My team and I are in the business of ideas.

As a branding and strategy company, we constantly use creative thinking to develop new names, concepts, models and stories that help people with vision communicate their ideas.

Two years ago, we launched the Creative Challenge­—an internal initiative where team members paired up and got $10,000 and 90 days to come up with works of art that embodied our company’s values. The results were a handbound book, an original poem, a new song reflective of our creative process, a music video…it was amazing. Then one pair said, “Why don’t we make a game?” I loved the idea, but knew it had to be done right—and no way could that happen in 90 days.

So we made it a whole team project and, over the course of 18 months, developed See it to Life™—a toolkit for people with ideas. We all know someone who has one… it could be you presenting an idea to your boss, a good friend who wants to launch a personal training business, or the more ubiquitous “idea for an app.” We created See it to Life™ to help all of those people—no matter who they are—shape their idea so they can share it with the world.

See it to Life™ is now for sale online and in select retail locations. We’re also working with organizations that champion entrepreneurship to help them use it for their members.

I can’t tell you how satisfying it is to put your heart into something new and see it realized.

While this is the first time we’ve ever developed a consumer product, the process has yielded excellent lessons on the intersection of business and culture:

1 |  Invest in your ideas.

More than just payroll and expenses, the financial side of running a business is about being willing to put money behind your creativity—to produce a prototype, hire a collaborator, buy new equipment—whatever.  Never shy from opportunities to invest in things that 1) make your team members happy, 2) build your brand and 3) energize your business.

2 |  When you commit to your values, good things happen.

This toolkit was born out of challenging team members to develop something that reflected our values. Now we have a consumer product (wow!) that is a direct manifestation of our company’s vision—bringing ideas to life!  Since the product is for anyone and not necessarily a Blue Daring customer, we now have an impermeable expression of our brand in a broader marketplace.

3 |  Do what makes you happy.

Our team made See it to Life™ with a lot of love because it made us happy to be part of something special. By the same token, the toolkit is designed to help people do what they love, and put their energy behind things they believe in. As branding and strategy experts, we know that the most successful visions are rooted in passion—exactly what See it to Life™ is designed to ignite.