Canvas Creek Team Building
Ever heard the phrase “creative strategic planning”? Surely you have, though it may have simply been thrown around in a business meeting. Or maybe you’ve seen it scattered across the internet, a vague catch phrase get-rich-quick schemes use to lure people in. Either way, this is one thing you definitely need to pay more attention to.
Strategic planning refers to defining a specific goal and then laying out a necessary strategy to reach that goal. Basically, strategic planning makes sure your short-term decisions work in favor of your long-term goals. To begin, a strategic planner needs to answerthese three questions:
1.) Where are we now?
2.) Where do we want to be?
3.) How can we move one step closer?
Sound simple enough? Almost. The first two questions should be answered with as much specifics as possible. Let’s say you own a business. Your goal is to raise profits by 10% by the end of next year. So you might say:
1.) Where are we now?
- Our current profit margin is ___.
2.) Where do we want to be?
- We want our profits to be raised by 10% by December 31, 2013. Therefore, we need our profit margin to be ___by December 31, 2013.
Now comes the creative part, which is question #3. There are a number of theories floating around that provide the best way to start the creative process, but we feel Wallas’s creative process makes for a great fit. There are four stages: preparation, incubation, illumination and verification.
Preparation is the stage of gathering all your possible information. After all, you won’t be able to give yourself options if you have no idea of what you’re working with, right? So look at all your sources, all the people you know and all the possible pathways to reach your goal.
Next is incubation. So take a break; set the problem aside for a bit to clear your head. A disorganized mind creates a disorganized reality.
Step 3: illumination. Identify potential solutions. This is when working as a team really comes in handy, as everyone will be looking at the problem through a different perspective. Have brainstorming sessions to present as many solutions as possible.
And finally: verification. Refine your ideas. There may be a number of ideas on how to increase profits by 10% within the given time frame, but each idea needs to be refined and clearly laid out before a decision is made.
It’s completely understandable if this still sounds a bit complicated, but that’s why we’re here! Schedule a meeting with Canvas Creektoday and we’ll show you how to get on track in your creative strategic planning process. We’ll even be with you every step of the way.
It’s funny, as this time of year rolls around, people go into thankfulness overdrive. All over Facebook people are participating in “30 Days of Thankfulness” where each day they list something they are thankful for. However, being constantly bombarded with tokens of appreciation can take its toll, turning even the most positive people (myself included) slightly cynical. But when you take a look back, you’ll find there really are some things to be truly thankful for, and these are just a few of them.
1.) Your family. This doesn’t necessarily have to mean your biological family. There are many other people from various walks of life that can be considered family. Maybe you have a group of coworkers that make your job more pleasant than it really should be, or perhaps you have a close-knit group of friends that have been with you through thick and thin. Either way, there is surely at least one person that you are grateful to know.
2.) Your health. If you’re in generally good health, be thankful for it. There are countless afflictions you could have. If you’re ailing, be thankful for modern medicine and all the advances modern science has made in the medical field. And if you’re confused about your health, be thankful that there are resources to help you get back on your feet. Counseling centers and rehab facilities are right at your fingertips.
3.) Technology. Just think back to a few years ago and you should find yourself deeply impressed with what you have now. Even if you don’t have the newest television or the latest iPhone, there are still some amazing things happening in the technological world. Be thankful you can have a face to face conversation with someone completely across the planet or that your phone has an app that will let you find your car keys should you ever lose them again. Now c’mon…that’s pretty amazing.
4.) Opportunity. No matter what your situation is, you have the opportunity to make it better. Maybe you’re unhappy with the current political climate; be thankful that you have the ability to vote and to run for a government position. Even if you feel you’ve missed opportunities in the past, chances will still come along to allow you to better yourself. Be thankful you live in a place with abundant opportunities.
5.) Holidays. Think about it, what other days are you allowed to hang out with your best friends and family members, eat way too much food all while skipping out on work and (probably) still getting paid? Not a lot. Definitely be thankful for the holidays.
Don’t underestimate the importance of social networking in your business! What are some ways you use social networking?
Networking tends to be one of those terms that is often thrown around in various business conversations. “We need to network more” or “How are doing on networking?” are just a few phrases you may hear. However, when you actually get down to brass tacks, what exactly is networking? And how do you do it?
Well, here you go. Listed below are some of the best networking tips successful business men and women have to offer.
1.) Know the purpose of networking. The entire point of networking is to have various contacts in other areas that might be of use to you later. Perhaps you are a journalist; knowing someone at your local news station might be a huge benefit to you because they may be able to give you specific leads or sources to various stories.
2.) Do as much as you can on your own. Contacting someone for information that you could easily get yourself is just plain lazy. Do your own homework and research before seeking out others to help you.
3.) Be courteous. That means you shouldn’t be calling them while they’re in the middle of dinner or tracking them down on their lunch break if they haven’t returned your calls. And if they decline your request, for whatever reason, don’t push it. Everyone has their reasons for not being able to help someone out once in a while.
4.) Be professional. Whining, groveling or being overly aggressive isn’t going to get you anywhere. As a matter of fact, it could be very damaging to your relationship. No one wants to work with someone else that can’t keep it together. In addition, if you’re going to approach a third party contact make sure your original source has given you permission to use their name.
5.) Listen. If you need information from this person then you have to be ready to receive it. Having a pen and a notepad handy, or even a recording device will let them know that you aren’t taking their services lightly.
6.) Understand it’s a two-way street. Continuing with our journalist example, if your “source” from the news station has provided you with vital information, it’s only common courtesy to return the favor when the time is needed. Otherwise, you’re just taking advantage of people to get information. Do this enough times and no one will want to work with you.
Social commerce expert Paul Chaney is a social media marketing consultant, writer, and author. He put together a list of his 5 favorite social networking tools, which can help you manage and optimize your online marketing:
1) SproutSocial - This social media dashboard allows you to…
We’ve all been there; that moment when things have gotten so bad that it becomes difficult to see how they could ever get better again. Maybe you’ve lost your job and bills are piling up, maybe you’ve just ended a long term relationship and thoughts of eternal loneliness are flooding your mind; either way, there has to be something you can do to get back on track. And as a matter of fact, there is.
1.) Take one day. When it feels like your world is ending it can be tough to think about anything else, so do what you need to do to clear your mind. However, you need to put a time limit on your groveling or you could end up wallowing forever. If that means sleeping in bed for an entire day, do it. Maybe it means going for a run or watching your favorite movie on repeat. Whatever it is that you need to do, take a day to completely absorb yourself in whatever situation you’re in, then wake up tomorrow, and begin to move on.
2.) Comprehend your new reality. Constantly saying “If only this hadn’t happened…” to yourself won’t get you anywhere. This did happen. If you lost your job, you need to stop and look at your current situation without your mind getting carried away. So sit down and take a look at your finances. What are your necessities and what will it take to pay for them (and no, cable television is not a “necessity”)? Exactly how much money do you need to make to keep a roof over your head and food in your belly?
3.) Make a plan, in writing. And don’t generalize. Saying, “I’ll find another job,” isn’t going to help you right now. Of course you will, but how? Writing down a serious of steps leading to a job would be much more constructive. Something like: 1.) Talk to everyone I know to see if they know if their current job is hiring, 2.) Search the want ads, 3.) Update my resume, 4.) Go down to the job center to check current openings, etc.
4.) Find the reason (if there is one) and learn from it. Sometimes things happen for no reason, and there really is no lesson involved. Some things, however, do have a reason for occurring. Is there a reason you were laid off instead of your coworker? It may be that you were simply at the company for less time. Finding the reason allows you to either prevent this situation from happening again or absolve yourself from feeling guilty over something you had no control over in the first place.
5.) Appreciate the things you do have. No matter what, you still have some things to be grateful for. A divorce is rough, of course, but you still have you children, right? Try to focus on other aspects of your life that are going well. Maybe this whole situation has made you realize that you have some seriously amazing friends who would do anything for you.
Do you have any tips to turning a bad situation into a new beginning?
