If there’s no spark, there’s no fire. And no fire means no energy being released. Business is fueled by sustainable energy and will turn cold and quickly perish without it.

So where do the sparks for success originate in business? I’ll offer five ignition sources that come to mind:

• Inquisitive Minds. A culture of curiosity will spark new ideas. This is opposite of the status quo mentality “We’ve always done it this way.” What happens when we ask “How might it work if we do it this way instead?” It requires a different approach to achieve different outcomes.

• Interns. Inviting young talent into the business offers them meaningful early work experience, in an environment that encourages practical application of learned concepts and new approaches. While this benefits the interns, it has the dual benefit of encouraging everyone else in the organization to step up their game. Interns are both accelerators and facilitators.

• “Best Thinking” vs. Best Practices. The former happens real-time in the local environment, whereas the latter is handed down as a process that worked elsewhere. By digging deep to get down to the level where the work actually takes place, and engaging teams at that grass roots level, best thinking occurs and performance improves. Variations on a theme can result in meaningful local improvements in engagement and efficiency.

• Necessity. Internal and external challenges can indeed provide the stimulus for action. The fatalistic words “It is what it is…” give way to “…….but it will be what we make it!” Inaction is fatal in a threat-filled environment.

• Aspiration. Visualization of a future, higher state can spark actions that lead to progress. Unleashing the human drive to do more and to be more is transformational.

It’s fascinating to watch what happens when talented people, inspired by a shared purpose, join forces around an Idea. That first spark has the potential to start a powerful and sustainable chain reaction, leading to long-term success.

Tempus Maximize!