BECOME MORE EFFECTIVE

There are a number of tools and techniques that can be used to raise performance. With a little know-how, you can ensure that you are making maximum use of you personal resources.

BOOSTING CREATIVITY

Most  people think that creativity is best left to a talented few. They are wrong. Everybody has creative powers and can learn to use them. by opening your mind and changing your approach, you will discover that ideas come easily.

BEING INVENTIVE

Many organizations fall into the trap of believing that time-honored ways cannot be bettered, or else they lag behind because they always follow the market leader. Individuals also repeat what has worked in the past, and copy others who have been successful. But to be creative, you have to adopt a different approach. Ask yourself what would happen if you turned existing practices upside down. Or search for something that is not being done at all. People will say " if it was a good idea, somebody else would have done it ." Take that as a trigger for investigating.

CHANGING APPROACH

In creating your personal and business strategies, do not merely imitate the competition. It may help you to know that from the time of the ancient Greeks to World War II,out of all the major conflicts and numerous campaigns, only six decisive victories followed from head-on assaults. All the other victors launched flanking attacks - they went round the side. Learn from these historical lessons, and look for an idea that will give a clear differentiation. You can then hope to win without the massive advantage in strength needed for head-on success. In this way, small armies have been able to defeat military giants three times their size. Moreover, do the same thing, and you may do it worse. Be different and set your own standards.

POINTS TO REMEMBER

• Conventional thinking should not be rejected simply because it is conventional.
• New ideas are as valuable as any others, but should not be adopted simply because they are new.
• Many ideas that seem foolish initially can actually lead to sensible solutions.
• ideas should never be dismissed out of hand, since this is disheartening and hinders the flow of creativity
• disorganization helps in the generation of ideas, organization is vital when developing them.

FINDING IDEAS

Ideas can be found almost anywhere - in other countries, other companies, and other industries. To discover them, you must make reading  and observation your tools, and then give full rain to your creative urge to experiment. If you discover a new method or product, you may be able to try it out for a trial period, or in a test market, which allows you to make sure before commitment. "Stolen" ideas are also very valuable, not only in original form but as analogies. By observing or reading, you may find and idea that can be applied successfully in a completely different context.

COLLECTING CUTTINGS

Magazines, books, and newspapers are invaluable sources of inspiration. Read through them and keep any items of interest so that you build up your own reference library of ideas.