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Business Beyond the Box

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Business Beyond the Box

Applying Your Mind for Breakthrough Results

Nicholas Brealey Publishing,

15 min read
10 take-aways
Audio & text

What's inside?

Gradual change is for wimps.

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Editorial Rating

6

Qualities

  • Engaging
  • Inspiring

Recommendation

John O'Keeffe’s book is worth a read for the simple but powerful message that it conveys: Too many people in business today are devoted to incremental improvement when they should be striving for big goals and breakthrough performance. Also of note are the techniques that he describes for cultivating creative thinking within a business. While much of the remainder will seem like a re-hash of basic problem-solving and common-sense creative thinking methodology, getAbstract.com nevertheless recommends this book for its motivational message: Think big.

Summary

Beyond Incrementalism

In today’s fast-paced and competitive world, incrementalism - making gradual and minor improvements to your performance - is not enough. An incremental approach creates self-imposed limits and holds you back. These limits could well bring about your failure, so it’s time to get past incrementalism and move beyond the box. Improvements to the status quo are no longer enough; you need to change your habits and thinking strategies to produce breakthrough results.

In the past 25 years at Procter & Gamble, this type of beyond-the-box mindset has turned around losing businesses, sparked huge jumps in market share and improved the performance of many business lines. In order to mirror this success, spend 50% of your time applying these new breakthrough methods and the remainder of your time on your usual, day-to-day activities.

Eight Thinking Strategies

In order to achieve the breakthrough mentality, you must develop eight thinking strategies in yourself and your employees. Start with yourself and spread the strategies in the same way you’d spread a product in pyramid sales - let your teammates and subordinates in on the new thinking...

About the Author

John O'Keeffe is a Group Vice President for the Procter & Gamble Company, and has had a fast-track career through marketing and general management, with worldwide experience. He has used the thinking techniques described in this book to get breakthrough results in a wide range of business.

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