The new world of creativity.
The passing of the winter solstice and the becoming of the New Year carries out a comforting, cross-cultural symbolism. Conquering the darkness (be it monsters, villains, or long cold nights). The fire and the light symbolizing purification, rejuvenation, and rebirth. The tokens of gratitude and the charms of hope.
Last year has brought the catastrophic and unprecedented events — a load so heavy, so immense and so unimaginable — that it will take time to get it off our backs. Corona vaccination entering the markets, Trump (almost) acknowledging that he is out, Black Lives Matter movement thriving. They all carry the message: now, we transform; now, we shall overcome. The real question is no longer IF we should transform but WHEN and HOW.
What changes will be called upon in the creative industry? The fact that it is called ‘industry’ denotes something here — the profit, the manufacture, the workforce, the factory. It will be very tempting for many ‘industry’ leaders to do everything to quickly ‘bounce back’ from the crisis: drive profit, pump the revenue, squeeze it: push, turn, hammer — at all cost. Thou shall not transform, thou shall protect the status quo.
The paradox: the stronger the old resists, the stronger the new persists. So — instead of talking about the good old creative industry — let us talk about the new world of creativity. Conscious creativity, with conscious leaders and conscious brand leadership, is a choice. We can choose how we create, what we create, and how we deliver on that creativity. And it is happening. There’s The Great Reset, and the Net Zero of creativity, the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals making their way to the Cannes Lions.
And it is TODAY that every business already CAN operate with a sense of higher purpose, integrate the interests of all stakeholders, develop and elevate conscious leaders, and build a culture of trust, accountability, and caring[1].
Is there another way of doing it?
One might say — practice what you preach. Here are the ten guiding principles that I’ve set for myself and A.D. new world as a compass for our purposeful growth.
- Turn CSR into CSV (Create Shared Value). Turn corporate responsibility into creating responsibly
- See contributors — not consumers. See contribution — not consumption. See humanity — not the economy
- Create with purpose and for the purposeful businesses
- Help brands become leaders of the purposeful world
- Turn on the new world consciousness so that your brands can stay conscious and free from bias and the old world paradigms
- Draw the exponential curve of positive change — design win-win solutions within your value chain
- Align beliefs with actions: drop mark-ups, drop the bullshit, drop politics
- Trust in the power of the collective, the power of the network, and the power of synergy
- Start with adding your piece to it: give before you’ll expect to receive
- Keep it simple, keep it real
[1] Conscious Capitalism: Liberating the Heroic Spirit of Business, John E. Mackey
