What is meant by the word ‘creative’?
It means something completely different to each client.
To one it may mean, “I want the same as my competitors but different.”
To another it may be as simple as wanting a new jingle.
To another it means, “Give me the same as we’ve had for the last twenty years, but not quite.”
99% will want something that they recognize from experience.
Only one in ten thousand will really mean, “Give me something I haven’t seen before.”
So before you make your pitch, find out exactly what your client means by the word ‘creative’.
It’s probably different from your definition.
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Excerpted from It’s Not How Good You Are, It’s How Good You Want to Be, by the late Paul Arden, published by Phaidon.
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Resources on creativity:
Ken Robinson says schools kill creativity, on TED
Creativity: the Least Important, Most Important Thing There Is, on Lateral Action
On Creativity, on A List Apart
The problem with creativity, a guest post on Logo Design Love
Creative Edward de Bono quotes, on davidairey.com
On creative block, on davidairey.com
Michael Wolff on creativity, on davidairey.com
Image via Thinkstock
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8 appreciated comments on “What is meant by the word ‘creative’?”
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Great post. Sometimes, creativity is just giving a new spin on an old idea. Definitely something to think about when working with a client.
By the way, the blog is very impressive. One of my favorite resources for inspiration and information.
Of course, (too) many definitions are subjective when talking about design.
Creativity is challenging conventions in a simple fashion.
Creativity is overturning precepts in a simple way.
Creativity is breaking rules in a simple manner.
Like when clients give NO direction whatsoever, and say something something like: “Ehhhh, I dont know, just be creative!” – Yeah, thanks.
I completely agree with this too. I always thought that “creative” meant something different that hasn’t been done before but that’s just my opinion. Do you think a question like this should be included in a brief?
I teach my students that creativity results from combining two unlike ideas.
Creativity is a matter of altering ones perception of an issue. An issue remains an issue as long as one looks at the problem from one specific angle. Change the angle and the solution presents itself. This would be that moment of creativity.
The more you change your perception the more solutions present themselves – one perhaps better suited than the other. For example, the number 7 is a number to most but turn it around and it ends up looking like a nose, a pointy nose.
I thought that last sentence was going to read, ‘…the number 7 is a number to most but turn it around and it’s a one.’
My theory:
Research + Inspiration = Creativity