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Working With Creative
Intellectuals
In Imaginative Group Projects
Creative Work Programs
Unique Work Opportunities
Creative Human Resource
Philosophy
Transcending Standard Jobs
and Help Wanted Opportunities
The more carefully orchestrated
a group, the more phenomenal its creativity. This paper applies to both
for non-profit and for-profit creative projects, focusing for examples
on the former.
Studies show near-geniuses
are more creative when working with other like minded souls. Genius Nobel
laureates are easy examples. Creative-Philosophers-Clubs need non typical guidelines
for success. Solo practioners often failed in their attempts to work with
others for lack of the magical rules.
This free one of a kind
paper shows why few achieve the high levels of trust with others, needed
to maximize the feelings of safety. It shows how to creatively design your
guidelines to develop the essential safety needed to take creative flight.
Magical inspiration and
passion are like warmed air empowering balloon travel. Promises of dedication
are hot air too. The construction of the balloon’s silk captures the energized
air enabling the members to travel.
Invent Creative Rules:
-The cliché “step
outside the box” is old hat. It’s time to analogously create your space
craft cleverly designed to take you just where your inner heart is crying
to be!
-In practical words, try
on new ways of thinking and behaving that are best designed to achieve
your goals. Agree to develop special rules by which to most effectively
achieve the group’s creative goals.
-For example, it’s obvious
on an Apollo space mission you voluntarily restrict yourself to your space
suit, thwarting immediate desires to disrobe. Other types of creative rule
making and adherence are less clear.
-When one is free from
fear of losing their life or job, members often lose sight of the group’s
rules and objectives. A special “understanding between members” in non-monetary
groups is needed for them to self sacrifice. The emotional commitment to
the balloon project ideally is so strong that its failure feels like falling
from the sky.
-Hopefully the initial
discomfiture from inhibitions sacrificing for the group leads to greater
and greater pleasure over the months. Then it become easier for the “virgin
space traveler” to understand how self sacrifice can ultimately be so climatic!
What are the Guidelines?
They are designed according
to the nature of the project. The one with the most experience may suggest
most of the rules, while other members may also contribute.
Keep Agile Like A Ballet
Dancer:
-For “recess” design
other short creative games with your near-genius member friends. This helps
remind the members that the rules are voluntary, only one way of being,
and not cultism. As with bilingualism, biculturality increases your creativity.
-Be tri-cultural and sometimes
fit into main stream’s cultish behaviors. Try looking upon it with some
humor. At the risk of exaggeration you’ll otherwise get a heavy dose of
reality from your former boss, landlord, bank (if you have a mortgage),
or government authority designed to instill its own very set of rules.
-As in Zen, you’ll be more
agile if rules are played seriously, but without attachment to feelings
of restriction. For example restrictive gravity is something to work with,
but not feel restricted by.
Enticement Through
Trickery:
Make clear your zero tolerance
for trickery. Or you’ll invite the wrong people. Creative people are statistically
more adept with underhanded maneuvers. Demand honesty which nurtures trust.
Fear Of Creative People?
Whether people admit it
or not, everyone is very afraid of how others can hurt their feelings.
The chance of suffering is a big issue without trust that comes from agreeing
to what the rules are. Forge trust.
Phenomenal Power:
-Members need to focus
on their expectations from each other.
-By clearly “designing
the guidelines for the group’s interaction” the causes of fear are reduced,
permitting magic to flourish! No hocus pocus.
-Everyone looks at things
differently, though it seems those fortunate enough to have had a “good”
upbringing tend to agree on what is right and wrong.
-Those who feel trapped
by abiding to “high class civilized behavior” (reasons written elsewhere
on web site), are rather trapped by their repeated failures.
-This writer often prints
out as clearly as is reasonably possible what is expected of member ahead
of time.
-If a member is allowed
to disregard the agreed to guidelines, then what’s to keep them from repeatedly
violate the trust?
-Tough love: By maintaining
no tolerance for breaking the creative rules, a member clearly knows what
will result in their opting out of the group. Strong trust needs to be
nurtured at all costs including the discharging of those who deliberately
violated the trust.
Disclose One’s Good
& Bad Qualities:
-Admit ahead of time
one’s faults. Then other members won’t fear “the worst”. This writer’s
faults are his impatience if others: lack focus; require things to be repeated;
or somehow ignore important previously covered elements without clear explanation.
-Did you and the others
disclose their faults in the beginning?
Only Glamour & Fun?
Creative fields from Hollywood
to restaurants, or the travel industry to art, have more head aches than
their image may show. As in general life, the joys in creative projects
come with a fair degree of pains and sufferings. One needs to work hard
to make their relationships work, be it their loved one, or creative partner.
Create Pleasure:
Find a way to bring the
pleasurable creative energies desired to the creative project, rather than
blaming others. With imagination there’s always a way!
Must The Project Be
Profit Oriented?:
The entire orientation
of projects are effected if its members are expecting payment for their
part. Hoping money can come from a creative project after it is well started
is often misguided. As explained in related papers on this site, projects
successful in bringing profits like Star Wars are carefully tailored from
the ground up in appealing to the designated paying audience.
Money Madness:
-Some people think because
they make money with their time in the for profit world, that they should
also be paid when the objectives are clearly non monetary.
-Others might think because
one member has much more money than another that the less fortunate can
dictate how the wealthier should exercise their socialistic interests.
-Wealthier members may
statistically have more of the “real world” skills. They’re routinely accosted
by those having much less. Sadly but truly, by never giving a dime the
wealthy help assure they are wanted for just themselves and their abilities.
The wealthy often have complicated issues about money; a major cause of
friction with those who have any designs on it. Try looking at it from
the wealthy persons’ perspective. The wealthy often end up associating
only amongst themselves due to “safety related” issues. Hopefully the wealthy
are helping society in safer ways outside the group.
-It’s been said that the
wealthy, and the very poor (who have engineered a way to survive such as
through welfare) can be more creative as their time may not be all consumed
by the “daily money making grind”.
Quality Control:
The responsible party double
checks to make sure the details were handled correctly while keeping the
mind open to new creative angles.
Investment In Emotions,
Energy and Time:
Be considerate with how
other members commit their feelings to the project. The investment made
“getting other members up to speed” is taken lightly by the inconsiderate.
The gaping hole created by departing members is often quite an egoistic
painful event for the others.
Appreciation:
-Trust opens members’
sensitive hearts to expressing and receiving each other’s gratitude.
-Love:
Though you may lack time
to fully portray your care, remember the importance of platonic love in
all member relationships. Real love (tough or otherwise) hopefully fosters
bonding and appreciation.
-Being appreciated enhances
motivation and creativity.
-Some when being appreciated
will use this as a tricky way to get concessions from members. Fear of
such inhibits giving praise. Therefor be fair, don’t tolerate trickiness;
praise and may the imagination flourish!
-Money:
Something other than money
needs to be the continual motivator for each member. Unconsciously some
feel money is the greatest form of showing appreciation even in non monetary
projects. Money may either be a member’s tricky hidden agenda, or what
surfaces when they are temporarily not receiving as much satisfaction as
they desire.
-Flexibility:
Try including material
from the somewhat less gifted as well if their heart is really with the
group. To this writer at least love and strong feelings of friendship superseded
the importance of talent and genius. What some lack in creativity, may
be made up in their personality.
Questions to ask new
members:
-Do members agree with
each other’s philosophy of the creative process? For example is one prepared
to “fit into” the requirements of an orchestra? Or if they are working
to develop web sites expanding upon the reflections of the creative process
written within this site, are they in general agreement with what has been
posted herein to date, and did they understand most of what they read on
the site?
-Do new members exhibit
signs of appearing trustworthy, stable, creative, caring? Are they focused
and able to remember the many elements in challenging and complex projects?
-What time commitments
will members make each week, and for how months and even years?
-Have lingering doubts
about any money issues been resolved?
-What are the abilities
and roles of the members?
-For any number of reasons
are members afraid of success?
-Are the personal objectives
of members a short cheap thrill, or are there deeper interests beyond money?
-Will the creative project
be more spiritually and or intellectually satisfying than other things
that take time like watching TV or shopping?
-Time Management: It’s
said people spend 20% of their time getting 80% of their results done.
How are you managing your time? Will members really take notes on strategies
and needed tasks? This avoids wasted time through discovering delays since
expectations didn’t get accomplished, requiring one to make a memo to get
back to the responsible party, then trudge through phone or mail tag, and
again repeat the earlier statement?
-Baby Sitter: Are you interested
in dealing with another’s instability, or personal problems that shouldn’t
be effecting the creative project?
Air Balloon Analogy:
-Are creative people
statistically better at charming others with empty promises? Hot air and
careless workmanship may take the creative balloon trip into the air. What
if the hot air breather or the seams give out in flight?
-Gifted people are often
lonely. It is idealistic to hope enough people are prepared to both provide
the creativity, and stick to the agreed guidelines. Be realistic and protect
your feelings, while seeking pleasure with others destined for their colorful
kites. Geniuses have more similarities than differences with common people.
-Forgiveness best applies
to “non balloon flights”. The inconsiderate may request forgiveness from
others as a tool by which to destroy trust. Or the trustworthy might derogatorily
be described by sloppy thinkers as being “rigid” or “rule bound”.
-Trust violators might
politely be told they are rigid to their self centeredness, and carelessness.
Did they forget their agreement, and that rigidity is the mature way to
quality creativity?
-Rules may circumvent the
joy in a sloppy mud wrestling slapstick game, but take one to high levels
of magic as in symphonies. The unruly destroys the symphony.
-Discharging:
Members who have unfortunately
either innovated themselves back to the kite flying class (or fooled others
into believing they were ready for balloon flight) need be politely and
gently discharged at the first safe opportunity. After their true colors
have been seen, drop your altitude, give them some slack otherwise they
may feel uncomfortable.
-Treat all members regardless
of their class carefully but be prepared to exercise extreme measures (airlines
are the strictest in illegalizing even hijacking jokes) as only a last
resort. -All this is obvious to the fortunate who were well raised.
The gates of heaven are
for the few. Fools like those on drugs may think they can fly only because
they can visualize. They might balloon jack the project, then crash blaming
everything or everyone but themselves.
Working Together Healthily in Creative
Groups
Can Be Ecstatic
Work intelligently with creative people in imaginative
group projects. The human philosophy on creative work volunteer projects
is important. Set your imaginative heights to the corresponding degree
of each member’s warranted trustworthiness.
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