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In today’s fast-paced, technologically driven society, the marketplace can change on a dime. Businesses that not only succeed but thrive are the ones that can adapt to—or, even better, anticipate—change with as little effort as possible. Which means that, keeping your business running at “business as usual” status won’t allow you to grow.

The price of being stagnant is remarkably high. If your company is sluggish to adopt new ideas or new thinking, be aware that your competitors aren’t. They are out there working on not just the ideas for a better tomorrow, but the ones for a better next week, and with that thinking, they’re winning more of your customers. And making your business obsolete.

You’re going about your business, involved in the same-old, same-old—wake up, go to work, come home, go to bed, repeat. Then one day, BAM! You do a little self-examination and realize that, for weeks (maybe months?), you’ve been feeling exhausted, you haven’t been very motivated, you’ve been irritable with and withdrawn from coworkers as well as family and friends. You realize that some health issues have crept up. You find that you’re preoccupied with work, even when you’re not at work; yet you see that your job performance has slipped and that, in fact, you’re no longer actually satisfied with your job.

It might seem obvious, but it bears noting: To fully understand your business, you need to understand your end customer. If you don’t understand your customers’ wants and needs, you can’t get your product or service to them effectively. To fully understand, it’s important to listen to your customer. Which, again, might seem obvious. But many companies miss a crucial step in the listening process—it’s the actual listening part. Have you been listening? Here are some thoughts about how to do it.

Remember that not all information comes from actual dialog. Sometimes your customers’ opinions can manifest in their actions. For instance, are your customers steady? If you keep tabs on loyal customers, do you know why they stay? Similarly, if previously loyal customers suddenly leave, do you know why?

Let’s face it, every business is looking for creativity from their employees. These are the employees that can really get something started in the business. The people that will knock-the- socks-off of potential clients and board members. How can businesses squeeze creativeness out of their employees? By investing in employees, of course!

Here are three tips to boost creativity:

Tip 1: Make time for the thinking process

Many business people find it easy to get caught up in the busyness of a typical day at the office. A little stress in the workplace is actually a good motivator. However, if you find yourself picking up a foam rubber stress ball to throw at a co-worker, you are experiencing abnormal amounts of stress.

Simply put, stress is your body’s natural reaction to demands placed upon it. From a chemical standpoint, when we are put into a physically or psychologically demanding situation, our hypothalamus gland at the base of our brain sets into place a series of chemical reactions that cause our heart to beat faster, our muscles to tense, and our body to perspire. Scientists refer to this as the “fight or flight” mechanism. This mechanism is a way of helping our physical body meet the perceived demands of a challenging situation.