“What does the creative process look like?” 

 

It's a question with a complicated answer. Many of us have been asked to describe our creative process in interviews or, perhaps later in our careers, asked a nervous candidate to do so. But whether we were explaining it or listening patiently as someone else gave it a shot, the result was likely the same -- some rambling description of something that only vaguely resembled a process. Because, as many creative professionals – designers, songwriters, novelists, painters, etc. – will tell you, the creative process can look dramatically different from person to person and even from project to project. Variables such as project parameters, scope, available resources, budget, deadlines, and even initial sources of inspiration can dictate the path from concept through realization.

 

"So what should the creative process look like?"

 

The best answer: It should look like whatever it needs to look like and be whatever it needs to be.

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Anyone attempting to formalize or micromanage the creative process by requiring a rigid road map or flowchart-style structure might unintentionally be hindering or stifling the most important part of the process – the creative part. Creative content professionals are already working with a significant handicap. Designers, writers, videographers, and other corporate creatives might be artistic individuals but they’re not artists (at least not in their day jobs). Artists have it MUCH easier. They have one major advantage that company creative professionals don’t have – freedom. While artists can create anything their minds can dream up using whatever tools, colors, and media they wish, a graphic designer working for XYZ Corporation needs to work within the confines of the company style guide. It’s like the difference between using the big 64 box of crayons with the sharpener on the back (the one you always asked for as a kid) and the 8 pack you see in the checkout lane (the one you usually went home with).

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So if you really want to level up your materials to rise above the competition – and who doesn’t? – placing even more restrictions on your creative teams by dictating the way they need to progress through the creative process works across that purpose. That’s not to say there shouldn’t be general guidelines. It’s important to track and report where things stand and be able to make adjustments as needed. But building as much freedom into those guidelines as possible will give your team the creative space they need to spread their artistic wings and deliver their best work.

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​But what’s the balance? How do you manage the creative process without contaminating it? How do you give your team a long enough leash without letting the inmates run the asylum? To answers those questions you first need to know one critical and often misunderstood fact:

 

Managers don’t manage the creative process. Creators do.

 

Directors, managers, and supervisors manage the projects that contain the creative deliverables. But each deliverable within the project moves from inspiration to reality completely within the talented minds of the creative professionals tasked with bringing them to life – each with their own approach and take on the creative process. It’s like they’re the Avengers and you’re Nick Fury of S.H.I.E.L.D.  You assemble the superheroes based on their unique powers to best accomplish the mission, providing the who, what, where, and why. But the “how”?... Iron Man likely has that down. Your job is simply to oversee the mission and ensure that it’s accomplished with the desired outcome (and with minimal damage to New York City).

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It’s all about true delegation and trusting your people to be the professionals they are. They’ll know better than you when it comes to getting the most out of their talents and how best to tap into their own creativity – as well as what works and what doesn’t for them. After receiving an assignment, most creators will only need the deadline and a schedule of checkpoints/milestones. And, while the deadline will usually be a firm date, those checkpoints should be as elastic as possible because certain parts of the creative process will inevitably take longer than others. Which parts? It’s almost impossible to tell and will differ from project to project. That’s why keeping those checkpoints reasonably moveable is important. Deadlines will loom large in the distance, casting dark stressful shadows over a project no matter what. Paving clear paths that are free of micromanagement, unnecessary rules, and overwrought processes for creative experts to do their things will yield the best results.

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So for managers who struggle with getting their arms around the creative process, your job just got easier! The toughest part now might be letting go – especially for Art Directors or other managers directly involved in their organization’s creative content. While you might have a vision in your head of what a project should look and feel like, constantly imposing your influence will, more often than not, result in your team simply regurgitating your ideas while robbing you of concepts you never would have thought of. Afterall, you don’t just want a team of executors. You want a team of creators. 

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The key takeaway here isn’t so much “get out of the way” as it is “do your best to not get in the way.” By placing some distance between yourself and the individual creative processes of your team members, the quality of your creative content will improve, the morale of your team will improve, and – maybe most importantly –  your sanity as a manager could very well improve.