The Dreamer’s Manual:
16 Steps to Achieve Your Creative Goals
Step 5: Create Momentum
The more people working to help you accomplish your goals, the greater the probability of success. There are pros and cons to group dynamics, but building a creative team will likely take you farther and faster than going it alone.
When you’re working on your own, your energy levels will wax and wane. Periods of great productivity will alternate with times when next to nothing gets done. Your natural rhythms are sometimes a whirlpool, and sometimes still water.
Putting together a team will create a constant flow of ideas and energies. Group work is like a river that’s always pushing you toward your goals, and if you build the right kind of team, it can allow everyone to work at maximum capacity.
To create a river, you need to figure out how to build all the moving parts of the “machine” that will propel you forward. Friends and family might pitch in for free, others might barter for products and services, and some folks others will only work for money.
Your team should complete their work in the most professional manner possible. Maintain high standards, and do not accept the help of people you suspect might do a sub-standard job.
Here are some of the jobs that help propel creative work to success:
- Creative Assistants – including graphic and web designers, music producers, art assistants, copywriters and editors
- Project Manager – having someone who can keep your project on track, from a work and financial perspective, is essential
- Quality Controller – you should always have a pair of eyes and ears check your work and make sure it’s ready for prime time, before it goes out the door
- Marketer – it’s important to have someone who gets the word out there, through word of mouth, print and online advertisements, television, radio, and social media
- Salesperson – you need someone on your team who knows the appropriate sales channels for your industry, and can help you sell enough of your products or services to make everyone’s efforts worthwhile
- Distributor – the person or entity in charge of getting your wares to your clients is a key player on your team
When you are first starting out, it may be hard to build a team, but if one of your short-term goals is to form a group to help you reach your long-term goals, keeping your eyes and ears open for opportunities is the best way to start putting one together.
Step 5: Create momentum