Surrounded By Geniuses

To a Year of Innovation and Strangers

Greetings.  The start of each new year is a great time to stretch all of our thinking about a world of new possibilities.  A time to imagine new initiatives and offerings that will deliver even greater value to the customers, employees, and shareholders we have the privilege to serve.  A time to challenge conventional wisdom and even reinvent the way our businesses or industries operate.  And a time to reach out and connect with people and organizations that are very different than we are--people and organizations with very different ideas, perspectives, ways of doing the things that matter most, and even different dreams.

In September my newest book titled The Necessity of Strangers will be coming out, and in the year ahead I'd like to challenge you to make strangers--i.e., people you don't already know and who could be very different than you--an important part of your learning and action.  To connect with people around the corner and around the world who might hold the key to innovation and your greater success. To step out of your comfort zones and look across disciplines and cultures for new insights into the big questions, challenges, and opportunities your business faces. To look to make even stronger connections with the customers and colleagues you might not know very well.  

And to approach each day with sense of curiosity and greater openness to finding new and more powerful sources of inspiration.  

In a world filled with strangers and remarkable possibilities.

I always begin each year with a bit of inspiration from our children--Sara, Carly, and Noah (shown below outside Fiskekyrkan or "The Fish Church" in Goteborg, Sweden)--who continually remind me of the value of being open to new people and new experiences.  And I recall fondly one time when Carly was in fourth grade and we were taking our morning walk to the school bus stop.  On that particular day a fellow walked by who seemed somewhat odd and more than slightly disheveled.  A fellow we had never seen in our quiet neighborhood before.  And once we were out of listening distance, I quickly turned to Carly and reminded her of the importance of not talking to strangers.  It was sensible advice my parents had given me in far less uncertain times.  

To which Carly quickly replied:

"But Papa, if I don't talk to strangers how will I ever make new friends?  And, how will I ever learn new things?"

They were words that I now think about nearly every day, and words that inspired my new book and my ongoing commitment to help our customers and my readers to find value and even genius in people they don't yet know.

With a bit of (appropriate) caution.

We win in business and in life when we explore and connect with new people, new ideas, and new possibilities.  So here's to your strangest and most successful year yet!

Cheers!

The Importance of Different

Greetings.  There are not a lot of advantages to living in a place with plenty of traffic, especially when it can take two hours to drive twenty miles during rush hour.  But there are definitely a few.  One is the chance to listen to a book on tape or a favorite channel on SiriusXM.  Yes, I'm hooked on satellite radio after only a month and a half of my free trial.  Another is the opportunity to have some "alone" time after a busy day, surrounded by thousands of one's closest strangers who are in various stages of enjoying their own "alone" time.  And a third is the chance to see, and think about, some odd but occasionally inspiring bummer stickers.  It's a perk that is particularly engaging when stuck in bummer-to-bummer traffic.  

So yesterday as I got stuck rounding the Capital Beltway, I happened to notice the following idea:

DIFFERENT IS NOT ANOTHER WORD FOR WRONG.

Simple enough.  

Yet an important reminder of the real challenge of reaching our full potential as companies and individuals.  Because, try as we might, most of us--and most of the organizations we work in--have a real aversion to "DIFFERENT."  Different people. Different ideas.  Different ways of doing things.  Different opportunties.  Different points of view.  As a result, we tend to hang out with roughly the same people--i.e., people who are a lot like us.  And we tend to be most comfortable with ideas that fit our current understanding.  And we tend to prefer to do things the same way we've always done them--with a few minor tweaks or a few incremental changes along the way.  And we tend to be most interested in new opportunities that are just like the opportunities we've pursued in the past--similar jobs, similar collaborations, similar investments, and so on.  And we tend to be less open, the older we get, to different perspectives and points of view.

All because we equate "different" with being "wrong" or at best "less than equal." Even when we should realize that different could be the real key to our success.

It turns out that no one ever did anything remarkable by being the same.

And no one ever stood out from the pack by fitting in.

And no one ever changed the world by daring to not make waves.

In fact, as we begin 2013, DIFFERENT should be our mantra.  Being different in ways that really matter to our companies, organizations, and the customers we have the privilege to serve.

We win in business and in life when we choose to appreciate people who are different than us and ideas that are different than the ones we hold dear.  And when we take the time to notice a bumper sticker on the car and the world right in front of our eyes.

Cheers and have a great and different start to the year ahead!

On Veterans Day

Greetings.  Today, in cities and towns across the U.S., people are pausing to give thanks to all of our veterans and their families for their service and keeping us safe.

It's easy sometimes, in the press of our daily work and personal lives, to forget all of the men and women who put themselves in harm's way to defend the rights and values we hold dear.  And it is not only our obligation to appreciate the sacrifices they make, but to welcome them home with respect, kindness, and opportunities to transition successfully to the next stage of their lives and careers.  One of the great tragedies as we wind down the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan is the number of our soldiers who are unable to find meaningful work when they return.  

It's a huge problem for them and their families, and a huge loss to all of us that we cannot find a way to capitalize on their knowledge, dedication, and genius.  And a real challenge to the private sector to figure out how to find a place for them.

So this year, as you think about the skills your company or organization needs and the jobs you have to fill, try to think about our veterans and how they might make a real difference for you and the folks you serve.

Thanks!  

What's Your Big Question?

Greetings.  Socrates was, by several accounts, a very clever and noteworthy guy. Which is interesting, because he rarely shared much of what he knew.  Though he did know how to ask a pretty smart question, and that turned out to be his claim to fame...the good old "Socratic Approach."  Ask a very important question that sparks an equally important conversation.  

Kind of gets you off the hook for having the right answer.  But that's okay because there are times--actually a lot of times--when we don't really know the best answer to the most important questions we face.  And that's a perfect time to ask a friend, colleague, or total stranger for a bit of help.

So imagine this.  That we ask everyone in our companies and organizations to identify the key question or questions that keep them awake at night and that are essential to their success.  Questions they face right now that are at the heart of achieving their objectives and moving us forward as an enterprise.  And then we ask them to make their questions public.  To write them on a bulletin board or the wall next to their office, cube, or other workspace for everyone to see along with a request for ideas, insights, and perspectives that could help them to answer their question or questions in new and far more powerful ways.  An invitation for co-workers to stop by, connect, and share their best thinking on the topic even if it isn't their area of expertise.  Because they might have a very different view based either on the work they do for us or some other aspect of their life which they are passionate and knowledgeable about.  And they might have new frameworks that could stretch our thinking--if we are open to it.

Along with an offer to return the favor.

And all that's required is a simple and honest invitation, and a corporate culture that really believes in sharing knowledge and possibilities.

We win in business and in life when we ask the right questions.  And when we are willing to ask for help in our search for the right answers.

Cheers!

P.S.  Speaking of questions, today is the U.S. Presidential election and a chance for all of us to decide if we believe the country is heading in the right direction.

While I won't pretend to know who will win, I will ask the most important question: "Have you voted?"   

Having an Open House

Greetings.  It's Columbus Day here in the United States--a holiday that seems to be celebrated by fewer people each year.  And that's probably reasonable.  It's not that I have anything against Columbus--though he never really intended to come here.  He was, by all accounts, looking for a much faster way to India when North America got in his path.  And, as for "discovering" the New World, it's probably safe to say that the people and cultures already living in this hemisphere were the real discoverers over several thousand years...and they were likely content to keep it a big secret when Nina, Pinta and Santa Maria arrived.  Though it is worth noting that Chris was definitely daring, stylish and very skilled at raising venture capital.

But so much for history.  Instead, let's think about a cool idea that comes from the very observance of Columbus Day.  Because many school systems today are using this holiday as a great day to hold "open houses"--inviting parents to visit their students' classes so they can check out the teachers, gain a glimpse of the subject matter, see how junior behaves away from home and struggle to avoid becoming hypoglycemic until it's time for the remarkably healthy lunch in the cafeteria.  As such, it's a very useful idea which quickly got me thinking about its potential value in our companies and organizations.

Now I know that many businesses have already embraced this notion as it relates to customers.  Inviting them so we can show off our latest and greatest products, services and solutions.  Which makes a lot of sense in any organization where we can make our stuff look tangible and compelling.  Think of architects' offices, new car dealerships, sporting goods stores, hospitals and technology companies.  But what about using this idea as a way to strengthen the knowledge and connections of our own people?  

By having each department or business unit welcome colleagues from across the enterprise...

To share what we do, what knowledge and insight we have and our commitment to become even better collaborators.  To showing that we can even be fun to work with as we demonstrate our real value to the enterprise.

We win in business and in life when we get to know each other better. And when we become more open to all of our colleagues without having to go half-way around the world in search of India.

Cheers and Happy Columbus Day!

Unlocking Tomorrow's Genius

Greetings.  It's the start of a new week and a great time to think about all of the genius that resides in your company or organization.  Because if you're like most enterprises, you're probably only tapping a small share of the ideas, insights and possibilities that your people bring to work each day.  

And all it would take to unlock even more genius is a clear strategy, just the right encouragement and support and a belief in the potential of all of your employees.

It also might help to spend a few moments thinking about the nature and diversity of genius, and the real power of inquisitive people across all parts of your company to see new and important opportunities.  And a good place to stir your thinking is the latest issue of Popular Science and its article on ten young researchers who are working on breakthrough ideas in a wide range of disciplines.  Their projects include teaching computers to recognize people, improving our understanding of blood clotting, making miniature solar cells, creating robots that can learn from humans and making semiconductors out of bacteria.  As you read their stories, think about all the people in your organization who, through their knowledge of your customers and your capabilities--as well as their willingness to look beyond your walls, could break new ground in delivering greater value.

We win in business and in life when we think in new ways.  And when we find inspiration in the genius of our own people and others.

Cheers!

Once in a Blue Moon

Greetings.  It seems fitting that only six days after the death of Neil Armstrong we should have a "blue moon."  This is a somewhat rare occasion when the moon becomes kinda sorta not exactly blue.  In fact, the idea of a blue moon really has less to do with the moon changing colors than with the fact that our calendar isn't perfectly aligned with the 29.5 days that it takes the moon to orbit the Earth--also know affectionately as my favorite planet.  Given this, there are times--slightly less than every three years on average--when a single month ends up having two full moons, with the second one being called the "blue moon."  And tonight is one of them.  August 31st, 2012.  The next time a blue moon occurs will be in 2015.

And while this scientific phenomenon is relatively cool, it should cause all of us to think about the phrase "once in a blue moon."  It's a phrase that has come to mean an event that is exceedingly rare...like a company coming up with a truly profound and valuable new product or a truly remarkable customer experience, a help desk solving our problem in less than a minute or a seventh grader keeping his room clean.  A phrase that we often use to suggest something that we would love to have happen regularly but simply don't expect to be a standard operating procedure.

And yet they could be.  

Which begs the simple question:  "What are all the 'once in a blue moon' things that you and your organization do that really matter to the customers and citizens you serve?"  And, which ones would be more powerful if you did them consistently? If you and all the geniuses you work with could somehow figure out how to make them a habit.  Because they might be a key to greater personal, team and business success.

We win in business and in life when we understand all the things that really matter.  And when we commit to getting them right every day and by the light of the moon.

Cheers!

The Power of Imagination

Greetings.  Even today the very thought of sending a person to the moon seems somewhat amazing--a bold idea that became a reality forty-three years ago when an awe-struck Neil Armstrong stepped foot on the dusty, imperfect surface of our closest friend in the universe.  An odd and unassuming place that helped to create our calendar, influence our tides, affect our moods, cause women and many other mammals to go into labor earlier than they might otherwise, and inspire legions of stories about love, possibilities and even jumping cows.  

And then to welcome a guy stepping out of a silly and remarkable spacecraft.

The passing of Neil Armstrong should give all of us reason to think back to a time when anything was possible and to think ahead to what might be possible in the future.  A time to think about whether or not our hopes and dreams are big enough as people, organizations, nations and a collective world.  About whether you and your company are really living up to your full potential by combining vision, spirit, technology and hope in a way that might deliver much greater value to customers in addressing a problem or need that really matters.

So if you do nothing else in remembering Neil Armstrong--and all of the men and women who made his journey possible--at least take a few minutes to imagine what it would take to become more remarkable.  

Then set a goal, a timeline and a star or a moon to guide you.

Cheers!

Creating a Meaningful Impression

Greetings.  Shortly after arriving in Sweden we attended a fantastic concert in a beautiful old church in the city of Lysekil.  The performance brought together two very talented singers and songwriters for an evening of traditional Swedish music, jazz and even a few popular American songs (depending on your age).  The artists were Lisa Lovbrand and Goran Fristorp and in an era of iTunes and YouTube you can check them out with a click of your mouse or a touch of your smartphone.  

And while the music and the evening were delightful, one other thing struck me about the performance.  A very large heart that hung in the church.  A simple but powerful symbol of the essence of spiritual life for many people.  And something I kept thinking about throughout the evening.  As well as a perfect compliment to the skill and passion of these two artists for their craft. 

All to often I find myself walking into the generic offices of companies of all sizes and getting only the sense that they have interesting taste in furniture.  Stylish and well-lit reception areas that provide no real clue about what the organization does and what it stands for.  No compelling notion of the thing or things it believes in and the things that matter most.  No way to quickly gauge its passion--if there is any--for its customers, or its people, or the problems it tries to solve or the power of innovation and collaboration in making a real difference.  Just the latest and most trendy colors, the hippest new chairs, an attention grabbing reception desk made from the finest woods or the shiniest metals, and a big question about what they believe in.

When all it would take is a simple heart hanging from the ceiling.  Or a picture of someone whose life was changed for the better by their offerings.  Or a photo of a team of employees proudly demonstrating the value of their latest technological breakthrough or community initiative.

Assuming, of course, that they really believe in something other than selling stuff and making as much money as possible.

We win in business and in life when we make very clear the things that matter most.  And when we bring heart to the people we work with and the people we serve.

Cheers!

Clearing the Air

Greetings.  We've just arrived in Sweden for our annual pilgrimage to the land of Vikings, Nobel Prizes, marinated fish, universal healthcare and blond people.  On the way here we changed planes in Frankfurt--a large and busy airport connecting flights and people from around the globe.  And it was interesting to see how many of these people either enjoy or are addicted to smoking.  So many, in fact, that the airport authority, in collaboration with the very wonderful people at Camel, have created an amazing number of "smoking zones"--clearly an attempt to allow this group of customers to smoke while maintaining a somewhat "smoke-free" environment for the remaining customers.  And it was even more amazing to see that these zones included a lovely sign that says "inspiring creativity since 1913."  

How's that for trying to rebrand a company and product that might not be major contributors to improving life on the planet.

Not being a smoker I can only imagine how delightful it must be to light one up in one of these "creativity" chambers, surrounded by so many strangers with whom have at least one thing in common.  And I can also only imagine the number of remarkable ideas that have been generated by people stretching their minds in such a concentrated and smoke-filled environment.

But as I looked at these smoke-filled rooms I couldn't help wondering about all of our companies and organizations and how often we not only allow, but condone, bad habits.  Habits that hamper innovation and collaboration, and work to suck the air out of the room whenever an employee or team of employees suggests some very new or different way of doing the things that matter most.  And how often corporate cultures conspire to resist new people and new ideas by putting up smoke that drives us to continuing the same behaviors and ways of thinking we've always had in the name of conformity parading as progress.  Or how we put up smokescreens in the hope of avoiding difficult issues and difficult questions.  

Because it's better to get another fix than to rethink the way we do things. 

We win in business and in life when we take the time to clear the air in our companies and organizations.  And when we give everyone the real opportunity to have a fresh start in bringing new ideas forward.

Cheers!