Have you ever heard the expression “think outside the box”? Of course you have. There’s nothing innovative about outside-the-box thinking. You need to come up with a new expression if you’re going to start thinking new.

I had breakfast recently with Rex Eagle. Rex is not an outside-the-box thinker; he’s an outside-the-world thinker. He’s an artist and a sculptor.

Rex specializes in wire sculpture, and many of his works adorn my home and offices. Coffee cup replicas of the Starbucks logo in wire, facial profiles, personal logos and other modern designs. All in wire. All one-of-a-kind pieces of art.

“I have an idea I want to run by you,” Rex said in an all-knowing way. “I want to talk about corporate communication and creativity.”

He showed me a few pictures of different sized balls shadowed on a page and talked about how art can be used as a communication tool for executives looking to have their message heard and looking to create a team. The art would be the medium for learning how to communicate on a higher level.

Like all new ideas, at first it seemed a bit outlandish and impractical. But rather than simply brush it off, I decided to take a deep listen because of my respect for Rex and because of the possibility that his idea just might be good.

Rex’s idea is to create a corporate training program called “The ‘Art’ of Communication” that will use imagery and creativity to create a new dimension of thinking.

Here are the steps to success in Rex’s program:

1. Bounce ideas around the table. Once you storyboard the ideas or draw them out on a flip chart or some other means of visual communication, then you …

2. Think about what you have done. Don’t talk about it. Think about it. Each person in the room spends some personal think time so that they can formulate ideas, rather than simply shout them out. Then you …

3. Express yourself with image words. Each person is permitted time when they can draw out their idea of a box or a ball, or whatever the idea is that you’ve decided on. Simultaneously, all other participants must …

4. Listen. Not listen with the intent to respond; listen with   the intent to understand. Take notes at your space until it’s your turn. Once the personal expression and listening section are completed, then you …

5. Collaborate. This is where everyone has crayons or writing instruments in hand, and works together   in art form to help better ideas emerge. Once the ideas are mature, then the group will …

6. Decide. Decide what’s best. Decide what’s most comfortable. Decide what will be accepted by others. And decide on a game plan to move forward. Once the decision has been made, it’s time to …

7. Act. Acting based on decisions may not be the best method of moving forward. But actions based on bouncing ideas, thinking, expressing, listening, collaboration and then deciding will be much more refined and much more likely to succeed. If true collaboration has taken place, and there’s a consensus of opinion moving forward, then it won’t be difficult to take the final step. Rex may call it number 8; I’m going to call it …

7.5. Refine. All decisions, actions and creative ideas should be designed to be refined as they mature.

How do you communicate? What are your communication stumbling blocks? If you’re complaining that people just don’t listen, then maybe you should draw a few pictures together, have an art class, maybe even call it “The Art of Communication.”

It wouldn’t be fair to talk about Rex and not give you an opportunity to see his art. To see a few examples, go to www.gitomer.com, register if you’re a first-time user, and enter the word REX in the GitBit box.