Using creativity in your business

05/02/13

Recently published by our business coach partner, Rasheed Ogunlaru, 'Soul Trader - Putting the Heart Back into Your Business' helps entrepreneurs follow their passion and build a business you and your customers will love.

This is the sixth in a series of 8 articles sharing tips and insight from the books main principles.

Rasheed runs the Your life, your business workshop in the Centre.

Creativity

Business is a creative art. Few people speak about it that way but it is. One minute something doesn’t exist – a little later it does. Google, Apple, Microsoft and the Internet are all relatively new businesses and creations but they have changed our lives and we can’t imagine life without them.

In order for you to be effective you need to be productive, harness your energy and you need to perform at your best.

Personal best

Identify when you, your staff, contacts and those in your life are at their best and where their strengths lie. This is essential. If you’re best between 6am-10am and your business partner is best between 6pm-10pm, how can you utilise this? Know what people, places and things energise you and drain you.

Your true nature

Many of my clients (successful and aspiring) are surprised when one of the first things I do is to look at their life rather than their business. In order to run an effective business you need to be energised. Whether you’re at the best after a gym session, a yoga class, a round of golf or time with the family, these things need to be put into your dairy and routine.

Time to reflect, connect and become re-energised will help you not only raise your spirits but become more clear, focused, stress-free and inspired.

What’s the big idea?

Being creative and having ideas are important but you also need to understand yourself in order for them to work for you and your business. Write a list of:

Good ideas – things that could help you be more effective, productive, profitable
Ambitious ideas – things you might do if you had the courage, confidence and resources
Crazy ideas – the kind of things others might do, few dare do or lateral ideas that come to you

Some of these ideas will be quick, easy and wise to do with little cost or implications – act on them. Other ideas will require more time, research, energy and resources to develop. Consider what steps you would need to take to achieve them and what the positive and negative impacts might be. Identify who might be able to help you make them a reality.

If you are a very creative person, you may have ideas all day long but you need to remember to consider where the cashflow is going to come from whilst you are developing this idea.

Framework and Flexibility

We’re all different in our needs, clients and circumstances. What tools, techniques, systems and processes do you use? Which work for you? What’s failing you? What do others use? What would work for you? Discovering these answers is down to you.

Explore, experiment, consult those you know like and trust. Discover the blend of framework and flexibility that works for you.

Find out more about Rasheed and Soul Trader - Putting the Heart Back into Your Business