FocusCatalyst CustomCatalysts™

If you read through the whole book, FOCUS. The Catalyst for Creativity, and the FocusCatalysts excite you (you may have even tried one or two of them already) then you may be interested in experiencing what I do with my clients on a one-on-one basis: I write CustomCatalysts for them.

My clients tell me they like having me do this for them because it jump-starts their own creative thinking.

I have an advantage because I don't have any "issues" about any of their issues. That frees me up to write very fresh, unusual and innovative ideas for them that they can then expand on themselves.

As a result, each CustomCatalyst provides a deep, deep well of inspiration, ideas and solutions custom crafted just for you that can benefit you for a long time.

I got the idea to write CustomCatalysts years ago when I would do similar work with my marketing clients. First they wanted to know how to do it for themselves and I'd show them. But then they'd want me to brainstorm for them from their randomly matched Eight Questions and Eight Favorites answers.

So...I started brainstorming ideas for them--in writing.

The response was amazing. My clients got insights, reframes, and perspectives that opened up whole new solutions for them.

But the insights came from them, not me. My brainstorming for them was just a catalyst for their own new, creative thinking

I honed the technique for years, trying out different formats and different ways to do written brainstorming for my clients.  

The result of all those years of testing and research led me to a format that I call CustomCatalysts.

Here's how it works:

1. My clients email me their answers to 8 Questions about their project or problem.  

2. At the same time they also give me a list of 8 of their Favorite Things.

3. I then randomly match their answers to the 8 Questions with their 8 Favorites, using a random number sequence generated by www.random.org.

4. Then I brainstorm catalysts for them off of those random matches.

A couple of weeks after a client gives me the answers to the input questions, I send them a 200+ page document of brainstormed catalysts.

Whoa! Now that sounds pretty overwhelming, doesn't it?

Well, there are a couple of things to know about those 200+ pages. First of all, each page has only one or two sentences, phrases or words on it.

(Oh and now you're thinking, "Well, anyone can write 200 pages if they only put one sentence on each page." How true...But there's a method to my madness.)

I used to put a whole lot of catalyst ideas on a few pages. But...that didn't work. People just couldn't focus on each individual one when I did that.

So I started to put just one catalyst per page and the response was instantaneous. My clients loved it because with only one per page, they could really focus on each one.

When my clients first get their CustomCatalysts, I tell them to go through them very fast and make a note on every page they resonate with in a positive way.   With one catalyst per page, that's pretty easy to do.

Also, with only one catalyst per page, there’s plenty of room for my clients to add notes as their own ideas are catalyzed by any page in their CustomCatalyst.  Then they can easily refer back to those ideas to get more solutions, too.

As far as I'm concerned, my client's notes to their CustomCatalysts are more important than what I write to begin with. The solutions that are catalyzed in them count most of all.

Sometimes people ask me if I'm a coach and I tell them, “No.”  Usually people work with a coach over an extended period of time.

But with CustomCatalysts, you can instead have just one set written for you and it can inspire you to creative, productive action for a long, long time. Many of my clients have been referring back to their one CustomCatalyst for years.

Other clients have me write many CustomCatalysts for them for different problem areas (for new business meetings and other work projects, as well as for business and professional relationships, family, and more) or for different times in their lives (births, graduations, job changes, etc.) Some even have me write one per quarter throughout the year.  

I also continue to write CustomCatalysts when I work with my branding clients. It's such a powerful tool for quickly coming up with very effective marketing solutions--whether they are needed for branding, company or product naming, or for developing whole marketing campaigns.

Writing each CustomCatalyst takes awhile. Sure there's all the time at my computer actually writing them but I also "walk" the input each client emails to me. I take it on Park 'n Rides and FocusTours. My client’s input has quite a history with me before they get their CustomCatalysts.

Because it takes the time it does, I am limited in how many CustomCatalysts I can write. But I'm committed to doing them because I so passionately love to write them. This may sound hokey but I think of writing CustomCatalysts as my "art."

I want to make sure everyone I write a CustomCatalyst for is absolutely thrilled with it so there is a 100% satisfaction guarantee with each one. If after a full year you aren't thrilled with the results you got from it, I'll refund 100% of the fee for it.

How can I do that?  Because CustomCatalysts are based on how I know (and science proves) that your mind works.

With over 150 pages of ideas (all inspired by your input) it's highly likely you'll resonate with several of them.

When you do, it will shift the way your brain scans your environment as you go about your day-to-day life (like when you learn a new car and then you start to see it everywhere).

And then you are highly likely to notice something that will give you a fresh perspective and new insights on your project or problem.

So, I'm betting on the power of your own very creative brain to deliver to you the solutions that you need. Your CustomCatalyst is a great…well, catalyst for that.