The greatest challenge in my change of season has been getting my head around who my creative posse is.
After working for over a decade with a group of people, who took massive risks together, created large and failed extravagantly, its a massive change in dynamic. I mostly work by myself and the with groups of people that I will be with for a small amount of time inputting creative direction, thoughts or moments, but its not an ongoing opportunity with the same group of people.
Discovering a team of people who I can create large with and trust with the vulnerability of the creative process is a huge journey.
That is what I miss most about being in a part of a team who work towards a common goal. Often its not until you loose something that you realise its value.
I’m naturally a people person and I really enjoy throwing ideas around and living a communal life of creativity.
In the charts of a personality type I land very close to the middle of introvert and extrovert.
(insert here this song; cracks me up! For those who watched X factor last year)
I’m not extreme in the extrovert graph scales, I like time to process and when my house is quiet and I walk the tiles by myself and something peaceful settles on top of me. It’s actually something sacred. The quiet, the space, the moment of reflection arrives.
I can’t stay in that place to long though. The walls start to crowd, the noises start to creak and I want to talk to someone, anyone or anything…
Yesterday I did a creative workshop with a group of radio presenters and one of my discussion points in the workshop was ‘Who is your creative posse?’
A posse, is a group of like minded people who have your back. A group that is travelling in the same direction, yet not the same, just a group that celebrates strengths, forgives weaknesses, doesn’t steal others ideas, takes time to honour each other and listen.
A group that travels the sacred path of creativity safely, knowing that the creative process is a vulnerable one.
People who have your back.
People who you don’t have to tread lightly over massive egos.
People who bring out the best in you, not your worst.
People who are loving and kind.
These kind of friends, or posse don’t come along everyday and often you don’t realise how special the posse is until they have disbanded.
How can you create a posse?
How can you keep a posse together?
How can you create well with other people?
I have found in my experiences, the thing that kills a posse quickest is arrogance and pride.
When people access creativity with humility, acknowledging that WE is more important than ME, something very unique occurs.
Humility doesn’t mean shrinking back though in the presentation of ones ideas, thoughts, or creative endeavours. It just means we hold our ideas lighter and realise that as we sharpen the reflection of the ideas as a team, we can bring something so much more solid, than the one perspective that you bring alone.
Nothing of value in the history of the world has been built by one person. It is always built by a posse of people working together for the greater good.
If you see someone who looks successful, famous or inspirational, there is always someone in the background who has sacrificed for that person to excel.
Always.
A mother.
A father.
A stylist.
A producer.
A teacher.
A husband.
A wife.
A child.
There is always a posse.
It’s just whether we value the input the posse brings or not.
Value and appreciate your posse today and if you don’t have one, humble yourself and begin to build.
Amanda
