{"id":3879,"date":"2012-04-20T17:25:54","date_gmt":"2012-04-20T21:25:54","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/herculiz.com\/dev\/?p=3879"},"modified":"2018-10-18T20:13:58","modified_gmt":"2018-10-18T20:13:58","slug":"want-to-get-promoted-try-to-get-fired","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/brandtwist.com\/blog\/inspiration\/want-to-get-promoted-try-to-get-fired\/","title":{"rendered":"Want to Get Promoted? Try to Get Fired"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>Stuck in an innovation rut? Here\u2019s a technique that will help get those creative juices\u00a0flowing again.<\/p>\n

Give yourself this task:\u00a0\u201cWhat idea could I come up with that would get me fired?\u201d<\/p>\n

I\u2019m not talking about spreading company gossip on Facebook or throwing up all over the CEO at the office summer party.<\/span><\/p>\n

I\u2019m talking about creating an idea for your brand that seems so patently absurd that it could get you fired.<\/p>\n

By thinking in this way, going to the extreme opposite of what\u2019s expected, you actually free up your thinking and might just come up with a nugget of an idea that could be refined into something more plausible, maybe even brilliant and highly marketable.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s an example that came from an agency I met last year who first turned me on to this \u201cfired\u201d technique. (For reasons of confidentiality I am omitting the Agency and the Client).<\/p>\n

The Agency was tasked with thinking up new ideas for a very popular children\u2019s doll. This doll had been portrayed in all sorts of \u201crespectable\u201d situations: dentist, Olympic athlete, teacher, etc.<\/p>\n

So using this firing technique they said, \u201cWhat about a hooker version of the doll?\u201d<\/p>\n

Well of course, this wasn’t what they were going to actually recommend\u2026but by allowing themselves to play with this absurd idea it led them to think about the nigh time as an important day part for this doll (something they hadn’t really explored before). <\/span><\/p>\n

And eventually they came up with an idea for a Pajama Party line extension that was quite on brand, new for this product, and very relevant to the target audience of 6-10 year old girls.<\/p>\n

Too often we are our own worst enemies in terms of innovation. Often (unconsciously) we immediately narrow the territories in which we think and create.<\/p>\n

By deliberately going so far out of our comfort zones that a pink slip is the only conceivable outcome\u2026we free our minds up to think more creatively and to come up with really new ideas.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s my point of view. What\u2019s your twist?<\/p>\n

What ideas could get your fired (and perhaps promoted)?<\/p>\n

Our\u00a0<\/strong>Brand School<\/a>\u00a0<\/strong>program will give you actionable steps and strategies that you can use to keep your brand-building and marketing skills fresh and innovative. \u00a0Receive\u00a0more information about the next semester\u00a0and receive\u00a0free brand-building tools and tips<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0<\/strong>when you\u00a0join our mailing list<\/strong><\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Please also join us on\u00a0Twitter<\/a>\u00a0<\/strong>and\u00a0Facebook<\/a><\/strong>\u00a0for more insight and discussion on branding.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

“Brand School helped me get clear on my messaging and my brand. Now my clients know exactly what it is I bring to my classes.” –<\/em> Josh Pais, Actor and Founder of Committed Impulse, creativity workshop<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Stuck in an innovation rut? Here\u2019s a technique that will help get those creative juices\u00a0flowing again. Give yourself this task:\u00a0\u201cWhat idea could I come up with that would get me fired?\u201d I\u2019m not talking about spreading company gossip on Facebook or throwing up all over the CEO at the office summer party. I\u2019m talking about […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[49,135,63,64,37,53,107,96],"tags":[40,41,250,60,45,46,115,77,65,251,52,252],"class_list":["post-3879","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","category-careers","category-communication","category-innovation","category-insights","category-inspiration","category-leadership","category-overcoming-obstacles","category-problem-solving","tag-brand","tag-brand-building","tag-brand-innovation","tag-brand-school","tag-brandtwist","tag-career","tag-creativity-2","tag-innovation-2","tag-job","tag-job-performance","tag-julie-cottineau","tag-marketing-branding-career"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t