Many ideas are borne out of solitude. The shower is a classic example of quiet alone-time creating a vacuum for new thoughts. Still, we usually have to bring these thoughts back to a team for development. We also have moments where we need to generate ideas in a team environment.

Having the proper team chemistry is critical for this creative work. It helps to have individuals fulfill certain roles to guide, inspire and cultivate ideas. Some of these roles played aren’t just beneficial, they’re critical.

Below are nine film characters who best epitomize these roles:

Indiana Jones – The Explorer

Creative teams need someone who will take them into uncharted territory. If you have an “Indie,” his sense of adventure coupled with his appreciation for different cultures will unearth treasures of ideas.

Sister Maria – The Creativity Facilitator

Creative teams need creative environments. This is no problem for Maria. She knows when something special is needed – the sound of music, the aroma of candles, the inspiration of poetry or the invigoration of a team exercise. Her creativity sets the stage for others to generate ideas. That’s a special gift.

Q from James Bond – Mr. R & D

If you need tools and resources for your project, this is your man. Q may not make all the gadgets himself, but he knows what can be done and what is at your disposal. This can range from administrative needs to IT equipment.

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Dorothy Gale – The Visionary

Tired of Kansas? So is Dorothy. She has a dream of a better place. She wants better things for herself, but she also will align with the needs of others. She’s sensitive to those around her. She wants to make sure others get their courage, heart and brains. By helping them get what they want, she gets her own reward.

Danny Ocean – The Team Builder

Part of planning is defining roles. Ocean is a pro at foreseeing the skills and personalities necessary in pulling off a job. He also knows how to delegate responsibility. He’s not a one-man team, though he is extremely capable on his own. He realizes the value of a team.

Jason Bourne – The Improv Innovator

When you need ideas on-the-spot, look to Bourne. It seems as though whatever’s on hand becomes an instant resource in the fight for ideas. Anything seems to inspire him – the topic of conversation, a painting on the wall, an article he read this morning… he uses them for the moment at hand.

Erin Brockovich – The Go-Getter

You can’t stay in brainstorming mode forever. Erin will move the team off dead-center. She pushes everyone into action and isn’t intimidated by hurdles. Though she may be a little brash, most people still have a healthy respect for her because she is hard working and brutally honest.

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Morpheus - The Reality Check

Welcome to the real world. Morpheus sees things as they are, but also as they can be. He doesn’t want to pretend everything is OK. He wants to be active in making things better. He will face up to a dismal financial picture, but challenge everyone to rally together and beat the odds.

Clarice Starling – The Collaborator

If you have a room full of strong personalities, like the characters in this list, the potential for conflict is elevated. Clarice is superb at bringing out the best in team members. She can work well with authority, but also with the unsavory type. She never loses sight of the goal and pulls the necessary information out of individuals to keep the team moving forward.

A combination of these roles can create a potent, creative team. For more in-depth information on team roles in creativity and innovation, I recommend Tom Kelley’s book The Ten Faces of Innovation.

Did you know you can train fleas to stay in a jar?

Put them in a jar and screw on the lid. They will jump and bump the lid repeatedly, because they can jump much higher than the lid. After a few days, take the lid off. They won’t jump out. They still have the ABILITY to jump out, but hitting the lid over and over trained them that there was a limit. Even with the lid removed, they still BELIEVE the limitation exists.

I believe we were all created with incredible creative potential. I also believe there are ‘lids’ placed on our creativity throughout our lives: criticisms, failures, painful experiences, teasing, comparing ourselves to others, fear… the list goes on and on. Eventually, we need to remove these lids so our creativity can jump higher.

How do we do that?

Take a Risk

We live in a risk-averse culture. Need proof? Calculate how much money you spend a month on insurance. Include health, auto, home, life and disability. It adds up. Also, we buy insurance in other forms – warranties and money-back guarantees. We don’t want to take any unnecessary risks and apparently we’re willing to pay for it.

Ironically, almost anything worth accomplishing requires risk. Herodotus said “Great deeds are usually wrought at great risks.” Seth Godin says “Safe really is risky.”

Where are you playing it safe? Is it holding back your creativity?

Just Do It

Creativity = Imagination + Action. Imagination alone won’t be enough, you have to do something with it. Be willing to prototype your ideas. Create a rough sketch, an outline, jot down some notes, put together a plan. Start making something. It doesn’t have to be perfect. If you wait until the idea is perfect, you’ll never start working on it.

According to the Surgeon General, perfectionism is the leading cause of procrastination.

Put Your Prints on It

You are unique. Shouldn’t your work be as well? Shouldn’t what you do reflect who you are?

Don’t ask a generic question like, “What would a dancer do now?”

Ask, “How was I created to do this dance?”

Simply following the lines set by others will deflate your creativity.

Don’t let your roles define who you are, let who you are define your roles.

Look Up

This has a double-meaning.

First, look up because the lid may have already been removed. Like the fleas in the jar, you might just be limiting yourself – afraid of hitting your head on a lid that isn’t there.

Secondly, look up for inspiration. If you believe you are a created being, then look to the Creator for direction. That is the source of creativity which we synthesize into our daily lives. Like sunlight on leaves giving energy to the tree.

I hope this helps you to jump higher… right out of the jar!

You’re in a meeting and a seemingly brilliant idea enters your mind. Adrenaline starts to rush. You imagine what wonderful things might happen if your idea is executed. You can’t wait to interject.

“Wait a second. I just had an idea.”

Everybody stops and gives you their attention as you breathlessly explain the epiphany you just experienced. Maybe you rambled a little or reached a little for examples and metaphors, but the idea was brought to the table. That’s enough for you.

You finish and wait for the plaudits. The room is quiet. It takes a while for people to absorb brilliance. Someone begins to speak.

His words aren’t coated in appreciation and wonder. They’re hardened by skepticism and disinterest. Others echo his sentiment. Soon the conversation moves on and your idea has been brushed off the table onto the floor, soon to be sucked into the vacuum of time and forgotten.

Sound familiar? We’ve all been there. Some of us seem to live there. Your idea seemed so exciting and valid in your mind. Now it is worthless.

Why didn’t anyone else like your idea?
Here are a few reasons ideas aren’t accepted:

1. You took a leap, but didn’t build a bridge.
Our minds wander down paths and make leaps from one idea to the next very quickly. Your idea makes perfect sense to you because of the path you followed internally. If you don’t take everyone else down that path, it probably won’t make sense to them.

2. Your idea had no tether.
Your idea may be exciting, but if it isn’t tied to the purpose, budget and/or deadline… it’s floating away like a helium balloon without a string. See more on this in my post about Paper Airplanes and Kites.

3. You told a song.
Some ideas just can’t be spoken. They have to be experienced differently. You might need music or an illustration. Concepts for TV often need storyboards. Print ideas may need a layout sketch. Don’t expect people to see or hear what is in your head. Make it real to them.

4. You have no relational equity.
Maybe you’re new and need to “earn your stripes.” Perhaps they don’t like you. Do you have a track record for presenting poor ideas? This is a big and difficult hurdle to cross. Find someone with relational equity and get them to champion your idea.

5. You tossed an egg instead of a bird.
You tossed it out there too early. Given time, it would have flown. Instead, it simply splattered on the floor. Unless you have a VERY forgiving environment, a premature idea won’t survive. Be more patient.

6. Too many thorns around the rose.
Maybe it was a good idea, but when criticism arose, you got defensive. Maybe you didn’t show any flexibility when suggestions were offered. Be willing to give in to peripheral changes like colors or fonts (unless it really does kill the idea). Even consider more drastic changes. Considering them doesn’t mean you have to allow them. If they can’t touch or smell the rose without a prick, they won’t appreciate it as much.

7. You assumed you knew it all.
This is a huge mistake that happens way too often. Don’t be presumptuous. Maybe your idea has been tried before. Maybe there’s more information that would help you come up with better ideas. Perhaps your idea won’t work, but be willing to let it bring new ideas out of others. You don’t have to CREATE all the ideas, just RECOGNIZE the good ones.

This isn’t an exhaustive list, but these are the ones I encounter most often. Hope this helps you next time you think no one likes your ideas.

Preconceptions often arise when you say someone is creative. A friend of mine even uses air quotes with that word. He also uses it as a noun, which is common in ad agencies.
“You can do that because you’re a ‘creative’.”

The connotation isn’t completely positive. There is this suggestion that though creative people can be very interesting and fun, they aren’t very relevant or practical. Sometimes they’re just annoying.

As a person who makes a living by being “creative”, I’ve noticed that some exceptionally creative people are better at being relevant, practical and ultimately… useful. Meanwhile others are abrasive, unilateral and consumed with thinking “outside the box.” The biggest difference is whether they treat their ideas as paper airplanes or kites.

Paper Airplanes

At one point or another, you’ve probably made a paper airplane. More than likely, it was a fun diversion from something boring… like school. You could spend quite a bit of time creating elaborate designs, but after a few minutes of tossing it in the air you moved on to something else.

Some creative people are the same way. Their ideas are fun diversions from a boring life. Some of these ideas can be quite elaborate and detailed. Unfortunately, they lack relevance. Tossed into the air, they rarely soar very high and soon come back to earth. You can repeatedly throw, fling or chunk the idea back into the air, but it is quickly grounded again and again.

The other issue is the ideas lack control. Unless you’re in a very open environment, they tend to crash into existing structures and/or people. Some creative people give you very little ability to direct their ideas, so there’s not much you can do to keep them from disrupting systems, irritating people or damaging themselves beyond an ability to fly.

Kites

The biggest difference between a paper airplane and a kite is the tether. Although a kite can sour to great heights, it has a thin piece of twine connecting it to someone on the ground. Even though the person doesn’t have complete control of the kite, they can direct it enough to keep it from hitting trees or power lines.

When creative people treat ideas as kites, they use relevance as their twine. It seems like that would limit their ideas. Ironically, the tension of the pull is what allows the idea to scale higher into the air. The idea still has freedom to move, but is given a gentle pull in a direction. If the kite is pulled too hard in a direction, it loses altitude and may come crashing down. So, there is a delicate balance between the kite and the ‘holder of the twine’ (i.e. bosses, customers, clients, etc.).

How to Turn a Paper Airplane into a Kite

1. Listen
When you feel someone is dissin’ your idea, don’t respond immediately out of self-defense. Listen to their objection or concern and weigh it from their perspective. If it is a valid opinion, it may save your idea – not destroy it.

2. Be willing to think ‘inside the box’
Thinking outside the box is overrated. Case and point. Most creatives loathe the concept of thinking inside the box, but that’s where the real power lies. If your ideas have no parameters, they have little use. Budgets, deadlines and goals cannot be ignored. There are times to stretch them, but ignoring them is a surefire way to ground your idea quickly.

3. Keep the big picture in mind
No matter how great an idea seems, if it doesn’t contribute to the big picture it is pointless. The big picture is like the wind. Kites will grab on to it, while paper airplanes just try to cut through.

If you’re a “creative” think of this next time you feel a client, customer or coworker doesn’t ‘get it.’  Are you treating your ideas like a paper airplane or a kite?