30 September, 2009
I want to share what I have experienced over a long period of working with ‘creative’ types, and hope that this experience might help to encourage those that are starting out to value their strengths and think about how they might improve those areas that need improvement.
I also have a ‘health warning’ for them when reading the following sections: ‘What’s Good’ and ‘What needs Work’. There is no sure-fire way to succeed, or for that matter fail, despite ticking all the boxes, and this is what is so heartening about life – it takes all sorts.
What’s Good
‘Speaking Creative’ in our industry is the natural thing to do, understanding ‘Business Speak’ is a vital skill to have in communicating with those who hold the purse strings.
Sharing a common identity with your work is a powerful tool; look and act like what you do.
See yourself as a professional, act and respond within the framework of the situation and the environment.
Make sure there is nothing else in life that you would rather be doing while you are working, as focus and determination are as important as artistic ability.
It is good to know where your artistic abilities flow from if you don’t know already, as it is likely that you were born with them, so try to find out. A grandparent might have been a weaver or joiner, an aunt or uncle a leisure painter.
What needs Work
Negative views about business and a fear of being ‘exploited’, remember everyone in a business chain, in a sense, exploits the person just below them while being exploited by the person above.
Be on guard about mixing your motives and don’t muddle social missions with the aims of your endeavour, it is difficult enough to achieve one thing let alone two incompatible ones.
Have a clearly defined target and work towards it, being honest with yourself if you are not achieving your goals – redouble your efforts and avoid making excuses.
It may sound a bit corny but think big, have a plan in place to meet a huge demand for your goods or services, you could be in just the right place at the right time and that kind of opportunity rarely calls again.
Always have a Plan ‘B’ that allows you to take advantage of unforeseen opportunity – don’t stick to a strategy stubbornly if all the evidence points in a different direction.
Think about what happens when we can’t find something; we can’t find it because we are looking in the wrong place.
October 4, 2009
The most important thing I have learnt as a practitioner is that the creative process can be much more effective and productive if it is well managed. I asked myself if this experience could be put to use to help others, and the answer has been most emphatically yes.
My experience tells me that in the right environment, managed sensitively, creatives can achieve amazing things but managed poorly they can be a disaster.
Those commissioning work also need help to interact in the right way with their creative partners.
January 8, 2009
Behind these short articles in the library there exists in-depth research. The articles have been written over a period of time and some have been updated off-line. The following selection serves to show the breadth of subjects I have enjoyed researching.
November 28, 2006
Improving the return on creative resource investment.
Click on the title to find out more or on ‘Presentation’ to see a short slide show.
November 28, 2006
Providing synesthetic solutions to new challenges.
Click on the title to find out more or on ‘Presentation’ to see a short slide show..
November 28, 2006
Getting better results through better communication.
Click on the title to find out more or on ‘Presentation’ to see a short slide show.
November 28, 2006
Improving the return on creative resource investment.
Click on the title to find out more or on ‘Presentation’ to see a short slide show.