Game Changer Series No. 4 - Becoming More User Friendly

 

 

Why wouldn't we want to be user friendly? 

If the experience we provide isn't a happy one how, then are we serving our purpose? This applies to both our internal and external relationships.

Keep it simple and add value with every engagement. 

What matters?

Become intentional on adding value in our internal and external relationships. Internal meaning your fellow team members. External meaning our relationships with our customers, sales reps, subcontractors, network contacts, etc. Jim Rohn says the five people you spend the most time with is who you become. Who's in your network? Are you adding value to them?

How do I add value to others?

John Maxwell defines the five essential values of adding value to others:

• To add value to others I must first value myself. The more you consider yourself to be a valuable and worthwhile person, the more you consider others to be valuable and worthwhile as well.
• To add value to others I must value others. Every person has value, and to be people who live lives that matter, we need to intentionally value others and express that value to them. It's not optional if we desire to be significant.
• To add value to others I must value what others have done for me. Gratitude is the motivation for doing good things for others, and a positive attitude is what drives that action.
• To add value to others I must know and relate to what others value. Find a common ground. Be available to listen, ask questions, be thoughtful about connecting, be open to let people into your life, be likable, be humble - think of myself less so I can think of others more.
• To add value to others I must make myself more valuable. The idea of adding value to people is dependent on the fact that we have something of value to give them. To do that, you must continually grow and become more valuable.

Whew! Seems simplistic, but takes daily devotion and dedication. Adding value is a game changer is practiced daily. 

The Game Changer Series is a discussion-based series that I recently wrote and completed with a team of interior designers.

 

Sources: Intentional Living - Choosing a Life that Matters - Choosing a Life that Matters - John Maxwell, 6 Step to Creating a Game Changer - Mike Myatt (Forbes), The Happiness Project - Gretchen Rubin, Start with the Why - Simon Sinek, Visual Intelligence – Amy E. Herman, The Trendmaster’s Guide: The Trendmaster’s Guide from A-Z – Robyn Waters, 3 Questions to Ask Yourself About Everything you do – Stacey Abrams

Game Changer Series No. 3 - Ignite a Higher Caliber of Design

What is a higher caliber of design?

Higher caliber means achieving a greater level of quality, distinction, excellence, talent, expertise, and capacity. This needs to create a significant shift in the current manner of doing or thinking about something.

How does a person build a high caliber of design?

1. Create a voracious appetite to add to what you know regularly.

• Where will your significant shift be if you do this? (Quality and excellence.)
• "Sit with the winners, the conversation is different."
• "If you are the smartest person in the room, you are in the wrong room."
• Expand your resources of learning.

2. Develop intentional anticipation.

• Where will  your significant shift be if you do this?
• "Anticipation is a wonderfully proactive and intentional word for seeking out significance." "People with anticipation plan to be significant." - John Maxwell
• Anticipation helps us generate good ideas.

3. Spend time in new places.

• Where will your significant shift be if you do this?
• Check your default mood before you visit.
• Make these places that have nothing to do with your industry.
• Look with fresh eyes. Listen with anticipation. A more astute observation can be subtle yet invaluable.

4. Find your verve.

• Where will your significant shift be if you do this?
• Practice approaching each day with zest, sparkle, fizz, dynamism, vigor, spirit, enthusiasm, gusto!
• What are your "aha verve moments" you can write down at the end of your day?

Create an experience that is so enticing that people look at it and say, "I want that"! Deliver the WOW! Resonate!

 

The Game Changer Series is a discussion-based series that I recently wrote and completed with a team of interior designers.

Sources: Intentional Living - Choosing a Life that Matters - Choosing a Life that Matters - John Maxwell, 6 Step to Creating a Game Changer - Mike Myatt (Forbes), The Happiness Project - Gretchen Rubin, Start with the Why - Simon Sinek, Visual Intelligence – Amy E. Herman, The Trendmaster’s Guide: The Trendmaster’s Guide from A-Z – Robyn Waters, 3 Questions to Ask Yourself About Everything you do – Stacey Abrams

Game Changer Series No. 2 - Becoming More Visually Intelligent

 

What is being visually intelligent?

Increasing your visual intelligence strengthens your ability to visualize, remember images and details, and your awareness of your surroundings.

We are not referring to the application of visual-spatial intelligence which refers to the ability to visualize and represent the outer world in your mind and replicate those images in the exact way that they feature. This is duplication. For example - someone who is good at directions has see the route of a trip for from a GPS-directed path, but has visually memorized the nature of the path - so will refer to landmarks, curves in the road, know the number of traffic lights, and so on Their directions repeated to someone will be filled with these vivid details.

Becoming more visually intelligent in relation to a game changer - a significant shift in the current manner of doing or thinking about something has a different application more relevant to sales and design. This refers to learning to look. Really look.

Strengthening our visual intelligence is to "make it a habit to notice, really notice what takes your breath away, stimulates your senses, ignites your passion, inspires awe and delivers delight.".

Why become more visually intelligent?

Quite simply - it means leaning into your "why". We cannot do this without evolving our sales and design approaches. Stale and tattered does not deliver our purpose. Mundane and ordinary is not a catalyst to change an environment. The wrong default mood does not create our purpose.

How do we become more visually intelligent?

As Robyn Waters writes, "Make it a habit to notice, really notice what takes our breath away, stimulates your senses, ignite your passion, inspires awe and delivers delight." Then we "keep track, write it down, make a sketch, start a file, but whatever you do, don't lose it."

We ask ourselves:

• what do I have in front of me?
• what isn't there?
• what's important?
• what do I need?
• what don't I need?

Then we: 

• articulate - put it in writing.
• make a decision.

"Find visual connections where they may not be apparent. We need to understand the consequences of what it is we observe. And we need to convert observable details into actionable knowledge. It's easy to miss or even dismiss what's obvious as being of no great consequence." Amy E. Herman

 

 

 

 

The Game Changer Series is a discussion-based series that I recently wrote and completed with a team of interior designers.

Sources: Intentional Living - Choosing a Life that Matters - Choosing a Life that Matters - John Maxwell, 6 Step to Creating a Game Changer - Mike Myatt (Forbes), The Happiness Project - Gretchen Rubin, Start with the Why - Simon Sinek, Visual Intelligence - Amy E. Herman, The Trendmaster’s Guide: The Trendmaster’s Guide from A-Z – Robyn Waters, 3 Questions to Ask Yourself About Everything you do – Stacey Abrams

Game Changer Series No. 1 - Default Mood

Game Changer Series Module No. 1 - Default Mood
Let's start with talking about a default mood. What is yours when you begin each day or face a new challenge? What is yours right now as we begin this series? How much of your default mood do you allow to be controlled by others around you?

Do you know that the power of action changes our thoughts? Gretchen Rubin calls it "fake it until you feel it". It is a scientific fact that we can rewire our brain, reshape our mindset. So as we move through this series to discover our individual to discover our individual game changers, as well as our team game changers let's be aware of our default mood and whether that is a roadblock to game changing.

"Ever wonder how people come up with the proverbial big idea? They work at it. Put simply, the best leaders proactively focus on pursuing game changers. They're never satisfied with the ordinary and mundane." Mike Myatt

Together let's have the guts to do something different. I want stark raving fans. I want loyal customers. I want every experience for our clients to be filled with verve. It takes game changers.

Significant Shift
A game changer "effects a significant shift in the current manner of doing or thinking about something."

In order to determine our game changers we need to know our "why" - our purpose. Now what are the game changers that will affect a significant shift in how you do that?




The Game Changer Series is a discussion-based series that I recently wrote and completed with a team of interior designers.

Sources: Intentional Living - Choosing a Life that Matters - Choosing a Life that Matters - John Maxwell, 6 Step to Creating a Game Changer - Mike Myatt (Forbes), The Happiness Project - Gretchen Rubin, Start with the Why - Simon Sinek, Visual Intelligence – Amy E. Herman, The Trendmaster’s Guide: The Trendmaster’s Guide from A-Z – Robyn Waters, 3 Questions to Ask Yourself About Everything you do – Stacey Abrams