Business Innovation Speaker and Consultant Stephen Shapiro

Adult Games vs Kid Games

Stephen Shapiro — Mon, 30 Aug 2010 16:05:20 +0000

In my blog post, “How Can Goals Enhance Creativity” I said… “…As long as everyone in the organization believes they are playing a game which is designed to get them energized today, and it is not specifically about hitting the target, I can assure you that people will be more motivated.” Games can be a [...]

One Simple Action Can Change Your Life and Your Business

Stephen Shapiro — Mon, 23 Aug 2010 20:08:08 +0000

Recently, a number of people have asked me how I became an author and professional speaker. I reflected upon it and realized that it all started with one simple action. And maybe, to make major change happen, that’s all you need: one small move. The year was 1993. I was a relatively junior person at [...]

Pictures of My Baby, Delivered Today

Stephen Shapiro — Fri, 20 Aug 2010 22:34:04 +0000

No, I did not give birth to a boy or a girl. I gave birth to a book. I’ll be handing out cigars later. But in the meantime, I wanted to share the photos of my new baby. Here is the first copy of the Personality Poker book, hot off the press. Previous photos were [...]

Looking for Reviewers of the Personality Poker Book

Stephen Shapiro — Thu, 19 Aug 2010 21:18:36 +0000

Today marks 10 weeks before the release of the Personality Poker book. And just a few hours ago I received 100 copies of the “galleys” (the uncorrected paperback proofs). Over the next few weeks, we will be compiling a list of those in the media, including bloggers, who we think would be interested in receiving [...]

Everything Has a Personality

Stephen Shapiro — Mon, 16 Aug 2010 11:00:46 +0000

While developing Personality Poker, one thing I discovered is that lots of things have personalities: People, Political Parties, Products, Places, and Organizations (I could not find a “p” for this last one). When you look at everything through the lens of a personality, you begin to see why individuals gravitate towards (or away from) certain [...]

How Can Goals Enhance Creativity?

Stephen Shapiro — Wed, 04 Aug 2010 10:52:21 +0000

In my previous blog entry, I discussed how goals can either enhance or detract from performance. Over the years, I have written numerous articles on “The Performance Paradox” that show how an obsession with the future reduces performance in the present. And typically, creativity is significantly diminished in the process. But given that businesses are [...]

When a Goal is Not a Goal

Stephen Shapiro — Mon, 02 Aug 2010 00:45:21 +0000

This post marks two major milestones for me: This is the 500th entry on this blog In 3 months, my Personality Poker book will officially launch Yesterday I was talking with a good friend, Susanne, about the book and everything we are doing to turn the Personality Poker book into a best seller. I told [...]

Funny Innovation Quotes (video)

Stephen Shapiro — Wed, 14 Jul 2010 12:00:57 +0000

A client of mine developed this video for a conference. They showed it as people entered the room and got seated. It contains some VERY funny quotes about innovation and change. Be sure to watch in full screen, add your own music, and enjoy!

Doing Nothing to Enhance Creativity

Stephen Shapiro — Mon, 12 Jul 2010 14:58:15 +0000

We are in such a fast paced society that we are always focused on achieving our goals. In business, these goals might be hitting quarterly earnings targets, sales quotas, or operating budgets. Even innovation initiatives are goal-driven. We measure ideas generated, time-to-market, and percent of revenue from new products. We are indeed a goal-driven society. [...]

From Tarot Cards to Poker Cards to Personality Poker

Stephen Shapiro — Fri, 09 Jul 2010 12:00:24 +0000

The video above is a beautiful rendition of Sting’s “Shape of My Heart.” In it, he tells the history of poker cards. In my upcoming book, “Personality Poker,” I had an appendix which discussed the history of poker cards and how this led to the Personality Poker card game. But when it came time for [...]