Work Archives

3 Ways to Foster an Innovative Mindset in Your Organization

Does your company budget for innovation? Are you willing to risk failure? How do you deal with mistakes? Innovative leaders infuse their whole organizations with a commitment to innovation. Company mindsets are most effective when they’re shared among everyone. The Innovator’s DNA outlines three core tenets you can adopt to support your employees in having the courage and ability to innovate. Continue reading to learn how to foster an innovative mindset in your organization.

3 Things Innovative Organizations Have in Common

What do innovative organizations have in common? How can you set your company up for breakthroughs? The authors of The Innovator’s DNA identify five behaviors and skills shared by the top innovators. Then, they explain how to drive meaningful change by embedding these behaviors and skills into your organization. They address team makeup and structure, workflows, and mindset. Keep reading to learn what innovative organizations have in common, and see how you can count your company among them by doing what they do.

The Health Effects of Overworking: Don’t Die for a Paycheck

How does overworking affect your health? Can you really die from working too much? Owerwoking and burnout are very common in today’s fast-paced society. It may be good for the economy, but it can wreak serious havoc on one’s health and even kill. Here’s a look at the health effects of overworking.

How to Keep Yourself Motivated: John Maxwell on Motivation

Do you struggle to get things done? Do you feel like you never make progress toward your goals? Are you ready to give up? According to John Maxwell, motivation makes it easier to reach your goals. But, it must be consistent to be effective. You probably already know that part but wonder how to stay motivated for the long haul. Maxwell offers two practical ways to do this. Read more to learn how to keep yourself motivated until you cross the finish line.

9 Designing Your Life Exercises That Will Help You Thrive

What’s your work philosophy? How would you spend your time if money were no object? Whom would you trust to help you design your life? In Designing Your Life, Stanford professors Bill Burnett and Dave Evans share the content of their popular courses and workshops on life design. Using concrete principles and examples, they teach readers how to design a meaningful life in which they can truly thrive. Continue reading to find several Designing Your Life exercises that will help you apply the book’s concepts.

Mapping Innovation: How to Use a Two-Factor Cluster Map

What’s the importance of mapping innovation? How can you use maps to discover what you need to work on in your company? One of Vijay Kumar’s favorite innovation tools he describes in his book 101 Design Methods is the two-factor cluster map. The map may reveal important relationships or opportunities if you find that the dots cluster together in some areas while other regions of the plot are empty. Let’s look at how mapping innovation works, using the seven tasks of innovation that Kumar highly recommends following.

Six Thinking Hats: Exercises to Help You Put Your Thinking Caps On

Would you like to make decisions faster? Is your internal critic way too loud? In Six Thinking Hats, Edward de Bono takes the phrase “put your thinking cap on” to a new level. Our normal thinking process is a hopeless tangle of six types of thinking. We can improve the quality and efficiency of our decisions by untangling these six types and deploying them more consciously. Continue reading for Six Thinking Hats exercises that will help you implement the ideas in the book.

4 Ways Attitudes Toward Work Are Changing in the U.S.

What are people’s attitudes toward work in the U.S.? How are job attitudes changing? The pandemic and the recent wave of tech industry layoffs have been changing Americans’ attitudes toward work. The pandemic has prompted many workers to crave a better work-life balance, leading them to search for new careers and in some cases opt for part-time work. Keep reading to discover the four ways Americans’ attitudes toward work are changing.

The 3 Best Innovation Techniques in Business

What are innovation techniques in business that you should use? How do these techniques help you create more ideas and products? Vijay Kumar’s methods for managing innovation projects include impressive techniques that anybody can use in their business. In his book 101 Design Methods, he covers these key techniques. Let’s look at these innovative techniques in detail.