Step Back and Leap Forward (June 17, 2024)

Here’s what we will cover today:

  • Learn how to foster innovation in your company

  • Learn that no companies are immune from the need to constantly improve operations and stay competitive

  • See where 200,000 small businesses bank in the US

Quote of the Day

"Planning is bringing the future into the present so that you can do something about it now.”

~Alan Lakein

Today’s Tip

Your business's ability to innovate is directly tied to your success. Yet, many organizations lag behind, stifled by slow or non-existent innovation. Here's a quick approach to rejuvenating your business's innovative spirit:

  1. Assess Your Innovation Quotient (IQ): Start by taking the Innovation Quotient test developed by Stephen Lehtonen. This will help you understand where your organization stands in terms of innovation capacity—highlighting strengths and areas for improvement.

  2. Recharge Leaders: Address discouraged energy within your leadership. If you're experiencing burnout, taking a real vacation might be the answer. Though challenging, unplugging from work is essential to restore your energy and creativity.

  3. Focus and Prioritize: Combat unfocused energy by establishing clear priorities and realistic timelines for new initiatives. Begin with learning from credible business leadership sources to refine your approach and develop a more focused executive persona.

  4. Combine Approaches: If you find yourself both burned out and scattered, don’t hesitate to take a balanced approach—take time off to rest and delve into insightful business literature to refine your strategies while on vacation.

By taking these actionable steps, you can reset and lead your company towards dynamic and effective innovation. Embrace periodic rest and systematic focus to turn innovative ideas into reality.

Today’s Resource

Writing a business plan? Use this template…

Over the past 20 years, literally hundreds of thousands of entrepreneurs, executives and business owners have come to me for help on their business plans.

Well over 100,000 of them have used my business plan template to quickly and expertly complete their business plans.

And they’ve collectively raised billions of dollars and have gone on to build some pretty incredible companies.

Trivia

Today’s Question: In 1876 William Orton, president of Western Union Telegraph Company, declined to purchase the patent for which invention, saying it had “no commercial possibilities”?

Previous Question: Once one of the world's largest non-state oil companies, which Russian petroleum giant was declared bankrupt in 2006?

Previous Answer: Yukos. On July 25, 2006, the creditors of Yukos decided to file for bankruptcy after the bankruptcy manager stated that the company should be liquidated.

This goes to show that no companies are immune from the need to constantly improve operations and stay competitive.

Tools of the Day

Anysummary.app - Summarize any file with AI

Novo - Business banking trusted by 200,000 small businesses.

News

DuckDuckGo launched DuckDuckGo AI Chat. It allows you to use chatbots like ChatGPT anonymously for free.

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