I help create personal and business change for creative people.

Inspiring creative work: “When will it burst?”

Posted: October 2nd, 2009 | Filed under: creativity | Tags: | No Comments »

When will it burst?

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You hire me to create change

Posted: August 13th, 2009 | Filed under: creativity, personal mastery | Tags: | No Comments »

Like many people who have moved from full-time employment to being self-employed I have been lucky enough to have had the time, as well as the need because potential clients have asked me, to do something that most people don’t do but should.  And that is to answer a simple question:

- Why would you hire me?

The text below is taken from a short PowerPoint presentation, which you can download here.  In marketing terms it is my value proposition, and I have found it very valuable in explaining to coaching clients and agency management just what would be the value of working with me.

Another thing I’ve learnt; nobody is going to come to you in these tough times unless you market yourself and what you offer the best way you can.  Because, quite frankly, LinkedIn, Facebook, blogging and social media tools have created a level playing field where anyone can distribute themselves and their content with equal ease.  If you are holding back well don’t, because there are plenty of other people who won’t be.

You hire me to create change
In your business, your personal life, or both

3 ways to change
PLANNING – communications and marketing strategies on projects and pitches.
MENTORING – working with senior management to provide clarity, expertise and resource to fix problems and grow the business.
COACHING – as a life coach working with a limited number of creative individuals to help them get clarity about their lives and create the life they want.

I create change based in INSIGHTS and expressed in CREATIVITY
INSIGHTS that provide new clarity, plus the foundation and spark that stimulates change.
CREATIVITY for business or individuals.

Creativity for business
Marketing and communications STRATEGIES & IDEAS that help create competitive advantage.
ENTREPRENEURIAL approaches to generate new revenue from current and new clients.
WAYS OF WORKING to create powerful cultures that connect people more effectively to business goals.

Creativity for individuals
People I work with have:

  • Increased clarity about their life.
  • Renewed energy and focus.
  • A clear picture of how you can lead a balanced life and get the most out of it.
  • A plan to make that happen that you can act upon every day.

Remarkable people and businesses doing remarkable things
I only work with a limited number of clients at a time.
They are all highly creative individuals and are creating amazing work and breakthroughs in their businesses and their lives.

Remarkable people

  • I only coach creative people.
  • I only coach face-to-face.
  • I only coach a limited number of people.
  • I have my own method but I coach you.
  • I focus on action.

Remarkable businesses

  • I only work with entrepreneurial start-ups, or global businesses.
  • I help you fix your senior clients‘ business challenges.

What they say
“You get straight to the insights, and then you give me the structure and support to create the changes I want. Working with you is changing my life.”  Coaching Client
“Magnus applied creative thinking to some unique challenges in leading the solutions both within the agency and within the client organisation.  In all of this Magnus had a consistently positive outlook and a healthy sense of perspective balanced with a great deal of experience that proved very valuable.  I’d welcome the opportunity to work with Magnus again.”  Paul Collier, Dell

Are you next?
Would you like to spend an hour talking about the changes you want:

  • in your life?
  • in your business?
  • in both?

Then please let me know – magnuswood.com/getintouch

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106 billion lifetimes

Posted: May 18th, 2009 | Filed under: creativity, insights, life purpose | Tags: | No Comments »

Since the dawn of the human race 106 billion people have lived on this planet.  5.8% of whom are alive today.  So, the problems that face you, are they really so large given 106 billion lifetime experiences?  Think of the opportunities you have – they are a thousand times greater than the ones facing most people who have ever lived.  Knowing that, how are you going to make them happen? Share/Save/Bookmark

What is creativity, how does it work, and how do you be creative?

Posted: May 18th, 2009 | Filed under: creativity, insights | Tags: | No Comments »

We live in a world of abundant choice.  A world where goods that used to be luxuries have never been cheaper to produce, a market where companies and individuals can move, sell and work across time zones and geographies with an ease we take for granted without often really being aware of the consequences.  Consequences that include projects and jobs moving to “low production cost economies”; economies which are developing fast and moving up the value chain.  It’s not just about call centres; India now has more software developers than any other country in the world. In this world of abundant choice, increasing commoditisation, and lowering barriers to entry it is more important than ever for countries, companies, brands and individuals to compete on the VALUE they offer.  Value that the markets they operate in believe is worth choosing over the competition and, hopefully, paying a premium for.  And by markets I mean everything as diverse as competing on the supermarket shelves, for jobs, or a lifetime partner. Over everything else this value is generated by CREATIVITY.  Creativity makes you stand out; you conceive and produce in a way that encourages the market chooses you over the competition.  Creativity is the biggest agent of change in the world.  It has always been, and in these tough economic times, creativity is more important than it has ever been. It is my deep-rooted belief I belief that everything significant in our world came from an IDEA – from somebody CHALLENGING HOW THINGS ARE DONE, CREATIVELY THINKING ways to make it better, and MAKING IT HAPPEN. WHAT IS CREATIVITY? There are three aspects to anything creative produced by humans: 1. It is based in INSIGHT 2. It is OUTSTANDING. 3. It is accepted to have VALUE. INSIGHT Anything creative is rooted into a fundamental thought about how a situation could be changed for the better.  This is usually based in an understanding of people and how their needs can be answered more effectively. - People want to spend money on their holidays not their flights. OUTSTANDING Creativity makes you stand apart.  It gets you noticed and, usually, talked about.  How?  Because it grabs your attention and you feel that there is something inherently special in it that you connect with it. - “Their no-frills service means that I pay the lowest fare possible to fly.” VALUE When people connect with something they see as different and possibly unique, then they create a vivid picture in their mind of its potential. - “I can travel more because it costs me less.” We know that something is creative when:
  • It is unexpected.
  • It leverages some uniqueness, something inherently special in itself that can be copied but will only ever be a copy.
  • It is disruptive and creates disequilibria in its favour.
  • It changes the direction and sometimes the speed of actions.
It is also important to understand that true creativity is both the CONCEPTION of an idea, and then its EXECUTION.  You might have the best ideas in the world but they are, essentially, worthless if they remain locked in your head or notepad. For creativity to be truly creative; it has to WORK. WHY DOES CREATIVITY WORK? Creative ideas work more effectively than safe and boring ones. In these tough times the weak and insecure go for safe and boring ideas. It is the weak and insecure who suffer in these tough times. This is a time to be more creative, more brave. Why?  Quite simply because creative ideas work more effectively than safe and boring ones. Creativity is so important because it:
  • Stops people doing what they are doing, pay attention, and feel rewarded for the experience
  • Because the experience has meaning and resonance for them; they connect more with what you are saying
  • If you are a brand that’s really good because it means you stand apart from the competition
  • And by brand I’m talking about whether you are a bar of soap or a recently graduated textile designer – we are all our own brands
  • The other really good news is that creative ideas have an impact well out of proportion to their cost
Creativity makes money – and that’s more attractive than ever in these tough times. HOW DO YOU BE CREATIVE? Creativity isn’t a destination; it is a journey, an approach to life – who you are BEING.  You are at your most creative when you are BEING creative, when every aspect of who you are thinks and feels how things are and questions how they could be.  Just DOING creative; well that’s impossible. The creative act is not only one of conceiving, it is one of PRODUCING as well.  The best ideas in the world are of limited value if they are locked away in my head, notebook, or computer. How do you be creative?  Start with QUESTIONING.  Have the curiosity to look at how things are, and ask questions – “smart” ones and “dumb” ones. Smart ones like: “could it be better”, “what happens if we add this part”, “how can we make this unique”? And “dumb” ones (like kids ask): “why can’t we smell television”, “why does my brain have to be in my head”, “why are all the US Presidents white men”? Funnily enough, it’s usually the dumb questions that lead to the most creative answers. Over the years I’ve developed some “rules” for how to be creative.  They’ve worked for me and, hopefully they will for you. Magnus’s rules for being creative: 1.  Have a vision and inspire those around you with that vision 2.  Work with inspiring people 3.  Create work that is at the edge of what has been done before 4.  Make money 5.  Have fun every day Have a vision and inspire those around you with that vision If you stand for nothing, you’ll fall for everything.  Whatever you are doing, you’ve got to have an idea that guides what you are doing.  Guiding ideas are the glue that hold your work together and which bind people to you and together. Work with inspiring people Low-energy and negative people drag you down.  Seek out and collaborate with the bright sparks, the passionate ones; these are the people who change the world. Create work that is at the edge of what has been done before Try.  Fail.  Learn.  And try again.  Following the work of others will just leave you at the end of the queue for interest, and the beginning of the queue for things that get cut out. Make money There is no point in being creative if you have to stop it because you can’t eat.  I know, I’ve done it.  I started a business once and ran out of cash on more than one occasion.  Poverty is not fun and when your back is to the wall you make the wrong decisions; which can lead to failure.  Either get paid for what you love.  Or find another income source to fund you until the money from what you love kicks in. Have fun every day Smile.  It’s not THAT bad out there.  And the more you enjoy yourself the more successful you’ll be – in all areas of your life. Share/Save/Bookmark