Credit: MindysBookWorms.org
I’m on a quest to define creativity. Is it innovation, or are there differences between the two? I wrote recently about the need for PR and marketing to be more creative when it comes to putting a social media marketing plan together. Then I gave a list of nine tools available from which to select.
That’s really not creativity; that’s merely being smart about researching the space to see which tools fit the required strategy.
Then I read Inc. magazine about Stan Richards, founder of The Richards Group, an ad agency behind some of the most creative and controversial campaigns in advertising. (P.S. If you want to see one of THE MOST creative websites I’ve seen in awhile, hit his agency link, and here’s a link to his book, The Peaceable Kingdom.)
“Creativity doesn’t need a muse; it needs a drill sergeant,” he said. Richards’ firm adheres to strict rules:
>>8:30 a.m. prompt start to the day
>>Accounting for each quarter hour or be docked $8.63 from pay
>>On time to meetings or risk being shut out
>>Close of business is 6 p.m.; go home
The man posts billings of $1.28 billion; he owns the most successful independent shop ever. Hats off, Stan!
Is creativity innate? It’s my humble thinking that the mind hinders creative embellishment. When your mind blocks your actions, you become inhibited. There is no comfort in your own skin; you fear making the wrong move, saying the wrong thing, looking like a fool (to yourself) among company.
Now put these thoughts into a company brainstorm where the team is attempting to define the big idea. (PR is all about the big idea.) Instead of being the first to say, “what about…” you tag team off someone else and slowly open your mind to new ideas.
Perhaps creativity is confidence. Stan Richards says creativity is discipline and regimented rules.
As a blogger it’s more imperative to be creative than ever before. This is my 252nd post; not so sure it’s a milestone of any sort, but looking back on a bloggers’ life, each post came from somewhere. The inspiration people take so lightly is actually extremely serious.
So, creativity also requires the ability to be inspired.
I’ll share about me a bit because it’s relevant. My mind has always been creative; I visualize the look of interiors in color and how a brochure should be designed with the raw copy in front of me. I hammer a nail on the wall eyes only and plop art perfectly in place (heh, perfectly to me because slightly askew fits my out-of-the-box persona). A steady stream of ideas leads to the ability for strategic brainstorming and also the ability to drill into segments and enhance each with detail.
With all that said, can we assume creativity is innate? Born in some and not others? Given as a gift to right brain thinkers while left brains lead with logic? Here are some of the conclusions from above, and I’m hoping you’ll add your thoughts to help with this discussion:
>>Creativity requires an open and unhindered mind.
>>Creativity requires inspiration and the ability to be inspired.
>>Creativity is confidence.
>>Creativity is innate.
>>Creativity is not innovation.
Please share your thinking, because more thinking also leads to a higher level of creativity.
Girl. You are speaking my music.
Serious? I got inspired on this topic; have always wondered about this crazy word and how much power it has.
Yeah. The drill sergeant thing speaks to me. I know very few individuals who don’t need structure to produce. Those who don’t need structure and still produce have been in my experience, geniuses.
Heh; you talkin’ ’bout me again?
JAYME = GENIUS is an equation I can get behind.
Oh, JOY! For once in my lifetime I was called “genius.” LOVE for life!
When I worked at FH, The Richards Group was the ad agency for The Catfish Institute, the account I ran on the PR side. I LOVED working with them. They are super creative and it was fun being around them.
I find I’m the most creative when my routine isn’t messed up (with travel, for instance) and when I have a hard and fast deadline. So I agree that a drill sergeant is necessary. That said, I worked at an ad agency before going out on my own and they clocked you in at 8:30 every morning. I really hated that because I traveled a ton for them and put in 18 hour days. And I ALWAYS stayed late, but I never got credit for that.
So I like that you put your pencils down and leave at 6 p.m. I believe he really does run his agency that way.
How do you think that relates to PR/marketing? Should there also be rigid times for our agencies to clock in and leave for home? We all know none of us could conform to 6 p.m. shutdown at night. Cool you got a chance to work with that group, too.
I think it’s more about routine than it is about hard and rigid start and stop times. For instance, I write every morning from 6:30-8:30. No matter what. I also write for an hour every day in order to get the book finished and to the publisher by January 2. I set my timer, close all distractions, and write. It works. I never have writer’s block because I know I only have that hour.
That said, Joe Thornley, who runs Thornley Fallis in Canada, requires no one send emails after 5 p.m. He said there is always a flurry of emails at 4:45, but that everyone abides by the rule and no one is working 24/7. They still get their work done and he’s seen productivity increase.
The “go home at 6PM” thing really speaks to me too. That’s all I can say publicly.
But I’m terrible at the billing in 15 minute increments thing. Heck, I’m terrible at discipline, let’s be honest!
You are such an anomaly, Jenn.
Well, yes, I am. But in this instance – how so??
I see you function in the highly professional world you’re working in, grappling with a serious illness, posting cuss words all over Facebook and now suggesting you’re terrible at discipline. Are you a problem child, by chance? Any mom would be blessed to have you; I know I’m ecstatic to call you friend.
My biggest fan! Also I get a little excited on Facebook, it’s true.
Woah; now that rule for an agency brat would be killed every day. Wonder if he docks $8.36 from pay whenever someone is caught?
Can creativity be rooted in time accounting? https://soulati.com/thinking-about-creativity Most creative types would be challenged, if not repelled, by this view of time management (except for the “go home at 6 p.m. part). How do you turn off the creative process when you leave the workplace, as if this was the only place that you should be thinking about the client objective?
When I saw that, I was surprised myself. How is rigidity conducive to creativity? Some of my best thinking is in the shower, after dinner when I have time time “saved” to indulge in free think. Ad agencies, especially those like Stan Richards’s, must need to work well beyond 6 pm to accomplish what they do? (Thanks, Rich!)
I’m all for the discipline and frankly need more of it in my life. However, if you are doing social media for a clients there is no way you can shut that process down at 6pm and all weekend when the people who want to communicate with you are online after business hours. So, at least for that aspect you have to if not yourself, have someone available to cover some of those times. I get a creative surge sometimes in the evening. I admire folks who are blogging at 4am and still answering emails at midnight…though that doesn’t happen to be me.
You’ve got a serious point there, Brad! I think it’s ludicrous for anyone to think they get to shut down at 6 when we all know everyone takes work home or does it in transit. The world no longer rests w/ all time zones overlapping; I guess that goes back to your first point of managing schedules and being self disciplined. If I’m awake at 4 a.m. (which I never am and would never blog then, either), then there is a serious problem in my life.
I’m all for the discipline and frankly need more of it in my life. However, if you are doing social media for a clients there is no way you can shut that process down at 6pm and all weekend when the people who want to communicate with you are online after business hours. So, at least for that aspect you have to if not yourself, have someone available to cover some of those times. I get a creative surge sometimes in the evening. I admire folks who are blogging at 4am and still answering emails at midnight…though that doesn’t happen to be me.
When I’m on deadline, I can crank out some really creative stuff. However, I can also feel limited. When that happens, I go for a run or start organizing/sorting/filing my office – works like a charm each time to free up the creative juices. I adore shutting down at 6pm; I think our brains need down time in order to remain creative. When we’re ‘on’ all the time, there’s no way our brains can keep up. I get inspiration from so many things…reading, my kids, laughing with my husband, even billboards on the highway. That’s different, I think, than the actual creativity that comes from turning that inspiration into action.
Loved this post, girlie.
Thanks, Lady! And, you know, you’re right. When I’m rested and relaxed and not so brain addled, my mind can do the free think freely (heh). That’s when the inspiration flows and blog post ideas come more readily. Wonder if this stopping at 6 p.m. thing contributes to that and that’s why these executives are enforcing it. Of course, the physicality of the office can easily be changed in this mobile world!
I don’t know where to begin! I think creativity can lead to innovation, but they aren’t one and the same. Creativity usually bespeaks an open and unhindered mind. It’s also an investigative mind. I think everybody is creative in their own way, so I suppose I do think creativity is innate. It’s just that people tend to term artists and writers as being more creative than engineers. I think that’s silly because it takes creativity to envision a building or a bridge that doesn’t yet exist. I’ll argue against inspiration. If I waited for inspiration, I would not be very creative. I think that’s where Richards’ ideas about routine and regimen come into play. Even the most creative person has to have discipline; otherwise, it’s unharnessed creativity, and the results can be less than stellar. Yes, creative people do have to have the ability to be inspired, and that can occur due to the open mind or the routine of writing a certain number of words every day (The NaNoWriMo people have my utmost respect.). Creativity is confidence. Hmm. I’m still pondering this one because I struggle to be confident. I think I might be more confident than I used to be, and that increased confidence might make me more likely to take risks. You have made me think, Ms. Jayme. Inspiration and creativity all at the same time! Thank you.
I think I like your comment most of all, Erin…you grapple with the sides of the fence I presented and didn’t come up with more of an answer than I; however, it pushed your thinking to ponder how it happens which I also like. And, how right you are — confidence can be construed as risk taking; I’ve ALWAYS been one and needed it (risk taking, that is).
Thanks for helping with this one! Appreciate it muchly.
Haha! No, I’m not the person to query if you want a definitive answer to questions about the creative process. I always enjoy thinking about how creativity happens, too. I guess it’s the writer and artist in me.
I don’t know where to begin! I think creativity can lead to innovation, but they aren’t one and the same. Creativity usually bespeaks an open and unhindered mind. It’s also an investigative mind. I think everybody is creative in their own way, so I suppose I do think creativity is innate. It’s just that people tend to term artists and writers as being more creative than engineers. I think that’s silly because it takes creativity to envision a building or a bridge that doesn’t yet exist. I’ll argue against inspiration. If I waited for inspiration, I would not be very creative. I think that’s where Richards’ ideas about routine and regimen come into play. Even the most creative person has to have discipline; otherwise, it’s unharnessed creativity, and the results can be less than stellar. Yes, creative people do have to have the ability to be inspired, and that can occur due to the open mind or the routine of writing a certain number of words every day (The NaNoWriMo people have my utmost respect.). Creativity is confidence. Hmm. I’m still pondering this one because I struggle to be confident. I think I might be more confident than I used to be, and that increased confidence might make me more likely to take risks. You have made me think, Ms. Jayme. Inspiration and creativity all at the same time! Thank you.
I like ‘creativity requires inspiration and the ability to be inspired’. To get there I think you need to keep an open mind. I don’t think I am a creative person per se, but I can be creative in certain ways if that makes any sense. Just like athletic ability, some are more naturally gifted than others but that doesn’t mean you can’t achieve great results if you are less gifted.
I also concur that creativity does require a certain level of confidence because it will require you to go out on a limb at times being totally exposed.
Thanks for sharing this.
Well said! Everything you’ve mentioned makes total sense, Bill. I’m pretty jazzed about this series as I’ve been reading Fast Company tonight paying careful attention to how “creative” and “creativity” are used. A wide berth of definitions, and I hope to pull them all out for more pondering. Thank you!
P.S. Saw that post of yours today…if that’s not oriented to creativity, what is?
To start, congrats on the 252! Creativity, I think, involves finding a way to get what you need done with what you have. The skills, the thoughts and experiences, the relationships, the objects. Yes, that can require inspiration, at least at first, but not always, because I’ve seen the surprise on some people’s faces when I tell them I think they’ve done something creative. Often they’re just doing things as they felt it should be done. If it’s innate, I believe it’s definitely innate to everyone in some degree and in some form.
I think the concept of creativity as a manifestation of confidence is creative itself–I would never have looked at it that way!
Nodding my head, then laughing at the last sentence…you always kill me with your insight. And, I always say that, too. Thanks, yes…!
Read this earlier today.. still thinking. I know some people need structure and schedules in order to be creative… not sure that always works for me. Sometimes yes, sometimes, IDK. Now deadlines, that pressure to make commitments certainly does force one to crank out what we have to and not give us the luxury of time to hem, haw, second guess (that confidence thing).
Doing/seeing/writing/saying something another way; making juxtapositions and connections; seeing the big picture and the little details – that’s creativity. And the other side of that coin is.. the other side, the audience. A clever phrase is only clever if the reader gets it; see also Groupon’s Super Bowl ads. The ability to make your ‘other way’ relatable and understandable to the audience, that’s the real challenge and I’m not sure it punches a time clock. I’m not a morning person, and while I do carve out plenty of ‘me’ time, it’s not unusual for me to work odd hours. Were I forced into a grey cube with a task master drilling at me to ‘bill, bill, bill’ I’m not sure I’d always produce my best, most creative work.
Oh and FWIW, creativity could be as easy as an extra-large pitcher of Margaritas and a strong liver. 😉
So basically, to sum it up, if the audience can’t get your “out-there” mentality and personal self indulgence, then bring it back to center, eh?! I like that thinking; spot on!
G’Dat Jayme,
“Creabloodytivity!” In my best curmudgeonly fashion may I quote a friend of mine whom I believe is one of the few genuinely creative people I’ve ever met. “Creativity,” he says, “is merely inventive plagiarism.” ’bout that?
Am I being creative when I advise “never ask for resumes or written applications?” Some people think I am. Others reckon I’m just blathering on in my usual attempt to change conventional HR practice to what I’d like it to be.
I suspect that creativity is in the eye of the beholder. For instance, when Louis Armstrong started recording in the 1920s, he played with such finesse and mastery that music critics were quite bedazzled. No one had ever played like that before. But there were others who said, “That’s nothing. Any decent cornettist could play like that.” There are even people who don’t recognize Mark Twain as the creative genius he is. I do. I could never write as well as he and be so profound about the mundane.
Creabloodytivity! If it does nothing else it elicits long, rambling statements that aren’t in the least creative. All this defining of terms makes me rush for the Armstrong solo on “Alligator Crawl.”
Just have fun Jayme. If it all gets too much reread “Huckleberry Finn.” Now, that’s creativity. And it’s a fabulous read.
Regards
Leon
Leon? Dear Leon? You must’ve had more than a few moments to bring some fun over here and ramble away any time you see fit! Love that! And, I believe you’re really an American; you know much more about the innovators who made this country rich in culture than most Americans do. As a matter of fact, I’m bumbling through Huck Finn as we speak via the declassified/horrific/free book app on my iPad2 (which provides you all the books that have been removed from circulation due to … due to…creativity.
I normally deny having a creative bone in my body. I just have a mental hang-up over the word. Go figure. I gave my imagination away in the 5th grade because I didn’t think I’d need it any more.
I found, however, that I do have what seems to be an unusual talent for re-purposing ideas into new settings… plus my brain works differently, so my “obvious” solution seems completely novel to others.
I am so impressed that Erica can be creative under pressure. That is when I get stuck in the realm of what I’ve already seen done.
No way, Tammy! Reading your comment, I know you’re one of the most creative women I’ve read in awhile. LOL. I’m going to explore tomorrow, the traits of creativity Scorcese style (sp?), and let’s see if anyone suggests they tossed their imagination out the window in 5th grade. !! (Thanks for coming!)
Well, I love the article, eye-catching image, topic and ideas…
… a bit curious though:
Why is “Creativity” “not innovation.” ?
Also, I’m pretty sure you already get this, but I thought I’d mention that minds have “degrees of open-ness” rather than just Open or Not-Open 😉
I’m loving that you’re here…someone to further challenge thought, creativity, innovation, inspiration. I’d say to your question, creativity is a state of open-ness of the mind and innovation is the art of putting that into action…how’s that for a 5 second answer? I kinda like that, but it could change tomorrow.
And I feel welcomed and am thrilled we found each other 🙂 Thank you!
I love thought, creativity, innovation + inspiration deeply 😀
That’s a great 5-second answer, and it brings me a 5-second question…
If innovation is creativity put into action…
…What is Creativity that is NOT put into action? 😉
Wasted time. #ThatIsAll