As creatives, we love to challenge ideas and ways of thinking. To take something simple and turn it into something beautiful. To fulfil challenges and learn new things. So nothing can be more heartbreaking than when your client puts on the leash and gives it a good tug whenever you so much as look in a deviating direction.
If you frequently employ or manage the services of designers, dreamers and makers, strike the balance between appropriate to your brand and letting them revel in their talents – and try to avoid the following where you can!
“Can’t You Just Copy My PowerPoint?”
If you’re asking this question, then why hire them? PowerPoint has many autonomous features these days allowing you to practically make your presentation run like a movie. If it’s a worry of complication, an experienced professional multimedia developer will often be able to inject a little spice into your presentation in a way that isn’t over the top or invasive to your message. If you do have restrictions, explain this to your developer from the off. They will understand and do their best to ensure the end product works in a way that’s appropriate.
Restrictive Workflows
From impractical software restrictions to not allowing flexibility or communication between skillsets can often be a killer on next-level quality. Many teams such as the wonderful one I work have members all with different roles. However, these titles don’t always define the be all and end all of what we do, allowing us to collaborate and contribute to each other’s projects using our individual expertise to ensure every element possible is supported by individual strengths and the highest quality solution is signed off.
If there’s something out there that your creatives want and can be justified appropriately, why not consider the benefits and impact of having it and the potential return on investment?
No Challenge or Variety
When you have a routine for working out at the gym, it’s often advised to challenge different muscles each day you visit and a day off to run a cardiovascular routine. A similar approach should apply to projects creative folk take on. What element changes depends on your skillset and focus. It could be a different industry, a different medium or even a different style. Something to keep you on your toes and challenge you. Producing exactly the same thing month in month out makes things stagnant and can sometimes undo your growth and introduce complacency as a talented individual through the lack of practice in your other skills.
In the wise words of Barney Stinson, “New is always better”. Keep your mind busy with different and new things and you’ll find your skillset will grow and improve more and more over time and your existing skills will only get better.
No Expansion of Knowledge
Related to the above, if one don’t try to better themselves, then they’ll never be able to learn new techniques to increase said skillset to challenge yourself to achieve and to want to repeat the whole cycle again.
A popular activity known as Find 15 is a great way of developing yourself. The principle is as simple as finding at least 15 minutes each day to learn something new or to research further about something you’re passionate about. If you want a good source of inspiration, find short tutorials online or complete a segment of a MOOC (usually a short video found on many Coursera MOOCs satisfied me) for a particular subject that can be completed in a few minutes, check your local or work library for short reads or check out Blinkist for over 1,500 different things to learn (not sponsored). If you can push it to 20 minutes you’ll also help improve your reading levels, adding another achievement to the day.
Collaborate!
Working alone can be lonely. Both for wellbeing and for your growth as a creative. Whilst I know many people tend to enjoy working alone, a once in a while project as part of a team or even with a partner can really help to make things take an interesting direction. Just like siblings push each other in different ways growing up together, a project partner (or several) can often challenge you to take ideas further or to come up with different alternatives and in turn you can influence other people to think differently too. With any luck with a little motivation and guidance, just like the “pick a note” choir exercise in time you’ll all come to a point where you agree on the same thing. If you’re struggling to get there though, it’s worth talking through each person’s ideas fairly or to come up with something new together. That way the whole process works fairly and you’ll all learn something new.
Whatever project you work on next, always check with yourself and with others to ensure you have a little freedom to fly. If not, why not talk between yourselves and ensure that as client and creatives you have the ability to satisfy each others needs whilst ensuring as little friction between each other.
Do you have any other safeguards you keep in place? Do you disagree with anything I’ve said? Feel free to leave your comments down below and to use everything as grounds of discussion. You never know what you might learn ;).
Mike
