contribute to your personal/professional growth then you may want to consider finding a new circle of friends and colleagues to share your time with.  This doesn't necessarily mean turning your back on your companions - it simply means you are being more conscious of who you spend your time with.   

Chasing your dreams and figuring out how to do so is never easy. Particularly when it comes to the dynamics of both personal and professional relationships.  But at the end of the day, the only thing that matters is keeping your eyes on the prize. That means positioning yourself with like minded individuals who can help you in going to where you want to be.

Which one do you use?

                     or

I often wonder when people, organizations and companies are engaged in their daily business routines, how much thought are they giving to what they are actually doing?

I ask this because when you really look at what businesses are doing you really have to wonder; do they have a game plan in place or are they just doing things on a day to day basis without thinking about the long term plan? Reacting to what happens instead of actually having their own ideas about what should be made or what should be happening?

Case in point (an obvious one) - the iPhone. 

Apple (strategy).  Created a product that was sexy, practical, and with extremely useful features.  Made people want it and in the process re-arranged the DNA of the cell phone market by introducing the first touch-screen cell phone (and provide awesome customer service for their product).

Sprint (tactic). Created a wanna-be iPhone - the Instinct (with lousy customer service).

BlackBerry (tactic). Created a wanna-be iPhone too - the Storm (do they have customer service?)

2.  A second point - Twitter

Nothing wrong with Twitter, but for every story I hear about how Twitter is so valuable because it did x, y and z for a business I have 100 other stories of pointlessness (at least).  Twitter on many occasions is the focus of the conversation - who's following who today. . . (a tactic) vs. using it as a tool in your marketing arsenal (blog, website, facbook page, linkedin profile, etc) that supports your short and long term game plan (i.e. your strategy). 

In my experience the focus is more often on the tactic (the little picture) which is fine, if you have a big picture to fit it in.  But when all the talk is on the flavor of the month, (which is often) then the market continues to get average ideas, from ho hum companies, with little inspiration and no purpose.  So at the end of the day you're throwing money, time, and energy down the drain.

Call and Response

The times call for revamping of antiquated approaches, the adaptation of ingenuity and a metamorphosis of how we conduct business but what will the response be?

With a recent report out by the National Bureau of Economic Research it was declared that the country has been in a recession since December of '07 (thanks for letting us know. . .I didn't think any of us knew this). 

With the housing market crash kicking it all off followed (a year and some change later) by the collapsing of Lehman Brothers, Merrill Lynch and AIG and the recent buckling of GM, Ford and Chrysler (and let's throw in Citigroup for good measure) it is evident that the marketplace is in dire need of real leadership. Needed are people who understand that the market will only correct itself when you: allow more competition, unleash the reigns on the creative market and permit innovative ideas to joust with one another.  Not just bailouts for businesses who have lost their competitive edge.  But the question is from where will this leadership come from? 

Often those who are stewards of new ideas and rebels for new causes don't necessarily step up to the plate because they want to but they do so because the circumstances at that moment in time give them no alternative.  And today, right now. . . these are such times. 

This brings to mind the timeless saying - Leaders are born, not made. Today, at this very moment, the time is right for those with novel ideas, new thinking and fresh approaches to be bold and stare, unflinchingly into the mouth of today's troubled and seriously rattled environment.

Who better to be thrust into the present chaos than the entrepreneur?  The poster child for competitiveness, creativity and innovation?

In times which have entrepreneurial thinking written all over it, (and "leadership needed" emblazoned across its  front cover) I wonder about the above saying but with a slight twist: Entrepreneurs are born, not made.  Are these times where one, who is business minded, who simply by nature, was born to thrive in (or any other time for that matter) or can someone train to be entrepreurial, where the rule of law is uncertainty - especially in times like these?

I would love to hear what you think.

The C word

The new reality is now everywhere:  the business landscape is much more complex and convoluted today than it was yesterday.  Wikepia has an explanation for just about whatever you want. You can buy damn near your whole life on ebay and if you aren't on the latest and greatest new social networking site or aren't aware of the greatest new technology that will crush your competition then you're way behind the times and in danger of being left in the dust (or so they say. . .).

Businesses, organizations, ventures, non-profits (you name it)  are in search for the latest and greatest that will give them the edge on their competition.  Maybe not all - but many.  Yet often, the basics are overlooked – like being consistent.

You can be smart, gifted, savvy, beautiful, charismatic, proactive, determined, ambitious and every other thing in the book, but if you aren’t consistent . . .throw in the towel now.  If I had a dollar for every time a web designer didn't call me back or had a business "colleague" with erratic behavior, or I was dealing with someone who I simply didn't know what they were going to do from one day to the next I would be Warren Buffet (a billionaire). 

Left and right people say they want to do this or want to do that. They want to start a business. They have this great idea and they want you to help bring to life. Everyday gurus, thought leaders, and social media experts will all claim to have the drop on how to succeed (and some of them actually may), but what I rarely come across is the conversation about consistency.  People, their ideas, their actions and what they "claim" to want to do are as unpredictable as gas prices. 

Steve Jobs started Apple Computers back in 1979 (almost 20 years ago) and he has positioned Apple as a revolutionary company today, not because he just “happens” to be a smart guy, but a good part of the reason is because he consistently pushed forward. He consistently tested his ideas (which I imagine, many went nowhere) and consistently made sure that other people knew that he was consistent (and truly successful people only deal with consistent people).

Tiger Woods isn’t phenomenal because he just is. It’s because he makes sure that he is consistently reviewing his golf game. Consistently practicing his swing. Consistently doing something again, and again, and again until what he is doing is just short of perfect. This approach to consistence gives him the position of arguably the greatest golfer of all time.

Now being consistent doesn’t necessarily mean you’re going to be the greatest in your field but what it will allow is for you to be extremely good at whatever it is you set out to do and that in itself is extremely valuable.