I’ve always believed that boxes get a bad rap and that understanding them is the key to enhancing your creativity.During a conversation on changing the culture in his company, a CEO said, “It’s hard to consider getting outside of the box, because sometimes I forget the box is there.” Don’t we all.

But that’s OK. Actually, I think we all have a box. The creativity difference is in the size of our box. Steve Jobs’ and Steven Spielberg’s boxes are immense, far larger than most, yet they both continue to enlarge them.

And therein lies one of the secrets of a creative organization.

It’s not just encouraging your people to “think outside the box,” it’s helping them comprehend their box and how to enlarge it.

That’s how it works. As soon as you get outside your own box, a new one forms. Once you absolutely use up its content and find its sides you go outside that box, a new one forms and the process begins again.

If you work at it, this process continues throughout your life—although some never begin it and some get comfortable in a certain box and retain it.

It’s a matter of choice, your choice, within your control to make it happen.

There will always be a box, but with effort you can enlarge it enough to encompass galaxies—and even entire universes.

It’s all yours for the choosing.

What have you done to enlarge your box?

Your comments—priceless

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Filed under: Other Comedy Shows, Industry, OpEd

According to the UK entertainment site Digital Spy, Ricky Gervais is talking about doing a spin-off of Extras, which he recently concluded with a holiday special. The spin-off would focus on Shaun Williamson’s character Barry (referred to most of the time as “Barry from EastEnders”) and co-creator Stephen Merchant’s clueless agent Darren Lamb.

Williamson confirmed to a British radio station that he’s in talks with Gervais about the spin-off. “We talked half-jokingly about a show with the pair in a camper van, solving crimes,” he told the station.

Continue reading Gervais working on an Extras spinoff?

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Filed under: Industry, OpEd, Festivus, Celebrities, 30 Rock, Life, Moonlight

Here we are again. Another year has passed us by and what do we’ve to show for it? A tiny more gray hair, a tiny less money in our pockets (have you noticed how the price of, um, everything has gone up?), and a little more fear that the world in slowly unraveling. Normally, TV is there to soothe our brows in these times. Alas, the current pissing match between the Studios and the Writers is stifling that capability to the point that we might all be having Chaucer parties by mid-year because there’s nothing to watch on the tube.

Not sounding too bitter, am I?

Well, you’re not here to read about doom and gloom (unless it’s a review of 24). You’re here to see what I, and many of my Television Squad colleagues, thought television’s best and worst were for 2007. So, without further interruptions on how much I paid for my daughter’s karate lessons (you DON’T want to know), here is my list of best and worst for the previous year.

Continue reading The Best and Worst of 2007: Rich’s list - VIDEO

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Filed under: Industry, Programming, Ratings

Here are the weekly cable ratings, by number of viewers.

If I was to summarize the cable ratings for this week, it would be football, football, football, football, football, football, football, football, football, football, football, football, High School Musical 2, football, football, football, football, football, football, football, World’s Funniest Commercials, football, football, football, football, football, football, football, The Santa Clause 2, football, football, football.

Next week might be more of the same, since there were college football games on New Year’s Day.

1. Monday Night Football (ESPN)

Continue reading Nielsen cable ratings for the week ending December 30

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New books on leadership seem to appear almost daily and many of them have useful insights, but Epic Change: How to Lead Change in the Global Age by Timothy R Clark is one of the ideal I’ve read.

Clark left Oxford to find an academic position in the US, but instead spent eight years as a plant manager before the company shut its doors—a victim of global competition.

Considering that the average tenure of CEOs is 44 months and that the primary reasons are lack of vision and inability to deal with change the book is of paramount importance because of its insights on dealing with change, but it’s a good read that won’t put you to sleep.

As Clark points out, change is happening at a faster rate and a grander scale than ever before and the need to adapt to that change is critical to the very survival of a company.

“Randy MacDonald, senior vice president of human resources at IBM, which employs 330,000 people around the world, estimates that 22 percent of the organization’s workforce will have obsolete skills in only three years.”

To the oft cited three types of knowledge—personal, organizational and market—needed to lead, Clark adds a fourth—global.

How can you innovate if your thinking is confined to your existing market…you must keep your eyebrows raised to macrolevel trends… Leaders are now obliged to scale their awareness and push out traditional boundaries because what’s distant, remote or removed this day can threaten your competitiveness tomorrow.”

Beyond his own shattering personal experience watching the death throes of his employer, Clark analyzed 53 organizations across the spectrum—business, education, health-care, government and non-profits—going through a variety of changes—mission shifts, new business models, mergers/acquisitions—and found four stages that each passed through, with success a function of how well each stage was accomplished.

The stages are evaluation, preparation, implementation and consolidation.

In their proper order, the pragmatic terms describing the four stages are the source for both the name of the book and the structure of Clark’s EPIC Methodology.

The bulleted summary at the end of each chapter provides an excellent reminder for leaders intent on using the methodology.

EPIC Change has enormous value to those responsible for leading, but it also has real value for those who follow—no matter the level at which you work.

Knowledgeable followers are of the greatest value to good leaders as well as being the bane of the bad and inept ones.

Being knowledgeable yields up an additional benefit for followers—with your eyes open to what should be you’re more aware when it isn’t and therefore more able to make informed personal decisions regarding when to stay and when to leave.

I highly advocate EPIC Change, I think you’ll like it and find it extremely useful.

How well do you/your leaders handle the challenge of change?

Your comments—priceless

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Filed under: Industry, OpEd, Festivus

I was going to write a long, elaborate intro about how excited I’m that it’s a new year, but I decided to make this image instead. Look out, Alec and Tina! There’s a weeping angel behind you! And check out how Heidi is super excited to be with the not-so-excited guys from Flight of the Conchords. And it looks like David Anders enjoys speaking in huge speech bubbles. No, I’m not still buzzed from New Year’s Eve, I just have a little too much fun in Photoshop. However, I’m sure some of you’re still somehow hungover from celebrating days and days ago, so let’s jump right in…

Continue reading The Ideal and Worst of 2007: Annie’s list - VIDEOS

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Filed under: Industry, Ratings

Here are the weekly Television ratings, by number of viewers.

Two things strike me as I look at this week’s list: 1.) if crime didn’t exist, CBS probably wouldn’t be in the top 20 as much as they’re, and 2.) NBC had a lot of football on last week. So many football games, shows, and pre-kicks in the top 20 that it’s actually a tiny confusing.

1. Sunday Night Football (NBC)

Continue reading Nielsen ratings for the week ending December 30

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