Everything Old Is New Again

New! New! New!

Or is it Old..?

Here’s what’s on the horizon for 2023!

Happy New Year!

I’m not big on New Year’s resolutions, laden as they are with overblown expectations (a bane of creativity).

But I do love the idea that we get an opportunity to start fresh.

Of course, January 1 is not our only chance to do so — we can actually start fresh anytime — but at the crest of the New Year, the collective energy is in the air to look at what we’re ready to let go of, what we want to change, and how we want to redefine ourselves.

As we rev up to ring in the New Year on Saturday night, are you excited about sloughing off the old and starting fresh?

I sure am!

But what’s new for me comes with a decidedly “vintage” twist, because the truth is, as I change up what I do in my business, I’m actually going back to my roots.

The Old

Since the COVID-19 shut-down, most people have seen me as an expert in participatory virtual group experience design and facilitation.

And yes, that is an area of expertise.

(In fact, I’m leading a 6-week pilot, The Art of Virtual Facilitation, for anyone who wants to master the design, tech, tools, and mindset to lead engaging, impactful virtual sessions that stand out from the crowd.)

But virtual design and facilitation is only a fraction of what I do inside my “Zone of Genius.”

Let me illustrate in pictures:

If this is my “Genius Zone”…

This is where virtual experience design & facilitation fits inside it…

For coming up on three years, I’ve become pretty well known for taking the “bored” out of virtual boardrooms.

Which is great, but what I help companies with is so much bigger than just virtual experience design and facilitation.

The New (That’s Actually Old…)

In case you couldn’t decipher the grey letters in the above illustration, my “Genius Zone” is actually creativity.

How does that translate into the work I do with companies?

My superpower is helping teams blast through creative roadblocks, and build Cultures of Creativity, so their impact matches their smarts.

I love helping with challenges such as:

Your team is super-smart, but their ideas and insights aren’t having the impact they should
Team members struggle to “think on their feet” when things don’t go as planned
Teammates are hesitant to speak up
Team members are reluctant to praise others’ ideas
People are not taking the kinds of creative risks you need them to

And, yes, I also love to help you increase retention by:

…bringing more creativity to your learning experiences (onboarding overhaul, anyone?)

…giving your sales or marketing team a creative boost while improving their presentation skills

…working with you to create an unforgettable way to recognize and appreciate your team, as part of your upcoming All Hands

The Common Denominator

Whether virtual or in-person, the common denominator in all my work is creativity.

(And yes, I’m accepting in-person projects again. Which means bringing back in-person methods like LEGO® Serious Play®, which I’ve had in storage for close to 3 years! In fact, I’m in talks right now with a company on the other side of the country, that specifically asked for LEGO® Serious Play®, and I’m so excited to use this awesome methodology again! What is LEGO® Serious Play®? Click here to read all about it!)

So this is what’s new for 2023: I’m shedding the “virtual experience designer” label, and stepping into my bigger role as a “Creativity Instigator & Strategist.”

Though as I mentioned above, this move actually means going back to my roots.

Because not only do I come from a 15-year career as a professional artist, plus several years as a performing jazz singer and improv performer…

…but after I retired from my art business, I spent the next several years helping individuals get creatively unstuck. (It was one of these folks who gave me the title “Creativity Instigator,” in fact!)

I literally wrote the book on blasting through creative roadblocks!

What works for artists and makers works just as well for business teams and organizations — the same principles apply.

In fact, I plan to do a deep dive over the next few weeks to share what business teams can learn from artists, when it comes to creativity, and blasting through creative roadblocks.

Stay tuned!

And if you’re ready to blast through creative roadblocks, or build a Culture of Creativity, so your team’s impact can match their smarts, you know who to call. ☎️

Here’s to a creative 2023!