Getting to Change Agility – Creativity
Today I was fortunate to attend the Change Management Institute (@ChangeMgtIns) 2013 conference on ‘Getting to Change Agility’ (#changemanagement) at Doltone House in scenic Pyrmont. Here is the first in a series of blogs sharing summaries of the sessions I attended including my key takeaways.
Keynote: Todd Sampson (@toddsampsonOz) ‘A celebration of the power of creativity in solving any problem’
I was highly anticipating this keynote from Todd having watched him in action on ABC’s, The Gruen Transfer and he did not disappoint! His session describing creativity as one of the last remaining competitive advantages companies have today was practical and inspiring for all. Todd started with a story of a 2006 breakfast meeting at the Hilton in Sydney where the creative idea of earth hour was conceived. Seven years later the event has become a global movement with 135 countries participating reaching over 1 billion people!
He shared how the most successful leaders in his vast experience balance creativity and fear and that creativity can solve any business problem. This links to Brene Brown’s research on vulnerability being at the core of creativity and innovation. Organisations need to be looking internally for creativity and not just at the top of organisations but looking down. The average age at Todd’s agency Leo Bunett is 26!
Todd’s own approach to leadership hires enthusiasm over experience and qualifications which I would highly advocate. His process in order is People (first), Product then Profit. This has seen employee engagement increase from 42-88%.
My key session insight was that creative leaders have the ability to be braver for a little bit longer than others the audience were challenged, can you be brave for 5 minutes longer? Todd shared a personal and professional example of this which I reflected on from my own experience:
- Personal: Mountain climbing alone in Alaska, after being stationary for four days due to a Blizzard Todd had a decision to continue to the mountain summit or retreat down the mountain. He embraced fear which led to amazing clarity at the summit. I resonated with this thinking back to the world age group triathlon champs in Auckland last year. I was still very new to swimming and got completely disoriented by the rough incoming tide with a lack of open water experience. In that moment where I felt like I was going nowhere I could have held onto a lifesaver board and be taken in or battle through to complete the swim. I was brave fro 5 minutes longer and had a great experience on the bike and the run to complete the race in my GB colours.
- Professional: Todd took the step up to CEO after being a number 2 for years and utilised fear to be brave to change the poor organisational culture. A recent example of embracing fear in my professional life to balance creativity is taking a risk and starting a network of young professionals, IECL NEXGEN which has been very well received so far.
We learnt the optimum duration for a creative stream is 20 minutes and were encouraged to try this on a problem we’re trying to solve. The good news is creativity can be learned, one tip is to ‘rent a head’ and borrow someone else’s perspective, i.e. think how would Apple or Richard Branson approach this? Learning to be creative requires a mindset switch. Todd explores this in episode two of his show Redesign my Brain, ‘Make me Creative’ which is available on iview here
Todd shared his concern and passion area about the current education system which teaches children to magically memorise vs thinking for themselves. He describes the importance of thinking laterally and references Dr Edward de Bono’s six thinking hats. A TED talk for those interested in this topic is Ken Robertson on how schools kill creativity.
As a final comment linking back to my key insight bravery is acknowledging fear (not an absence) and pushing through, I challenge myself and readers to be brave for 5 minutes longer.
Thank you Todd for sharing your stories and encouraging us all to embrace creativity as the last competitive edge!
Dani Matthews 
Great blog Dani. You are an inspiration both at work and when on the triathlon track. I love the way you have linked Todd’s talk, your personal experience and other references, very informative and real. Thank you!
What a great train of thought. Be brave for 5 minutes. I can see that it would do wonders. Everyday of our lives is made up of 1000s of little decisions. Whether its to get out of bed, what to eat, which business meeting to go to etc. That 5 minutes can fundamentally change the direction ones life is headed towards. Imagine all the things/experiences we are missing out on simply because we make snap/rash decisions on some things that create fear, and discomfort. By now saying to ourselves “Be brave for 5 minutes longer” now opens us up to a more fulfilling, and enriched life!
Keep up the blogs Frenchfry! Loving them. X
I loved Todd’s show – Redesign my Brain – and my main takeaway was to remember that I can. That belief that I can change my brain will do more to change my brain than just about anything else – think about it 🙂