What idea are you amplifying?

"The way I see it, a product is an “Idea Amplifier”. You have an idea about something- phones or whatever- and you build a product as an expression of that idea."

—Hugh MacLeod, Gaping Void

I like this thinking a lot.  If we have clarity around the idea we are trying to give voice to through our products or services, we are more likely to amplify that concept through subsequent iteratiuons and innovations.

Think of one of your most successful efforts.  What was the idea behind it?  Was your success tied to how well the product, service, or program amplified and gave life to that idea?

Now think of an effort that stalled or has been underperforming.  What is the level of clarity for the idea behind the effort and how widely understood, accepted, and embraced is that idea? Might competing or differing ideas exist and the final effort reflects a lack of commitment to any of them?

The next time you find yourself planning a program or developing a product you might benefit greatly by asking yourself, what idea am I trying to amplify through this work?" 

P.S.  If you haven't read Hugh's book Ignore Everybody and 39 Other Rules to Creativity, I highly recommend it.

Great Presenters Don't Rely On Recipes

When I first started cooking, I relied heavily on recipes from trusted cookbooks.  Methodically following the instructions, I was able to produce impressive meals. 

Slowly, I started to tweak recipes to meet my own preferences, adding a bit more of this, a little less of that.

As my confidence in my judgment improved, I began to change recipes significantly or create dishes just by assembling what seemed like a good mix of ingredients.

In many ways we go through the same cycle as presenters, initially relying heavily on our pre-scripted outlines and notes, and eventually feeling confident enough to draw on the best ingredients (content segments) and assemble them in real-time, tweaking and fine-tuning based on our read of the participant's tastes.

The faster you can move through this progression, the more powerful the learning experiences you can create.

What is it that you want to renew?

I'm just a bill.  No, not the Schoolhouse Rock song.  Although I should now wish you good luck on getting that tune out of your brain.  I'm talking about the financial kind of bill, specifically the dues invoice or "membership renewal."

My American Society of Association Executives membership renewal just arrived.  As bills go, it's good enough.  It's easy to read and understand, and updating my information and preferences is pretty simple.

But, it's just a bill. And an impersonal one at that.  No cover letter from the organization's leadership. No images of people (not stock photography) that reinforce this is a community of like-minded colleagues.   No narrative or appeal designed to renew my enthusiasm for the profession and/or the organization.  The little marketing text offered seems like an afterthought, stuck on the back of the invoice page and drawing on fairly nondescript boilerplate copy.

So in the end it's just a bill.  But it could be so much more.

It's one thing to merely renew people's financial commitment.  But when you can renew their passion for the profession, their contribution to the community, and their interest in (and engagement with) the opportunities available ... that's really something, something we should all be pursuing.

Guess what?  Without doing enough of the latter, you're going to quit getting the former.  In short, if you want to keep the money coming, you have to keep the heart, head, and hands engaged.  And your membership renewal can make a contribution to doing so.