September 2008 Archives

It's funny you know. I've heard a lot of people going to motivational talks or reading things that are all based on being motivated.
And for that hour talk or that 30mins of reading time you seem to escape your current situation and enter this magical land where everything is perfect. The cat didn't drag that dead bird in from outside, the kids didn't spill cereal over themselves and that damn Porsche driver didn't barge his way in front of you on the way to work causing you to slam the brakes on and spill the half a cup of coffee in your travel mug which doesn't even fit in the stupid cup holder properly - I mean really who designs this crap?!?!.........*ahem*....I digress.....

Why is it that people search for these motivational moments only to let their perception of their current reality dismiss the inspired feeling they had five minutes ago? But hey, ya know - it's all well and good because they (the motivational talkers) just don't understand. They had it easy, it's not like that in your office. I mean hey, all they had was a couple of seagull managers (you know, the ones that fly in, make a lot of noise - crap everywhere and then fly off). They don't have the IT department you have that will help you little more than the good morning when they see you. Nor do they have the toilet monitoring manager you have, that is more interested in the fact you took 2.7mins in the bathroom than to sit down with you and talk about how we can make things more efficient and productive.

I think the first step to take is to realize that once you leave the motivational talk or finish reading, that the things that got you so inspired must be converted from being a moment of escape to a goal. Now for those of us that have set goals in the past, we all know that when you set something as a goal - you generally don't expect to achieve it straight away. The same can be said for this: you can't expect a result straight away. If you want to change something, the best place to start is with you...YES YOU...not the mail boy asleep in the cubicle next to you, YOU.....
You can be the one to instigate the change needed to bring about part of that magical moment you experienced. Once change is in motion it generally gets easier, getting started is the hardest part. Whether the change is how you order things in your day, or maybe your attitude (Attitude is a whole separate blog for another week).
People notice change, something like smiling when you're given a task that 9.5/10 people hate. Maybe turning up earlier, or moving your in-trays to the other side of the desk and actually finding a clear space under that mountain of paper. There's heaps of things you can do. People will notice, and once you have peoples attention - you can get them on board and that will start the momentum needed to see the positive change in your environment.

Creativity... It's great when you're in the flow. But what about those times when the bubbling brook seems to have blocked up? What do you do to get things flowing again... throw all your toys out of the cot and make a lot of noise?... maybe you sit in your chair pulling out your hair and chewing the skin off your fingers now that all your nails are gone...?

The pressure of coming up with 'the next best thing' in your industry can be a daunting task when all you have to inspire you is the four bland walls of your cubicle and the old staples from previous workers who bashed them in so hard that the jaws of life could not salvage whatever wall space is left. I think the best place to start is to stand up and look around your little cubicle farm, how are all the other cubicites?  Now that you've seen a little further than your four walls how do you feel? Probably no better, all you've done is seen another 20 identical cubicles.

How do you get your ideas flowing? What is it that you most enjoy doing outside of work? Maybe you enjoy mountain biking, knitting, lawn bowls, skiing/snowboarding? What is it? Now my next question now that we've established that is, how often do you take the time to do it?  One thing I've learnt is that, in order to give out of yourself, you must first have something inside of you.

I love snowboarding, I am by no means fantastic at it. But there is just something about being up the mountain looking out across a fog covered land with only the peaks of other mountain ranges in sight and the sun beaming down, it really inspires me. When I'm up there, my head is clear (it could be the elevation and i just get light-headed when I'm up there, who knows) and free of all the stresses of the day. I always find it easier to add to a brain storming meeting when I've taken some time before to invest into myself.

With this also, you can get thrown curve balls. Things come up that you didn't expect, whether in business or life. Sometimes a perfectly good creative flow can be interrupted by a curve ball. The best solution that I've found for this is to get up and get some fresh air and a glass of water. Take 5 minutes and just clear your head and come back to your brain storm - you'll be more productive if you do this than just sitting there staring at your screen blankly.

I hope that you will take a few moments to breathe and also take the time to invest in yourself, as we live in a world that requires us to give so much of ourselves. May the creativity flow and the ideas list never end!