As marketers and business people, our time is spent coming up with creative ideas, problem solving, and decision making. With focus, concentration and inspiration, we are better and faster at these applied thinking skills.


Your boss just let you know - due in 48 hours - is the "big idea" that will build awareness of the new ready-to-drink beverage that is flopping. My guess is that sitting at a melamine covered desk, with gray cube walls, florescent lamps, message light blinking, and e-mails pinging isn't the most effective place to hatch this killer solution. You need CONDUCIVITY.
Yep... a conducive, stress-free space that's comfortable, free of distraction, and full of inspiration.
Tim Gallway in his book "The Inner Game of Work: Overcoming Mental Obstacles for Maximum Performance" outlined this formula...

Performance = potential - interference


The ability to be innovative and create new ideas is governed by our POTENTIAL minus the INTERFERENCE... Interference may include... lack of confidence, lack of process, lack of support, or in this example, a lack of conducive space.
Sounds great! How do I avoid this interference and find conducivity?

As an Individual


We spend a lot of our time at our desks, perhaps in a cubicle. Surround yourself with stuff that inspires you. Listen to music that gets your creative juices flowing. (Wear headphones, your tunes may not be what works for a cube-mate). Put on your cube walls pictures of your family, your kids, people who inspire you. Post pictures of your Imaginary Board of Directors. Call on them for help.
Create a Library, Cabin, Sci-Fi, or any other themed cube inspired by Kelly Moore's book Cube Chic. If you're the boss, try office modification.
If your desk won't work for you - find another space.
As a marketer with Starbucks Coffee, I found it less distracting to be in a Starbucks cafe than in the Starbucks offices. Even though the cafe was noisy and busy, I didn't have my real distractions - a phone, e-mail, and friendly co-workers.
Discover what works best for you.

As a Group


Stay out of the bored room! If your conference rooms suck the life out of you - trust they won't be the space that will inspire you.
Besides that, it may be the very room where they came up with the idea that isn't working (re: RTD flopping). Einstein once said... Problems cannot be solved by thinking within the framework in which they were created.
So, if your conference rooms are uninspiring, perhaps you need to build a space within your office - a CreativityLab - an in-building idea clubhouse.
If that is still too close to distraction, leave your building altogether.
There is no formula or prescription that works for everyone. Figure out what works for you and your team. You may find inspiration in a bowling alley, public library, or far-away resort lodge. Whatever you discover - go for it! Discover conducivity.


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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Hi there!

I'm Paul Williams... guest writer on Daily Fix and founder of Idea Sandbox.

I'm a professional problem solver. Through brainstorm facilitation I help people create remarkable ideas to grow their business. As one client put it, “Idea Sandbox turns brains into idea machines.”

Prior to launching Idea Sandbox in 2005, I spent 15 years building marketing, branding, and customer-experience strategy for The Disney Company, the Aramark Corporation, and Starbucks Coffee Company.

I founded Idea Sandbox driven by my passion to help others create remarkable ideas. I blend the skills and lessons I have learned to build a sandbox---an idea sandbox.

You can reach me on Twitter via @IdeaSandbox.

Through Idea Sandbox, I have helped solve challenges, grow brands, think-up remarkable ideas, and create innovation for companies including: Starbucks Coffee Company, Starbucks Coffee International, Panera Bread Company, Seattle’s Best Coffee, Woodhouse Day Spas, The Microsoft Corporation, and Wells Fargo Mortgage.

I am a writer, speaker, columnist, and brainstormer living just outside Washington DC, in Alexandria, Virginia.

If you like what you've read here, you can find more of my thoughts at my Idea Sandbox blog.

I always welcome comments and reactions to what I've written. I'm on Twitter: @IdeaSandbox

Nice to meet you,


Paul