Sketchy Business

Illustration Friday: Swirl

2011-03-15T22:01:00.002-04:00

Illustration Friday: Swarm

2011-03-01T17:27:00.005-05:00

Got this one done during a meeting. As is the case, I listen better when doodling. Used an old fashioned Bic pen and liked the soft, fuzzy lines it created.

Layers - Princess and the Pea

2011-02-20T18:08:00.006-05:00

This Friday's word was "layer." My initial impulse was to do a search of my existing images for an appropriate one (I came up with actual layers and a cake image), but then realized this is about challenging creativity. So, I came up with a few - layers of soil, the cake...again, an image from the TV show "V" (Human layer/Lizard layer...too challenging) until I came up with the Princess and the Pea which seemed close enough to my abilities and interesting enough to submit.

Illustration Friday: (Big Heavy) Sweater

2011-02-12T12:49:00.002-05:00

Missed last week as the word: Reverse left me with a lot of "maybe" drawings. Big lesson - do something. So this weeks word: Sweater, left me feeling the same way, but this week I did something. And there you are.

Illustration Friday: Surrender

2011-01-31T06:28:00.003-05:00

Submission two in a four part trilogy. I couldn't find the first submission ("Dusty"), then realized I hadn't submitted properly...so much for technology making life easier.

Illustration Friday.Com

2011-01-25T10:37:00.003-05:00

Motivated by the my involvement in the recent Sketchbook Project, I signed up for a once a week art submission website call Illustration Friday . Com, where once a week they post a word with which to respond. The word this week is Dusty - my illustration is above. To see more click here.

It is done!

2011-01-14T20:50:00.031-05:00

Time is up on the Sketchbook Project and it has to be postmarked tomorrow in order to get into the the Brooklyn Library tour and archives. Even though I didn't complete the book, I did about 21 images. Considering I was not going to do it at all, I consider that a pretty good effort. It was fun and having a deadline was great. So here they are:

The Cover

The Title Page and quote by Walker Percy

Page 2 Middle Escence - The second adolescence!

Page 3 - One of my favorite quotes from Solzhenytsin

Page 4 - A new found hobby...the zendoodle!

Page 5 - My house having burned to the ground...

Page 6 - Journal break

Page 7 - This one was a favorite. The image worked well and the quotes are excellent.

Page 8 - Nice quote from Dan Eldon.

Page 9 - Empty Your Anger Closet...I like how this came together.

Page 10 - Metaphors

Page 11 - I always like this photo of an elderly couple and then comparing it to the romantic love we associate with marriage.

Page 12 - We always talk about the inner child what about the adult?

Page 13 - Whether it the Gods or ourselves, we can't seem to avoid the drama.

Page 14 - A mindless piece of practice.

Page 15 - Herman Melville quote on failure.

Page 16 - Just images.

Page 17 - Over estimating our power. I shot the birds on a wire outside of work one day.

Page 18 - Had to do one of the kids. Would have like to spend more time with this one. I have always thought about the gift a child brings us when they make us parents.

Page 19 - Welcoming the New Year.

Page 20 - Celebrate your unique abilities.

Page 21 - I was touched by President Obama's speech on January 12th.

THE END!

Check me out at Sketchbook Project

2010-12-11T07:15:00.003-05:00

In an effort to manage my creativity, I enrolled in the Sketchbook Project. They send you a small blank journal along with a theme you select from their list and you have about three months to fill it with your thoughts and art centering on that theme. At first, I just buried it under a stack of papers at work and didn't think I was going to do it, but slowly started to get the bug. Everything starts with not starting. As the deadline began coming into view the creative juices started flowing. Nothing like a deadline to make one productive. Now I have to manage the other side of my creativity - the enthusiasm! To see my work thus far, click here

Diana Butler-Bass at the Trinity Cathedral

2009-09-15T13:56:00.005-04:00

I had the good fortune to to be invited to capture a day long workshop by Diana Butler-Bass, author of Christianity for the Rest of Us: How the Neighborhood Church is Transforming Itself". The event was sponsored by the Presbytery of Western Reserve and held at Trinity Cathedral in Downtown Cleveland. Being in this amazing Cathedral was great experience - massive columns, stone statuary and magnificent stained glass. As I set up my boards against this majestic backdrop, I kind of chuckled knowing that my final product would be made of markers, paper and chalk.

Diana was a great speaker and held the audience the whole day. I was particularly impressed, by the model she outlined as a tool for churches and I would anyone, to look at who they are. It centered around:

Practice (doing)
Tradition (remembering)
Tradition (knowing)

To read more on Diana, get her book on Amazon

Quote: Don't Let Perfect Be the Enemy of the Good!

2009-09-10T15:55:00.005-04:00

I like this quote...given all that we have tried to attain over the past decade.

Tsunamis, Hurricanes, and Economic Downturns

2009-03-01T17:54:00.003-05:00

I was recently part of an Appreciative Inquiry Summit for local Cleveland Manufacturing as a staff member of WIRE-Net. Manufacturing has taken multiple hits over the years in Cleveland, Ohio and the recent downturn has made its mark. Lay-offs and closings are making headlines with equal regularity to other areas of the country. Yet, manufacturing is still the backbone of our nation. When a major manufacturing company announces cutbacks it has its effect on all of us. While newer "economies" are taking their place among manufacturing sectors, manufacturing still remains.

The economic situation we are in today was likened by many speakers at the Summit to the relatively recent tsunami in Phuket and hurricane Katrina. And again echoed by many as a time to drop pretense and come together for the benefit of all.

I believe there is a lot to learn for unlikely subject like economic downturns and natural disasters. Two great articles I found since the summit I have linked to this post

Have we learned our lesson from Rita and Katrina

What we learned from Katrina

So what can we learn from tsunamis and hurricanes that companies can apply to our economic downturn?

Preposition what you need - why is Southwest Airlines running in the black? They locked in fuel rates early anticipating the need. It's not too late to preposition today.

Create law and order in advance - how will you manage what you can manage when handling the other things that are out of our control. We can't change the economy, but we can control what we do in it.

Help those who need it most - we are all in this together and need each other in good times and bad.

Set up a command center - centralize communication and decisions to focus on problem solving

Keep leaders on alert status - it took former President Bush four days to visit the devastation of Katrina and visited before hurricane Rita hit the shores, and we all know the outcome between the two.

What can we do to handle our tough situation? I welcome your comments.

Clip Art for Presentations and Training Material

2009-02-27T20:49:00.003-05:00

I finally figured out how to get clip art out online and relatively easy to purchase. You can now find my CD of 120 clipart characters for presentations and training materials on Cafepress.com. it easy to order and receive by mail. Click here to go the site.

If you are interested in seeing PDF samples of some of the images contact me at pintoma_99@yahoo.com.

Out Of the Box?

2009-02-18T11:43:00.003-05:00

Getting out of the box can make quite a few people uncomfortable. For many, who haven't typically been out of their box, it causes them to draw back instead of move out. I have worked with many people who have an aversion to creativity and creative solutions for this very reason. I have found four ways to move them softly, yet get them into a newer way of thinking and applying their energy:

Learn about the unusual or different in your industry or area of expertise - Who is doing things differently and making a difference as a result. Caution: this is not to copy ("We're going to do the Company X thing"), but to decompose principles, ideas, and data and custom use to create your own difference. This is best practices with a twist.

Research companies outside your industry or area of expertise - A good example was in a presentation I attended by Kevin Kelly of Ideo: Why would ER doctors study Nascar Pit Crews? Because their share some common areas and have addressed them differently, namely short time frames, high value subjects and life and death.

Study Systems outside of any industry - The best are natural systems. Why? They're lean, mean (and green) and have worked for a quite some time. They are self repairing and sustaining and they cooperate. One of the best examples is a case I outlined in my post for October 2007 about an award winning shower head.

Lastly, utilize metaphor, symbol and analogy - To think different think of your issue as something different. It allows both the good and the bad to be identified without pointing fingers and laying blame allowing you to move past conflict to new solutions.

Do you have any other methods or means by which to move the hesitant client? Let me know.

The Value of the Design Process and Graphic Facilitation in Training and Strategy

2009-02-13T14:25:00.002-05:00

I will be presenting on February 26, 2008 in Akron. Click here to find out more!

Managing Our Humanness

2009-01-07T13:58:00.003-05:00

If we have belly buttons, we are human. Being human we are endowed with a host of really great capabilities – really good things. These capabilities can create right thinking and right acting, however we can right think and right act for all the wrong reasons. It has been said that no one looks into the crib of their newborn child and says. “How can I screw up this kid’s life?” Nonetheless, our good intentions can foster something other than good results because we have belly buttons – because we are human. We are not perfect we can only balance what we have for the best possible outcome. Consider these ways in which to manage our humanness when dealing with an issue.

Overcome the belly button syndrome (when enough is enough)

Whether we actually have distinct brain levels, we do know that the brain functions in three ways. These three ways make up the Triune Brain. The Triune brain consists of:

The reptilian brain - am I safe, comfortable and are the basic needs to sustain my life available (food, water, shelter)?
The mammalian brain – am I loved, cared for, respected and recognized as an individual and as part of a group?
The primate brain –can I think my through new situations based on what I know and my ability to reform information and knowledge in such a way to adapt to the new situation?

The difficulty we run into being belly button based, is when we get stuck in any one of these functions and begin to examine our belly buttons. We do too much in one area to the detriment of the others and to the issue at hand. The ways and ramifications of stuckness in these areas get us stuck in.

Concerns for our safety and survival (reptilian brain)

The most common reference heard lately regarding this area is called the “amygdala hijack”. Deep in our brain lies the amygdala which when activated through fear or anger focuses our brain on the danger at hand and mobilizes the rest our functions for the purpose of safety. To do so, it shuts down the other functions of the brain. We know longer feel (mammalian) or think logically (primate) which keep us from functioning as fully human. While this had a very valuable function when physical survival (eat or be eaten) was our primary concern and still has an important function during physical threats (robbery, physical harm, natural disasters). It does, however, far less for us in perceived threats such as:

Potential job loss or demotion
Organizational change
Lack of recognition or appreciation
An offhanded remark or lack of response from others
Differences in communication (learning styles, ethnic and cultural differences)
Role and gender differences

Concerns for our personhood

We all have the need to be loved and be recognized. People deprived of such exposure, in the extreme, have severe mental and physical difficulties the results of which can handicap them for life. While all of us don’t get all the love and attention we want, on the whole we get all we need. It is human to want to transcend our humanness and be something greater. Finish on time and under budget, to stand above the rest is a vision that propels us into long hours and dreams of promotion, recognition and wealth. But we do have belly buttons – we are human and are finite. While there are times we may be able to reach our lofty goals, as humans we can mostly do the best until we can do better.

Embrace your belly button (when good enough is enough for now)

We can only work with what we have and though we have a lot, we are not unlimited. Analysis paralysis happens when we avoid movement because we don’t have all the information and "feel” ready. This may stem from the old notion of “get it right the first time” and while in our past when plans and results had a shelf life of more than a 90 day planning cycle this may have been possible. Today, it is not. Despite our desire and efforts to get it right the first time and hit the target at the bulls eye, today the target moves, the bulls eye is not always at the center and we often can’t wait until all the darts are in our hands. We see it every day:

Jobs we have targeted are frozen due to a downturn in the market
Regulations change, forcing unwanted interruptions in our service and product delivery
New competition ignites a cost war and a once well held position of product and service quality comes under question
A rise in benefit costs forces a change in the workforce development and planning

How can we possibly be right? The better solution is to accept as humans, in a dynamic, global market, we will never be perfect, data will not always be complete and tools may not always be at the ready. Accepting this we can then do with what we have and complete our best efforts at a healthy cycle of development. The effectiveness of the turnkey answer is diminishing. So is the one time solution. In its place we need to create multiple cycles of development and delivery adjusting along the way through subsequent low cost, quick cycles. It all started with Micro Soft and Apple. The good artist ships knowing that no work of art is complete. It is only done for now. Embrace you belly button. Accept your humanness. Do the best you can for now. Move on.

Stay Warm

2008-12-21T08:37:00.007-05:00

It seems odd that the most celebrated holidays take place when it's dark and cold. Most especially during this time in history when the darkness and coldness are seemingly coming from sources other than nature.

And then, maybe not.

My house having burned to the ground, I can now see the moon.

It's when it is coldest and darkest that we seek the warmth and comfort of light. And it is especially important that we realize this at a time both seasonally and in this season of history. Light does not come from wealth and presents and holiday outfits and sumptuous food and elaborately decorated homes. It comes from each other. When we strip away all these, we realize that the real reason for the season is to come together and celebrate life. For many, this has been a season of where the house has burned to the ground - much or all has been stripped away. For others it is the cold, dark fear that it might. Not being held by the promise of its trappings, it is a time of opportunity to be involved in this season's true intent. Come together. Hope. Don't stay out in the cold.

No amount of darkness can overcome a single ray of light

Hope is a powerful thing. It is the tiniest, warm ray in the deepest, coldest darkness and it increases as we bring our lights together. A chord of three strands is not easily broken. My wish is that the holidays bring us together so that in going forward into the New Year will keep us close and warm and strong.

Have a happy Holiday and a safe and prosperous New Year!

And thank you for reading my blog in 2008!

What good is an idea?

2008-11-29T07:55:00.004-05:00

I recently completed some work with a group who is starting a viable business based on a concept that is coming to fruition. It started as an idea between a small group of people who were passionate and saw a need. They found the white space that exists between businesses already in their market and are finding ways to connect, improve the whole and be sustainable to ensure the wholeness.

Their approach is original - true innovation.

It has been hard work and they have been active in the process having spent the last two years physically involved to prove an idea they had been thinking about for a long time. They are now structuring the business and giving it a life. They are moving beyond themselves and are getting funding, advice, and help outside their areas of expertise.

So what good is an idea?

I did a quick search on the internet on how many thoughts we humans have a day and found anywhere between a couple of thousand to somewhere on the order of 60,000 to 70,000 thoughts. WOW! Somewhere among those numbers lie the many ideas we have to improve our current situations, heal our pasts and build success in the future. So, what is the value of an idea? Actually not much!

I have had the good fortune to work with many companies and individuals on ideas that could heal, solve current issues and grow their future. Ideas are not good or bad – they are only useful or not. If useful, what can float or sink an idea is as numerous as drops of water in the ocean. However, some generalizations can be made.

An idea can come too early

An idea that is too immature can fall victim to lack of viewpoints. This typically happens when we don’t want to see what will make an idea fail and it is the only viable way we think we have. We hoard it, hide it and coddle it.

I once had client that had a product idea, $10,000 and a plan to build it out of his garage. The plan was based on a few conversations, no marketing research, or plan to find other funding, partnerships or alliances, and a steely determination to become a millionaire. I fired myself from the project.

An idea can come too late

This can happen when we hold on too long or ask too late for input from others. When we wait too long to act on an idea either from fear of exposure or over analysis we can see our idea come to fruition at the hands of someone else. How many ideas have you had that have shown up in the marketplace, in your industry or company looking rather familiar to your own idea?

I remember the movie, Nightshift with Michael Keaton. It’s a pretty old movie and I am not sure it has made it to DVD, but in it Keaton plays a directionless character spending part of his time dictating ideas into his microcassette recorder (I told you it was old). He claims to have come up with the idea of Q-Tip swabs on his own, but someone else came up with it first. Sound familiar?

The other side is the lack of robust solutions when working on an idea. Have you ever had an idea shut down because some crucial information either through research or a knowledgeable person came too far down the development cycle to be integrated?

As a member of a large consulting firm, I managed a skills database and answered requests from other consultants on people in the firm who had specific skills building project teams and devising marketing plans. I got a call one day from an executive in the firm who had just found out that the competition was rolling out a service line based on a certain set of competencies and wanted to know who we had who could also provide these services. My search netted two people with a base set of knowledge in that area. It took two years of catch up at great expense in training, marketing and proposing to create a viable presence in that market - waiting too long with available signals in the market, put revenue at risk.

Our ideas are our own

The concept of owning our own ideas, destinies, fate, etc. is relatively new in civilization. Prior to today’s thinking, inventors, artists, scientist, philosophers and the like saw ideas and inspiration as a gift from God or the Gods. They considered themselves only a vehicle for their expression. They were driven beyond their own interests and saw their work as a mission. Relatively few, if any, Renaissance artists signed their work for the felt they were not the owners. One such exception was Michelangelo:

Michelangelo chiseled his name in his famous Pieta fearing he would not get credit. Known for his egotism, he nonetheless regretted this action for the rest of his life.

We are not in and of ourselves whole, our thoughts represent something more than our own egotistic need for power. We need more than ourselves.

Ideas can be controlled

Ideas are like everything else. Although conceived in our internal environments (our brains), ideas get life outside of us. Like children, conceived internally, we learn over time how little control we have over them as they mature and take on their own lives. Ideas must have their own lives in time – we can only be a part of their growth. We have to be good parents, managers, stewards of our ideas. In the book, Parenting through Love and Logic, it identifies the styles of parenting that influence positive growth and those that hamper, handicap or destroy growth. It’s a great philosophy for parenting and transitions into some powerful direction for business and concepts. For the purpose of this discussion, two ways of hampering ideas were inspired from the Love and Logic reading.

Overprotecting an idea

When we over protect an idea, hide it, hoard and don’t expose it to the light of reality, it withers. Not unlike children, ideas need light and life and other inputs beyond us. Without, it never gains the resistance it needs to exist in the outside world. Ideas need conflict and resolution, as no idea is conceived in maturity, it only grow in that direction through hard work and renewal. To come back as a mature business, product or service we have to let go a little and respect its need for other influences.

Overexposing an idea

We can alternately expose an immature idea too widely and too quickly having not given it the time it needs to mature and find its own way. When our egos get in the way and an idea serves only to show the world our brilliance, it can serve to prove just the opposite. It’s the classic pride before the fall. Not being a responsible steward to the idea and not working in its best interest we lose the perspective we need to make it work.

What have you seen that make ideas float or sink? I welcome your comments.

Happy Thanksgiving

2008-11-25T14:47:00.006-05:00

If the only prayer you said in your whole life was, "thank you," that would suffice. ~Meister Eckhart

Happy Thanksgiving and Thank You!

Now What?

2008-11-06T05:43:00.005-05:00

Now that we have selected a new president, which has brought an unparalleled response from voters and the global community alike, what do we do? Some people couldn’t be more energized with a vision of hope and prosperity, others see their hopes dashed. And neither can relish the privilege of their feelings. The energy, passion and spirit of Americans that this produced on both sides of the political color wheel have created a power base. For those with hope and those who felt they have lost it is an opportunity that will not be affected by one person in the form of president. For those who see this as a positive situation and for those who don’t, it is a call to be more. The situation is the situation that can only be brought to a positive outcome by our attitude. The energy that brought all of us into the community of voters to cast our ballots needs to be the same energy that brings us into the community of issues. Each one of our votes has counted and each one of our efforts will do the same and in community we can heal the boundaries that keep us from acting in concert. For our differences are not what makes our country great, it is what he have done with them as Americans that has made the difference.

Vote

2008-11-01T08:34:00.006-04:00

We are in an unparalleled time in history. We live in a world of plenty. We have access to all the information in recorded history and it is at our fingertips. Its access is immediate. We can find and communicate with anyone, anywhere in the push of a button. Yet despite all of our modern advances, we are facing a challenging time not caused by what the world does or does not give us, but by what we do or do not give ourselves and others. In the face of economic hard times, we suffer least from the lack of resources and most from our own lack of spirit.

Tuesday is this country’s time and our time to move into a new place, a better place. Two candidates are vying for the leadership of our country and we have received no small amount of information, both good and bad. Lines are drawn as to the candidate that is the better to lead the country based on platform, constituency, and years of experience. I have my candidate and you have your candidate. And whereas we may differ, we are all bound by one common purpose – the country in which we live and prosper so well that even in bad times we do better than the majority of people inhabiting this planet. We may differ in candidate, but we all want one thing – health and prosperity and since we all want it, the health and prosperity must be for all. While my candidate may differ from yours, my prayer and the prayer I hope for all of us is that on the day after the election, our next elected leader will open all our hearts to being one country, not delineated by the colors of red and blue, but of one spirit. But that can’t happen.

It can’t happen, unless we start by uniting in one spirit at the polls. Making time in our busy hectic day, driving through the traffic, standing in long lines, smiling and talking to friends and strangers and casting our ballots is the fuel that will fire the spirit of whoever is our next president. We can’t elect spirit, we can’t demand a better new and better place, we have to be the spirit – VOTE!

Bringing Groups Together…What’s it all about?

2008-10-17T12:04:00.003-04:00

We assign a mystical quality to bringing groups together. We assign the same magical powers to place, geography, décor and the like. Not unlike a “Field of Dreams” our perception is if we build it they will come to greater solutions and decisions. But different than the fictional plot of the movie, bringing them together does little. So what’s it all about? These occasions, places and accoutrements, while enhancing the occasion, do nothing without defining two key goals: Output and outcome.

Output is the physical representation of work done. It may be a strategy, plan, schematic, vision/mission/goal, schedule and more. It summarizes what was done, to be done and is the communication vehicle for those not present.

Outcome is the energy change that occurs when people brought together are combined with the right kind of activity to address the issues at hand. People enter as individuals (unshared thought, beliefs and attitudes), and leave different - better aligned and capable of putting into play the decisions and solutions they have created. The goal is to create a stronger system, to take the decisions forward. Without it, all the physical signs of the work they have produced will be worthless. They will be just another stack of papers collecting dust or digital files sitting on a computer to no one’s benefit.

Being in a measure-centric world as we are today, output is an obvious goal for a group or team. If we can’t see it, it cannot exist nor should it be sought. However, without a change in how a group interacts and focuses as a team, we lose our ability to ensure the success of all we have created.

What is your view on the energy of a group? What is the value it brings to our work? I value your comments

Creativity, Innovation and the Power of Constraints

2008-10-16T10:59:00.001-04:00

When most individuals and teams are asked what they need to do better in their organization, the response usually centers not having enough. Not enough time, money, people and tools to get the job done. All of this translates into FREEDOM. I once facilitated a group of upper management in which their sole reply when being asked what they needed was freedom. What my experience has taught me in facilitating and through observation and my life experience is that freedom in its infinite forms is not what people want. Rather, it is the freedom to choose. And the list of options cannot be infinite.

The most successful innovation and creative applications are always bound by constraints – choices we make among a series of finite options which define the playing field from which we execute our work. The examples are many:

Artists choose a canvas or a wall or a blob of clay from which they, bound by physical constraints, produce inspiring works of art.

What would a football game look like without end zones, yard markers and out of bound lines?

The inventor, Thomas Edison, did not invent the light bulb. He did, however, invent the light bulb that was long lasting and affordable meeting the needs of a mass market.

Within all of these constraints, incredible amounts of creativity and innovative thinking have been poured and have flourished successfully within a field of play.

And while people en masse are self governing, when constraints are eliminated through natural disaster, government breakdown, or sanctions and regulations redrawn to a point that the end zones and out of bounds lines are somewhere in the foggy distance – anarchy ensues. We need to have freedom within guidelines that allow expansive thinking and actions, but guidelines nonetheless that allow us a field of play with which to focus our energies.

Tell me what you think. How do you define freedom?

The Role of Leader and Constraints

2008-10-16T10:50:00.006-04:00

I apologize in advance for using a sports metaphor, but it provides useful guidance in the role of the leader in providing direction and guidance to a team. In American football, the leader has to work within the box provided – the yard markers, the out of bounds lines and the end zones and the other people on the team. The leader’s job is to provide sound strategies and communicate observations that the players cannot see from their own vantage point. The leader communicates this in the form of plays, but the leader being from only one vantage point too, knows all plays cannot be called from the sidelines. Some plays need to be called from the huddle, and some while on the line and finally while within the play itself. It would a pointless game if a player while during the execution of the play followed all the direction given by the leader if an opportunity arose and a change to take advantage of the opportunity was not taken.

Not being on the field of play, the leader knows that while he or she is responsible for the overall outcome, the leader is not in control nor has all the information necessary to execute the plays that will allow success.

The leader is a passive influence, and expects players on the field to not only execute the play called but to stay open and react to opportunities that come up and expects that a change in activities on the field will be made should the opposition not react in ways predicted. Of course both parties – leader and player rest on a foundation of the constraints placed on them by the field of play. As such, they pour all their energy, creativity, innovation and muscle into that which they are given. The most successful can be out of the box while constrained within a box. The leader succeeds as a leader by working within a mutually interdependent system, the likes of which he or she only has partial control. The best leaders realize this and respond to the realities of the situation.

What is your opinion on leaders and leadership? I welcome your comments

Start with People

2008-10-11T08:01:00.006-04:00

People are your most flexible and adaptable stakeholders in the interaction between process and technology. They are also the most unpredictable source of time, cost and quality. Whereas, process and technology is purely objective and mostly measurable, people can be an untold source of hidden costs that show up with no home on the balance sheet. Resources (mostly cost associated with waste and time) disappear without a trace.

However, people engaged in the creation of solution can become an organization’s most potent agent in positive change. People with an active stake in the success of an organization need less supervision, bring limitless energy, and can nurture the success of an organization. Most of our world outside of organizations is self governed. It is the very reason we have existed this long and civilization has prospered. People care about establishing family, home and a place in society. Given the freedom to decide, people become their own, best taskmasters.

Where to start

2008-10-11T07:51:00.005-04:00

Many companies utilize the tools offered with technology to solve current issues that exist in an organization. From one point of view this makes objective sense. Technology is predictable. If you purchase a bigger space, redesign the workplace, get a new machine or buy new software or systems it is a solution that can be measured, the cost is fixed and there are a host of support functions that usually come with these that offer expertise and guidance.

But another point of view suggests that in tandem with current processes and the people resident in an organization, technology implementation alone is viewed as the a passive aggressive means for communicating a sobering message – what is currently being done will be replaced by a solution that does not consider the process that exists or the people who make it work. No matter how this message is communicated either through lofty presentations or hard line edicts, change is happening and the control resides outside an organization’s current spheres of influence.

It is much the same with process. If leaders or experts are brought in and assign a new process or make changes to a current process, the message remains the same – there will be a new order for which many have not had a say and whose future looks uncertain.

What do you think?

Introducing C2R

2008-10-11T07:38:00.012-04:00

I am refining a model I have been using in my own work and in observation of others in their work in organizations. The next few posts and maybe more will focus on the foundations of my thinking and a model I call C2R or Concept to Reality.

Introduction

Organizations face three issues that when working together bring life to an organization

People – the brains and the bodies residing in the organization
Process – the baseline actions and decisions necessary to make the organization function
Technology – the physical assets utilized by people in processes that support the organization

In total, the three represent the direction of an organization. When working effectively the direction is forward. When working poorly, it is either stalled or working against the goals of an organization. As nothing stays the same, stalled without effort to resolve the current state leads to eventual demise.

I welcome your comments.

Where There are Two or More...

2008-09-23T12:28:00.004-04:00

I believe in team. I have my own spiritual reasons why this works and I have seen it in action.

I had an incredible experience this morning. I was part of a presentation to two MBA classes taught by Fred Collopy. Fred is the Professor and Chair of Information Systems and a Professor of Cognitive Science at the Weatherhead School of Management. The program he delivers is entitled: Managing as Design and explores the design process as a foundation for new ways of thinking, teaming and delivering solutions in business.

I was teamed with Peter Zale, a colleague of mine from a "previous employer" when I was facilitating New Product Development Sessions for early stage product development. Peter is a marketing professional and cartoonist. He has illustrated and authored a comic called "Helen", about a woman professional who graduated from MIT at age fifteen. She is young, attractive and clever. Her area of expertise is technology and he has woven a storyline that has gained the attention of the New York Times. Click here to see Helen.

The other side of Peter (which would make him three sided, though he appears normal) is his work as part of his MBA program where his team won the award for developing a product picked up by a notable design firm. A version of the product will be going to market in early 2009. Our objective was to provide an experience for the class using the tools, and explaining the process and principles that support product design.

In his presentation, Peter focused on:

Sketching, visualization and ideation
Iteration
Project and team management

Peter used previously sketched designs in PowerPoint and I with graphic facilitation skills captured his learnings. Having never done this before in tandem, but both being familiar with the creative process and product design, it was very cool ( I didn't want to say serendipitous, but it was that too!). Some principles he brought out in his presentation were:

Start with a raw sketch as a neutral field for collaboration
Iterate, iterate, iterate
When working on a design team (or any team), use open language to encourage continuous contribution through iterations ("and", "I like that AND let me add another element")
Don't be afraid to break it and learn from the experience
Self impose certain constraints on your design to promote creative tension
It takes confidence and humility - knowing you add value and knowing that others do too

Afterward Peter and I talked about doing more of this as our host Fred got feedback that it was the best class they have had. Thanks to Fred for the opportunity and for moderating our presentation.

If you are interested in having a presentation on product design and its principles in your organization, please let me know at pintoma_99@yahoo.com

Finding the Similar in the Dissimilar

2008-09-18T11:13:00.004-04:00

I had an interesting experience this morning while presenting to a small group of executives about the power of adding graphics to the facilitation process. One person was explaining how there are two types of customers or clients that are favorable: Large profit companies and any company whose profit as a percent of revenue is healthy. I asked if there were any similarities there. This is one of my showstopper questions that I need to work on when I am facilitating. I know my "going fishing" sometimes paints me into a corner. I can always tell s I see vocal chords lock up and eyes begin to glaze over. Any advice would help.

My intention though was to find the common amongst the uncommon because what lies there is gold. Innovation is two ideas coming together that have never met before and when we can find that cross section this is where disruptive products, services, process and models lie. I welcome your comments.

Mission Over Money

2008-09-16T11:19:00.004-04:00

I am out of town today providing graphic facilitation at a very successful enterprise. In their 120 year history they have stressed a mission dedicated to serving their customers and have stayed ahead by taking the road less traveled. Today they are gathering to recommit to their mission and to stay ahead of the curve. Yes there are people out there that actually not only read the books...they practice them. If you're interested in some of my observations of a group dedicated to a mission, let me know: pintoma_99@yahoo.com

Curse No More

2008-09-04T11:15:00.004-04:00

My last post talked about the great opportunity my daughter and I had to bond in a productive way when the power went out and we were forced to work on her homework by candlelight without any modern tools (computer, music, lights...).

Well, it happened again last night. However, this time it was by choice. Trying to decipher the meaning behind Greek mythology and answer critical thinking questions AND finding that neither one of us had the mental fortitude to quickly access our critical brains, we decided to turn off everything in sight and light candles.

I was impressed by my daughter's ability to access some profound thinking on the symbolism and metaphor behind the stories and the connection to human emotion and human nature. Mind you this is MY daughter who typically spends her time IMing with friends, watching Oprah and redecorating her room with teen magazine posters. Not a person dedicated to literary interpretation. Very cool!

As a result of this happy accident and follow on opportunity, I am in a blogging collaboration with a business colleague and friend of mine. Dave Crain (davecrainonline.com) posted a response entry to his blog in respones to my first entry. Give it a look:

http://www.davecrainonline.com/progress.html

In his post, Dave encourages us to make more effort in the realm, by consciously turning off, tuning out and dropping into a way of being that we have slowly given up. I know Dave. And I only hope to have his discipline and will to consciously do that. You will remember, I came upon this as a course of happy accidents and not by choice. So read Dave's post and if you can meet his challenge, let him know, and if you're more like me answer the question:

Is there some happy accident in your work or personal life that has shed light on a better way to live your life or improve some lot that you were able to consciously practice?

I welcome your thoughts and comments.

Curse Not the Darkness

2008-08-29T21:47:00.005-04:00

Last night we had a three hour power outtage which affected about 15 houses in our neighborhood, one of which was ours. It happened right after dinner and the most remarkable thing followed. We lit a few candles and my daughter brought out her homework and we spent the next two hours talking over her work, evolving ideas and deciding on a theme. She completed a well thought out paper. We had a rich, relaxing, fun time and we were productive.

It reminded me of a friend who had traveled to Poland while it was still under communist influence...before Mr. Gorbachev tore down the wall. He enjoyed many hours of conversation, food, drink, guitar playing and singing (weird, huh?). He returned sometime after the wall fell and found that people no longer socialized the same. They were too busy. Too busy making money. Too busy spending money. Too busy being busy. The shining light of democracy and a free market illuminating Poland after many years of the wall's shadow did little to maintain the very human ties that originally drew him to Poland.

With no computer available, no television, no lights and only the warm glow of candles, I had a valuable experience with my daughter that makes me wonder how far we have come and what value our coming so far offers. I mentioned to my daughter that we should do this again - with or without a power out - just turn off the lights and light a candle and work on a singular task with rich focus and concentration. She agreed with a smile. And for a teenager in today's fast-paced world that's priceless.

"There is more to life than speed"
-Mahatma Ghandi

A Moveable “Truth”

2008-07-13T08:35:00.008-04:00

I recall a client’s words from far enough back that I can only remember that this person was an executive at a utility company. The statement was as follows: “The people we hire are only “C” average students who cannot make strategic decisions on the whole…” This was in response to a recommendation that it would be most valuable if a cross section of the organization was included in the company’s upcoming strategy session. Our team was shocked having seen multitudes of so called “C” students produce brilliant solutions to very complex problems. In enterprise-wide solutions, more is better.

I have obviously not forgotten the statement I heard many years ago and the question that it posed for me: Is a “C” average student capable of only providing “C” average performance, solutions and results? Or is the measure of a person not dependent on the measure of most academic and business organizations?

Malcolm Gladwell, in a recent speech by this noted author of The Tipping Point and Blink, points out that measures are not always a true reflection of an individual’s capabilities. In fact they are a mismatch. He uses data collected from professional sports tryouts called the Scouting “Combine”. This is a process where athletes are put through a battery of tests considered to be the measures that will predict the success of an individual in a professional sport. You may or may not be surprised by his findings, however, his thought provoking conclusions are intriguing and question the very foundations that have supported our progress this far. Find out what the difference is between the seven smartest and seven dumbest quarterbacks in football. Listen to his talk and draw your own conclusions. It is rather lengthy, so you may want to reserve it for a time when you can listen:

http://www.newyorker.com/online/video/conference/2008/gladwell

This clip takes me back to my earlier experience: The client we had the opportunity to speak with was a leader in the organization. By all standards and measures he was qualified and expected to make decisions and shoulder responsibilities for the whole organization. Utilizing accepted measures and the resulting predictable performance of individuals and the group, he made a statement of objective truth. That this can be only one of many truths and may not be the best is not his fault. He like, many of us, relies on time-tested models, practices and actions. Unfortunately, while our tools for navigation are sound, our changing business and social environment is increasingly exposing our vulnerability to the shifting winds of change. The truth has moved.

In times of change, learners inherit the Earth, while the learned find themselves beautifully equipped to deal with a world that no longer exists.

Eric Hoffer (1902 - 1983)

Our attempts to find time and cost saving solutions by identifying key characteristics of high performance people is wanting. Where process and technology can be predictably mapped and measured – the one being only a concept and the other a finite, layered mechanism, with people it is not that predictable. People are both concept and mechanism, and more. We are the author’s of the former two, endowed with additional capabilities who, up to today, have only scratched the surface of our potential. We are all much more capable than our academic grade point average and our professional status.

Given our changing world, how can we find new truths and measures to help us all to create success in our new and changing environment? I welcome your comments.

I Have Smart , Cool Friends

2008-07-04T12:28:00.006-04:00

I really do have smart and cool friends. One of them is Leslie Yerkes. She is the President of Catalyst Consulting . Leslie and I have been friends and colleagues delivering Appreciative Inquiry and World Cafe events around the country for quite some time (She talks - I draw!).

She is also an accomplished speaker and author

Her latest book is Beyond Kicks and Carrots: Motivation in the Twenty-First Century. This is a two sitting book (I am a slow reader) and it is a GREAT READ on the subject of motivation! The information is presented in an easy visual format which one can use as a quick reference when finished. Short paragraphs and lots of bullets make it easy to find the pearls of wisdom within. Quotes are always great anchors for learning, her use of quotes is pertinent and many are different from the old saws repeated over and over again in other books, articles and papers. The chronology of topics build to a useful and actionable set of tools for motivation. All in all Beyond Kicks and Carrots is a book I would highly recommend to organizations - great for developing cohesion among and between teams, as well as individuals looking to self improve. Leslie Yerkes latest offering is big information in a well summarized and brief book.

To see more of her books check out Mark's Leslie Yerkes' List on Amazon

Ten Characteristics of a Humble Leader

2008-06-25T06:53:00.006-04:00

We are all called to leadership and as human beings all capable of fulfilling the role, whether we do it through self leadership, leadership within a small group or leadership in a much larger way. Humility does not seem to part of leadership as it is often misconstrued as a lack of self confidence. By conventional terms a leader, in order to be successful in this world needs to be bold, to strike out, draw blood and not show doubt or misgivings. Rather than demonstrating humility, a leader has to show great control, lightning fast decision-making skills and omnipresent information skills. No wonder taking on the role of leadership for most people is discounted, ignored and shunned as part of their makeup.

Though at one time the model of the all powerful leader was the norm in the large hierarchical organizations that dominated the last century, today it cannot be the only way. In may instances we can no longer have one person at the helm of a ship on a journey that is not a route, fixed stars are not our only point for navigation and the crew cannot be trained to only perform the functions for which they were trained. We need the full array of skills available from everyone at hand. You cannot train for an unknown future or that which at present does not exist. We can only acquire a humble, modest sense of self that allows us to adapt.

In an article entitled, Humility: The Most Beautiful Word in the English Language, y Bruna Martinuzz the author draws from the dictionary definition of humility as modesty, “…lacking pretence, not believing that you are superior to others” versus “Having a lowly opinion of oneself, meekness”. The contrast between embracing humility and avoiding it is based on which definition we choose - - modesty (lacking pretence) or timidity (having a lowly opinion of oneself). She embraces modest humility and supports her case with examples from the book, Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap... and Others Don't. Ten characteristics of successful, modest humility in leadership from her article are as follows:

Directs ego away from self toward larger goals
Realizes no one individual knows it all and therefore seeks input from others
Recognizes others contributions
Treats all with respect
Shuns public adulation
Self effacing
Aggressive about growth
Not arrogant
Not boastful
Quiet

To summarize, the humble leader is successful by redirecting credit and fully taking responsibility for results. I thought this article was great. To read more of Bruna's thinking on this subject as well as how to practice humility, see her article at http://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newLDR_69.htm.

My Humility Inventory - Do I Embrace Humility?...What is Humility?

2008-05-28T15:09:00.005-04:00

To avoid being preachy, I have decided to direct today’s post to myself. You may direct it to yourself if you choose, but my humility prohibits me from prescribing my questions to you.

Am I humble? Do I embrace humility? I will establish, for the sake of this post, the definition of humility.

I have taken the definition of humility from the often criticized, but more often relied upon Wikipedia website:

The term "humility" is derived from the word "humilis", which is translated not only as humble but also alternatively as "low", or "from the earth". Humility is defined as, "A quality by which a person considering his own defects has a humble opinion of himself and willingly submits himself to God and to others for God's sake ". Humility comprises the following behaviors and attitudes:

submission to God and legitimate authority;
recognition of the virtues and talents that others possess, particularly those which surpass one's own, and giving due honor and, when required, obeisance;
recognition of the limits of one's talents, ability, or authority; and, not reaching for that which is beyond one's grasp.

Given the list above, I ask myself:

Do I submit to God?
Do I submit to legitimate authority?
Do I recognize the virtues and talents of others, especially those who are more advanced than I?
Do I give due honor?
Do I obey their decisions, direction and conclusions?
Do I recognize my strengths and limitations?
Do I know my circle of authority and when I am outside that circle?

1. Do I submit to God?

I would like to offer a resounding “yes”, but for fear of getting hit by lightning or kicking off the first firestorm ever to hit Northeast Ohio, or the entire earth for that matter, I would have to say sometimes “yes” and sometimes “no” through ignorance - conscious and otherwise.

Suffice it to say this is totally a personal matter and if you select to not answer this one, you can say you were humble enough not to tackle this question.

2. Do I submit to legitimate authority?

Tough one. There are so many authorities it is hard to know which is legitimate or not. I don’t run from the police when they are following me with flashing lights while I am driving my car, nor do I argue their observation that I was perhaps going over the speed limit. But do I always listen to my doctor even though I recognize his or her authority? Maybe carrying a gun has something to do with it. And do I sometime listen to questionable authority based on fame or popularity? Have you ever heard of Dr. Phil?

Do I recognize the virtues and talents of others, especially those who are more advanced than I?

Oh sure! And may I have another? Somehow, my ego has the relentless ability to find something I am better at. “Sure he is a world famous physicist, but do his kid’s think he’s great?”… “Oh, and he was voted Dad of the Year by the Council of Galactic Affairs?” Alright, but no one is perfect…

Do I give due honor?

What will it get me? A promotion? More work? And by the way, aren’t there enough people fawning over her or him?

Do I obey their decisions, direction and conclusions?

See #2

Do I recognize my strengths and limitations?

Yes. They have many limitations and the strength of family ties and slimy suck up tactics. Oh, MY strengths and limitations – why Yes! I am honest, sensitive to others needs, caring (my great grandmother thought I would be the priest in the family), giving, and thoroughly egoless. I am also humorous and never hold a person and their capabilities in judgment – including me and my own capability to conduct an honest self appraisal! My weaknesses are minimal, but constantly magnified by poor managers, colleagues and clients.

Do I know my circle of authority and when I am outside that circle?

My circle would be bigger if it wasn’t a case of tons of responsibility and no authority!

So, how did I do?

I soon realized, somewhere around the third question, I had run out of sunshine to pipe and had to reference my darker side to answer the questions. The conclusion of this exercise for me is that I firmly believe in humility as a principle…to be practiced by others (kidding). But perhaps more true is for a multitude of reasons; I am further from humble in reality than I am in concept. Well, if you can’t do it, write about it (kidding again)! Actually I am hoping that my study will be a positive influence. Do they give prizes for the most humble?

Did you answer any of the questions? How did you do? Did any surprise you? I welcome your comments.

So how did you do? What other questions would you ask? I welcome your comments.

They Can't Take That Away from ME!

2008-05-20T15:23:00.003-04:00

I was thinking the other day, after one of my daily personal setbacks, that there is one thing no one can take away from me or anybody else…HUMILITY. It seems as the trappings of the past, our ways of work, competition, organization, etc. change , the more opportunity we have to uncover our humility. And while humility may seem like the stuff at the bottom of the barrel, once uncovered, may be what has been covering it is more baggage than it is useful.

We are converging on new realities, as we move from a product to a knowledge to creative economy. Originally, the focus was on a tangible object where all our separate efforts, in lock step order, competed against other groups doing the same and all trying to get to the finish line first. Competition, besting your opponent, to the winner goes the spoils were noble slogans and efforts when the target of such efforts was to produce the tangible. Feelings and emotions, a sense of self and self leadership were all worthily sacrificed and frustration expressed through the back breaking toil of production when the product ensured our livelihood and long-term well being. Appearing educated, groomed and informed AND POWERFUL were the tools of an economy slowly draining away.

All that is different in today’s economy. The product is often the unseen or seen only in the experience. Try to take a good customer experience home. Try to put viral marketing effort in a Plexiglas box on your office desk (if you still have one) and you can see that success and productivity goes by a different reality. And while tangible product is still very much a part of our reality, it is not king. Building a better mouse trap won’t have people beating a path to your door to buy one, but it might have them flooding your website to find out how you did it.

So what does this all have to do with humility? Our efforts today are stuff of the mind, whereas the past was funneled down to things of the body. Engineering, assembly lines, time studies, all centered the physical act of turning screws, bolting bolts and welding joints. While one can have doubts and questions in a physical world and still perform, doubts and questions, being of the mind can severely hamper today’s knowledge based creative professional just as the hero of Kurt Vonnegut’s Harrison Bergeron was hampered by body weights and thick glasses.

Unhealthy competition, office politics, command and control, lock step measures fail horribly for the mind of today’s professional where the major muscle at work is the brain. While you can put your back into a hard physical job, putting your brain into it doesn’t fare as well. What’s needed is an open and unconstrained field, a place where things can come in and out without inventory being involved. Where time is not as important as results and potential is not managed but nurtured and emergent.

And humility is a natural practice in an environment that stresses an unconstrained reality. Lacking an overwhelming set of cumbersome standards, people are not judged by whether they are smart, but how they are smart. We all are. None of us ultimately stands above the rest. In essence: humility.

How do you see our future?
What are the prevailing attitudes and approaches we need to be successful in this new economy?

I welcome your comments?

Corporate College East - e Marketing Techniques

2008-05-08T14:26:00.010-04:00

It has been almost a week since I attended this conference and I am still digesting its information. This is the second annual e Marketing Techniques conference and my second time attending it. It's affordable and the value eclipses the price. Two nationally known authors and speakers on the subject: John Jantsch (Duct Tape Marketing) and David Meerman Scott (the New Rules of Marketing and PR) who linked to a packed luncheon via the web (talk about "e"). The remaining speakers were local professionals who have developed a high level of expertise in their respective fields around e marketing. In addition, all attendants received a book by one of the keynote authors.

The takeaway, in summary of the day, was this:

It's not about me (or you!) it's about serving the community
Its about raising all ships
It's about mutually beneficial giving for free (say goodbye to your intellectual hording)

And to answer the one question that must plague everyone's entrepreneurial mind - "How on God's green earth do I make money?". The question posed by one and only brave participant at lunch was answered in three steps by David Meerman Scott:

Step One - Give away your knowledge for the good of the community (it takes up a lot of space, has psychic weight, AND let's face it - there really is nothing new under the sun).
Step Two - Write a book by pulling your stuff together around YOUR approach (which is more of a marketing tool than it is a money-maker).
Step Three - Sell to clients who can use your services and like your approach ($$$$$$$).

To see my visual notes from the day click here.

BTW, if this seems like a "no-brainer", I have have been in countless meetings and even one since last week where the concept of letting go and giving away was met vehemently with traditional market thinking and warnings of "BE CAREFUL". What do you think: No-brainer or can you poke an eye out? I welcome your comments.

Awakening the Entrepreneur Within

2008-05-01T14:34:00.005-04:00

I spent yesterday at a seminar hosted by Michael Gerber and Sheila Stewart at Cuyahoga Community’s Corporate College East. Michael is the author of the E Myth Revisited, a book I mulled over two summers ago that changed the way I looked at my business. In E myth, Michael reveals the hard truth about what got most of us into our own business and why businesses fail– the belief we could do our “stuff” better on our own, but the lack of structure and rigor to do the rest of what makes a business. In his most recent book, Awakening the Entrepreneur Within, he delves into what it takes to make a business successful – connecting to the deeper sense of commitment that goes beyond the personal into the impersonal – not about me, but what I have to offer my customers to improve their lives.

Michael, who is in his seventies, presented in a fashion resembling the coaches and elder relatives of my childhood, commanded yesterday’s audience to “write this down”, “write this down”, “write this down”. And he meant business, AND he was watching to see that we did “write it down”. Unlike the like more “enlightened” presentations of today, he lacked any visuals and basically delivered a lecture, which was very refreshing. I sensed a “passing of the torch” in his message and I valued the information.

What I liked most was his use of questions in his presentation. I have found questions to be some of the most valuable information one individual can pass to another. Questions, especially if open and positive can coaches, especially if they have been created by one who “has been there” – they are packed with knowledge potential. Among the questions Michael told us to “write down” are the following ones I will use as I continuously seek my livelihood in this business:

· What’s missing in my business picture?
· Do I wish my life to be different?
· What’s it mean to be the McDonald’s of consulting and how can I leverage a successful business model too?
· If it were possible to be the best, how would I do it?
· Do I want to be the best at what I do? Do I want to be the best in the world?
· What do I know that made me what I am?
· What are my greatest results and for who were they intended?
· How do I relieve my customer’s pain and where is the opportunity?

· The essence of Michael’s message is this: Why would you spend a half-hearted life building a half-hearted business?

If you would like to view my graphic notes from this seminar please click on this link.

I welcome your comments.

He Speaks Again! The Power of the Visual!

2008-05-01T13:49:00.003-04:00

I am catching up a little, but back in Feb 26, 2008. I was asked to add my thoughts around creating team in a discussion about strategic growth. Of course, I am kind of visual, so I created a single frame around a new communication model to encourage innovation and make the best use of the flattened organization. Because I didn't have a projector, I made black and white copies for everyone in the audience. It provided a useful tool. During the question portion of the luncheon, the people who attended referred back to the model providing a rich discussion. Click on the image above for a larger view of the single frame. This video link is my contribution to that discussion.

Contact me if you have any questions about the model. I welcome your comments.

Biomimicry at E4S

2007-10-17T09:51:00.000-04:00

I had the privilege of speaking for ten minutes at the Entrepreneurs for Sustainability Biomimicry session last night. I presented along with a representative from MOEN who delivered the thinking behind their bio-inspired showerhead and a doctor from Case Western Reserve University. She presented information on bandages and other coverings that can remove moisture and deliver medication. It was bio-inspired by the human skeletal system's ability to take in and distribute out nourishment and liquids through bone loading (how did I do?).

I presented biomimicry as used in the process of strategic planning. This is based on my past 11 years conducting strategic planning events, new product development and learning development sessions. Obviously, not as heady as the Fibonacci sequence or Bone Loading, but three is a charm (and also part of the Fibonacci sequence) and if I was able to merely round out the numbers that will suffice.

The Process

The sessions make use of group decision-making and parallel work. Somewhere between twelve and one hundred people make for a healthy session. Thirty to sixty seem to be the sweet spot in my opinion and falls in line with the Wisdom of Crowds thinking – groups think more accurately than individuals. The process for facilitating this work covers two to three days and steps through a creative process that takes the group from concept to reality.

When we solve a problem we go through a number of iterations of thought and actions. I have labeled them as:

Inspiration – something new or some thing old experienced in a new way that reveals elements that can contribute to a solution.

Imagination – the combining of elements, new and old, into all or part of a new solution.

Evaluation – testing a solution or set of options against external realities.

Engineer to execute – creating the plan and team to implement.

Natural Systems

Crafting a healthy solution to an issue or problem requires that the group acquire new information as a group. The study of natural systems, though at first seems a bit weird, provides a sound base to a group as natural systems (bee hives, ant colonies, geese flocks, the rain forest, tide pools, swamps, rivers, etc.) provide

A time-tested, sustainable model

A model that stresses effectiveness and efficiency

A model that is lean and mean

A cooperative model

And nature’s only care is that it works.

Using Natural Systems in the Group

In the spirit of parallel work, a number of natural systems can be studied (books, articles, video, field trip) by small groups, discussed and synthesized to share with the large group in the form of standing presentations. The elements that emerge become critical success factors to the design of the solution.

And there’s more

Work of this nature brings people together into teaming in a healthy, non-hierarchical way.

Natural systems familiarity is not based level in the organization. In fact, most people don’t have this knowledge.

Everyone learning something for the first time leave no one at an advantage which encourages genuine, authentic relations – not those based on authority or expertise.

The study of the unfamiliar allows groups to discuss helpful ways to create change objectively.

We too are natural systems and possess the same hardwiring as do all natural systems making it easy to fit into our way of doing things.

Resources

The following links direct you to two authors I have found to be very insightful into the thinking and application of natural systems.

Kevin Kelly

http://www.kk.org/outofcontrol/index.php
http://www.kk.org/outofcontrol/selected_maxims.php

Maragaret Wheately

http://www.margaretwheatley.com/index.html

Trust = Opportunity over Risk

2007-10-16T20:18:00.000-04:00

I think it was Norman Vincent Peale who related this thought provoking analogy. It is about the opportunity to walk on a 2x4 board between the Twin Trade Towers (obviously this was written some time ago). Would you do it? He then presents the opportunity to walk across the same 2x4 on your living room floor. How about now? Same task. Same 2x4. The ability to complete the task successfully should be equal, but of course it is not.

In this transitional time in our world, innovation, cross-functional competencies, lateral career development, right-sizing, teaming, and collaboration are all excellent opportunities for individual growth and company profit. In order to encourage individuals to embrace these opportunities it is more advantageous to relate risk more like the 2x4 on the floor that it is versus the one between two high rise towers in order to control the direction of individual or group in a constantly changing environment.

In order to help people make changes that will contribute to a company's success in new markets and to reinvigorate their competitive stature in existing markets, a bond of trust between company decision makers and the implementers of those decisions works best related in an honest realistic way, which is usually uncomfortatble, not life threatening. No one should have to feel their opportunity for success depends on crossing a 2x4 between two high rise towers. Movement will be hampered by the thought that the tiniest slip would present too great a risk.

Design Element: Don’t Kill Their Energy

2007-09-04T17:03:00.000-04:00

Once you cut off a person’s nose, there is no sense in giving them a rose to smell!

One of the greatest learnings passed on to me by my teachers, is to not stand in the way of a person’s energy. Always go with it and take it to where you need them to go. I like to think of it as the shepherd and the flock. A shepherd never stands in front of the flock and yells’ “STOP”, that would be suicide. A shepherd works with the energy of the flock and moves them from the sides, never breaking the energy of the group. It’s not my job to start and stop a group’s energy, but to sculpt it. In the end if it looks like they have done it themselves, that is the true reward and one which will keep people coming back to smell the roses.

Design Element: Ask the Dumb Questions

2007-09-04T16:44:00.000-04:00

Oh see the happy moron.
He doesn’t give a damn.
I wish I were a moron.
My God, I think I am.
-Anonymous

Asking the dumb question often elicits some simple, powerful answers. It is also the question that is plaguing people’s minds at the core, however because we are always concerned with looking, as opposed to being, knowledgeable we shake our heads in agreement when we could be saying, “I don’t understand”, “How does that work”, “No, I have never learned that, would you please explain”. As they say, the only truly dumb question is the one that is not asked.

Nuff Said

2007-08-24T14:52:00.000-04:00

Design Element: You Can Destroy the Whole by Way of the Details

2007-08-08T16:11:00.000-04:00

"When you dissect a frog, you learn a lot about a frog, but in the end what you have is a dead frog."

-Mark Twain

When a solution has been created in a collaborative, multi-iterative group process over a period time, the group's intimacy with the solution, in part, is what makes for success in a session. They understand how the parts make the whole. Basically, they have spent time with the frog. The result is a solution set that is often more innovative and unrepeatable than a solution crafted under more conventional means.

When people ask to be brought into the session late, because of schedule conflicts or other barriers, it is a disincentive to the process - lacking hands on experience and context they need to be "brought up-to-speed". The “bringing them up-to-speed” means taking valuable time and energy going back and explaining and recreating the work up to the moment. It diminishes the energy of the group, as it often takes many people to explain to one. It channels the energy away from the true goal of creating the solution.

Photo Safari

2007-08-05T09:20:00.001-04:00

I carry a simple Canon digital camera everywhere I go. I use it to shoot my work and it cleans up very nicely in Photoshop. I have also found it to be a great way to build visual content in my head and on my hard drive, and have started going out and doing what I call a Photo Safari. Because I travel a great deal and go to some notable locations, I have a wealth of things from which to choose.

Originally I found myself overwhelmed with wanting to shoot postcard subject photos to share with others about my trips, as well as the interesting stuff to inspire my imagination. I found, over time, that most of those postcards subjects are indeed postcards already available and can be bought for a minimal amount or the image can be found on the internet. Re-shooting these images is like shooting the amazing sunset I and everybody on earth has photographed at least once.

So instead, I leave those subjects to the professionals and concentrate on the little things that catch my eye. Among those I have found interesting are:

Graffiti lettering and characters
Unique signs
Statues and parts of statues
Plants and animals
Architecture and spaces
Unique people (with permission and sometimes a donation)

Not only does this type of focus and capture help build more visual inspiration and imagination, it also builds an eye for seeing the wealth of the world around us - how parts make a whole, how connections can be found in previously disconnected things. One of my favorite bloggers is Robert Genn. In a great blog post; Working with Miksang, he goes even deeper into the mediative and contemplative nature of using the digital camera as a tool for focusing on the world around us. Check it out.

Design Element: Learning to Learn

2007-07-28T12:14:00.000-04:00

The best environment for learning exists when we realize we are all simultaneously teachers and students. Nothing exists in ordinary life that cannot be improved upon or changed for the better through communal sharing of experience. Therefore the host teacher is merely the facilitator and presenter of the best information available at a certain time on a topic or subject and is only beginning a dialog and a learning that cannot be completed until everyone in the group has had the opportunity to contribute either through questions or comments on the matter at hand. Learning exists best on the edge of failure and doubt not on success and certainty. This holds true for both teacher and student.

Don't do something, just sit there

2007-07-25T14:42:00.000-04:00

I personally believe my job as facilitator is to bring out the conversation in others. Once established, my next job is to get out of the way and be supportive, by connecting, encouraging and guiding. Basically, to shut up and help them to get their work done more effectively.

I have witnessed two types of facilitators (though I am sure there are many different types). One pulls the group along, leading and directing. This style, by the way, is appealing to many groups and can be advantageous to certain types of organizations.

The second, takes the energy and recycles it back into the group. The position of facilitator is more of shepherd than leader, by gently nudging participants away from danger and coaxing them forward - to make it easier for them to do THEIR job. This I believe is my job, which is not to be the expert of their work or to do their work, but to allow them to own their efforts and help to make the journey easier.

Design Element: No Rule Book

2007-07-24T09:35:00.000-04:00

Occasionally you get someone who offers counsel with only a few words, yet those few words can open a door to knowledge no encyclopedia can fill.

I had a great teacher who coached me on becoming a facilitator and he offered some short insight that has helped me more in the area of facilitation and just about everything else. His words were as follows: "The only rule book you need is the one inside yourself. Once you get in touch with that, all the other rules fall away." And it's true for when I can get in that place, it sets the stage for right thinking and right acting in the moment. Of course, it's not always accessible - stress, frustration, and competing agendas always seem to want to crowd in, but in in establishing a sense of knowing the feeling, thinking and acting that tells you when you are there provides an option that transcends the normal rules and still keeps me in touch with the tools and techniques I need when I need them.

Drilling Down to the Ordinary Level

2007-07-20T15:18:00.001-04:00

When I began as a entry level consultant in a large consulting company, I was overwhelmed by the language and models and complexity of consulting. Mega processes, tools and techniques, route maps, entity diagrams and the like left me thinking that I had missed some important learning during my education or somewhere in my life. As I was able to learn more about mapping processes, understanding the nature of MBA educated professionals and our very human need for importance, I began to translate such references in ways that made sense to me. When I began learning graphic communication as a way to facilitate conversations and dialog, I began to find value on bringing out the ordinary from our extraordinary language and use this tool as a bridge for greater understanding with clients.

My First Icon Post

2007-07-20T14:02:00.000-04:00

I have decided to dedicate a new blog for posting raw sketches and doodles that form the basis of graphic communication.

This guy above came out one of the many times I have sat with just a clipboard of white, printer paper and doodle until something happens (usually it's that I get interrupted, but on occasion I actually come up with a gem). This character might be used to express urgency, or danger, or nervousness. I take a liking to little personalities that are the simple, everyman, kind of like a Chico Marx character that senses something very innocently yet shows a wisdom and whimsy.