Creativity Archives - The Executive Producer

Why Listening To Your Customers Will Make You Fail

It was during a focus group that I realized my customers were lying to me.

I was working at a TV station in Portland, Oregon, and we were developing a new, nightly game show. Part of that development involved focus groups.

Maybe you’ve participated in a focus group. In our case, the process went like this. Our focus group research company somehow found several groups of likely viewers, paid them twenty bucks or so to come to a meeting room, and then ...

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28
JUN
2017

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Creativity, Customer Service, Leadership, Producing Results

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How To Be As Good As Jerry Seinfeld

Posted by: Bill Stainton

Are you better today than you were yesterday?

I don’t mean physically. We all catch colds, we all have occasional aches and pains—particularly as we get older. No, I mean are you better at what you do? Are you better at your job? Are you better with your customers? Are you better with your team? Are you a better leader?

And, by the way, if you’re already a superstar—if you’re already at the top of your game—well, sorry. You can’t hide behind ...

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14
JUN
2017

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Creativity, Leadership, Producing Results

attitude, award winning performance, Beatles, Beatles expert, Bill Stainton, business communication, business integrity, business speaker, change, communication, communication skills, continual improvement, continuous improvement, creativity, goal setting, goals, innovation, innovative thinking, inspirational speaker, keynote speaker, leadership, leadership speaker, leadership training, leading through change, motivational speaker, producing results, productivity, professional speaker, running a business, running your business, sales, small business, small business success, success, team building, teambuilding, teams, teamwork, thought leader, work ethic

Curiosity May Kill The Cat, But It Will Make You A Superior Leader

Posted by: Bill Stainton

What kills the cat strengthens the leader.

If you have any cats in your life, you know that the adage “Curiosity kills the cat” is not just a saying; it’s a fact. Cats have an insatiable curiosity that overrides their instinct for self-preservation. And it can get them into life-threatening danger, over and over again.

Fortunately, though, you are not a cat. You are a leader. And leaders need a healthy amount of curiosity in order to be effective.

To put ...

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7
JUN
2017

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Creativity, Leadership, Producing Results

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It’s Not About You And Your Stupid Little Problems

Posted by: Bill Stainton

For fifteen years, I was not allowed to get sick on Saturday. Sunday and Monday were fine; I could be sick then. Tuesday through Friday weren’t ideal, although if push came to shove, I could be sick then too.

But not Saturday. I couldn’t get sick on Saturday. Why?

Because Saturday was showtime.

See, for fifteen years, I was the Executive Producer of a hit comedy TV show in Seattle called Almost Live!, and we taped the show in front of a live ...

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31
MAY
2017

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Creativity, Customer Service, Leadership, Producing Results, Work Ethic

attitude, award winning performance, Beatles, Beatles expert, Bill Stainton, business communication, business integrity, business speaker, change, communication, communication skills, creativity, goal setting, goals, innovation, innovative thinking, inspirational speaker, keynote speaker, leadership, leadership speaker, leadership training, leading through change, motivational speaker, producing results, productivity, professional speaker, running a business, running your business, sales, small business, small business success, success, team building, teambuilding, teams, teamwork, thought leader, work ethic

To Think Out of the Box, Make the Box Smaller

Posted by: Bill Stainton

QUICK QUIZ: Which assignment do you think a creative person would like more:

Write a story about anything.
Write a story about a duck.

If you’re like most people (which, of course, you’re not—you’re better), you said Assignment 1. It’s obvious, isn’t it? I mean, creativity is all about freedom, no restraints, “Don’t box me in, man!” Right?

Wrong.

The surprising, non-intuitive truth is that the vast majority of creative people would prefer Assignment 2: Write a story about a duck.

Now, why is this? And ...

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24
MAY
2017

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Creativity, Leadership, Producing Results, Teams

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Why The Best Leaders Are Out Of Control

Posted by: Bill Stainton

I recently read an interview with Marija Ringwelsky, the co-founder and COO of Remedy, a company that helps protect people from medical overcharges and billing errors. In it, Ms. Ringwelsky said:

“While I thought leadership was about influence and control, starting Remedy has taught me that leadership is quite the opposite—it’s about finding great people who share common values and a shared sense of purpose and counter-intuitively relinquishing control. If you’ve done your job right, the people on your ...

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17
MAY
2017

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Creativity, Leadership, Producing Results, Sales, Teams

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How To Be Better Than Saturday Night Live

Posted by: Bill Stainton

“You guys are better than Saturday Night Live!”

I used to hear that all the time. I still do, although now “are” has changed to “were.”

For 15 years, I was the Executive Producer of a sketch comedy TV show in Seattle called Almost Live!. We were on the NBC affiliate, KING-TV, and for our final 10 years, we aired at 11:30 on Saturday night (we pushed SNL back a half-hour; they aired from midnight to 1:30 am in the Seattle market). ...

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10
MAY
2017

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Creativity, Leadership, Producing Results, Sales, Teams

attitude, award winning performance, Beatles, Beatles expert, Bill Stainton, business communication, business integrity, business speaker, change, communication, communication skills, creativity, goal setting, goals, innovation, innovative thinking, inspirational speaker, keynote speaker, leadership, leadership speaker, leadership training, leading through change, motivational speaker, producing results, productivity, professional speaker, running a business, running your business, sales, small business, small business success, success, team building, teambuilding, teams, teamwork, thought leader, work ethic

Breakthrough Ideas Are Not Created In a Vacuum

Posted by: Bill Stainton

Your next great idea will not come to you out of thin air.

I can say this with near 100% certainty because that’s not how ideas work. That breakthrough idea—the one that will make you rich and famous by Thursday—will not be created in a vacuum. More likely, it’ll be the result of a collision. A collision of dots.

Huh?

Let me explain. Creativity (which is simply the process of coming up with ideas) is all about connecting dots. These dots can be ...

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12
APR
2017

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Creativity, Leadership, Producing Results, Videos

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Are You Missing Out On the Most Important Business Tool?

Posted by: Bill Stainton

Quick Quiz: What do the following have in common?

The iPhone
The Tesla Model S
Spanx
The self-cleaning litter box
The Sputnik 1 satellite

Answer: They were all the product of a creative idea. As was every single other breakthrough that made a million dollars, cured a disease, or changed the world.

They all came from a creative idea.

Every company that exists—or that ever existed—originated with a creative idea.

Every billionaire on the Forbes 400 list is there because of a creative idea. (Sometimes that creative ...

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5
APR
2017

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Creativity, Leadership, Producing Results

attitude, Bill Stainton, business communication, change, communication, communication skills, creative ideas, goal setting, goals, innovation, innovative thinking, keynote speaker, leadership speaker, leadership training, making decisions, motivational speaker, producing results, productivity, professional speaker, running a business, running your business, sales, small business, small business success, success, team building, teambuilding, teams, teamwork, thought leader, work ethic

TED Talk Secrets That Will Make You a Superior Leader

Posted by: Bill Stainton

A little over a week ago, I was on a stage in Vancouver, BC, giving a TEDx talk about creativity to 2,700 people. The video will soon be available online, where it could be seen by (fingers crossed!) millions.

The road to a TEDx talk—whether it’s seen by millions or just dozens—is a long one. At this point, of course, I don’t know whether my talk will hit millions of views, dozens, or somewhere in between. But I do know two ...

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15
MAR
2017

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Change, Creativity, Leadership, Producing Results

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