Benchmark News
We are currently working for Regal Financial Bank to finish 52 new condominium units at Fairview and Mitchell. They are nicely finished with tile entries, granite counter tops, and upgraded carpets. They have two bedroom, two bath units and three bedroom, two bath units available with two car attached garages. There will be an open house this weekend (August 14-16). The units will start at $114,900 a great value for a brand new place to live. The three bedroom units will start at $134,900.
Creativity and Innovation
Entrepreneurial ingenuity has fueled groundbreaking products, helped drive our economy and changed our lives. How do you inspire innovation and tap your own creativity in your own business? What does it take to create an innovative breakthrough product? It is a significant question because business innovators typically invest a lot of time and money getting their big idea to market. For those who make it, the rewards can be incredible. A successful innovator may dictate the terms in a whole-new field. Consider:
- Amazon.com was the first big e-commerce company. It is still #1.
- Starbucks was the first company to popularize gourmet coffee.
- eBay was the first online auction site.
There are hundreds of companies that never do break out. What's the difference? For many, innovation can mean the difference of success and failure in their companies. In these challenging economic times creativity is imperative.
How does one discover their own creativity? What smart strategies can you implement to solve seemingly overwhelming problems? Are there exercises to become a more creative person? Are there any resources to enhance my creativity?
Many people get overwhelmed by problems because they keep their attention exclusively on what's wrong and react to it emotionally and unconsciously. This negative focus often leads to a downward spiral of pessimism and limited resourcefulness.
Refuse to be overwhelmed. It's important to cultivate the ability to maintain inner balance and clarity of mind in the face of challenging circumstances. Once you are centered, you can bring your attention to defining the problems at hand. A problem well stated is a problem half solved.
Focus on clarifying desired goals and outcomes in an optimistic framework. Decades of research demonstrate that optimists get better results in all areas of life. This is because research shows that optimists stay engaged with the problems at hand and look for solutions. Since your brain is the most profoundly powerful solution-finding mechanism in the known universe, your chances for success are much greater when you embrace problems as opportunities for resourcefulness and creativity.
Neoteny is the state or attitude of perpetual immaturity and playfulness. Research shows the value of a youthful state of mind for adults. The research from Bruce Charlton states that as adults we must respond more like teenagers----be more adaptable, malleable and open to new things.
The kid-within-us-all needs to be given permission to have fun regularly (especially in the workplace) and celebrate the big purpose of play throughout our entire life.
Leonardo da Vinci gave us some creative principles to live by:
- Ask challenging questions and encourage others to do the same. Keep a journal to record your ideas.
- Learn from your mistakes quickly. Dust yourself off and move on!
- Leonardo wrote, "The five senses are the ministers of the soul," create an inspiring, enlivening environment. As you surround yourself with beauty, you invite your senses and and your soul to come alive. Listen to inspiring music and enjoy healthy, beautifully presented meals.
- Maintain your sense of humor in the face of uncertainty.
- Join a mastermind group. I belong to a group that is awesome in Boise! It's great to surround yourself with creative, like-minded people.
Thoughts for the Day
"You can make more friends in two months by becoming interested in other people than you can in two years by trying to get other people interested in you."
---Dale Carnegie
"There is little difference in people, but that little difference makes a big difference. The little difference is attitude. The big difference is whether it is positive or negative."
---W. Clement Stone
"To serve is to rule."
---5000-year-old Chinese proverb
"Every child should be taught to expect success."
---Orison Swett Marden
Notice Opportunities
One day a man saw an old lady stranded on the side of the road, but even in the dim light of day, he could see she needed help. He pulled up in front of her new Mercedes Benz and got out. His Pontiac was still sputtering when he approached her. Even with the smile on his face, she was worried. No one had stopped to help for the last hour or so. Was he going to hurt her? He didn't look safe; he looked poor and hungry.
He could see that she was frightened, standing out there in the cold. He knew how she felt. It was that chill which only fear can put in you.
He said, "I'm here to help you, ma'am. Why don't you wait in the car where it's warm? By the way, my name is Brian Andersen."
Well, all she had was a flat tire, but for an old lady, that was bad enough. Bryan crawled under the car looking for a place to put the jack, skinning his knuckles a time or two. Soon he was able to change the tire. But he had to get dirty and his hands hurt.
As he was tightening up the lug nuts, she rolled down the window and began to talk to him. She told him that she was from St. Louis and was only just passing through. She couldn't thank him enough for coming to her aid.
Brian just smiled as he closed her trunk. The lady asked how much she owed him. Any amount would have been all right with her. She already imagined all the awful things that could have happened had he not stopped. Brian never thought twice about being paid. This was not a job to him. This was helping someone in need, and God knows there were plenty, who had given him a hand in the past. He had lived his whole life that way, and it never occurred to him to act any other way.
He told her that if she really wanted to pay him back, the next time she saw someone who needed help, she could give that person the assistance they needed, and Brian added, "And think of me."
He waited until she started her car and drove off. It had been a cold and depressing day, but he felt good as he headed for home, disappearing into the twilight.
A few miles down the road, the lady saw a small café. She went into grab a bite to eat, and take the chill off before she made the last leg of her trip home. It was a dingy looking restaurant. Outside were two old gas pumps. The whole scene was unfamiliar to her. The waitress came over and brought a clean towel to wipe her wet hair. She had a sweet smile, one that even being on her feet for the whole day couldn't erase. The lady noticed the waitress was nearly eight months pregnant, but she never let the strain and aches change her attitude. The old lady wondered how someone who had so little could be so giving to a stranger. Then she remembered Brian.
After the lady finished her meal, she paid with a hundred dollar bill. The waitress quickly went to get change for her hundred dollar bill, but the old lady had slipped right out the door. She was gone by the time the waitress came back. The waitress wondered where the lady could be. Then she noticed something written on the napkin.
There were tears in her eyes when she read what the lady wrote: "You don't owe me anything. I have been there too. Somebody once helped me out, the way I'm helping you. If you really want to pay me back, here is what you do: Do not let this chain of love end with you."
Under the napkin were four more $100 bills.
Well, there were tables to clear, sugar bowls to fill, and people to serve, but the waitress made it through another day. That night when she got home from work and climbed into bed, she was thinking about the money and what the lady had written. How could the lady have known how much she and her husband needed it? With the baby due next month, it was going to be hard . . .
She knew how worried her husband was, and as he lay sleeping next to her, she gave him a soft kiss and whispered soft and low, "Everything's going to be all right. I love you, Brian Andersen."
Please make a point to focus on making a difference today. There are always opportunities if we take the time to notice.
