humorous speaker

Day 3 – Noticing the creativity around you

by aileen on July 13, 2011

Yesterday was about noticing the creativity that people use without even labeling it as such. I was at an event at a large company and before and after I spoke I watched:

People thinking on their feet and making spur of the moment decisions- that’s creativity.
Adding value to the customer experience – that’s creativity.
Writing on the paper table clothes to say ‘good morning’ and later, ‘thank you for coming’ and ‘we’ll miss you’ (See the message they wrote for me below)- that’s creativity.
Finding solutions to customer problems – that’s creativity.

Once you start looking you see it everywhere. Once you see it you start by wondering what else could happen. Start by asking What If…..

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Forty Days of Creativity – Day One.

by aileen on July 12, 2011

Day One

This is an experiment in creativity. Deliberate Creativity.

I have been researching, writing, reading, ok yes – obsessing about creativity in business for a while. Not just for those business who have to be creative on a daily basis but those that don’t (but could really benefit from it). I have lots of ideas so what better than to try them myself daily and work out what works. I have no idea where this will lead but I intend to have a lot of fun finding out.

I wanted to share some of this journey with you. Some of the things I try I’d love you to try too, I will (if this all works) be creating some products (maybe a book, ecourse & of course a speech / training) but that’s not the point right now. The point is to experiment with being deliberately creative.

I started my career as a Graphic Designer, apparently from the time I was 3 or 4 years old I used to tell my parent I wanted to “draw Cornflake Boxes” when I got older. Through my teenage years it was my complete focus. I was the first in my family to get a degree (yes, in Graphic Design) and I loved every minute of working in the industry…… but then I began to notice something else. This was a business. This was about clients and productivity and end product. At college no one had mentioned that – they were all about clever ideas and great looking design.

I became obsessed with the client presentation (yes I’ve always been the obsessive type) and why they liked some design and not others. I loved packaging design more than logo design because the success or failure didn’t depend on people thinking it was ‘pretty’ or ‘cool’ – it depended on sales figures. Yes, I got to draw cornflake packets. Yes it was everything I’d dreamed it would be.

Then my career took a turn. I was freelancing as a designer and working at a couple of London Colleges teaches Graphics. One day someone entered my classroom and asked if I could cover a class that afternoon… in Communication. I agreed and my life changed. (Skip long story here) Gradually I became a speaker, winning the Best Humorous Speaker in the UK and Ireland title in 2000.

I have always stayed creative, my speeches have always been very visual and my home is full of design. Lately it’s been bugging me, leaping out of every crevice, it’s time to let it have a more important role, an upfront position in my business.

So this is the blog of the experiment. 40 days to test what I think I have learned in the last 40 years.

If you have read this far, congratulations. Today I am starting my day by re-reading one of my favorite very small books by Seth Godin. GRACEFUL – It’s a simple little book with powerful messages- It’s only $2.99 from Amazon (kindle edition) – It should put me on the right track.

As always I would love to hear your thoughts and comments as I go through this process, I’d love to hear how creativity plays a role in your business and whether you leave it to chance or have a system to make it happen and make it brilliant.

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A reminder to be OPEN

by aileen on July 11, 2011

Last week I bought an ‘OPEN’ sign from a business that had closed (ironic) and I couldn’t resist altering it slightly. I painted out some letters and used a dremel to carve out some new ones. It’s not perfect, but it doesn’t have to be. It now hangs in my office to remind me to be OPEN. So now for the before and after pics…

BEFORE

NOW

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The Quick Fix

by aileen on July 5, 2011

In the last few years we have all be trained to look for the easy way to do things. Television, magazines and the internet constantly promises us magical results: lose 15lbs this week, tone your body in 3 minutes a day, make six figures a year working four hours a week. You know the stuff.

We are continuously fed the lie that success doesn’t take hard work or effort. I guess we just wouldn’t buy something that declared ‘Use your hard work and willpower to lose 2.5lbs this week.’

We want quick fixes, and blame ourselves when they don’t work. With each easy method that doesn’t work, (not that we ever really stick to them) we label ourselves or the system a failure and look for the next thing.

We want newer and faster, we look for ‘no willpower needed’ and cling to phrases like ‘work smarter, not harder’ — after all who wants to work harder?

A few years ago a movie called “The Secret” revived people’s interest in the Law of Attraction — we no longer had to do anything. We just had to visualize what we wanted and magically the Universe sent it to us. I’m a motivational speaker — I’m meant to tell you this stuff works. Just imagine it happening and it will. Believe in yourself and everything will change. Blah, blah, blah.

I’ll be honest — I still spend the first 20 mins of each day visualizing what I want to happen in my life. Sometimes I write out my goals. Sometimes I just think about them with a cup of tea. I’m learning to meditate.

So why do I do this if I don’t believe it worksIt’s not that it doesn’t work, it does. If you spend the first 20 minutes of the day visualizing AND then the rest of the day working towards what you want.

Learning to believe in yourself is only worth it if you use that belief to spur you into action. If you want the body, the career or the life of your dreams you have to take action.

This is good news. Really. There is only one way to know the joy of working towards what you want, following your passion — and that’s to do it. If it’s the path you are meant to be on, the work is part of the reward. I can’t promise that you are going to love every minute, but you are going to be learning the skills, and the lessons, and the self-discipline that are all an integral part of success in any field.

Yes you need to dream, but you also need the discipline of action.

Watch an athlete at his peak, you can’t fake the years of training that takes. You can’t fake learning, or experience, and even if you could bluff your way through life you’d be missing out on the true reward.

Effort is it’s own reward. The sooner we learn that, the happier we will be.

Now that’s a quick fix.

This was first published in The Advertiser in the weekly column I write, That’s What She Said.

New Skills, beliefs, inspiration and then there’s this….

by aileen on March 14, 2011

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The outtakes

by aileen on February 23, 2011

We had a lot of fun on our recent shoot for USING PEOPLE – THE EXPERIENCE. Here are some of the outtakes. Enjoy, and don’t forget to buy your ticket.

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Are you afraid?

by aileen on February 22, 2011

Here is this week’s column in The Advertiser – I wrote it for myself as much as for my readers.

“Are you scared? I hope so. Not afraid-scared, but out-of-your-comfort-zone, taking-some-risks, knowing-you-are-really-alive, kind of scared. It is a good fear that comes with living your life to the fullest.

We all play it safe sometimes, but there’s nothing like taking a step toward something you want, or even away from something you don’t.

For the past few weeks, a lot of people have been glued to “American Idol,” and especially to local boy, Jacee Badeaux. We are watching him take his chances to achieve his dream, and whatever happens, his life will never be the same again.

This week I spoke at a meeting of The 705, Acadiana’s Emerging Leaders, a group for young professionals and was amazed by their drive and energy. There are some people in that group living on the edge of their comfort zones; they are on the fast track to success.

It’s scary to put yourself out there, to say ‘this is what I want’ or ‘I think I’m good at this.’

There will be people who laugh behind your back, people who resent you for changing, and people who support and love you. You may drift away from some friends, and toward new ones.

People think that because I am a motivational speaker I don’t get scared. Of course I do. How could I speak about this stuff unless I lived it too? How could I know about overcoming doubt unless I had to do it myself?

We see ourselves from the inside, and others from the outside and then we compare the two. We think everyone is more confident, braver and less worried than we are. We all have those emotions; the secret is to acknowledge them and carry on anyway.

Doubt only hurts you if you let it prevent you from doing what you want. Other people can only hurt you if you value their opinions above your own.

If you are one of the lucky people who know what your passion is, or if you have a dream, then do something, anything. Yes, it’s going to be scary at times. Do it anyway. Imagine how scary it will be in 10 years, when you look back and realize the only person holding you back was you.

You have to stand in your own truth. That’s a very Oprah way of saying it, but it means that you have to know who you are and be that person. Jacee became a national talking point when he stood by who he was on “Idol,” when he didn’t let the behavior of others bring him down.

Yes, he shed a few tears, and then he got on with it. He didn’t even feel the need to put others down. It showed great character and won our hearts.

Collect people who are taking steps toward their dreams. Learn from (or go and join) The 705, watch Jacee on “Idol,” and then take your own steps.

I wish you much fear in the months ahead. The good kind.”

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You were saying?

by aileen on February 21, 2011

Watch this. Once. What were those excuses again?

Thank you Nike for the reminder.

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USING PEOPLE IS NOW AN EXPERIENCE!

by aileen on February 9, 2011

Using People started as a speech, then a book, and now… an entire experience!
Taking place in downtown Lafayette on Friday April 8th, Using People – the experience is part motivational speech, part theatrical event, part networking, all complete fun and lots of learning. Find out more HERE

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BE YOU – THE WHOLE TRUTH – Santa

by aileen on December 24, 2010

Every week my BE YOU interview is published in The Times of Acadiana – This is the unedited version, the bits that didn’t fit in the paper – The Whole Truth!

Santa Claus

This week’s BE YOU interviewee needs no introduction. I grew up calling him Father Christmas but he’s known better in these parts as Santa. Even though he is very busy at this time of year, Santa was happy to sit with me and answer my questions and pose for a photo. He laughed a big belly laugh at many of the questions before he answered and I could hear Rudolf outside impatiently waiting to take him back to The North Pole so he could join in some more reindeer games.

Describe a typical day in your life.
I wake up to the sound of reindeer playing reindeer games, make a list, check it twice then read that days letters and send the orders to the Elves. Sometimes I take the sleigh out for a test drive and then I have dinner with Mrs Claus.

What advice would you give the younger you?
Eat less cookies on Christmas Eve.

What event in your life most shaped who you are now?
Eating too many cookies gave me this shape.

What do you most appreciate?
Large chimneys and good children.

What is your favorite journey?
Around the world on Christmas Eve, it’s quite magical.

What living figure most inspires you?
The Easter bunny is pretty cool. The way he manages to hide all of those Easter Eggs without being seen, I have no idea how he does that!

What was the best advice you were ever given?
Be good, someone is always watching.

What book would you tell everyone to read?
I would tell them to read every book they get for Christmas.

How do you “let the good times roll” ?
I love a good sleigh ride, eggnog, and watching the reindeer games.

What do you say to yourself when you doubt yourself?
I believe in myself.

What three things are vital to BEing YOU?
My beard, my lap, my reindeer.

Which words or phrases do you most overuse?
Ho, Ho, Ho.

What is your favorite word?
Ho.

What do you collect?
Letters from Children all over the world and elf jokes.
My favorite at the moment is: If athletes get athlete’s foot, what do elves get?
Mistle-toes!

Where is your favorite place to be alone?
Where do I like to be by mys-elf? In my workshop of course!

What food could you live on for a month?
Milk and cookies. Mrs Claus wouldn’t like that though, she wants me to eat elfier food.

Describe yourself in five words.
Jolly, Devastatingly Handsome, Kind, Punctual.

What is your idea of happiness?
Hot Cocoa and a long nap on Christmas Day after all the presents have been delivered and all the children of the world are happy.

What is your favorite movie?
Miracle on 34th Street. It was my acting debut.

What music defines who you are?
We play a lot of “wrap” music in the workshop.

What is the best thing about where you live?
It feels like Christmas all year round, it’s good for my elf.

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