Last week was all about the start, to get the creative process going with something small, a blog post in this case, followed closely with a tweet committing my plan to 14 followers (mostly, I think, phishing accounts, but also a couple of encouraging friends and family).
I have no doubt most of this will be ignored, perhaps if I’m lucky, critiqued and occasionally be insightful for some passing reader in the ether.
Regardless, the point was to start, which I did, and it was supposed to be small, so that I’d actually do it. Now it is about driving forward and making progress on the creative journey. But in the creative process it’s critical to know which direction to drive in.
This post will therefore focus on explaining my vision and goals for CREO and during that process we’ll also discuss how to THINK BIG and start small.
Of course I need to follow through on my boast last week that I have a clear vision for CREO and describe what I want to create and why I want to create it.
I need to prove the potential enormity of this idea, to show I can THINK BIG, to shoot for the moon whilst also bring it crashing back down to Earth with a sense of reality and some achievable objectives.
But, before I do that, I’d like to take a slight detour with you.
You may have noticed last time (hint: go read it!) that I’m a fan of passive aggressively attacking unnecessary complication in language and communication. This is because I believe clarity of thought combined with simplicity of communication is more useful to a creative process than almost anything else.
This is especially important when collaborating but should not underestimated when working individually. The clarity of an idea and the direction of travel (even if it’s ultimately wrong) give you inspiration and purpose. To be concise, they reduce distractions and make your creative process more targeted and efficient.
To shoot for the moon it is necessary to build a launchpad and there is a fine art to defining the parameters of that pad. Make it all too big and you’ll never take off; too small, you’ll be constrained by the gravitational pull of nothing new or useful.
However, get the launchpad the right size and calculate the necessary steps to bend the laws of physics then not only will you have lift off, you may well be on your way to the moon.
This interstellar journey is the art of inspiration balanced with progression, the story of THINK BIG, start small.
So…what do I want to create?
The vision for CREO is an exploration of creativity, simple as that.
The aim, to have conversations that..
Interrogate what it means to be creative.
Learn what it takes to be creative.
Understand how it makes us human.
The goal, to understand why some people are more creative than others and capture the ‘tricks of the trade’ to help us all be more creative.
Why creativity?
To explore creativity, there are many different angles.
Everyone has a point of view on it, even if you didn’t ask them! That’s because everyone is creative, it’s part of what makes us human.
Whether it’s launching rockets into space, decorating your home or cooking a meal for a friend: these are all creative. They solve a problem, they are novel and they are useful (however, we will get into the details of defining the nuances of creativity at a later date).
So, there are endless paths to investigate, with an infinite number of people to talk to, the good, the bad and the ugly of creativity gives me plenty of conversational scope.
Creativity is universal and if made approachable, digestible and even entertaining, the subject can really apply to anyone. With the obligatory layer of being purpose driven and helping people unleash their creativity, this space is a big total addressable market.
Now if you can “take 1% market share” that should be good enough to get some funding.
THINK BIG ✅
I personally love the “think big” part of being creative, letting the mind run wild is entertaining. But to start small, well, that’s often more challenging, it’s about setting objectives, having a simple plan and being disciplined enough to show up consistently.
So I’ve decided the best way for me to approach this is to have some objectives for the year that will help me towards my vision and goal of helping others unleash their creativity.
2023 Objectives:
Post on the blog once a week. That’s 52 posts in a year. Part of me thinks that sounds a little ambitious, what could I possibly have to say once a week? But being creative isn’t just about having a moment of brilliance, in fact it rarely is. It’s about trying lots of things, iterating, learning what works and doesn’t work in the real world. It’s about practicing and crafting your skill over time. Too often (and I’m speaking to myself more than anyone) we sit back with a grand vision and don’t take the first step, let alone the thousands of smaller steps needed to come up with something unique and special. So, I’ll commit to writing 52 things about creativity in 2023.
A Daily tweet, a quote, a question or a thought. This is going to be a methodical exercise in building routine, of getting something out into the world daily and learning how to garner some subscribers. Though this is something I’ll need to learn more about. For now the focus is on building a new muscle, to be disciplined and consistent.
Plan for a pod and create a 10 part series. So a podcast, if you find a good niche it’s still a fairly unsaturated market, he says hopefully. Why 10 parts? It might be too much, but my current thinking is to give myself some constraints will help me focus on a theme within creativity and ultimately learn the process of recording and editing a podcast.
start small ✅
So these are my objectives, a fairly simple plan, with some small steps to start, which I probably vastly underestimate. But if I’m to create something of value for myself and hopefully others I need to think big, point myself in a direction that inspires me, with achievable steps to help me progress.
Next stop, the moon!
Love the plan Tom and the setting small achievable steps towards a bigger goal.
Love it Tom! Can’t wait to read your next blog ☺️