PSA Financial | Keynote Review
Nir Bashan: The Creator Mindset
by Justin Hoffman
Posted in: PSA Partnership
Creativity in business helps us find innovative solutions to create impactful opportunities. As business leaders, we are held to high standards and are expected to be notable problem solvers. While sometimes solutions can be found through analytics, reporting or “known best practices”, most of the time, the answers to our problems come from thinking creatively OR as Nir Bashan refers to it as, embodying our “creators’ mindset.”
Nir Bashan, best-selling author of “The Creator Mindset”, has taught thousands of leaders around the world how to harness the power of creativity to improve profitability, increase sales, and enhance customer service. During his in-person seminar, he discussed fresh ways to use creativity to develop actionable plans for growth and innovative ways to adapt to change. Follow some of his tips to unlock the secrets of creativity to fuel innovation in your business.
Tips to Enhance Your Creativity
Embrace Small Victories
Nir prefaced that in order to gain success you need to redefine it. We tend to only recognize our work when we accomplish something “big” instead of embracing those small victories we make daily. Start taking a creative leap outside of your comfort zone and celebrate those small victories as markers of success. For example, offer to assist a colleague, who you may not work with as frequently, on a project. By stepping outside of your comfort zone and offering to lend a hand, you can learn something new and have a meaningful impact. This is a marker of success and something to celebrate!
Give it Away
While it may seem counter-intuitive, free is profitable. Nir discussed the most cost-effective way to entice new clients is by giving away pieces of your intellectual property for free. Sharing your ideas, thoughts, and experiences helps to establish you as a trusted thought leader and creates a greater sense of connectivity between you and your clients. He suggested ways to achieve this by hosting seminars/webinars, posting insightful social media content, writing blogs, etc. Sharing your knowledge can help spark ideas in others to help them problem solve similar issues in ways they may have never identified.
Don’t Let Self-Doubt Get You Down
The disease of self-doubt is real and has affected us all at some point. We have all thought of ideas and immediately discredited them thinking that they will not work or fail. In fact, it is a natural, ingrained preservation instinct to have new ideas immediately followed by dismissive thoughts. It’s a remnant from primitive times that used to keep us safe, when trying something unproven frequently came with an element of risk. Push past this idea-hampering reflex by habitually writing down any new ideas you think of and return to your idea log later when you are free from your vestigial negative reflex.
Switch Gears
Although we may not want to believe it, multi-tasking never works. The only way to achieve greater potential is by doing one task at a time. It can take up to 40% longer to complete the same tasks than if you were to tackle them separately. When you try to multi-task it drains your cognitive resources, making you more prone to make mistakes at work. Stick to one task at a time to increase your creative efficiency and effectiveness.
Prioritize “Me Time”
We all get caught up in our day-to-day workload trying to prioritize our work over our own needs. This can lead to burnout, frustration, and an increase in stress. It may be hard to hear, but a purposeful pause — planning a half an hour meeting with yourself, shutting off your phone and email — can supercharge your ability to prolifically generate fresh thinking and solutions to hard problems. You may also see a difference in your emotional well-being too.
Hopefully, these tips from Nir’s presentation can help you to fuel innovation in your business and learn how to find and use creativity in your work and day-to-day life. If you are interested in reading Nir’s book, The Creator Mindset, you can learn more on his website: www.nirbashan.com/the-creator-mindset.
Want to keep the leadership conversation going? Keep an eye out for our next event invitation or contact me at jhoffman@psafinancial.com. To learn more about our Partnership events, visit: psafinancial.com/about/psa-partnership/
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Justin Hoffman
Justin Hoffman, EVP, Business Development & CMO, oversees business development initiatives and PSA's Marketing Department. His focus includes sales leadership, Account Executive support and recruiting, sales training and CRM technology. He supervises PSA’s awareness, community-building and demand-generation efforts. The majority of his professional career has been spent at financial services firms, managing brand development initiatives, advertising, public relations and electronic marketing. Prior to joining PSA in 2007, he led M&T Bank’s sports marketing assets, overseeing relationships with the Baltimore Ravens, Buffalo Bills and other sports franchises. Justin holds a Master’s degree in Marketing from Johns Hopkins University. You can reach Justin on LinkedIn or via email.