FROM THE BLOG
Written by Jennifer Willemsen | November 7th, 2022
The world is transitioning from an information economy to a creativity economy, a term popularized by author and professor John Howkins. Based on the idea that more and more attention is given to information and data, Howkins puts the emphasis on human creativity as often being missed. Within the creativity economy, mastering the art of creative thinking is no longer just an option. It is essential for companies who want to become fully actualized and fulfill their purpose to triple down on creative thinking and innovation.
It is sometimes said that where oil was the primary fuel of the 20th-century economy, creativity is the fuel of the 21st century. The greater the degree to which a company manages to play the creativity game, the greater the company’s growth. Those who fail to prioritize this game will simply find it impossible to keep up with those who do.
For companies to thrive in the creativity economy, intelligence alone is no longer the key to a successful business. Rather, they rely on a constant stream of creativity, for which they need a constant stream of energy. Companies that are able to create a company culture where executives and employees not only know how to manage and leverage their mental energy but can also take a holistic approach to life and manage their emotional, spiritual and physical energy, will have a significant competitive advantage.
The creativity economy requires a rapid production of new brilliant creative ideas, and creative thinking uses up a ton of energy. On a daily basis, our brains use 20 percent of our total energy. To spend this energy wisely, our brain has learned to hardwire repeated behaviors so they become automatic. Nothing about creative thinking is an automatic process; it is a complex task that can be an energy drain on our brains. Therefore, the importance of energy management should not be underestimated and requires a completely different outlook on how to view and manage employees within an organization.
The shift that needs to take place is for executives to start seeing themselves and their employees as energetic sources instead of resources. Resources can be depleted, but sources on the other hand (if properly managed), can’t. It is energy, not time or intelligence, that is the main ingredient of highly successful companies of the future. If energy levels are low, our brain functions at a much more basic level, that will not skyrocket any creativity (and therefore success). When a company’s sources (read: their executives and employees) are running high on energy, the company is much more likely to have innovative breakthroughs, which will make them a runaway company.
Within the creative economy, employees are no longer a means to an end, but they have value in themselves. Again, they are a source. They are the antennas on the roof of your company, capable of receiving new information, ideas, and “aha”-moments (through intuition development), that will drive your company’s growth.
This change of paradigm requires a different approach to the way of working. It is not necessary for your employees to be in the house (even though now many of us work at home) to function as the previously mentioned antenna. However, it is necessary for them to live in harmony with their four bodies: mind, body, emotion, and spirit.
The nine-to-five-way of working makes it more challenging for an individual to find a balance between these four bodies. Who we are at home is who we bring to the workplace and vice versa – we carry the same “vehicle” from one place to another. It is foolish to think that we can “turn on” something or someone else, whom all of a sudden has found balance within their four energetic bodies because that is what our employer requires us to deliver high performance, as soon as we appear on our workplace.
Companies must understand the uselessness of micro-managing their people under their roof under the premise that only then they can keep control over the performance of their employees, and realize the possible destructive nature of this “old” way of working on their company’s long-term business success.
Therefore, working hours flexibility is a crucial element of the creativity economy. After hiring highly skilled people, if you want to maximize their potential, you must view them as the valuable source they are. You must be willing to move away from the average nine-to-five (and any other systems and structures in place) if that allows them to act upon their needs and harmonize their four bodies, and trust their sense of job ownership and responsibility
No matter what economy we live in, a business or startup’s management is one of the biggest predictors of its success. However, within the creativity economy, the role of leaders might be a bigger predictor than ever before. Mainly because creativity and innovation require a company culture, and leadership style in which vulnerability is encouraged, and failure, which is on the flipside of expressing creativity, is embraced too.
It is one thing to intellectually understand this importance, but it is another thing to put this into practice. And not only that – if you talk the talk, you have to walk the walk, because otherwise, you lose your employees credibility. If you don’t dare to be vulnerable as a leader, how do you expect your employees to be vulnerable? You are the father or mother of the family they initially look at – who sets the framework for what is perceived as normal within the team or company.
It is said that the best leaders are coaches and although that is certainly true, it is easier to coach other people than it is to look in the mirror yourself. Leaders must be emotionally and spiritually mature, know themselves really well, be willing to face their shadow sides, and hold a bigger perspective on life than just their self-interest.
In general, but especially the creativity economy does not benefit from large leadership egos. Leaders must be humble enough to step back and understand that their job is to recognize and bring forward their employee’s talent. They must not be threatened by skillful, creative, or talented people whom they supervise. Their sense of self must exist beyond their job role, otherwise, their leadership style won’t be sustainable and at least stagnate the company’s growth. This is because employees are sensitive to the suppression of leaders who fear their own position in the face of their employee’s talent. Employees must be able to express themselves freely to be able to maximize their creative capabilities with the company’s interest at heart. For many companies, hiring or growing these kinds of leaders is already a challenge in itself.
Once the right leader is in place, first it is important to coach employees towards getting to know themselves well, in order to know what they need at any point in time to perform at their highest level. This kind of self-insight and self-regulation is beyond the average employee’s personal development plan. Companies have a social responsibility and of course, great self-interest too, to help employees get to the core of their fears and doubts and peel off layers and layers of thought patterns, that are not serving them in their highest good.
A self-development plan of this kind must also include educating your employees about the way their human potential can be unlocked. They must have an in-depth understanding of the way their brain and mind work and must be capable of reverse engineering how their (subconscious) belief system impacts their entire way of operating. This kind of learning and growth will contribute to your employees living in alignment with their best self – a place from where creativity can come forth and where the pot of gold can be found.
Second, it is not just about emerging the creativity out of your employees – it is what you let them do with it. Innovation labs, brainstorm days, and organizing company hackathons are appealing, but they are worthless and disappointing if employees are not given the time and space to act upon their innovative ideas. This seems like a no-brainer, but where start-ups are courageous enough to take an idea into action, corporations are more hesitant and less brave to take these kinds of leaps.
Ofcourse, this is explainable in the face of organizational structure. Start-ups and micro-business don’t have to report to stakeholders or global business leaders, so they will have fewer difficulties experimenting with creative ideas than corporates do. The latter is often quartile-focused (short-term) and in favor of clear measurable predictions and results per working hour. This is not the ideal starting point of experimenting with creativity, which often contains higher risks and working hours spent on “mind wandering” and daydreaming, initially with an unknown result. But take Steve Jobs as an example, who allowed himself to explore his interests and play, without much clue about the outcome on the forehand – we all know how that story ended.
With many challenges ahead for companies, corporations, organziations and their leaders, it is a great time for generations who value self-expression. They now have the opportunities to deliver game-changing contributions by expressing their unique selves. Not only to impact the company they work for, but also for society at large. However, it is up to companies to offer the right circumstances – otherwise, they will go elsewhere. As a business leader, this is the opposite of what you want in the face of the war of talent. Runaway companies will turn the creativity economy into a win-win-win situation: fun for employees, big business for their company, and outcomes that are for the highest good of humanity.