Creative people like to get the right balance between innovation, implementation and impact. Some people like the balance to be 30 – 40 – 30; others like a different ratio.
Beware of the organisation that hires creative people – then asks them to spend all their time implementing other people’s tactics, squeezing out their sense of innovation and impact.
At times the ratio is bound to vary, but here are three tips for getting the right balance in your work.
1) You can clarify where you get the right balance between innovation, implementation and impact.
Some people love to innovate. One engineer said:
“I enjoy designing things that are simple, beautiful and effective. I don’t always need a blank piece of paper. Sometimes creative problem-solving does the trick. This company is great. It encourages me to use my brain in my work.”
Some people love to implement. One co-ordinator said:
“I like to get my hands dirty. My strengths lie in making things happen. Several times I have introduced processes that have enabled organisations to succeed.”
Some people love high impact. One account manager said:
“Selling to customers still turns me on. After getting a positive response from a client, I drive away in my car with the music blaring. Maybe I will never change. It’s great to get a result.”
Some people love to balance all three. Looking back on your life, can you think of times when you go the right balance? What is the right balance for you?
2) You can put yourself into more situations where you get the right balance.
The world of work continues to evolve. There are no jobs any more, there are only projects. So it is good to choose a ‘project’ where you feel: “This is where I was meant to be.”
“During the past 10 years I have launched several successful pilots,” said one person. “For example, in on-line banking, customer service and travel. I am a prototype builder.
“I like the design, development and initial delivery. But I get bored with long-term maintenance. So I continually keep in touch with my network to explore future opportunities. It is hard work finding new projects. But much more rewarding then getting stuck in places where I do not fit.”
Try tackling the exercise on this theme. Describe the specific things you can do to keep putting yourself into situations where you enjoy the right balance. Try completing the following sentence.
3) You can keep improving in the areas of innovation, implementation and impact.
Peak performers believe in continuous improvement.
If you enjoy innovation, you will develop more strategies for discovering new ideas. If you enjoy implementation, you will develop more skills for making things happen. If you enjoy making an impact, you will develop your repertoire for getting positive responses.
Sometimes, of course, you will also work with people who add complementary skills to deliver peak performance.
Finally, you will also learn how to recognise the signs that you are not getting the right balance. Different people get different warning signs. Some get ill; some forget things; some lose energy.
What are your warning signs? How do you react? How long does it take before you move on? How do regain the right balance? What are the actual steps you take?
Let’s return to constant improvement. Describe the specific things you can do to keep improving in the areas of innovation, implementation and impact. Try completing the following sentence.
Posted on Thursday, September 15th, 2011 at 4:57 pm in Strengths, The Strengths Blog | RSS feed
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