Passion to Fuel It...
You need PASSION to fuel it and VISION to drive it! I've realised you just can't do one without the other if you are looking to have a sustainable business!
Over the last ten years of working in media my eyes have been well and truly opened to this important fact. When I was learning my craft and working my way up to Senior Manager within a Global Media Company, I was offering businesses creative solutions to their current marketing strategies.
I first started out in the media business, I assumed that Business Owners and Marketing Executives would know exactly what promotion would work for them, because well nobody knows their business better than them… right?
This is True, if you are speaking with the founder of the company..nobody knows their business values better than they do, (why they started in the first place, their PASSION). What I didn't realise at the time was that they may have the idea and the passion but really struggle with the vision to drive the business idea forward, especially if external factors were blurring their view.
Some common statements that often featured within my conversations with businesses were….
'we just can't seem to move forward', 'we have spent a fortune on advertising and marketing yet nothing is happening, it hasn't worked'.
I learned the hard way, not to assume that every business leader has the right vision to drive an idea forward. As Richard Branson says;
"You shouldn't blindly accept a leaders advice. You've got to question leaders on occasion."
And there I had it. I could no longer assume the leader had all the answers. My job was to ask a series of questions, to check and check again that their vision was crystal clear;
Seems too simple….Yes it is and it works!
It's amazing what information you can gather through asking a series of simple questions that are well structured. When I'm asking questions, I'm REALLY listening to what the other person has to say whilst helping them to focus and guiding them towards a common goal.
The real magic takes place when you can identify the right answers to question. By digging deep you can find hidden jewels of the finest clarity and truest colour!
It's easy for anyone to get caught up in a rat race and it's even easier when you are running a business where there will inevitably be many obstacles in your way.
For me accepting that I can't be all things to all people and saying NO more often to things that weren't true to me, made me a better leader.
My own discovery and passion led to the creation of Innov8 Scotland. I could relate to the rat race, where I never really felt like I had the time to lift my head up to look at the bigger picture. Through my training and personal development, I had my own light bulb moment where I real'eyes'd how I could help and add value to other business leaders and businesses in a similar position.
Innov8 Scotland can give you and your business the gentle nudge it needs to get back on track, sometimes that is all that's required.
It all starts with an Innov8 Scotland Market Audit for your business.
A well structured set of questions that will gather important information about how your business is running. You will receive a fully inclusive report that will demonstrate our findings and highlight potential areas for improvement.
This creative direction can help you to spot any resources/talent that you may not currently be tapping into and if you do find that you are lacking in a particular creative area we have a team of people at Innov8 Scotland ready to help.