The Common Creative

The Common Creative Episode 4 “Shampoo”   What is the role of creativity in the cut-and-thrust of the business world?  In this episode, Chris Meredith shares a story about his experience as a junior brand manager in charge of a shampoo brand. Despite having a  creative idea to boost sales the idea was squished by the all-powerful Marketing Director who explained that ideas like that are not what we do around here.   The creative lessons  for business are:   Sometimes without even knowing it, businesses kill creativity. For creativity to work effectively, it pays to start out by understanding the existing rules (“How we do things around here”) Once an idea has been created, gain traction by allowing colleagues to explore it and play with it. (Play is an important tool for creatives) Don't get too attached to your own ideas.  Once a team gets to play with an idea, it will alter and change - so don’t be defensive and protect the original concept.   Links/References:     Silvikrin Shampoo https://www.wella.com/international/about-wella/silvikrinSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What can nuts teach us about creativity?Paul and Chris take an unusual angle in this episode by challenging each-other to use ‘nuts’ as their inspiration for sharing ideas about creativity.  And despite their initial misgivings, both end up pleasantly surprised about the rich insights it reveals:Too much of a good thingJust like nuts, too much creativity on a single theme can be a handicap. (For example, too many Brazil nuts can cause selenium poisoning and loss of hair!) Everyone, eventually, has to move on and stretch themselves in a new creative direction. Some nuts aren’t nutsPeanuts, Cashews and Brazil nuts aren’t in fact technically nuts - they’re legumes! And equally, creative ideas are often misunderstood or miscategorised when they’re first aired.  It’s important to ensure they’re accurately understood when sharing them - even if they look like something that seems familiar.Were all a little nutsCreatives, by definition, think up and share ideas that are new.  This means they’re bound to be criticised and potentially be perceived as being a bit weird (or maybe ‘nuts’!) The solution is to signal in advance to those around that the creative  person is in an expansive mode and it means that they’ll be sharing ideas that might at first sound strange.One persons waste is another’s raw material[paul - can you insert details of your friend who makes the bowls from nut shells?]Links/referencesNuts that aren’t actually nutshttps://www.businessinsider.com.au/nuts-that-arent-actually-nuts-2016-2Are Creative People Crazier?https://www.psychologytoday.com/au/blog/open-gently/201904/are-creative-people-crazierChris Meredith (Co-Host)https://chrismeredith.com.auPaul Fairweather (Co-Host)https://www.paulfairweather.comThe Common Creativehttps://thecommoncreative.coSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this show, hostsPaul and Chris use a single personal story as a vehicle to explore different aspects of creativity. Paul kicks things off with his light heated story about his disastrous attempt to be an extra on the TV Show “Water Rats”. (Paul failed in his role as a corpse and fluffed a scene where his only task was to shuffle some pieces of paper!)Despite his disastrous experience, there are five important learnings about creativity: Give it a go - even if you have no idea where it will lead, it’s worth it to try something new. (Despite the lack of on-screen success, the experience gave Paul a valuable insight into the process of creating a TV show) Be Calm - for the best creativity to occur, everyone involved needs to be calm and collected. (On set, even if the scene is high octane, the crew always remain calm and focussed on their role) Build the big picture - the creatives' job is to visualise and deliver the overall idea - individuals on the journey many not be able to see the big picture and it’s important they don’t distract the creative from his/her task. (on-set, the actors may not understand how each particular scene fits together but it’s vital that the director has this in the front of his/her mind) Teamwork - the big ideas are delivered by a range of different people working together effectively. It means each person contributes only when their expertise is needed and they also stay silent when others are better placed to move things forward. ‘Why not?’.  When opportunity presents itself, dive in and have fun along the way!  Links/references:Water Rats TV show:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Water_Rats_(TV_series)Paul Fairweather (Co-host)https://www.paulfairweather.comChris Meredith (Co-host)https://chrismeredith.com.auThe Common Creativehttps://thecommoncreative.coSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode, Paul and Chris draw on their personal experiences of daily acts of creativity (daily watercolour and a daily photograph) to understand what creative energy is and how to maintain it.The big theme that Chris and Paul draw out are that creative energy is like a rechargeable battery that has to be used regularly to keep it working well but which also needs to be re-charged (through rest and reflection) in-between uses. Even though they are each known for their one daily act of creativity, they agree that creativity is a life’s work and that they are in fact 24/7 creatives who will struggle to ‘retire’.More detailed notes/learnings from this episode: Lots of practical factors affect creative energy - Physical fitness, avoiding alcohol/caffeine, being in the right  physical environment  and with the right people all affect creativity Rest and reflection are a vital part of the process - it sparks new ideas and as creativity is physically and mentally draining, so rest a vital phase to enable new energy to flow Barriers to creative energy are fear (of being judged/ridiculed  by  others) and ignorance (some people don’t know or acknowledge how creative they are. Creativity is a life’s work - real creatives never retire. Links/References Jackson Pollak (Artist) Lloyd Rees (Artist) Michael Fairweather (Paul's Brother) Pro Hart (Artist) Flow (Psychology Concept) Paul Fairweather (Co-Host) Chris Meredith (Co-Host) The Common Creative (Podcast)See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What happens when two obsessed creatives and their guests get together to share the secrets of making creativity as everyday as brushing your teeth?Using as their inspiration a common passion for creating and sharing a new artistic image every single day Paul and Chris, are on a mission to understand and share the tools and techniques of creativity.Their aim to help anyone ins business, at home or at play to pick up creative tools and use them as easily as a saucepan or a paperclip.During the shows, the hosts use their own personal creative experiences and also input from a range of surprising guests (including Paul’s Mum) to generate and share new and old learnings about what it takes to be someone who isn’t ever ordinary but who is always “A Common Creative”. https://thecommoncreative.co/ https://www.paulfairweather.com/ https://chrismeredith.com.au/    See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.