Eureka! Ranch research found that the classic customer service measure of “liking” or “how much did you enjoy the exercise” had no correlation with actual success levels. Instead, results directly tie to the direct and blunt question-how effective was this exercise at generating ideas that fulfill our objective?”
Enjoyment and effectiveness are two different things. A creative exercise could be difficult and challenging, yet still very effective. Alternatively, an exercise could be fun and enjoyable yet result in meaningless ideas.
In this edition, we have edited the creativity techniques, the “Jump Starts,” to include only those proven effective at creating big ideas. The fun-yet-not-effective exercises are gone. Only the real stuff that really works remains.
Every account you’ll read here is essentially true in terms of the events they describe, however, I have taken the liberty to make two modifications to historical accounts:
• Certain identities or products have been hidden in the interest of client confidentiality … or to protect the guilty. This is a book about hope, faith, and believing in yourself. You won’t find tales tattled here.
• As Ben Franklin often did, I’ve editorialized a few stories, adding a joke here or a twist there to make a point. My intent is to teach and inspire—not to brag or bore.
• Richard Saunders lives. As with the first edition, these pages are sprinkled liberally with quotes from friends, colleagues and associates. Here and there, I’ve included nuggets that came to me on a moonlit night from one Saunders, which by odd coincidence was Ben Franklin’s pen name. Although I can’t prove conclusively that it’s the same Saunders, I can believe it so. It’s a free country.
Jump Start Your Brain
The title sums up the corporate mission of this book and my companies. The intent here is to help you get the maximum horsepower from your particular combination of imagination and intellect. My mission is to help you turn your dreams into reality.
This little piggy went to market,
This little piggy stayed home.
The first little pig had a wicked good idea,
The second little pig had none.
And the first little pig laughed,
Hee, hee, hee, hee,
All the way to the bank.
– Richard Saunders
So here it is: the new edition on the Eureka! Way. It’s what I am. Just as with the first book, it’s all I know-and all I’ve come to know about thinking smarter and more creatively. You hold in your hands my life’s work on personal creativity. On these pages is what I’ve learned from nearly 40 years of real world entrepreneurship.
My hope is that after reading these pages your hope is renewed, your resolve strengthened and your dreams that much closer to being realized.
The Eureka! way is good for you. It works. So here we go. Get ready! Get set! Let’s crank up your cranium!
Cheers,
Doug Hall
Springbrook, Prince Edward Island, Canada
Cincinnati, Ohio U.S.A.
I
INTRODUCTION
How Is This Book Organized?
And Who Is Doug Hall?
“Words may show a man’s wit, but actions his meaning.”
– Ben Franklin
“Jump Start Your Brain” Is Presented in Three Acts
I’ll warn you up front: Jump Start Your Brain is not a scholarly work. It’s sewn together with lots of grins, a few smirks, and all the stuff I know about inventing new-to-the-world ideas. My aim is to educate a little, entertain a little. My personal hero and America’s first great inventor, Ben Franklin, had the same philosophy. In fact, some historical accounts suggest that the reason he wasn’t asked to write the Declaration of Independence was for fear he’d slip a joke into it.
• ACT I, BRAIN TRAINING: SETTING YOUR MENTAL FOCUS TO NEW-TO-THE-WORLD IDEAS.
• Act II, Jump Start Techniques: 30 ways to reinvent your life and career, each explained step by step.
• Act III, Go4It!: Even the most glorious, magical idea won’t do you much good if you can’t make it real. Act III contains inspirational adrenaline to help you turn your dreams into reality.
Disclaimers, Warnings, and Other Minutiae
If you are allergic to data, you’ll love this book. My apologies, data geeks. Though the book itself is based on hard data–from academic journals and original research–I’ve purposely kept technical discussions to a minimum. This book is designed to tell you in simple, action-oriented terms how to think smarter and more creatively about your life and career. Plain. Simple. Go.
If you like fun, you’ll love this book. This book is written to provoke a sense of playfulness of mind and spirit. If you’re a mature and proper RWA (Real World Adult), you might find the free-spirited nature of the writing, the use of BOLD FACE and lots of !!!!!!’s a bit annoying. But it’s how I talk. It’s who I am. The kindest thing said to me after my appearance on network television was that I was being myself. Besides, LIFE IS TO BE ENJOYED! There are too many BORING BOOKS ALREADY!
The Urgency for Thinking Smarter and More Creatively
In today’s world, victory goes to those who have the most meaningful offering. This means those with the best ideas win. To paraphrase Emerson—“Build a better mousetrap, and the World Wide Web will open your door to success.”
In the old days, you could build a business with a mediocre offering or with a lack of price competitiveness. In today’s instant-connection world, this strategy is far less successful. The World Wide Web has created a true free market economy where meaningful ideas are the currency for success.
The consequences of not developing meaningful ideas are extreme. If we don’t think smarter and more creatively, we’re all going to end up working for the folks in China and India.
My Name Is Doug Hall
I’ve been called many things….
• “America’s No. 1 New Product Idea Man” (Inc. Magazine)
• “America’s No. 1 Idea Guru” (A&E Top 10 and CIO Magazine)
• “Procter & Gamble Marketing Whiz” (Wall Street Journal)
• “An eccentric entrepreneur who just might have what we’ve all been looking for … the happy secret to success.” (Dateline NBC)
• “Counter-culture Entrepreneur” (New York Magazine)
