Great Creativity and Innovation Categorically Changes Everything

Disney author Jeff Noel at Tomorrowland — Always mindful to be safely out of the way and comfortable.

Great Creativity and Innovation Categorically Changes Everything

Do you want to lead the category or do you want to become the category?

After you read the next sentence, ask yourself what your organization (or you if you can’t influence an entire company) would have to do differently to have your customers and employees feeling it, talking about it, and loving it?

Be the category.

Imagine being a category of one.

No one else does what you do in the way you do it and your customers (and employees) love you for it.

Great creativity and innovation categorically changes everything.

Yes or no?

Please remember we aren’t talking about good and very good creativity and innovation. At Disney we have a saying, “Good and very good aren’t good enough.”

Be the category.

• • • • •

This website is about our HOME. This is the fifth of five daily, differently-themed blog posts about: (1) mind, (2) body, (3) spirit, (4) work, (5) home. To return to Mid Life Celebration, the site about MIND, click here.

How Does Disney Improve?

florida pool — Look at vibrancy from every angle.

How Does Disney Improve?

The harsh reality is that satisfaction is dangerous.

At Disney, we are never satisfied.

Every day, all day, we are focused on exceeding expectations at every customer and employee touch point.

Sound like your organization?

Never satisfied.

Never.

Satisfied.

A world-class organizational creativity and innovation culture must set a standard so high, it literally guarantees competitive immunity.

Think about it and imagine your organizational creativity and innovation culture being intentional and relentless about clearly outdistancing your competition.

Now imagine aiming for solid and consistent innovation.

Satisfactory (solid) innovation is not the goal.

Constant, relentless, obsessive creativity and innovation is the goal.

Continuous improvement is the goal.

World-class creativity and innovation is the goal.

• • • • •

Improve Like You Mean It

Families having fun together, loving each other, and serving others. Today was an uncomfortable juxtaposition.

Improve Like You Mean It

If you were accused of being the benchmark for world-class creativity and innovation, would there be enough evidence to convict you?

When i say improve like you mean it, i mean, and sorry if this feels uncomfortable, does the creativity level rise when you show up? Does it remain high when you’re not there?

What if it did on both accounts?

Here’s the harsh reality, it’s not the Disney Magic that makes it work, it’s the hard work that makes it Magic.

Nothing substitutes for focus, discipline, and a clear, concise, and compelling vision.

• • • • •

If You Need Inspiring Words, Don’t Do It

Disney author Jeff Noel writing in Resort lobby — Four Seasons Resort at Walt Disney World.

Princess Crown display in glass — Four Seasons Resort at Walt Disney World. Princess Crowns display.

If You Need Inspiring Words, Don’t Do It

Be so clear about the creativity and innovation you want to architect, build, and grow that nothing can extinguish your fire.

Burn the ships.

If what you’re doing doesn’t make our world better, you’ll know it because you’ll keep hitting your snooze button.

And if hitting the snooze button is your modus operandi (yes, it’s criminal), no amount of inspirational quotes and anecdotes will ever move the needle.

Positive, uplifting quotes are wonderful. They give us the same warm and fuzzy feeling a shot of whiskey provides to an alcoholic. But you’ll never see anyone world-class doing shots before they do important, inspiring work.

Our goal is to literally jump out of bed at the first chiming of our morning ringtone and welcome the brand new day like we’re welcoming the most important day of our life.

Is boldness genius?

You could Google it to research who said it (like it even matters), or you could say it and get to work – like you mean it (which matters more than anything).

• • • • •

Disconnect From Hope and Enthusiasm

Epcot's Japan pavilion — Humid October evening in World Showcase. Love writing at Disney.

Disconnect From Hope and Enthusiasm

Connect to hard work.

The only way to become more creative and more innovative – and stay that way – is to outwork your previous self.

The others around you aren’t your competition, although we are tempted to live in that paradigm.

Our old habits of banking on hope and enthusiasm, yet not being willing to .think .differently will fail us.

We must become an insatiable student and a remarkable teacher of creativity and innovation.

Then we’ll come full circle and we can again embrace hope and enthusiasm.

• • • • •