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A Recipe for Better Brainstorming

Posted January 26, 2012, by Kelly Mazurkiewicz

How do you break out of stale, established patterns of thinking? What’s the best way to develop new ways of looking at things? And how on earth do you overcome the many issues that can make group problem-solving unsatisfactory processes for all involved?

Through fun brainstorming sessions of course! 20090512-165126-whiteboard

What you need:

  • Any writing utensils you are most comfortable with
  • Highlighters, colored pencils, markers, or crayons
  • Blank sheets of paper – could be lined, graph or plain
  • Laptops/computers (if available, you never know when you’ll need to Google something.
  • And most importantly, a subject/problem to brainstorm

Best brainstorming practices:

  • Take lots and lots of notes
    • Use a white board
    • Record conversations
    • Draw pictures
    • Encourage Participation
      • Ask questions – there is no such thing as a stupid question!
      • Clarify everything
        • Sometimes people view things completely differently than what you have in mind.
        • Draw out your ideas, make graphs or charts – anything to help you get your point across.
        • Do not judge -

What to do with all your notes:

  • Categorize
    • Once you have lots of ideas written down, it’s time to categorize them all and group them into similar groups.
  • Reduce
    • Now that things are categorized, take out all of the groups that don’t make much sense at all to the subject you are brainstorming.
  • Analyze
    • Now take a look at what you have left! I guarantee you’ll have some pretty unique, fresh ideas.

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Lessons from the Customer Service Center

Posted September 22, 2011, by Kelly Mazurkiewicz

I absolutely hate calling cable/internet providers, airlines, electrical services and anyone involved with a product that has broken or failed to meet my expectations. It’s never a fun conversation. In fact, I’ve even been tempted to just ignore a problem because it’s easier to deal with it than actually have it fixed.

Have you ever felt this way?

Having worked in customer service, I also know how it feels, to be on the other end. Having to listen to people yell and scream at me because the product they bought is broken. Like it’s my fault? I went over to their house and broke it on purpose, right?

To be honest with you though, I think being a customer service rep was one of the best experiences I’ve ever had. I learned what works with people who are upset and what doesn’t, how to calm people down and, most importantly, how to listen to their problems.

Customer service can either make or break a company these days. With social media, news travels fast. As soon as someone has an unpleasant experience, their whole social network will know about it. This, in turn, will make those people think twice before using your company the next time around.

So, here are a couple customer service tips for you.

  • Listen – The only reason you have a business is because of your customers’ needs/wants. When you truly listen to your customers and hear what it is they have to say, you can and will provide good customer service.
  • Be proactive – Try to anticipate what your customer’s needs and wants are. If you are actively listening to them, this shouldn’t be hard. As you begin to build that relationship, you will begin to become more aware of problems and upcoming needs.
  • Make them feel important – We all like to feel important and appreciated, right? We need to make sure we do this with each and every one of our customers. Treat them as individuals, not just a job ticket number. Use their name in conversation, find ways to complement them and most importantly, be sincere. That feeling of sincerity will create trust.
  • Hold their hand – Many customers won’t fully understand how your business works; they’ll have no clue how things go from an idea, to a product, into production, etc. If this happens, customers tend to get stressed, impatient and eventually angry. Make sure you explain things to them. Be as transparent as possible.
  • Say sorry – We all make mistakes. When something goes wrong, you need to be able to apologize. Deal with the problem right away and let that customer know that you are working on a solution.

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I’ll Just Do This Later

Posted March 25, 2011, by Kelly Mazurkiewicz

We all do it. We have sales calls we need to make,  reports to write, meetings to prepare for and so on. But instead, we organize our desks, jump on Facebook, send out emails, or even decide that we need to take a break before moving forward. We keep putting off whatever small detail we need to finish, until it’s too late.

Sound familiar?

Well I can assure you, you are definitely not alone. I don’t know who I learned it from, or when it started, but for as long as I can remember I’ve always, ALWAYS been a procrastinator.

And yes, there are those people out there who say things like ‘I always do my best work when I wait until the last second to start.’ Unfortunately though, that’s not necessarily the case. And I would know, I was one of those people.

So, how do I fight my awful procrastination habit? For me, it’s all about motivation.

Break it Down

Have you ever had a project due that is so large, you don’t even know where to start? You try writing to-do lists, but you just can’t seem to get organized. Next thing you know, you’re surfing the web looking at your friend’s latest picture posts.

My solution: Break your project down into smaller and smaller pieces. For each small piece, write a separate to do list. Doing this helps me see my accomplishments so that I know I’m getting closer and closer to the finish line.

Turn it into a Game

Everybody has to have some sort of competitive spirit, right? Use it to your advantage. Turn your projects into games. Place a bet with someone that requires you to deliver work at a certain time. You can’t let your friend win can you?!

Hide Temptations!

Unplug the Internet, turn off the TV, have a friend hide your iPhone if you have to. Do whatever you can to move away from all the distractions.

Try moving to an empty room. A quite room. Someplace you can concentrate. Once you’re there, make a to-do list, prioritize and start tackling things one at a time. Before you know it, half your list will be done and you will be well on your way to completing the tasks ahead.

And if all else fails,

Develop a Disaster Recovery Plan

Hey, we’re human. Sometimes we make mistakes. Sometimes we bite off more than we can chew. If that happens, just be sure to be prepared for what is next to come. Ask yourself these questions:

  • What will your boss (or whoever is counting on you to finish the project) do/want from you if they can’t receive everything they were hoping for?
  • Out of everything that you are working on, what is the most important? Can you finish that chunk of the project on time?
  • Do you have a plan beyond the due date for when and how you will complete the project?
  • Do you have people in mind you can pull in to help you complete the project?

For all those out there who are struggling with the pocrastination problem, I do, from the bottom of my heart, wish you best of luck.  Now, stop reading this blog and get back to work!

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The Importance of Colors

Posted March 2, 2011, by Kelly Mazurkiewicz

You may not know or realize it, but colors play an extremely important part in your life.  Yes, perceptions of color can be somewhat subjective, but for the most part certain colors have a universal meaning. ColorWheel1

For example, warm colors, such as red, orange and yellow, evoke emotions ranging from warmth and comfort, to feelings of anger and hostility. Cool colors, such as blue, purple and green, usually range from a calm feeling, to feelings of sadness, or indifference.

Without realizing it, color can have a profound affect on how we feel both mentally and physically.

Blue – represents peace, tranquility, calm, stability, harmony, unity, trust, truth and confidence

Black – represents power, sexuality, elegance, wealth, mystery, fear, evil and anger

Green – represents nature, environment, health, renewal, youth, generosity, envy and misfortune.

Orange – represents warmth, enthusiasm, vibrance, flamboyancy and anger.

Purple- represents royalty, spirituality, nobility, ceremony, mystery and wisdom

Red – represents love, anger, desire, speed, strength and violence

White – represents humility, precision, innocence, youth, peace and sterility

Yellow - represents joy, happiness, optimism, idealism, imagination and hope

So, why does this matter to you?

Well, say you want to paint a room in your house – your kids room – and their favorite color is red.  What would a red room do? While red can create a sense of warmth, it can also stimulate and energize the viewer.  It can be a loud, unsettling color that might make it difficult to focus on tasks.

How about blue? A blue room has a calming effect, proven to slow down the human nervous system preparing the body for sleep.  Blue is a perfect color for bedrooms.  The shade of blue however, does matter.  A dark blue, for example, could make the viewer feel cold.

What about in advertising?

According to research, black and white can be two of the best colors for it.  When used together, they signify power and create a sense that a company is highly professional.

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