Fertilizing Creativity and a Learning Culture in Your Organization

Organizations must change or die! As organizations move toward the top it is necessary for them to create a nimble learning culture that helps them overcome market challenges. Often managers become set in their ways and are more concerned with how to keep people working toward an objective that may not make sense then to actually groom them or implement new ways of doing things that have higher returns.

I have found over the years the best way to create innovation is to tap into people's natural motivation and their need to find meaning within the organization.

How does this happen?

When working with employees you should consider their ideas in the development of the company. Ask them about their ideas and to bring them forward for discussion. Your job as a manager is to weed which one's employees can spend some time on and which not.

Getting employees involved ties them to the organization. They will fell as though they are building something.

When someone passes an idea to you that seems to make sense have them put together a short 1-page proposal of what they would like to do and how it will help the company.

If this proposal makes sense you can consider giving them a little time to work on it and put some better numbers together. Have them conduct a preliminary investigation and determine the resources, time and benefits to the organization.

As you develop a full picture and the resources needed you can move into more project management orientation and develop your teams to actually make these projects work. You will need to be picky because time and money are limited resources. However, each rejected and improve project contributes to organizational innovation, employee development, culture, and revenue.

Shrimp Fajita Recipe-A cheap way to do it!

I have been to lots of different restaurants and paid $17 for a single shrimp fajita meal. Two people and that is around $40 not including the two glasses of wine that also cost $10 a piece. If you want to add a tip your are looking at $70. Not bad but you might be able to make a something that event tastes better in your home.

For under $22 you can get yourself a bottle of wine and make shrimp fajitas that feeds 4 people. They turned out fabulous. Just as a side note I got the uncooked large shrimp from Sprouts. They made for a tastier meal.

Simple Shrimp Fajita Recipe

1 1/2 tablespoons vegetable oil, divided1 green bell pepper, sliced1 red bell pepper, sliced1 pound medium shrimp - peeled and deveined1 cup (1 small) chopped onion

1 (1.25 ounce) package taco seasoning mix 3 tablespoons water, or as needed

Two avocados for slicing.

Spicy salsa.

Sour Cream

6 (10 inch) flour tortillas, warmed

Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the red and green bell peppers, and onion. Cook, stirring frequently until peppers are hot, but still slightly crisp, about 5 minutes. Set aside.

Pour the remaining  oil into the skillet, and add the shrimp. Cook, stirring occasionally, until pink. Reduce heat to low, and return the peppers and onion to the skillet. Stir in taco seasoning and water. Simmer until peppers are heated.

Serve in warm tortillas.

Per Serving: 400 calories, 18.8 g protein

The Smell of the Ocean

There is something about the ocean that draws people back again and again. It doesn't matter if you are surfing, sailing, lounging, dinning or just staring into the horizon. The ocean is a remarkable world that covers most of our planet. While human kind lives and dies by the ocean many people have never seen it.

The other day I went surfing and jogged the ocean. It gave me piece of mind as I connected closer to nature. The crashing waves, the sun, and the smell is a natural aphrodisiac. There are few places better.

It is also one of the reasons why people pay so much to live by the ocean. If you have a balcony that faces the sunset you will be paying a premium but your life becomes integrated into this world.

Places like San Diego offer so many ocean attractions that it continues to swell beyond its capacity to hold that many people. Housing continues to rise and push out people of modest incomes.

I spend as much time as I can on the ocean and engage in lots of amazing activities.  From sailing to kayaking I have found that my place is in the outdoors. It is a lifestyle that offers more than sun basking and into actually earning your clam chowder meal.

Developing Cross Functional Teams

Cross functional teams are dependent on the type of people you select and the goals you have in mind. Making sure your cross functional teams have the right people is important. It isn't cost effective or wise to add a lot of people from various departments that don't have a direct impact on your success. Whether you are processing a new product or service you will need a team that can help you get from point A to Z.

Consider the general needs of the team to create your new product or service. There may be a need for designers, engineers, marketing managers, purchasing representatives, etc... Your team should be based on creating a successful launch.

You may not need everyone right away. During the initial product development stages you may not need everyone right away. Instead you may want to include people that are more focused on the creation aspect in the initial stages, manufacturing in the second stages and sales in their final stages.

Furthermore, you should consider having a few key people such as project managers throughout all the stages that understand how the entire product will move throughout the process. Having such people ensure that information isn't lost in any of the transitional stages.

Focus Your Efforts and Work for Greater Productivity

Sometimes we get lost in the weeds of work and life and we aren't as focused as we should be. It is those little annoying distractions like grocery shopping, paying bills, etc... that sort of take us away from the tasks we should be working on. However, if we put things in proper perspective and "clean" out those things that don't add value or don't contribute to our life in some way we can create a happier lifestyle.

As we focus you will find that some things won't be as important as others. Time is limited and how we spend our time will impact how we live our lives. If we spend time on activities we don't enjoy or don't contribute in some way then we not feel fulfilled.

Its hard to determine what is of value to us and what isn't. This is a personal question you have to answer for yourself. What your neighbor finds of value you may not and visa versa.

In the end, it will be how you spent your time and how you live your life that will count. Sometimes, the only thing you have is your memories.

That doesn't mean you shouldn't do activities that help you make money and life a good life. You need to take care of your future so work will definitely be on your priority list. As much as you can you should maximize your income up to a point.