Pssst… Guess what?

The most important skill for economic survival in the 21^st century is creativity.

The creative economy is the final frontier. It’s the only area that can’t be automated or outsourced offshore.

At least not yet.

But creative thinking is not enough. You’ve got to actually try novel and unique things, and make those valuable mistakes that teach you way more than your successes.

It’s not enough to be productive if what you produce doesn’t make a difference. Those who stay busy with foolish productivity are scurrying around efficiently avoiding any real innovation, one productivity hack at a time.

Maybe it’s time to stop just getting things done.

And start focusing on doing things that really matter.

That’s how creative entrepreneurs operate.

That’s lateral action.

Creativity + Productivity = Success

Lateral Action is a web publication that aims to help you succeed (however you define success) by getting you to realize that busy does not equal productive or more importantly, innovative.

The Lateral Action team provides tips and techniques that help you focus on doing remarkable things, rather than getting trivial things done or never moving beyond “creative thinking.”

We’re here to help based on our own personal experiences, so hop on board with free updates today.

Meet Lou, Jack and Marla

Along with our tips and commentary that help you succeed at the intersection of creativity and productivity, we take a bit of a novel narrative approach that illustrates the things we discuss. The story unfolds with a series of animated videos featuring three characters who bring Lateral Action to life.

Let’s meet the cast:

Lou is a success story from last century… business school educated, exceedingly logical, and nose-to-the-grindstone productive. Lou will be out of a job soon, and it’s coming as quite a shock to him.

Jack is a creative guy who suddenly finds himself in demand in the corporate world. He has big dreams of becoming an entrepreneur, but he’s unsure if he can do it because he’s not a “business” guy.

Marla is a creative diva and an entrepreneurial force to be reckoned with. She scoffs at those who think creative types can’t run successful businesses, and she’s got the cash flow to prove it.

Sign up for updates today to get the rest of the story.

Who’s Behind Lateral Action?

Lateral Action is a joint project between three creative guys who’ve found success at the intersection of creativity and productivity:

Mark McGuinness – Mark is a business coach and consultant specializing in working with creative professionals, innovative companies and other trendsetters at the forefront of the Creative Economy. He also writes damn good poetry.

Tony Clark – Tony is an entrepreneur, designer, illustrator, programmer and multimedia content specialist. He’s the guy who creates those cool Flash videos that tell the story of Lou, Jack and Marla.

Brian Clark – Brian is a writer, producer and new media entrepreneur with a portfolio of profitable web properties. Brian used to be an attorney, but most people have forgiven him by now.

Come on now… why haven’t you subscribed yet?