Randi Brill, Chief Creative Officer for QuaraCORE and author of 99 Creative WOWs Words of Wisdom for Business
Randi Brill and Bill Ringle discuss the practical aspects of creative design for small business owners.
>>> Visit MyQuestforTheBest.com for complete show notes and more expert advice and inspiring stories to propel your small business growth. My Quest for the Best is a top-rated small business podcast with over 300 episodes of thought-provoking and insightful interviews with today’s top thought leaders and business experts. Host Bill Ringle’s mission with this show is to provide the strategies, insights, and resources that will unlock the growth potential of your business through these powerful conversations.
Interview Insights
Key points that you’ll learn from this interview:
- How Randi’s mother nurtured a creative, empowered mindset for her children
- The question that every manager should ask to gain more clarity: “What problem are we really trying to solve?”
- A behind the scenes peek at what happens at a “creativity lab” for businesses
- What makes creativity intimidating and what you can do about it so that you’re tapping your people’s creativity
- How trade show managers benefit from JIT design that builds upon their work
Read the Show Notes from this Episode
- 2:17 The two mantras that Randi’s mom held when Randi was young.
- 2:44 “What gets positive reinforcement is what you pursue.”
- 4:30 Randi describes all the early creative jobs she held that fostered her young entrepreneurial spirit.
- 6:03 “Creativity for business and entrepreneurs is different than art for art’s sake and fine artistry, and it’s very much driven to solve business strategy and problems.”
- 7:05 “Design, when it’s done well, enhances whatever the content and message need to be. When the design is not done well, it’s decorating.”
- 8:20 “I’m a mapmaker, I draw pictures.”
- 10:15 “It’s so hard when you are in your business to look at your business.”
- 11:07 Why a designer or design team is uniquely positioned to assist a company in solving its content strategy issues.
- 15:11 Why everyone at Randi’s creative lab wears a coat and goggles.
- 16:54 Randi’s design team’s first step when working with new clients is determining their underlying set of priorities.
- 18:40 “A lot of people look for answers. The best way to get to the answers is to have the right questions.”
- 21:08 Randi explains why each of her company’s “labs” lasts for two days.
- 21:40 “People always make a better decision when they’re given viable choices from which to make that decision.”
- 22:15 “Creativity isn’t something that a lot of people are comfortable with.
- 23:46 The importance of complete client confidentiality.
- 25:06 Randi tells about an unconventional creativity lab that led somewhere different than the client was expecting.
- 27:43 “I’m not coming in as the outside bad cop, I’m coming in with very clear glasses to look at what’s been done, to understand why suddenly no one’s happy.”
- 29:09 “No one should be reading a PowerPoint.”
- 30:56 “There are lots of ways to be right.”
- 36:09 “It’s about trusting that you’re hiring people who are there to complement your strengths.”
- 39:05 “I’m up until 2AM most days making my own luck.”
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Expert Bio
Randi Brill announced she was going to be in charge of something—and she has been in charge of many creative “somethings” ever since.
In 1982, armed with only her recent BFA in Graphic Design from Carnegie Mellon University, $57, and a fierce drive to succeed, Randi launched her first company, Quarasan—and she’s launched many successful companies since. Randi grew this design sole proprietorship into a multi-million dollar educational design and development firm, serving the nation’s largest educational publishers.
In 2014, Randi transitioned Quarasan into QuaraCORE, her thriving design agency in Chicago. QuaraCORE focuses on the CORE creative offerings that Randi and her team are known for—and adore. Randi defines herself as a “simultaneous entrepreneur.” Rarely content with a linear progression of companies, Randi can often be found at the helm of at least two businesses at once.
In July 2017, Randi released her first book, 99 CREATIVE WOWs: Words of Wisdom for Business in both softcover and e-book forms to capture and share her business expertise and creative strategies under her own Randiland Press imprint. She’s currently creating 99 companion podcasts to underscore the strategy and application of each WOW. In November 2017, the 99 Creative WOWs for Business Podcast episodes are slated to start releasing on iTunes, Stitcher, and Google Play.
In her roles as Chief Creative Officer for QuaraCORE, Randi “lives” her WOWs each day. She uses these compelling life lessons and sound business principles to energize and jumpstart her clients’ creative visions in QuaraCORE’s vibrant problem-solving “Creativity Lab.” As the Creativity Lab Guru, Randi dons her lab coat and goggles to dream up creative solutions for robust and complex business challenges with clients across a range of industries. A vital part of all her work with clients, Randi also uses her 99 WOWs to inspire both seasoned staff and new interns and to personally support family and friends. In all cases, Randi applies both her creativity and her wisdom to “create great new results that help others soar to success.”
In 2012, Randi founded Teacher Peach LLC, a snappy e-commerce retailer with one focus—recognizing and rewarding teachers and students with amazing teacher gifts and motivating classroom materials. As the company’s Chief Peach, she essentially built this company from the ground up and personally designed its products—on her own dime (if only it were just a dime!). She was determined to learn the ropes of e-commerce and nonprofit givebacks first-hand. What began as an entrepreneurial learning experience has grown into a highly successful e-commerce company, selling over 250 products exclusively on Amazon, with multiple top sellers on that competitive marketplace. In addition, Teacher Peach gives back! 10% of the profits from every sale go into its Teacher Peach Seeds Fund to support a range of charitable initiatives focused on confident and creative kids.
Randi’s also an avid and entertaining speaker, podcast host, author, and blogger—the latter activities occurring most often from 1 to 3 am in the morning when she’s still wide awake and working—to create her own luck. Stay tuned; Randi’s just warming up.
Contact Info and Social Media for Randi Brill
Published by Randi Brill
