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“What I realize is that I’m my bravest when I’m curious … curiosity for me requires a lot of courage” – Brene Brown
This quote caught my attention when I was listening to an episode of Simon Sinek’s podcast, which featured Brene Brown and Adam Grant as guests. The link between curiosity and courage was tantalizing. I immediately wanted to explore how they were linked. My next thought was how this relates to creative strategists, especially as the Advertising industry faces unprecedented change.
Exploring the Courage in Curiosity for Creative Strategists
Curiosity is probably the most valuable attribute strategists possess. We spend countless hours researching diverse topics to find insights and then work with others to express them. Curiosity is the attribute that makes these tasks rewarding, changing our end goal from just completing the task to exploring what is possible.
On the other hand, courage is the piece that allows us to be resilient in curiosity. Creative strategists face constant pressure, from time crunches to information overload and cost-cutting. Curiosity is great for exploration and innovation but it can be hard to justify doing something in the name of it. It’s tempting to dial the curiosity down and opt for more projectable processes. The cost is that we will lose the creative part of being a creative strategist, denying us the possibility of creating more original work.
How Creative Strategists Can Be Courageous in Curiosity Amongst a Changing Agency Landscape
So, back to Brene Brown, creativity requires a lot of courage. This includes the courage to explore the unknown, not conform to the norm, and persist. Being courageous in curiosity means staying curious even against pressures that stifle it. As the Advertising industry landscape exceedingly transforms amongst new technologies, evolving consumer behaviours, and changing client demands, the need for courage in curiosity will only intensify.
In the following sections, I’ll explore three ways creative strategists can show up with courage in curiosity.
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Improve Collaboration by Having Courage in Curiosity with Communication
In a creative agency, it can often feel like each team works in silos. Strategists do the research and then pass it over to creatives. The media team then takes the work and spreads it. The account team manage the client and project timeline. Communication can be sparse and once you hand work off, chances are you don’t see it again. This process is done for time-saving but can also lead to tension and inconsistent deliverables.
For creative strategists, the pressure intensifies when this disconnect shortens timeframes. We all know the stereotypes right? Tight client deadlines, panicked account managers, and strong-minded creatives facing their own time crunch pressure strategists to work as quickly as possible. This means a creative strategist either needs to work overtime, push back, or risk building a shaky foundation for the project.
To combat this, we need to lead in communication. As one of the first groups to engage with a project, creative strategists set the tone for how the project goes. Being courageous in curiosity means leading in how the different groups work together. This could include engaging account managers as strategic partners to improve communication with internal teams and clients. It could also mean getting curious about how different the teams work and being strategic about the points to bring them into the process. In my experience, I’ve usually found creative and media team members are grateful when they are engaged earlier and have stake in the strategic process. They can also work more efficiently when it’s their turn to shine.
It can feel easier to let project management and communication fall to the account managers. However, bringing your strategic gifts to the project planning process could mean much tighter collaboration. This means we get to tap into the innovation and creativity of the collective across the process. The work is usually better for it and it’s much more enjoyable when everyone is on the same page.
Manage the Overwhelming Noise by Having Courage in Curiosity with Diligence and Adaptability
For strategists, finding the right insight feels more like finding a needle in the haystack now than ever before. It has never been easier to access information but now it’s hard to know where to start. Furthermore, misinformation and disinformation have skyrocketed in recent years. While new technologies help us sort through data, we are faced with new problems like AI illusions.
As advertising agencies continue to be expected to deliver more and strategists increase their contribution, it is increasingly difficult to find time to sort out the valuable information from the junk. As this pressure increases, the temptation to take shortcuts does too.
In the face of all this noise, we need courage in curiosity to seek the truth and adapt to new methods of work. Amongst the misinformation and disinformation, it’s important to constantly double check information. Taking this extra step will protect your work and reputation. Does this mean that we need to work more? No, because technology can help. AI isn’t a magic bullet that can do all your work for you but it is useful. Using it to provide summaries, categorize data, and help to find sources can make research more efficient. Consistently incorporating new technologies will help with information management and integrity. As the noise grows, we need the courage to be curious about the truth and constantly question how we work.
Overcoming the Economics of Agency Consolidation by Having Courage in Curiosity with Creativity
It’s tough right now for creative strategists. Every week you hear of more layoffs and it seems like all the agency giants are consolidating agencies in extensive cost-cutting measures. For freelancers, client work appears to have dried up and everyone is hoping for a turn in the market soon.
It also feels like how we work is becoming more templatized than ever before. Agency consolidation also means less diversity of thought and process. Many of these agencies are choosing the most predictable path for creative work to better project their costs and revenues. There is less room for exploration and thus, less room for creativity.
We need to be courageous and curious in the creative process in the face of this reality. As the big agencies consolidate and implement their way of thinking across their organization, we could see fewer new ideas. Creativity requires space and diversity of thought. Defending time and space is a necessary step to create truly orignal work. For creative strategists who can zig when everyone else is zagging, there is an opportunity to stand out in the crowd. The path to success comes from having the courage to make room for exploration, lateral thinking, and outside-the-box ideas. As the bigger agencies continue to compete on costs and resources, there will be more room for creativity and agility.
The Spoils for Creative Strategists Who Are Courageous in Curiosity
“Choosing to be curious is choosing to be vulnerable because it requires us to surrender to uncertainty. It wasn’t always a choice; we were born curious.” – Brene Brown
Back once again to Brene Brown. We were born curious but many of us learned not to be because it made us vulnerable in the face of uncertainty. The advertising industry is undergoing tremendous change and creative strategists are questioning how work will transform. This uncertainty can lead to paralysis but it can also lead to opportunity. Opportunities include creating better working environments, redefining what it means to be a creative strategist, more efficiency, and creating more meaningful and original work.
Creative strategists must focus on attributes like communication, diligence, adaptability, and creativity to take advantage of these opportunities. We must have courage in curiosity.
Interested in reading more? Check out my article on how couples can understand relationship conflict more by using working models.
