There are secrets to a successful life that most folks don't fully discover until they are sure that they will soon die. There is no rule that says you cannot discover this before then, but most people wait because they think they must. They are too busy doing to take time to be. There is an incredible opportunity at the intersection between doing and being. The singer Frank Sinatra had it right so many years ago: do be do be do!
For organizations, this is the intersection between employee engagement, innovation and sustained success.
The intersection:
We align with Kathleen Taylor, a longtime therapist with a practice in Hospice. At a TEDx in Tampa, she asserted:
"Action and creativity and innovation that comes from authenticity is what moves the world forward. And it has the lovely side effect, by the way, of creating joy."
We agree and see evidence of this every day in our work with our client organizations, our families and our communities.
So yes, of course, we all need to help our organizations be more innovative. We all need to improve our Creative Problem Solving Skills. Both are great for our respective organizations' financial bottom line.
And but!
When we dedicate ourselves to really doing this well, we become more effective human beings in general. If we are in a position to help others do this by coaching, mentoring, or exposing them to training in this area, we are having an impact FAR BEYOND simply "training" in service of our organizations financial growth goals. We're supporting people to live up to and be their full authentic selves.
The ultimate employer-employee win-win is when my business bottom line is served by me "showing up" fully engaged in my authentic potential, and when that same business trains and supports me to do so.
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Case Study: TE Connectivity (90,000 employees, 13 $billion) ran 9 Innovation for Results training programs (216 participants total) over the last 4 months. Participants report the minimum monthly new value they will create for TE as a result of creative work done in the training program as US$53,820,700. And, they report that they are being more effectively collaborative at work, home and in their communities.
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As you are able, make the moves to send your organization in the direction that fully energizes the authentic creativity skills of its people. You'll make a positive difference in every way that matters.
Take a listen to Kathleen if you have a moment, and think about your "end of life" developmental milestones. As she says, you can work your way through them now, and be well served by doing so.
Our experience with the lucid dying is that when they express regrets, they generally bucket out to three categories:
- Regrets about the quality of relationships they had with people who were important in their lives.
- Regrets about not realizing their fullest authentic potential for their family, community and world they lived in.
- Regrets that they inhibited themselves in various ways from experiencing all of the joy that was available to them.
Now, think about those potential regrets and imagine that you dedicated yourself to being a more creative, connected person. That you developed the skills of managing your primitive (gator-brain) thinking patterns. That you kept yourself humble and curious in the service of your organizations' bottom line. Then ask:
"Will this help me create a life with fewer regrets?"
"Will this help me create a life with more connection?"
"Will this help me create a life with more joy?"
You know the answer. Help yourself and the people around you to become more creative, connected problem solvers. It's regret-proofing work. It will feed your bank account AND feed your soul.
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