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Question Of the Day

From where do ideas spring? Does improving your organization's connection with customers take fancy techniques or expensive research? It might, but more often it's enough to simply pay attention to the good, the bad and the ugly of everyday experience.

Every trip to the store is an opportunity for what consultants call "ideation" - a fancy name for personal learning. Add to that an explorer's heart, a heart asking "What if...?" "Why not...?" and watch what happens.

It's the weekend. You're out shopping, recreating, recharging. What pleased you? Why? What delighted you? How? What piqued your curiosity? Where?

What made you look and then look again? What worked better than you expected? What took LESS time today than last week? Was that the result of real improvement or a random walk through the post office?

Now the real question: from all this, what ideas can you take back to the office on Monday morning?

Look. Listen. Observe. Participate. Learn. Translate. Apply. Repeat.


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