Now there's a thought.
Being a Marketer (rather than anything close to 'techie') means I'm privileged. It’s accepted that we, as marketers, get to attend zany workshops and personal development sessions. The less quirky sessions usually promise to 'develop your shadow self' (any Myers-Briggs fans?), 'find your mojo' or in this case ‘unleash your creative potential'.
High energy, high impact.
Looking through the event details, I was assured a networking opportunity of high energy, high impact fun, requiring flat shoes and a penchant for low impact exercise. Combined with the promise I would do anything close to even finding my creative potential was enough. I put my colouring pencils away and committed myself to the four hours of unadulterated creativity.
It was mostly what it promised. And a bit more. The speaker was part time business brain, part time stand up comedian, Elvin K. Box. This meant that the joining instructions had cleverly omitted to warn inform me I’d also need to bring a sense of humour and my best theatrical presence. Luckily, I carry them around with me ‘just in case’.
Giant, Wizard, Goblin.
The session started with the usual round of introductions and presentations back to the group. Then it moved on to defining creativity, and thinking about creativity and innovation. We played a game of ‘Giant, Wizard, Goblin’ (no techie readers, it’s not from World of Warcraft but in fact a clever spin on the old favourite ‘Paper Scissor, Stone’), learnt what type of creative thinkers we are and invented a group story about Vivienne Westwood on holiday in Majorca. But then, KAPOW, suddenly we were talking about turning creative ideas into commercially viable innovations. Did someone just say “commercially viable innovations”?
Who knew that business could be so much fun?
Before I knew it, the creative session was being laced with important business messages and management strategy. And it all made perfect sense.
Innovation is needed more than ever in a recession. Finding unique ways to add value and attract and retain customers is key. Quite rightly customers can be demanding and highly expectant of the innovative products and services they receive. And no more so than here at Snowflake Software, where the roots of our business started with the creativity and innovations of our founders, Ian and Eddie. And so unleashing your creative potential, and learning how to nurture and embrace creativity in organisations becomes the key to satisfying the needs of customers, and producing commercially viable innovations. Drop the hierarchy, lose your inhibitions, have fun and start speaking in your mother tongue.
Because innovation can’t be bought from the innovation shop. You have to be creative.
