How many times have you found yourself in an office meeting, a homeowner’s association, or even a school board meeting when the present issues needed some new thinking for resolution? Where is the license for the use of imagination? The common use of the term, imagination, is the process of forming in the mind new images which have not been previously experienced. Children’s fairy tales, science fiction novels, and the latest video games are fine examples of true ‘no limits’ thinking. What keeps us from releasing our imagination, opening the doors on our locked treasures of creativity? Is the capacity for imagintive thought only for the use of an enlightened group of people?

Inventiveness and creativity are not exclusive attributes of a select group of individuals. The aspects of exploration, speculation, or progressive ingenuity are available to all of us at any given movement. In many corporate environments or social organizations the pressure to resolve issues in a minimal amount of time adds tremendous stress. Consequently, the use of imagination and ingenuity plummet in adherence to policies, adhering to the ‘invisible’ rules of those organizations.

Repeatedly it is the 'invisible’ rules or acceptable structured thinking of an organization or community group that do not allow for limitless imaging or out of the box thinking, judging these processes to be a waste of valuable time. In actuality, it is the freedom from the limitations on imaging that generates some of the most creative ideas in history. History has seen the creation of many ideas that became commercial and useful products. Remember Liquid Paper created by Bette Nesmith Graham in 1951 in her kitchen blender? Bette was trying to create something that would cover up her typing mistakes. She sold the product from her house for 17 years and then sold the creation to Gillette in 1979. Also, scotch tape was invented in 1930 by a banjo playing 3M engineer Richard Drew, as the world's first transparent cellophane adhesive tape. Richard Drew also invented the first masking tape in 1925, a paper tape with a pressure sensitive adhesive backing to assist auto painters with clean lines on two-tone paint. Both of these inventions were the direct result of people who were not afraid to ask, ‘What if, What about, How about, what would happen if’?

Respect is enforced in those organizations where all parties feel safe about their autonomy and legitimacy when they are allowed the freedom to speak out, however preposterous it may be. Openness is validated in conversations where we speak our minds without the fear of damaging our dignity. Subsequently, innovation can flow between colleagues when open conversations are initiated.

If you think you’re not letting your imagination work for you, ask yourself:

• What imaginative resources do you need to address a problem differently; and, can you enlist those resources without the risk of violating any company policies?
• What elements of fear or uncertainty do you hold that keep you from creative thinking? And, how can you discard those to enable the enthusiasm for discovering new options, or inspired thinking?
• What permission do you need to give yourself or your organization to stimulate innovative thinking?
• How can you or your colleagues use your imagination in problem solving or future product generation and still be accountable to the company’s bottom line?
• What changes to your work or community meeting procedures do you need to make to foster trust for innovation & ingenuity?
• What if your future contributions to the world and yourself are dependent on removing the limits on your ingenuity?
• How would your legacy change if your future decisions could be shaped by the use of creative imaging and visioning?

“Live out of your imagination, not your history”.
Stephen Covey

If this resonates with your current situation, we invite you to realize your efforts with us.

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Five Secrets of Compelling Communicators
b y Nahid Casazza

How well you communicate affects every aspect of life from personal relationships to business success. Here are five simple but powerful keys to help you communicate more effectively, and get heard.

1. Listen Fully
   
   This means no mental background chatter or preparing what you are going to say next. Even good listeners find this difficult. However, once you master the skill, it’s amazing how much better you understand people. And, when you understand your audience, you’ll automatically adjust your message to make it more relevant and meaningful to them.
   
2. Speak Succinctly
   
   Compress your thoughts into two or three sentences. Pause. Give people a chance to grasp and consider what you have said. If you say too much or go on too long, they’ll get overloaded and forget all of it.
   
3. Tell the Truth
   
   The real truth! This is my agenda. I want to accomplish A, and I need B. Can you help me? If not, that’s OK, but I wanted you to know why I asked. People are so scared they’ll say something stupid that they lose the ability to connect on a genuine level. When you speak honestly and show your human side, people naturally relate and want to hear more.
   
4. Allow Opinions
   
   Especially their opinion of you! If someone is allowed to disagree with you, they are more likely to listen to and acknowledge your side of the story. If they are allowed to think whatever they want about you, they will be downright fascinated by what you have to say. It all comes down to not trying too hard to prove yourself. Confidence is truly compelling.
   
5. Repeat Ideas
   
   In the age of information overload, people usually don’t “get” what you have to say the first, second, or even third times. In presentations, standard practice is: tell them what you are going to say, say it, and then tell them what you said. This goes for other forms of communication as well. You don’t have to use the same words every time, but if you have a message to send, expect to send it consistently over a long period of time before it sinks in.