Seth Godin could not have said it any better when he said: “We run our schools like factories. We line kids up in a straight rows, put them in batches (called grades), and work very hard to make sure there are no defective parts. Nobody standing out, falling behind, running ahead, making a rukus.”

I absolutely love, love, love this quote! Now, don’t get me wrong…while learning the basics is important, it’s just as important to discover new and creative ways of doing the same old things. The real route to success is a combination of learning and creative thinking…not by conforming to the norm.

In his book, Purple Cow, Seth Godin’s message is quite simple: Be Remarkable. A purple cow is something counterintuitive, phenomenal, and exciting. His lesson is to put a purple cow into your business thinking, whether you are in marketing, production, or sales, so that you will attract the attention you deserve!

If you always follow the manual, it’s time to change your mindset. Creativity needs to be nurtured, and it’s hard to do so in an environment saturated by “business-as-usual” politics (this irks me…a lot), as well as disruptions of streaming e-mails and phone calls. To put yourself in a mindset that will encourage you to think outside the box, make an effort to tune out the outside world. And instead of just doing your job, give some thought on how you can do it differently. This way you just may change your organization, product, or service in such a way that nobody ever thought before.